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P5B Deluxe vs Commando

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Vulcan

Member
Joined
Jan 1, 2004
Location
Pa
I'm probably going to be picking up a new board... Has anyone had first hand experience with both the P5B Deluxe and the Commando?

Any thoughts?
 
For a gamer\Overclocker Commando is the best choice. For instance Commando does not have a LPT Printer port. Commando has insane voltage capabilties like 3.3V for DDR2!
 
OK I thought it only had one pci-e but now looking at the newegg pics I can see you are right. Now here I am wondering if I should be upgrading my P5B. I like the way the heatpipe runs all the way over to the southbridge. P5B leaves the southbridge to fend for its self in the cooling department.
 
RangerXLT8 said:
For a gamer\Overclocker Commando is the best choice. For instance Commando does not have a LPT Printer port.
Last time I checked the P5B Deluxe doesn't have a LPT port either. I don't really see how not having a printer port benefits a gamer anyway. You can wlasy disable legacy ports via the bios anyway.


RangerXLT8 said:
Commando has insane voltage capabilties like 3.3V for DDR2!
The useful range for vDimm with ddr2 doesn't really extend above 2.5V, so being able to go up to 3.3V isn't an advantage either.

hyperasus said:
OK I thought it only had one pci-e but now looking at the newegg pics I can see you are right. Now here I am wondering if I should be upgrading my P5B. I like the way the heatpipe runs all the way over to the southbridge. P5B leaves the southbridge to fend for its self in the cooling department.
The south bridge really doesn't need to be tied in with a heatpipe like that. In all honesty, its probably better off on its own.
 
to be honest as far as I have been able to tell the only real advantage is the added voltage options which are quite overkill IMHO, I havnt seen many people on here or XS raving about it since its release and it has a couple small bugs if I remember correctly people on XS were saying.
 
Like any new board there are a few initial issues that have effected some, which are documented in the xs thread. Commando Results by Tony and Andre (and others...)

The commando is in effect a 2nd generation 965 mobo which means imo:-
1) doesn't suffer with the new chipset issues that have caused grief with the 680i boards & is cheaper than them
2) Has the more advanced features
8 phase EL-Capless power design
found on the Striker, missing from the earlier 965 boards.
3) Following on from 2) the layout is a lot cleaner than other 965 mobos with a great uncluttered cpu area, which means virtually any cpu cooler wil fit.
4) Better voltage options, (though i must admit to not having had to use them.)

So i'm pleased with mine for the few $ more it's ok. Still exploring oc capabilities, but am running 385x9@4:5 24/7 in the meantime. Heat is the only restriction.
 
I really do like the layout on the commando.

Supershanks: Have you had any of the sound issues I've heard so much about?
 
Not heard of any sound issues:D. THe driver install can be a little troublesome, the Bus Driver for HDA needs to be installed 1st, something the asus driver doesn't always do. But other than that minor installation glitch nowt else.

Well mine's running well on it I have 1000 rated memory, having got up to 9x385 @1:1 stably i thought i'd try 4:5 & it's worked great. i think is not easily attainable in other asus 965 mobos been in the "Strap Gap"

1) Stability
385x9@4-5_Orthos11hr.JPG

2)Decent 2x32M SuperPi
9x385@4-5_SuperPi2x32m.JPG
 
I'm playing w/ one too. It's prettier and the bios has been much improved. Why can't they just do that w/ the P5B?

The "hump the heatsink on your left" design stumped me for a bit. If I used the Jing Ting on the NB, the SB'ed be left naked. (didn't wanna break the pipe) I found some machine screws and fiber washers from Home Depot and that at least allowed me to get rid of the stupid plastic springs. The 2nd heatpipe def helps as opposed to the single lane on the P5B. Not sure if I like it tho...might need to find a separate sink for the SB. The CMOS button's pretty trick. The LED goes off when it's depressed (active), but it doesn't fully reset. I noticed the only way to kill the time was removing the battery. Hopefully that's the only thing that stuck and the button will get the job done. I've also noticed the ability to power on by spacebar "works" instead of "not working" on my P5B. Anyone else have P5B and space to power on doesn't work?

Also, a big FWIW...my Stripe stayed true from board to board. I really didn't expect that.

IMG_1746.jpg
 
Grrr...it won't shut up. I've got some more ram coming in tomorrow, maybe that will "buzz/scream/cry/whine" less. :(

FWIW, my P5B didn't pull any of this crap.
 
Well, got the P5B Deluxe today. Not too impressed thus far :(

The sound max drivers in vista are abysmal...

I'm seriously thinking about ditching the P5B Deluxe based on that alone.
 
To me the main advantage of the Commando over the P5B-D, at least superficially, is the layout of the slots. With no WiFi onboard the extra PCI slot is handy rather than having to use a PCI slot right below the main PEG slot if you have two PCI cards and a dual-slot video card. Too bad the audio riser connector isn't a PCIe 1x :( which I thought it was when I first saw the pictures. Any difference in the included audio doesn't mean much imo, onboard is onboard and even sub-$25 cards are better.

I'm not sure about these issues people are reporting though, so the differences may be mnore than skin deep. The voltage options don't mean much because they are higher than is sane anyway. Between the two if I was buying new right now I'd probably get the Commando for the layout based on the small price difference, but already having a P5B I wouldn't bother upgrading unless I had to use 3 PCI cards. There's just not nearly enough of a difference to justify spending $40-50 (loss on the P5B plus cost of the Commando.)
 
Gotta love the layout :) If you already have the P5B-D, than it might be more out of pocket cash than it's really worth - aka diminshing returns - as other folks have stated in previous posts.

Personally, i'll be upgrading to this board from the XBX r.305 that i've got now... i NEED the additional options to push my clocks further.


~ Gos
 
Gotta love the layout If you already have the P5B-D, than it might be more out of pocket cash than it's really worth
Yep I'd have to agree but coming from an amd build i 'm very pleaesed with the results especially when comparing price/performance ratio to the 680i boards, which a) don't seem to offer the same performane & b) by comparison cost an arm & a leg.

I'm even more pleased today after finishingFinal bit of project 4xMatrix Raid :D
 
Supershanks said:
...especially when comparing price/performance ratio to the 680i boards, which a) don't seem to offer the same performane[/URL]:D
That's the main reason I didn't go w/ the EVGA board. Now that I've experienced the power of the matrix and the crazy snappy Winblows experience... :beer: :beer:

Gonna swap out the Commando @ Fry's in hopes of receiving a less noisy board. Wish me luck!
 
Luck m8 of mine just had the same issues with his commando thankfully mine's better behaved, seems to be a quality issue i think
 
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