To test for power consumption we use the same basic components for each motherboard on test. Readings are then taken from the wall both in stock (Optimised defaults loaded) and maximum overclocked (Voltages may vary).



Under idle conditions the MSI GD456 performed very well, second only to its big brother, the big Bang II.



Under 100% load using Prime95, the news got even better by being the most efficient on test(albeit at less voltage of course) however, it still beat its nearest rival (which used less voltage) by a fair margin.