The Intel P35 Express Northbridge chipset replaces the P965 Express as Intel's mainstream performance core logic part. The P35 Express not only supports all current Socket 775 processors running on a 533/800/1066 MHz Front Side bus, it also supports Intel's 45nm "Penryn" processor and 1333 MHz FSB processors like the Core 2 Duo E6750. The P35 Express ships with the ICH9 series of Southbridge chipsets.

The southbridge used with the Biostar TP35D3-A7 Deluxe motherboard is the ICH9R model, so it supports RAID via Intel's Matrix storage technology.

Intel quad core processors to set to be the mainstream CPU by mid-2008, so motherboard chipsets have to keep up with the demands of the hungry CPU. An increased Front Side Bus, from 1066MHz to 1333 MHz speeds up data communication to the necessary levels. Intel also modified the memory controller, boosting memory to 1066 MHz from 800 MHz. That increases maximum theoretical bandwidth to 16GB/s (in a dual channel configuration).

These changes are largely incremental, the most significant improvement in the P35 Express chipset has been the inclusion of DDR3 RAM support. Initial DDR3 memory modules from Crucial, Corsair and OCZ will be pegged at 800 and 1066 MHz speeds, as the standard matures it's will go to 1333MHz. The Intel P35 Express supports a maximum of 8GB of non ECC unbuffered memory, either DDR3 or DDR2, depending on what the manufacturer has chosen to implement.

Here's a quick look at how the new P35 stacks up to the P965 Express and 975X chipsets. Apart from the speed increases and new memory standard, there are just a few extra ports here and there.

Intel P35 & 975 / 965 Series Chipset Feature Breakdown Intel 975X Express Intel P35 Express Express Intel P965 Express Intel G965 Express CPU LGA775 Core 2 Duo LGA775 Core 2 Duo LGA775 Core 2 Duo LGA775 Core 2 Duo Front Side Bus (FSB) 1066/800 MHz 1333/1066/800 MHz 1066/800/533 MHz 1066/800/533 MHz Intel Flex Memory Technology Yes Yes Yes Yes Dual Channel Memory Support DDR2 800/667/533 DDR2 1066/800/667 DDR3 1333(unofficial)/1066/800 DDR2 800/667/533 DDR2 667 Maximum Memory Capacity 8GB 8GB 8GB 8GB Integrated Graphics - - - GMA 3000 PCI Express x16 2 1 1 1 PCI Express x1 4 6 4 4 Intel Matrix Storage Technology Yes Yes Yes Yes SATA/IDE HDD 4/1 6/0 6/0 6/0 SATA Speed 3Gb/s 3Gb/s 3Gb/s 3Gb/s RAID 0, 1, 5, 10 (with ICH7R) 0, 1, 5, 10 (with ICH9R) 0, 1, 5, 10 (with ICH8R) 0, 1, 5, 10 (with ICH8R) Hard Drive NCQ - Yes Yes Yes USB 2.0 Ports 8 12 8 10 PCI Masters 6 6 6 6 Audio High Definition Audio (Azalia) High Definition Audio (Azalia) High Definition Audio (Azalia) High Definition Audio (Azalia)

By default the Intel P35 Express chipset only supports a single PCI Express x16 slot for videocards. There are six PCI Express lanes associated with the ICH9R Southbridge. Between the Intel P35 Express Express Northbridge and ICH9R Southbridge is a dedicated 2GB/s I/O bus. This might be a little tight if you have many high bandwidth devices installed, but should suffice for the average user.