ASUS P9X79-E WS Preview
Category : X79
Published by Marc Büchel on 18.06.13
As the first motherboard manufacturer ASUS announces, that their brand new P9X79-E WS supports Intels upcoming Ivy Bridge-E processors. This X79 based motherboard comes with a long feature list. You can for example find seven PCI Express x16 slots as well as eight DIMM slots. Overall this board is quite impressive and it will be interesting to see what it's like from a layout, design and feature perspective.
Article in English |
Artikel in Deutsch |
Article en français |
Articolo in italiano |
The P9X79-E WS will be ASUS' high end motherboard regarding Intels upcoming X79 chipset. Therefore we're really curious what they've done from the layout and design perspective.
| Page 1 - Introduction | Page 4 - Layout |
| Page 2 - Specs and Delivery | Page 5 - Connectors and I/O |
| Page 3 - Features | Page 6 - Conclusion |
Discuss this article in the forums [pagebreak]
Specs and Delivery
| CPU | Intel Socket 2011 2nd Generation i7 Processors |
| Chipset | Intel X79 |
| Memory | 8 x DIMM max 64 GB, DDR3 2400 (OC), 2133 (OC), 1866, 1600, 1333, 1066, Non-ECC, Un-buffered |
| Multi-GPU |
|
| Slots |
|
| Sound | Realtek ALC1150 8-Channel HD Audio Codec
|
| Storage | Intel X79 chipset
|
| Network | 2 x Intel I210 Gigabit LAN |
| Internal Connectors |
|
| Extrenal Connectors |
|
| Formfactor | CEB Form Factor (30.5cm x 26.7cm) |
| BIOS | Bios (64 Mb flash ROM, UEFI AMI BIOS) |
- User's manual
- I/O Shield
- 1 x COM port cable
- 4 x SATA 3Gb/s cables
- 6 x SATA 6Gb/s cables
- 1 x 3-Way SLI bridge
- 1 x 4-Way SLI bridge
- 1 x SLI bridge
- 1 x Q-connector (2 in 1)
Regarding the delivery you'll find everything you need. There even is a quad and a triple SLI bridge in the delivery. The only thing one might miss is a CrossFire Bridge.
| Page 1 - Introduction | Page 4 - Layout |
| Page 2 - Specs and Delivery | Page 5 - Connectors and I/O |
| Page 3 - Features | Page 6 - Conclusion |
Discuss this article in the forums [pagebreak]
Features
| EPU | EPU automatically detects the current system load and moderates power usage. It offers a system-wide energy optimization and is able to reduce fan noise. |
 |
| TPU | TPU offers precise voltage control and advanced monitoring mechanisms throught the Auto Tuning and TurboV functions in ASUS AI Suite 3 utility. |
|
| Digi+ Power Control | ASUS implements digital power designs since quite some time. Using the the right software, in this case ASUS AI Suite 3 it is not only possible to adjust voltages while being in Windows one can now also control impedances. Furthermore a digital power design causes less electromagnetic emmission therefore there will be less inteference with other onboard components, which could cause instability under certain circumstances. |
 |
| ASUS FAN Xpert+ | ASUS Fan Xpert + provides customizable settings for fans that have been attached directly to the onboard fan headers. With the Fan Auto Tuning feature, ASUS Fan Xpert + automatically detects and tweaks all fan speeds and in the end reduces unwanted noise. |
 |
| Page 1 - Introduction | Page 4 - Layout |
| Page 2 - Specs and Delivery | Page 5 - Connectors and I/O |
| Page 3 - Features | Page 6 - Conclusion |
Discuss this article in the forums [pagebreak]
Layout
Already at a first glance the ASUS P9X79-E WS looks very good with its harmonic design. The colors suite nicely and the different blue tones on a black PCB are calming. The layout itself is well thought and there is for example plenty of space around the CPU socket to install even todays largest CPU coolers.
ASUS equipped the P9X79-E WS with a 10+2+2 phase power design regarding CPU and Memory. The memory gets the additional 2+2 phases which should allow very reasonable overclocking capabilities. Furthermore ASUS implemented a digital power design which should emit less electromagnetic radiation than its analogue counterpart. Meanwhile ASUS uses their Digi+ Power Design in the third generation. ASUS claims that the system stability could be enhanced even further, especially during extreme overclocking.
Totally you'll find eight DIMM-slots on the P9X79-E WS. The official clock speeds that are - if the CPUs integrated memory controller is capable: DDR3 2400 (O.C.) / 2133 (O.C.) / 1866 / 1600 / 1333 / 1066.
Southbridge as well as the current converters are being held at adequate temperatures via a passive heatpipe cooling solution. The cooling blocks haven been positioned wisely, which means that they don't collide with memory or CPU cooler. What is very unusual with this board concerns the placement of the cooling block right next to the DIMM slots on the right side of the board. Because of the fact, that this board comes with a slightly bigger, non-standard CEB form factor this is quite a good choice. We also like that the heatsinks didn't receive a paint job. The bare metal suites the looks nicely and it give this board an industrial look.
| Page 1 - Introduction | Page 4 - Layout |
| Page 2 - Specs and Delivery | Page 5 - Connectors and I/O |
| Page 3 - Features | Page 6 - Conclusion |
Discuss this article in the forums [pagebreak]
Connectors and I/O
Totally ASUS provided the P9X79-E WS with ten angled SATA ports which should be enough for any workstation or gaming system and this board is even suitable for a high-end enthusiast build.. You'll also find practical onboard power- and reset-buttons, which have been placed at the top edge of the motherboard. Another thing that isn't missing, is the debug display which is very useful if you should once have issues with one of the components in your system. Removing the big southbridge cooler shows that there are two PLX bridge chips. Those PEX8747 chips are lane splitters which provide even more lanes to the seven PCI-Express slots to feed them with plenty of bandwidth.
Totally you'll find six fan header on the P9X79-E WS which is more than enough, to provide a well equipped workstation or high-end-system with fresh air. The fanheaders are located around the CPU socket as well as at the bottom edge of the mainboard. Another interesting feature is the onboard USB port, which is one you usually find at the back panel. This is a reasonable addition if you test the board or a system outside a case.
Looking at the external connectors directly at the back-panel ASUS equipped the P9X79-E WS with two USB 3.0/2.0 ports, ten USB 2.0/1.1 ports, two Intel gigabit ethernet ports, two eSATA ports, an optical out as well as an analogue audio panel. Furthermore there also is a BIOS reset button.
| Page 1 - Introduction | Page 4 - Layout |
| Page 2 - Specs and Delivery | Page 5 - Connectors and I/O |
| Page 3 - Features | Page 6 - Conclusion |
Discuss this article in the forums [pagebreak]
Conclusion
| Allgemein | + | - | |
| ASUS leaves a very good impression with its P9X79-E WS. We like the looks of this board very much. The industrial appearance with the bare metal coolers is perfect for workstations. Furthermore there is plenty of space around the CPU socket to install even todays largest coolers comfortably. Furthermore we liked that ASUS equipped this board with no less than seven full size PCI Express x16 slots. This makes it possible to for example to setup a Quad-SLI system. Considering that the P9X79-E WS will be a future proof choice and more than just ready for next-gen GPUs. In order to provide the PCI-Express lanes with plenty of bandwidth there are no less than two PEX8747 chips from PLX. | -
Design - 7 x PCI-Express x16 - Quad SLI Support - 2 x PEX8747 |
||
| Layout | + | - | |
| Generally the ASUS P9X79-E WS's Layout has been very well thought. Once more practical are the angled SATA connectors as well as the power- and reset-buttons. There even is a debug display which is very useful in case you should have issues with a component in your system or the board itself. The reason that there are seven full size PCI Express slots make it inevitable that in a quad SLI setup you'll have to place one card in the last slot available. This means, that if you have a dual slot card, the connectors at the bottom will be covered by the graphics card. Something else that has to do with the placement of the first PCI Express x16 slot concerns the power design. In this case the phases, which are usually right between the CPU socket and the first PCI Express x16 slot couldn't be placed there. There simply isn't enough space. Because of this ASUS decided to make use of a wider form factor and they now put those phases between the DIMM slots and the ATX power plug on the right side of the board. This is an unusual spot but we think it's very well chosen. | - Angled SATA connectors
- Power/Reset-Button onboard - Debug display - Placement of the power design |
| Page 1 - Introduction | Page 4 - Layout |
| Page 2 - Specs and Delivery | Page 5 - Connectors and I/O |
| Page 3 - Features | Page 6 - Conclusion |
Discuss this article in the forums
Author: m.buechel@ocaholic.ch