Event: Bringing The Hardcore Back – ASUS Technical Media Seminar 2011

ASUS P9X79 Series

ASUS Tech Update

Last year, ASUS invited HWM Philippines to a technical seminar which was held in Singapore. The seminar introduced their P67 chipset based motherboards which were made to support Intel’s 2nd Generation Core processors. This year, ASUS once again invited us to Singapore for a sneak peek of a new set of motherboards designed to accommodate Intel’s upcoming and much-anticipated X79 chipset.

The Mainstream P9X79 Series

First off is the new P9X79 series of mainstream motherboards. These will be the first boards to support the Intel X79 chipset and allow users to get a taste of the power of Intel’s upcoming processor. As a frontliner, it boasts an impressive array of features that will also be seen implemented on the series’ higher-end counterparts. The series includes the P9X79, P9X79 Pro, and the P9X79 Deluxe.

The motherboards that were introduced in last year’s seminar utilized the then new Dual Intelligent Processors 2 with DIGI+ VRM. The upcoming P9X79 boards will now be utilizing Dual Intelligent Processors 3 with DIGI+ Power Control. What this feature does is provide greater stability to the overall system, as well as offer precise controls for adjusting voltage for the CPU and DRAM. This also translates to greater potentials for overclocking. It provides extra control on VCCSA to allow enthusiasts to push DRAM overclocking even further than before.

Aside from making old technology better, ASUS also served something new for the P9X79 line called ASUS SSD Caching. If you would recall, the introduction of the Intel Z68 chipset also introduced Intel Smart Response Technology (Intel SRT) which essentially allows users to employ a low-capacity SSD as a cache for traditional HDDs to allow for faster access times. Unfortunately, implementing Intel SRT was tedious and required that a system be initially setup with RAID. ASUS took this concept and applied it to an easy-to-use Windows software that will turn any usable SSD into a cache for the main HDD at the press of a button.

Going back to improving old technologies, ASUS introduced the updated ASUS BT GO 3.0 feature. The new feature levies on the connectivity of Bluetooth 3.0 and combines it with Wi-Fi connectivity for up to an 8x boost in transfer speeds. Bluetooth 3.0 devices will then be able faster transfer rates when connecting directly to a desktop PC. Furthermore, users will continue to enjoy the remote accessibility to desktops provided by ASUS BT technology.

BIOS accessibility received a two-part upgrade. The first is USB BIOS Flashback. This convenient new feature will allow users to essily update or recover their ASUS Motherboard's BIOS without even installing a processor into the socket. This is accomplished through a special USB BIOS Flashback USB port. The second part involved adding more overclocking controls on the UEFI interface.

The final feature that will be added to the P9X79 series and succeeding boards is the ASUS USB 3.0 Boost. As the name suggests, it will allow the already fast transfer speed of USB 3.0 gain up to a 170% boost.

Now let us move up to the TUFest motherboard on the block.