Onboard Devices
Source: Tom's Hardware – Keywords: x48, motherboard
Onboard Devices
| Northbridge | Intel X48 Express MCH |
| Southbridge | Intel ICH9R |
| Voltage Regulator | Five Phases |
| BIOS | 1554 (05/01/2008) |
| 333.3 MHz (FSB1333) | 333.3 MHz (+0.0%) |
| Clock Generator | Silego SLG505YC256BT |
| Connectors and Interfaces | |
| Onboard | 2x PCIe x16 (Modes: Two x16: One x4) |
| 2x PCI | |
| 2x USB 2.0 (2 ports per connector) | |
| 1x IEEE-1394 FireWire | |
| 1x Ultra ATA (2 drives) | |
| 6x Serial ATA 3.0Gb/s | |
| 1x Front Panel Audio | |
| 1x S/P-DIF Out | |
| 1x High Definition Audio Link header | |
| Front panel CIR receiver (input) header | |
| Back panel CIR transmitter (output) header) | |
| 1x Internal Power Button | |
| 2x Fan 4 pins (CPU/Chassis) | |
| 3x Fan 3 pins (Chassis/Chipset) | |
| IO panel | 2x External SATA |
| 8x USB 2.0 | |
| 1x IEEE-1394 FireWire | |
| 1x RJ-45 Network | |
| 5x Analog Audio (7.1 or 5.1 ch. out, 2 or 4 ch. in) | |
| 1x Digital Audio Out (S/P-DIF Optical) | |
| Mass Storage Controllers | |
| Intel ICH9R | 6x SATA 3.0Gb/s (RAID 0,1,5,10) |
| Marvell 88SE6121-NAA1 PCI-E | 1x Ultra ATA-100 (2-drives) |
| 2x SATA 3.0Gb/s (RAID 0,1, JBOD) | |
| Network | |
| Intel 82566DC (GLCI) PHY | Gigabit LAN Connection |
| Audio | |
| IDT STAC9274D5 | 7.1 + 2 channel Multi-Streaming Output |
| FireWire | |
| Texas Instruments TSB43AB22A | 2x IEEE-1394a (400 Mb/s) |
Intel provides the full range of controllers we’d anticipate for any high-end board, including even the old IEEE-1394 FireWire interface, but the rear panel ports are a bit of a surprise:
In a not-so-bold move to eliminate legacy “junk,” Intel has eliminated PS/2 ports from the rear panel just as it removed the floppy cable header from inside. Two eSATA ports take their place, while a total of eight USB 2.0 ports provide more than enough connectivity for the average set of peripherals.
One other thing Intel has eliminated from its rear panel ports is any secondary Ethernet port. Intel is probably the biggest fan of Intel integrated controllers, and the chipset only directly supports one of those.
The 82566DC GLCI PHY accesses the ICH9R’s integrated networking capability, and being an Intel part we’d expect to find one on most of its desktop motherboards.
Intel gets its legacy Ultra ATA and modern eSATA connections from a single chip, the Marvell 88SE6121 PCI-Express to ATA controller.
From Ultra ATA, the next closest thing Intel has to legacy parts on its board is the Texas Instruments TSB43AB22A two-port IEEE-1394 controller.
Intel might be the “Leap Ahead” company, but it decided to “think different” about its audio solution. Formerly known as SigmaTel’s “Red River” audio controller, The IDT STAC9274D5 supports Dolby Home Theater for soundstage expansion (Dolby Headphone, Dolby Virtual Speaker) and on-the-fly analog to digital conversion (Dolby Digital Live), plus advanced features such as an integrated 12-band parametric equalizer and multi-streaming of separate 7.1 surround speaker and 2-channel headphone outputs.
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Where is the Cost/Performance ratio.
I think ASrock have done well to put forward a competitive offering and I reckon they will be notably cheaper. I think they bring the enthusiam to the masses.
I personally would go for the Gigabyte or DFI board, because their builds are quality and could conceivably last for years.