Reviewed by Barry Little - May 26, 2008

Manufacturer: ASUS

Model: 90-MIB4F0-G0AAY00Z

Price: T.B.A.

Workstation motherboards have always been a niche market for computer users with specialized needs. CAD, high-level imaging and video editing are some of the applications that quickly come to mind. As a result, these boards are designed for maximum reliability under heavy use, with above-average expandability and large amounts of memory on tap to take advantage of specialized applications (some written exclusively for 64-bit operating systems). As a result, these boards aren’t cheap and represent the pinnacle of desktop performance and power. Which brings us to the subject of today’s review—the newest flagship workstation entry from the industry’s leading manufacturers of motherboards—the ASUS P5E64 WS Evolution Workstation Motherboard.

About ASUS

ASUS, a technology-oriented company blessed with one of the world's top R&D teams, is well known for high-quality and innovative technology. As a leading provider of 3C (computers, communications and consumer electronics) total solutions, ASUS offers a complete product portfolio to compete in the new millennium. In 2006, the company shipped 55 million motherboards, which means one in three desktop PCs sold last year was powered by an ASUS motherboard. Our 2006 revenues reached US$16.5 billion, and is expected to garner US$23 billion in 2007.

To succeed in this ultra-competitive industry, great products need to be complimented by speed-to-market, cost and service. That's why all 100,000 over employees of ASUS strive for the "ASUS Way of Total Quality Management" to offer the best quality without compromising cost and time-to-market while providing maximum value to all customers through world-class services.

With unyielding commitment to innovation and quality, ASUS won 2,168 awards in 2006, meaning on average, the company received over 5 awards everyday last year. BusinessWeek ranked ASUS amongst its “InfoTech 100” for the 9th straight year. The readers of Tom's Hardware Guide, the world's largest IT website, selected ASUS as the best maker of motherboards and graphics cards. Furthermore, the company is ranked as No.1 in quality products and services by the Wall Street Journal.

Packaging and Accessories

The theme of the P5E 64 WS Evolution’s is conservative blue graced by architecture in the background that you might see inside an older library, courthouse or cathedral that gradually fades into a modern arch supported by a pair of futuristic pillars. Some of the Evolution’s extensive list of features—Intel’s latest-and-greatest X48 Chipset (code-named “Beachwood”) which now supersedes the “ancient” 975X and not-so-ancient X38 chipsets, 45nm Processor support and the optional ASUS SASsaby Card, are iconized on the box—as is 1600 FSB support and the ASUS EPU (Energy Processing Unit) promising an 80.23% savings in CPU power. The “ASUS Green” P5E 64 WS Evolution is also fully RoHS Compliant, so that when you eventually dispose of the board, you won’t have to worry about it contributing toxins to the environment at some landfill. There’s also a convenient, fold-out carrying handle on top of the box.

Flip up the front of the box, and you can review more of the P5E 64 WS Evolution’s features outlined in English and five other languages, complete with photos and charts. Of particular note is the board’s HE95 or “High Efficiency 95%” capabilities, which aids power efficiency under light and heavy use. The ASUS 3rd Generation 8-phase Power Design for longer life and higher system efficiency. A G.P. Diagnostics Card, which displays POST and error information via its LEDs and has onboard reset and power buttons. And the AI Slot Detector which warns you when a card is not inserted properly in an expansion slot.

Turn the box over, and you’ll finally get a view of the motherboard inside, via a photo and complete list of specs next to it. There’s also a 3-year Warranty to sweeten the deal. As you look over the specs and the photo of the P5E 64 WS Evolution, you begin to realize that this is one impressive motherboard packing some serious hi-tech firepower.

Slip the outer cover off and open the box. The documentation and accessories for the P5E 64 WS Evolution, is arranged on top of a heavy cardboard protector sectioned into two multi-level compartments, with the Evolution tucked safely away underneath. Included is a User’s Guide written and illustrated with ASUS's typical clarity and straight-forwardness. The Support DVD contains all the requisite drivers for 32 and 64-bit versions of Windows (and Linux). Also on the DVD are two well-known ASUS utilities: Smart Probe II for hardware monitoring and AI Suite for power management, fan management, and on-the-fly overclocking.

If you’re feeling brave (or reckless), you can use ASUS Update to connect to ASUS over the Internet and update your BIOS under Windows (don’t get me wrong—it’s not ASUS that I don’t trust here). Artistic users or those who simply can’t stand the default splash screen on boot-up, can use the ASUS MyLogo utility to create their own. Along with Microsoft DirectX 9.0c and Adobe Reader 7.0, the usual list of software suspects are also included. Ulead PhotoImpact 12 SE and Cyberlink’s PowerBackup are the only two free and fully functional programs of the bunch. Leading the “you gotta-pay-to-play” charge are trialware/crippleware versions of InterVideo’s WinDVD 8, Corel’s Snapfire Plus and Symantec’s 2007 edition of Norton Internet Security. The Support DVD is also bootable, and can be used to make F6 RAID Driver Installation Diskettes for Windows.

Rounding out the accessories package are one combo 2-port USB 2.0/1-port IEEE 1394a Firewire Expansion Slot Module, and one DB-9 Male COM1 port Expansion Slot Module. Eight SATA (Serial ATA) Hard Drive Cables with straight and 90° connectors, and two Single Molex-to-Dual SATA Power Cables for powering four SATA hard drives or other SATA devices. Two ASUS Ribbon Cables—one for a Floppy Disk Drive, the other an Ultra DMA 133/100 for ATA/EIDE devices. Also included are two items that should be standardized across the entire ASUS motherboard product line—and every other motherboard manufacturer as well: the ASUS Q-Shield and ASUS Q-Connector. Q-Shield removes those annoying metal “fingers” found on typical motherboard rear I/O port shields, replacing them with an insulated, anti-static foil pad. This makes things much easier on the motherboard, your case and fingers to install. Q-Connector provides a quick connect and disconnect solution for the front panel cables of your case—which typically are anything but quick when it comes to connecting and disconnecting them without the benefit of Q-Connector (one for use on the Evolution’s USB and Firewire headers, are also included).

The most interesting and last accessory is the ASUS G.P. Diagnostic Card. Basically a small daughterboard that attaches to the TPM (Trusted Platform Module) header on the P5E 64 WS Evolution, the G.P. Diagnostic Card is equipped with a dual LED read-out for POST and error codes, with Power and Reset buttons for convenient out-of-case operation of the motherboard. A 90° Adapter is also included for mounting the G.P. Diagnostic Card horizontally. While standard on retail versions of the ASUS P5E 64 WS Evolution,  I did not receive one with the review sample sent to me by ASUS—though the 90° Adapter, oddly enough, was included in the box, which certainly looks like a retail box to me. Well, with millions of motherboards manufactured each day, it’s hardly surprising or inconceivable that a part or two might inadvertently be omitted. In this particular instance, the omission wasn’t one that would cause major problems for me if I were actually building a production rig with the P5E 64 WS Evolution, as the board will certainly work just fine without the G.P. Diagnostic Card. My personal experience with these type of devices has been, that whenever something does go wrong, it usually displays some obscure code that's not covered in the motherboard's manual anyway...

Finally, the star of this review—the P5E 64 WS Evolution—is sealed in an ASUS branded anti-static bag. I have to admit, removing the board from the bag imparts the same kind of feeling one would get removing the car cover off a rare Nissan Fairlady Z S-Tune GT, once you’ve see the board up close and personal.

Overall, the subdued but eye-catching design of the box and the usual care ASUS places in packing and protecting the contents, speaks volumes of ASUS's commitment to quality. I suspect that the missing G.P. Diagnostic Card is a rare exception to that commitment rather than the rule, and will leave it at that.

The P5E 64 WS Evolution—Features

The ASUS P5E 64 WS Evolution is the company’s brand new, top-of-the line workstation motherboard that joins a distinguished line-up of ASUS workstation boards. One look at the board and its features, and it’s clear to see why “Evolution” is part of this new motherboard’s name.

This is clearly one seriously cutting-edge, highly-evolved workstation mobo compared to the others in the ASUS workstation product line. Let’s take a closer look at the board’s layout.

The P5E64 WS Evolution—Layout

The ASUS P5E64 WS Evolution has an ATX form factor of 12 x 9.6 inches (30.5 cm x 24.4 cm). The “blackish-brown” PCB gives the Evolution a more elite appearance that’s fitting of a motherboard of its caliber. That look is even more enhanced by massive, bright blue anodized copper heatsinks covering the Evolution’s ICH9R South Bridge, X48 North Bridge and MOSFETS. “Workstation” is engraved on the South Bridge sink, and the ASUS logo on the North Bridge. The heatsinks on the MOSFETS aren’t the skimpy kind found on some motherboards. These bad-boys are finned, and huge.