Gigabyte EX58-UD4P X58 Motherboard

Conclusion

It’s a rare day indeed when I come across such a well rounded motherboard. All of the other motherboards on test have some failing, be it price, overclocking, aesthetics, cooling etc. The Gigabyte EX58-UD4P hit’s the sweet spot in almost everything. It looks the business (but please get rid of those orange and yellow slots!), it’s performance is up their with boards costing a third more and it’s features, while not quite as extensive as others are useful and not just added for the sake of it.

I was surprised at how similar the UD4P and the UD5 were, the UD5 being our test rig for other components. The UD4P, at a glance looks almost identical to the UD5, it clocks exactly the same and has the majority of the features it’s bigger brother has. The BIOS of the two boards are near identical and very easy to use. While they are not as complex as say the DFI, all the main features are there to allow some supreme overclocks. It works well in AUTO configuration too which is a blessing for those unsure about reference voltages and the calculations needed to offset these with VTT etc.

I would have liked to have seen copper cooling instead of the Aluminium used but that would add to the cost of the motherboard and put it into competition with the big boys, thereby defeating the object of this motherboard. Priced around the £200 mark it’s by no means cheap but as X58 goes the UD4P is placed in the mid-range sector. However, I think I have shown that this motherboard is capable of punching above it’s weight and on occasion placing high end boards firmly on their backsides.

If you are in the market for a feature packed, high performing motherboard that ticks all the right boxes in the mid-range sector, I cannot think of a better motherboard than the UD4P.

 

The Good
– Overclocking
– On board LED’s
– SLI/Crossfire compatibility
– Comprehensive accessories

The Mediocre
– Packaging could be better
– Aluminium heatsinks

The Bad
– Orange/yellow slots

 

 

Thanks to Gigabyte for providing the EX58-UD4P for todays review. Discuss in our forums.