Intel DX79SI Review: The Default X79?
by Ian Cutress on November 18, 2011 1:10 AM EST- Posted in
- Motherboards
- Intel
- X79
Board Features
| Intel DX79SI | |
| Size | ATX |
| CPU Interface | LGA2011 |
| CPU Support | Intel Second Generation Core i7 Sandy Bridge E |
| Chipset | Intel X79 |
| Base Clock Frequency | 100.0 MHz |
| Core Voltage | Default, 1.000 V to 1.920 V |
| CPU Clock Multiplier | Auto, 5x to 65x |
| DRAM Voltage | Auto, 1.20 V to 1.99 V |
| DRAM Command Rate | Auto, 1T, 2T |
| Memory Slots |
Eight DDR3 DIMM slots supporting up to 64 GB Up to Quad Channel Support for DDR3, 1066-2400 MHz |
| Expansion Slots |
2 x PCIe Gen 3 x16 1 x PCIe Gen 3 x8 2 x PCIe Gen 2 x1 1 x PCI |
| Onboard SATA/RAID |
2 x SATA 6 Gbps, Support for RAID 0, 1, 5, 10 4 x SATA 3 Gbps, Support for RAID 0, 1, 5, 10 |
| Onboard |
4 x SATA 3 Gbps (PCH) 2 x SATA 3 Gbps (PCH) 4 x Fan Headers 1 x S/PDIF Out Header 1 x Front Panel Header 1 x Front Panel Audio Header 4 x USB 2.0 Headers 1 x USB 3.0 Header 1 x Remote Thermal Probe Header 1 x IEEE 1394a Header Power / Reset / Clear CMOS Buttons + Debug LED Board Status LEDs |
| Onboard LAN | Dual Intel Gigabit 82579L + 82574L |
| Onboard Audio | Realtek ALC892 |
| Power Connectors |
1 x 24-pin ATX connector 1 x 8-pin 12V connector |
| Fan Headers |
1 x CPU Fan Header 2 x Chassis Headers 1 x Auxillary Header |
| IO Panel |
6 x USB 2.0 2 x USB 3.0 1 x Back2Bios 2 x Intel Gigabit Ethernet 1 x Optical S/PDIF Out Connector 2 x FireWire / IEEE 1394a Audio Jacks |
| BIOS Version | 280 - 10/19/2011 |
| Warranty Period | 3 Years |
Everyone who cares deeply about Ethernet options will be pleased to see dual Intel Gigabit NICs onboard; however there is nothing too much to shout about in general in terms of what is available here. Perhaps an additional two USB 3.0 ports on the back panel, or more SATA ports by a controller would be a welcome addition to the consumer product.
In The Box
Unfortunately, there seems to be a large discrepancy in terms of what’s in the box compared to my media sample and what exactly Intel are going to ship with the DX79SI. Personally, I have:
Intel ‘Skull’ themed mouse mat
Two slot length SLI connector
Long SLI connector
Thermal Probe
In terms of what should be included, according to the manuals:
Bluetooth/Wifi Module
Driver CD
User Manual
Despite all this, we see a distinct lack of SATA cables provided. With a significant proportion of HDDs being sold as OEM, sans cables, it is a shock to see a product without cables being provided.
Software
Again, for some reason due to this media sample, my range of installing drivers and software was limited to what I could download from the Intel pre-release website. This required a manual installation of the chipset drivers, LAN drivers, USB 3.0 drivers, and so on. While not exhaustive by any means, I hope the driver CD in the retail package has an ‘Install All’ option.
In terms of software, the only one currently available to me is the Intel Extreme Tuning Utility (XTU), which is essentially their overclocking software. There are no fan controls for the OS, or ability to change the power modes here. However, the XTU is a well designed piece of software with aesthetics to match.
The core piece of XTU is the manual tuning. Almost all of the BIOS settings for the CPU are adjustable here in terms of sliders, with simple cancel buttons to return to default values. Any changes you make here should turn up yellow, indicating a reboot is required to apply the changes (unless you select an option in the BIOS which allows you to change the CPU multiplier on the fly).
As mentioned previously, the lack of OS fan controls is one major aspect which lets this board down as an overall consumer product. Hopefully this will change in future.
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coldfiredragon - Friday, November 18, 2011 - link
Oh ya I have been using them exclusivly since arround 99, with their 440BX board for Pentium 3's. I love them, solid dependible I have never had to RMA one.The0ne - Friday, November 18, 2011 - link
I used them exclusively for work back them. By this I mean I tested and qualify the boards and CPU's for our products. and to deploy in the mfg environment. The key characteristic is, of course, reliability.Not sure why the person above doesn't know this :) Maybe this link can help,
http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/futurama-fry-not-sur...
vol7ron - Sunday, November 20, 2011 - link
I've never actually owned the Intel branded boards. I think the primary reason is that I like the potential to overclock and whenever there were articles of this, Intel either locked their settings, or their boards didn't overclock all that well (either through voltage regulation or thermal problems).Any comments regarding this?
Bozo - Saturday, November 19, 2011 - link
I have been using Intel motherboards since the mid 1990's at work. If you want stability and reliability, Intel is the way to go.mino - Sunday, November 20, 2011 - link
Most of the time ... Had a lot of 50 PC's with Intel mobo's go POOF within 2Q after getting our of warranty. ... THoug those were NetBurst times. KInda expected they will "Burst" :).On a serious note, business-class Intel Mobo's are one of the best as far as reliability goes.
Though, over the past 5 years since reliability actually became a marketing term in the mobo business, the gap as it was in the 90's and starting 2000's is no longer there.
acompsys - Wednesday, November 30, 2011 - link
True...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z0uXWmlMOgg
Googer - Sunday, November 20, 2011 - link
Intel has been in the motherboard business for about 17-18 years or so. I still have my old Intel Socket 370 FCPGA2 Motherboard from 10 years ago.Googer - Sunday, November 20, 2011 - link
A lot of OEMs use intel as their Board maker. Dell used (or still uses?) a Custom Intel board in their machines, Emachines used a rebadged off the shelf intel board in their cases too.mino - Monday, November 21, 2011 - link
OEM's not so much. Whiteboxers mostly, along with several "wanna-be's", Dell included in its early years.PrezWeezy - Sunday, November 20, 2011 - link
Intel has been making their own motherboards for a very long time. They aren't usually known for being the fastest boards around, but they are damn solid. Very very few failures comparitively, and they run forever. They also tend to be very expensive.