Methodology
The philosophy behind the testing is simple and largely unchanged from what I’ve done for more than a decade now. Motherboards will be tested thoroughly, with components stressed and all aspects of the motherboard being tested in some fashion. Several tools will be utilized for this purpose. This will include testing NVMe functionality, verification that the SATA ports and RAID configuration options operate as they should. Network controller speed testing will occur on all adapters, and we will verify that audio controllers perform as advertised.
I think this is something that always set HardOCP apart from some of the other sites out there and this will continue here at TheFPSReview.com. Benchmarks will be run, although I don’t put much stock in them beyond being used as a stress testing component and validating that the motherboard works as it should. Where we see performance issues with benchmarks, it usually indicates something the manufacturer needs to be aware of and correct with drivers or firmware. Rarely would it indicate anything that would be a factor in decision making. With the high level of integration into today’s modern CPU’s, the motherboard plays a very small if not insignificant role in system performance. Variation from one motherboard to the next comes down to statistical margins for error more than anything. Its not an indicator of “xyz” motherboard is better than another from a performance standpoint.
With the high level of integration into today’s modern CPU’s, the motherboard plays a very small if not insignificant role in system performance.
Beyond that, we will explore the feature set and how well it worked. How easy the system was to setup, install an OS and whether we had to fight to get the system running properly. The value of the features, the quality of the components chosen will be evaluated and we will tell you whether the motherboard fits well within its intended or marketed purpose. Our format may evolve to include more price vs. performance analysis, but I don’t want to get too much into that as halo level products are like the Ferrari’s of the computing world. It isn’t really fair to compare them to the average vehicle in that way. Similarly, such motherboards are often something of a one stop shop with higher quality integrated features you might have to spend a fortune to duplicate in add on components or expansion cards. We may even explore more direct comparisons between motherboards in a separate format if people see value in that.