Board Software

As you can see from the images above, EasyTune is also included with the Gigabyte G1.Sniper2, as with so many of Gigabyte's products, and this version of the software is just the same on the Gigabyte G1.Sniper2 as any other board that supports it. The first two pages list CPU and memory information, while the third tab leads to the good stuff, the tweaker pages. We find, at first, a simple page with four buttons; "Default", "1", "2", and "3", each a different color and clockspeed profile that can be enabled with a simple click, and then a reboot. If we click the advanced tab on the tweaker page, we find we have access to just about every option we find in the BIOS itself, except for memory timings.


The "Graphics" tab not only featured settings for our Intel 2600K's integrated GPU, but also for the HD6950 discrete GPU we install in all the boards we play with. The "Smart Fan" page has the only way to control the five PWM-based fan headers that the Gigabyte G1.Sniper2 has, making EasyTune a neccesary software to install for all users. Of course, the monitor page lists temperatures and voltages, as well as fan speeds.


Next up is the "Dynamic Energy Saver" software, which allows up to customize the function of the Gigabyte G1.Sniper2's VRM, enabling dynamic power profiling, as well as offering the possibility to disable a set of phases, should one desire to do so, but we cannot see why anyone would want to, as this led to the highest power consumption scenario possible, and could potentially reduce the board's lifespan, too, by using less components to supply the power the CPU needs, but at the same time, doubling the load they are placed under, and reducing their efficiency. The "@BIOS" software is used only for updating the BIOS from within the Windows OS, offering the ability to download the latest from Gigabyte directly, saving users time searching the web for updates. The Smart6 software suite is a group of password-protected software that really doesn't offer much functionality that isn't present in any of the other tools, but does present everything in a simple interface with easy access to it's many components. We couldn't help but think perhaps the other software, EasyTune, @BIOS, and D.E.S included, should have all been rolled into the Smart6 package, but then, it wouldn't be six compoenents, would it, and it's name would have to change too? Anyway, we'd much prefer a single all-in-one solution that does it all, and makes installation easier.


We cannot forget the Lucid Virtu software that we find packaged with all Z68-based products. The Gigabyte G1.Sniper2 ships with a fairly recent version of the Virtu software that works quite well, with very little performance impact when using the board's display output combined with a discrete GPU, a definite step in the right direction. However, there is a more recent version available direct from Lucid, and we suggest that users who use the software should be sure to visit Lucid's website for the latest version.


There is another piece of Gigabyte software on the disc, called "TouchBIOS", that quite closely resembles an interface we'd find on a tablet, or smart phone with a touchscreen. Each button leads into a copy of the options that we see in the BIOS, and offers users a way to change settings in BIOS from within Windows, making comparing settings with other users, and perhaps trying someone else's settings very easy to do, however, a reboot is required before any of the changes are applied. It's handy, for sure, but as always, we prefer to use the BIOS itself.