Gigabyte Z68X-UD7-B3 Motherboard Review

The Bios is unfortunately not one of the newer UEFI driven interface configurations, but it does offer a wide variety of settings, especially in regards to overclocking. As hoped, we managed to get the Intel Core i7 2600k overclocked to 4.8ghz with high end aircooling. Pretty much as good as we would expect without moving to watercooling or phase change. Higher speeds are possible, but the temperatures get too high, even with a Noctua NH D14.

Below there are a variety of screenshots from various parts of the bios, highlighting some of the adjustments available.

Let's take a quick look at the software on the disc provided.

Gigabyte supply all the drivers necessary to get audio, lan and other functionality operational. There is also a quick install button which takes away much of the effort of clicking multiple buttons.

After a couple of minutes, the software and drivers are all installed and a reboot is required.

The Gigabyte Dynamic Energy Saver 2 software deserves a special mention. This is a software tool which lowers the power demand of various components in the system. As the images above show, by enabling it when idle, the power drain drops from almost 14 watts to just under 4 watts. If you leave a system on 24/7 idling, this would be a great option to enable.

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