Comparison Asus M5A78L-M LX3 vs Gigabyte GA-78LMT-S2

The type of BIOS installed on the motherboard. Note that only “classic” BIOSes are taken into account here — from Ami, from Award and from Intel; a more advanced UEFI BIOS has been moved to a separate item (see below).

The BIOS is the basic input/output system, the motherboard's own software firmware stored in its permanent memory; it allows all the hardware components of the system to interact with each other, even if the computer does not have an OS installed. In other words, it is the “bios” that controls the computer from the moment it is turned on until the operating system boots. This firmware also includes a set of tools for changing the basic settings.

Speaking about specific varieties, it is worth saying that the mentioned "classic" firmware do not have fundamental differences between themselves; in addition, the set of features is largely determined not by the type of BIOS, but by the model of the motherboard. Therefore, the type of BIOS is not a key choice; even for professionals and enthusiasts, it rarely turns out to be fundamental.

Motherboard support for DualBIOS technology.

Crashes and errors in the BIOS (see BIOS) are one of the most serious problems that can occur with a modern PC — they not only make the computer unusable, but also very difficult to fix. DualBIOS technology is designed to make it easier to deal with such problems. Motherboards made using this technology have two chips for writing the BIOS: the first chip contains the main BIOS version, which is used to boot the system in normal mode, the second one contains a backup copy of the BIOS in the original (factory) configuration. The backup chip comes into operation if an error is detected in the main BIOS: if an error is detected in the programme code, it is restored to the original factory version, but if there was a hardware failure, the backup chip takes control of the system, replacing the main one. This allows you to keep your system up and running even in the event of serious BIOS problems without resorting to complex recovery procedures.

The presence of UEFI BIOS firmware on the motherboard.

Such firmware is usually combined with one of the classic "bios" (see BIOS). In fact, it is an additional add-on that expands the BIOS and makes it more convenient to manage. In some ways, UEFI approaches a full-fledged operating system: it has a convenient and understandable graphical interface even for a non-specialist, supports mouse control, is equipped with an extensive set of tools, and in some versions there is even the ability to access the Internet. In addition, this firmware takes into account all the features of modern computer hardware — including those that have appeared recently and are not covered in earlier, traditional BIOSes.

The maximum RAM clock speed supported by the motherboard. The actual clock frequency of the installed RAM modules should not exceed this indicator — otherwise, malfunctions are possible, and the capabilities of the “RAM” cannot be used to the fullest.

For modern PCs, a RAM frequency of 1500 – 2000 MHz or less is considered very low, 2000 – 2500 MHz is modest, 2500 – 3000 MHz is average, 3000 – 3500 MHz is above average, and the most advanced boards can support frequencies of 3500 – 4000 MHz and even more than 4000 MHz.

The version of the PCI Express interface supported by the motherboard. Recall that nowadays this interface is actually the standard for connecting video cards and other expansion cards. It can have a different number of lines — usually 1x, 4x and/or 16x; see the relevant paragraphs above for more details. Here we note that the version depends primarily on the data transfer rate per line. The most relevant options are:

— PCI Express 3.0. A version released back in 2010 and implemented in hardware two years later. One of the key differences from the previous PCI E 2.0 was the use of 128b / 130b encoding, that is, in every 130 bits — 128 main and two service bits (instead of 8b / 10b, which was used earlier and gave very high redundancy). This made it possible to almost double the data transfer rate (up to 984 Mbps versus 500 Mbps per 1 PCI-E lane) with a relatively small increase in the number of transactions per second (up to 8 GT/s versus 5 GT/s). Despite the introduction of the newer version 4.0, the PCI-E 3.0 standard is still quite popular in modern motherboards.

— PCI Express 4.0. Another PCI-E update introduced in 2017; the first "motherboards" with support for this version appeared in late spring 2019. Compared to PCI-E 3.0, the data transfer rate in PCI-E 4.0 has been doubled to 1969 Mbps per PCI-E lane.

— PCI Express 5.0. The evoluti...onary development of the PCI Express 5.0 standard, the final specification of which was approved in 2019, and its implementation in hardware began to be implemented in 2021. If we draw parallels with PCI E 4.0, the interface bandwidth has doubled — up to 32 gigatransactions per second. In particular, PCI E 5.0 x16 devices can exchange information at a speed of about 64 GB / s.

It is worth noting that different versions of PCI-E are mutually compatible with each other, however, the throughput is limited by the slowest standard. For example, a PCI-E 4.0 graphics card installed in a PCI-E 3.0 slot will only be able to operate at half its maximum speed (according to version 3.0 specifications).

The name of the integrated graphics card (see above) installed in the motherboard. Knowing the name of the graphics module, you can, if necessary, easily find detailed information about it — full specifications, tests, reviews, etc.

Hybrid mode support is only found on motherboards equipped with native graphics cards (see Integrated graphics card). When an additional separate graphics card is installed on such a board, the system can automatically optimize the operation of video adapters depending on the current tasks: use a relatively low-power, but economical and silent motherboard's own video chip for simple actions (working with documents, web surfing) and additionally connect a powerful external graphics card to work with resource-intensive applications (games, HD video, 3D rendering). Purchasing a motherboard that supports hybrid mode makes sense only if you plan to install a separate graphics card on it. In this case, it is worthwhile to separately clarify the compatibility of this graphics card and the motherboard.

The most advanced audio format that the motherboard audio chip is capable of outputting to an external audio system. At the moment, almost all motherboards with audio chips support standard 2.0 stereo sound, and the most advanced format can be as follows:

— 4. The specific sound layout for the four channels may be different, but anyway, this option is two classic stereo channels, supplemented by two more — for example, centre and rear, or a pair of rear (left and right). This allows you to expand the sound stage and achieve greater volume than in classic stereo, while maintaining the low cost of the sound cards themselves. However, this option is rare, mainly in mini-STX boards (see "Form factor").

— 5.1. Six-channel sound: two front, centre and two rear channels, plus a subwoofer for bass and extra bass. Allows you to reproduce a fully surround sound, which is perceived by the listener not only in front, but also behind him. One of the most popular multi-channel audio formats today.

— 7.1. The development of the idea of surround sound, laid down by the 5.1 format. In addition to the standard six-channel configuration (centre, front pair, rear pair and subwoofer), it provides two more speakers. The place of their installation may be different, depending on the specific eight-channel sound scheme used: above the front or rear pair, in the form of a centre-rear pair, on the sides of the listener, etc. Anyway, eight-channel circuits allow more...accurate sound direction reproduction.

— 9.1. The most advanced version of acoustics found in motherboards today. Similar to 7.1, this standard includes 6 channels according to the 5.1 scheme plus additional speakers — only in this case there are four of them, which gives even more opportunities to expand the surround sound.

Model of the LAN controller installed in the motherboard.

The LAN controller provides data exchange between the card and the network port(s) of the computer. Accordingly, both general characteristics and individual features of the network functionality of the "motherboard" depend on the characteristics of this module: support for special technologies, connection quality in case of unstable communication, etc. Knowing the model of the LAN controller, you can find detailed data on it — including including practical reviews; this information is rarely needed by the average user, but it can be useful for online game enthusiasts and for some specific tasks.

Thus, the LAN controller model is specified mainly in cases where it is a rather advanced solution that is noticeably superior to standard models. Such solutions are currently produced mainly under the brands Intel(middle level), Realtek(relatively simple models), Aquntia and Killer(mostly advanced solutions).