ASRock X58 Extreme3 review

Mainboards 327 Page 2 of 20 Published by

teaser

Specifications and Features

 

Specifications and Features

Though priced at 165 EUR / 189USD, the ASRock X58 Extreme3 is aimed to be a rather high-end motherboard for an enthusiast end-user. Coming in at only $189.99 it is currently the only motherboard below the $200.00 price barrier that offers features like USB 3.0, eSATA3 and SATA3. The ASRock X58 Extreme3 features True 333 technology. This technology allows you to run the PCI-E for VGA cards, SATA3 and USB 3.0 at full speed simultaneously.

On the next page we'll start a product overview with the help of a photo gallery and you are gong to agree with me that it is a fairly attractive motherboard, a three tone design with the combination of black PCB with blue and white slots and connections. It's not too colorful but stylish enough to look good.

Anyway, have a peek at the specifications and then we'll head on over to the product gallery.

 General
CPU - Intel Socket 1366 Core I7 Processor Extreme Edition / Core I7 Processor Supports Intel Dynamic Speed Technology
- System Bus up to 6400 MT/s; Intel QuickPath Interconnect
- Advanced V8 Power Phase Design
- Supports Hyper-Threading Technology
- Supports Untied Overclocking Technology
- Supports EM64T CPU
Chipset - Northbridge: Intel X58
- Southbridge: Intel ICH10R
Memory - Triple Channel DDR3 memory technology
- 6 x DDR3 DIMM slots
- Supports DDR3 2000(OC)/1866(OC)/1600(OC)/1333(OC)/1066 ECC, un-buffered memory
- Supports DDR3 ECC, un-buffered memory with Intel Workstation 1S Xeon processors 3500 series
- Max. capacity of system memory: 24GB
- Supports Intel Extreme Memory Profile (XMP)
  Due to the operating system limitation, the actual memory size may be less than 4GB for the reservation for system usage under Windows 32-bit OS. For Windows 64-bit OS with 64-bit CPU, there is no such limitation.

Due to Intel CPU spec definition, XMP DIMMs and DDR3 2000/1866/1600 are supported for one DIMM per channel only.
BIOS - 8Mb AMI Legal BIOS
- Supports "Plug and Play"
- ACPI 1.1 Compliance Wake Up Events
- Supports jumperfree
- SMBIOS 2.3.1 Support
- CPU, VCCM, IOH, ICH, VTT, IOH/ICH PCIE, CPU PLL, IOH CSI, VCORE Voltage Multi-adjustment
- Supports I. O. T. (Intelligent Overclocking Technology)
 Audio, Video and Networking
Graphics - n/a 
Audio - 7.1 CH HD Audio with Content Protection
- DAC with 110dB dynamic range (VIA VT2020 Audio Codec)
- Premium Blu-ray audio support
LAN - PCIE x1 Gigabit LAN 10/100/1000 Mb/s
- Realtek RTL8111DL
- Supports Wake-On-LAN
 Expansion / Connectivity
Slots - 2 x PCI Express 2.0 x16 slots (blue @ x16 mode)
- 1 x PCI Express x16 slot (white @ x4 mode) (Double-wide slot spacing between each PCI-E slot)
- 1 x PCI Express x1 slot
- 2 x PCI slots
- Supports ATI CrossFireX and Quad CrossFireX
- Supports NVIDIA® SLI and Quad SLI
SATA3 - 2 x SATA3 6.0 Gb/s connectors by Marvell SE9128, support hardware RAID (RAID 0 and RAID 1), NCQ, AHCI and "Hot Plug" functions (SATA3_2 connector is shared with eSATA3 port)
USB 3.0 - 2 x USB 3.0 ports by NEC MPD720200, support USB 1.0/2.0/3.0 up to 5Gb/s
Connector - 6 x SATAII 3.0 Gb/s connectors, support RAID (RAID 0, RAID 1, RAID 10, RAID 5 and Intel Matrix Storage), NCQ, AHCI and Hot Plug functions
- 2 x SATA3 6.0 Gb/s connectors
- 1 x ATA133 IDE connector (supports 2 x IDE devices)
- 1 x Floppy connector
- 1 x IR header
- 1 x COM port header
- 1 x HDMI_SPDIF header
- 1 x IEEE 1394 header
- 1 x TPM header
- 1 x Chassis Intrusion header
- 1 x Power LED header
- CPU/Chassis/NB/Power FAN connector
- 24 pin ATX power connector
- 8 pin 12V power connector
- CD in header
- Front panel audio connector
- 2 x USB 2.0 headers (support 4 USB 2.0 ports)
- 1 x Dr. Debug (7-Segment Debug LED)
Rear Panel I/O I/O Panel
- 1 x PS/2 Mouse Port
- 1 x PS/2 Keyboard Port
- 1 x Coaxial SPDIF Out Port
- 1 x Optical SPDIF Out Port
- 5 x Ready-to-Use USB 2.0 Ports
- 1 x Powered eSATAIII/USB 2.0 Connector
- 2 x Ready-to-Use USB 3.0 Ports
- 1 x RJ-45 LAN Port with LED (ACT/LINK LED and SPEED LED)
- 1 x IEEE 1394 Port
- 1 x Clear CMOS Switch with LED
- HD Audio Jack: Side Speaker / Rear Speaker / Central / Bass / Line in / Front Speaker / Microphone
 Other Features / Miscellaneous
Unique Feature - ASRock OC Tuner
- Intelligent Energy Saver
- Instant Boot
- ASRock Instant Flash
- ASRock OC DNA
-
Hybrid Booster:
- CPU Frequency Stepless Control
- ASRock U-COP
- Boot Failure Guard (B.F.G.)
- Combo Cooler Option (C.C.O.)
- Good Night LED
Smart Switch - 1 x Power Switch with LED
- 1 x Reset Switch with LED
- 1 x Clear CMOS Switch with LED
Support CD - Drivers, Utilities, AntiVirus Software (Trial Version), ASRock Software Suite (CyberLink DVD Suite - OEM and Trial; Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi MB - Trial)
Accessories - 1 x ASRock SLI_Bridge_2S Card
- Quick Installation Guide, Support CD, I/O Shield
- Floppy/ATA 133 Cables
- 4 x SATA Data Cables (optional)
- 2 x SATA 1 to 1 Power Cables (optional)
Hardware Monitor - CPU Temperature Sensing
- Chassis Temperature Sensing
- CPU/Chassis/NB/Power Fan Tachometer
- CPU Quiet Fan
- CPU/Chassis Fan Multi-Speed Control
- CASE OPEN detection
- Voltage Monitoring: +12V, +5V, +3.3V, CPU Vcore
Form Factor - ATX Form Factor: 12.0-in x 9.6-in, 30.5 cm x 24.4 cm
- All Solid Capacitor design (100% Japan-made high-quality Conductive Polymer Capacitors)
Asrock X58 Extreme3

Share this content
Twitter Facebook Reddit WhatsApp Email Print