![]() ![]() ![]() The test systems’ Windows desktop was set at 1280×1024 in 32-bit color at an 85Hz screen refresh rate. We used the following versions of our test applications: Thanks to OCZ for providing these units for our use in testing. 2GB of RAM seems to be the new standard for most folks, and Corsair hooked us up with some of its 1GB DIMMs for testing.Īlso, all of our test systems were powered by OCZ GameXStream 700W power supply units. Thanks to Corsair for providing us with memory for our testing. GeForce 7900 GTX 512MB PCI-E with ForceWare 93.71 drivers Integrated nForce 680i LT/ALC885 with Realtek HD 1.57 drivers Integrated nForce 680i/ALC885 with Realtek HD 1.57 drivers Integrated nForce 430i/ALC883 with Realtek HD 1.57 drivers The ALC885 isn’t Realtek’s fanciest HD audio codec, but it’s the very same chip found on the initial nForce 680i SLI board design.Ĭorsair TWIN2X2048-8500C5 DDR2 SDRAM at 800MHz Nvidia also calls on a third-party chip to handle audio codec duties, and as one might expect, that chip bears the infamous Realtek crab. Instead, they’ve tapped Texas Instruments’ TSB43AB22A 1394a controller to provide a couple of Firewire ports. Virtually every onboard peripheral can be traced back to the chipset.Ībout the only peripheral Nvidia hasn’t integrated into its chipsets is Firewire. As with the company’s initial 680i SLI design, you won’t find any auxiliary storage controllers or networking chips on this latest LT. The spec sheet for Nvidia’s nForce 680i LT SLI motherboard doesn’t offer much in the way of surprises. Voltage, fan status, and temperature monitoring ![]() SPPMCP ref clock: 200-400MHz in 1-2MHz increments Maximum of 8 GB of DDR2-400/533/667/800 SDRAMĦ channels Serial ATA with RAID 0, 1, 0+1, 5 supportĨ-channel HD audio via nForce 680i and Realtek ALC885 codecġ 1394a Firewire via Texas Instruments TSB43AB22A with headers for 1 more LGA775-based Celeron, Pentium 4/D, Core 2 processors Losing that second networking controller also costs the LT support for DualNet teaming, which allows two GigE connections to be combined into a single, pseudo-2Gbps link on the standard nForce 680i SLI. Unfortunately, no amount of BIOS fiddling will make up for the fact that the LT also drops two of the 680i SLI’s USB ports and one of its Gigabit Ethernet controllers. Beyond that speed, you’ll have to actually tweak memory timings yourself. Both chipsets support front-side bus speeds up to 1333MHz, but Nvidia characterizes the LT’s overclocking prowess as simply “great,” while the standard 680i SLI is apparently qualifies as “best.” The standard 680i SLI also supports SLI-Ready MemoryNvidia’s entirely unnecessary rebranding of Enhanced Performance Profiles (EPP)up to speeds of 1200MHz, but the LT’s EPP support is limited to 800MHz. What has Nvidia cut from the 680i SLI to slide this latest LT design under the $200 mark? How does the board fare as a result? Is this Nvidia’s homage to Lawrence Taylor? Read on to find out.īefore exploring Nvidia’s latest foray into the motherboard world, I should take a moment to clarify exactly how this new LT version of the nForce 680i SLI differs from the original. This time, though, boards are expected to sell for $200 or less. Like its older brother, the LT arrives on an Nvidia-designed retail motherboard. Today, Nvidia is lowering the cost of entry into the 680i fraternity with the launch of the nForce 680i LT SLI chipset. The nForce 680i SLI’s only lingering problem has been the cost of the platformboards based on Nvidia’s reference design typically run about $250, and custom boards from other partners can cost upwards of $300. We were impressed by the board, particularly its ability to hit extremely high front-side bus speeds and to fully exploit the features and extras inherent to the nForce 680i SLI chipset. Nvidia’s nForce 680i SLI reference design was rebadged and sold essentially as-is by the likes of Biostar, BFG, ECS, and EVGA. With the 680i SLI, however, Nvidia set out to build a reference design not only polished enough for retail, but robust enough to satiate overclockers and enthusiasts. New chipsets often debut on reference motherboard, but those boards are typically meant as validation vehicles for the chipset and as design guides for mobo makers they don’t have the polish one would expect from retail products. N VIDIA LAUNCHED ITS NFORCE 680i SLI chipset late last year, and it arrived in style on a motherboard designed and made by Nvidia itself. ![]()
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