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Last month we reviewed the DFI LanParty JR 790GX-M2RS, it was one of the world's first ever micro ATX motherboard to feature Crossfire support for the AMD AM2/AM2+ platform. It was a decent motherboard that offered pretty good performance from the integrated graphics in the form of a onboard Radeon HD 3300. What's really good about this motherboard, is that it features dual PCIe slots for separate graphic cards, which means you can setup Crossfire with 2 Radeon cards ... giving this little micro ATX motherboard a phenomenal performance boost.

DFI saw a niche market for micro ATX motherboards for LAN Party goers, that's why they've been pushing heavily on the LAN party scene. And it seems to be working .... slowly capturing the attention of the LAN party goers with their new "LanParty JR" motherboards. Imagine a micro ATX motherboards, that can be built and assembled into a portable micro ATX case for easy carriage, yet offering all the functionality andn performance of a full blown ATX motherboard.

Now it's time to take a look at DFI's socket-775 version .... the DFI LanParty JR P45-T2RS. It's based on the same micro ATX form factor as their other "LanParty JR" motherboards and utilises the already proven Intel P45 chipset and ICHR10 southbridge.

There a few things missing on the DFI LanParty JR P45-T2RS. Firstly, there's no diagnostic LEDs anymore, and obviously no built-in HDMI or DVI output ... since the motherboard don't feature onboard graphics. However, there's a reset CMOS jumper located on the rear ATX I/O panel, which could come in handy after failed overclocking attempts. Other features, which is an added bonus and proves that DFI are well serious with their products ... are the inclusion of solid capacitors and heatpipe chipset cooling. All of these great features on a micro ATX motherboard!

Most prominent feature of the motherboard are the dual PCIe slots ... they're just asking to be occupied by Radeon cards :P. When only PCIe slot is being used, you'll get a full x16 speed ... however, like most P45 based motherboards the dual PCIe slots will drop to x8 speed in Crossfire mode. It's not a real issue as you won't see any real differences in most applications.

Look at the motherboard, we expect the DFI LanParty JR P45-T2RS to perform on par with other P45 based motherboards. The micro ATX size is by no means a measurement of its performance ...

In our tests we'll be benchmarking the DFI LanParty JR P45-T2RS using the usual PC Mark 2005, 3D Mark 2005, 2006 and Vantage tests. we'll also be running some DX games too. Our test rig includes an Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 @ default 2.4Ghz, Radeon HD 4850, Kingston HyperX DDR2 PC2-9200 2Gb Kit, PC Power & Cooling Turbo Cool 860W PSU and a 24" Samsung SyncMaster 245B LCD monitor. Windows Vista with native DX10 was used as our OS.

OK, let's not waste any more time an take a look a closer look at the DFI LanParty JR P45-T2RS motherboard  ...