Testing - Games
Overclocking in games is what we know our readers are interested in, and the results below speak for themelves. Remember each test is an average of three runs at the lowest possible resolution for each individual game, be it 640x480 or 800x600, so as to not limit the results based on the video card. This way we can truly see the systems performance and just how much the overclock is affecting it. Clearly some people won't notice a difference of about 10 frames, but getting an average of 108 FPS in the Source Engine is pretty good.


We know the Counter-Strike: Source Stress Test may not be the harshest system performance killer around, but it's a game that is being played in most of the major North American tournaments today, so performance numbers are in great demand. Here we can see the huge difference in FPS even at really high levels. If you're used to low resolution play with Counter-Strike 1.6 and think it might be better to keep your low resolution in Counter-Strike: Source, then by all means go ahead. But realize that widescreen gamers do have a distinct advantage in Source over those who play on traditional 4:3 ratio screens.


BattleField 2142 is a futuristic take on the Battlefield universe fought with 22nd century weapons and vehicles. At this point you may be thinking about whether or not it is worth voiding your warranty in order to garner an imperceptible boost in FPS, but remember these numbers mark only the beginning of what is capable with this motherboard. This is indicative of the rest of these performance numbers from here on out, so you can take a look at the numbers for yourself to see the difference in performance. In some benchmarks you may not see a lot of a difference, in some you may. Just remember that, overall, this what you are getting with this motherboard especially if you are opting to go with an AM2 setup.