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The Gigabyte 890FXA-UD7 features the AMD 890FX chipset along with the SB850 south bridge chip. Board features include support for 2-way/3-way/4-way ATI CrossFireX technology, fourteen USB 2.0 ports, USB 3.0, Firewire, SATA 6Gb/s, eSATA (SATA on the Go), 8-channel HD Audio, USB Power Boost, Auto Unlock Support and dual Gigabit LAN.
The 890FXA-UD7 features four DDR3 memory DIMM slots, with official support for 1866 (OC)/1600/1333/1066 memory (non-ECC, un-buffered), though DDR2-1866 memory support can only be achieved through overclocking. Gigabyte claims that the board can support up to 16GB of memory, for which you would need four 4GB memory modules.
The board also features an impressive six PCI Express 2.0 x16 slots, providing the 890FXA-UD7 with impressive multi-GPU capabilities. However please note that only two of these six slots are wired for full x16 bandwidth, while another two work at x8 and the other two at x4. Because the slots are wired this way they cannot be adjusted in the BIOS, so it is important to make sure you place your graphics card(s) in the correct slot(s).
The high definition 7.1-channel audio is supported by the Realtek ALC889 HD Audio codec, featuring optical S/PDIF support via the I/O panel. The Realtek ALC889 audio codec has been heavily used by many motherboard manufacturers in the past, and we are quite accustomed to finding it on high-end motherboards.
Gigabyte has gone with a dual Realtek 8111D Gigabit Ethernet controller configuration, which uses the PCI Express bus for maximum throughput. There is no wireless LAN support included on the 890FXA-UD7, though this is not uncommon for a motherboard, so users will have to look to include this feature using an expansion card. The network controllers support teaming, along with a Gigabyte feature called “Smart Dual LAN”. Gigabyte Smart Dual LAN technology features intelligent LAN port auto-switching between the 2 physical Gigabit LAN chips; offering hassle free, zero downtime, high speed network connectivity.
Although wireless network may not exist, Firewire certainly does, thanks to the inclusion of the T.I. TSB43AB23 controller supporting three IEEE 1394a ports, two of which are located on the I/O panel. Along with Firewire, the typical USB 2.0 support also exists, with a total of 14 ports on offer, while the NEC D720200F1 chip has been thrown in to provide a pair of USB 3.0 ports.
An interesting feature that Gigabyte has added to all of their new AMD 8-series motherboards is called “3x USB Power Boost” which is designed to deliver greater compatibility and extra power for USB devices. This unique USB power design is also able to efficiently regulate output over the full voltage range, which greatly enhances USB device compatibility. In addition, dedicated lower resistance fuses ensure lower voltage drops, and provide more stable and plentiful power delivery.
As mentioned previously, the SB850 south bridge chip improves upon storage, offering support for six SATA 6Gb/s devices. Furthermore, support for SATA RAID 0, RAID 1, RAID5, RAID 10, and JBOD is also included, providing users with a great deal of flexibility. Other than the SATA support provided by the SB850 south bridge chip, Gigabyte has also included the Gigabyte SATA2 and JMicron JMB362 chips.
The Gigabyte SATA2 (Re-labeled JMicron JMB363) controller offers an IDE connector and a pair of SATA (3Gb/s) ports. Meanwhile the JMicron JMB362 chip serves up an additional two SATA 3Gb/s connectors, which have been used to provide the motherboards eSATA support. Finally, like most motherboard manufacturers, Gigabyte has created a way to unlock the dormant cores of certain AMD processors, a feature that was denied by the SB850 south bridge. Using the Gigabyte Auto Unlock technology, users now have the ability to turn a Phenom II X2 into a full blown quad-core processor. |
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Finder |
Posted on: 06/01/2010 10:27 AM
Looks like a cool board but who uses 4 graphics cards? :S |
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Bowser |
Posted on: 06/01/2010 10:48 AM
i think the reviewer is right for that kind of money the core7 is a better choice. still the phenom x6 would work well on this board. |
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JustBecause |
Posted on: 06/01/2010 11:29 AM
this is a pretty sweet board. I think I am going to pull the trigger on one of these! thanks for the review. |
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djocin |
Posted on: 06/02/2010 11:20 PM
I really like the optional heatsink for the north bridge. Sill with the water-block you could make a really quiet system. |
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Richie |
Posted on: 06/03/2010 03:44 AM
thanks for the review but when will motherboards get real USB 3 support? |
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master |
Posted on: 06/03/2010 11:48 AM
This MoBo longer than standard ATX PCB almost in 20mm!!! so i cant mount GA-890FXA-UD7 in ATX case! |
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ProX |
Posted on: 06/03/2010 02:34 PM
@master - That must be good stuff you are smoking, its a standard ATX board and I see no reason why it would not fit in a standard ATX case as it is designed to. Still who in their right mind would buy a motherboard designed to support 4 graphics cards and then use it in a standard case? The design alone calls for a full ATX tower. |
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Steve Posts: 74 Joined: 2010-02-08 |
Posted on: 06/09/2010 12:15 AM
Posted by master on 06/03/2010 12:48 PM
It should fit in a standard ATX case but as ProX said most are going to want to install this motherboard into a full tower case. |
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Sharpy |
Posted on: 06/09/2010 03:26 AM
Man that is one insane looking AMD motherboard. Shame SLI is not supported but I would probably go with a few Radeon HD 5870 cards anyway. Nice review and keep up the good work! |
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Jaw |
Posted on: 08/10/2010 09:22 AM
It isn,t a standard ATX board Its a XLATX board it is 20mm longer than the ATX boards. Coolermaster HAF X, Black, Full Gaming Tower Case with Side Window/USB3, w/o PSU is the only case I have found the accepts this board around £150.00 squids. |