EVGA 780i SLI Motherboard Review :: EVGA nForce 780i SLI Layout

The dominating feature of the new nForce 780i SLI chipset is that it supports 3-way SLI. The board has three x16 PCI Express slots. In three-way SLI mode, two of the slots operate in 2.0 x16 mode, meaning that they offer 16GB/second of bandwidth to the graphics cards in those slots. One caveat about SLI mode on the EVGA board is that graphics cards need to be installed in PCI Express x16 slot 1 and 2 for two-way SLI to work properly. Other expansion slots on the nForce 780i SLI board include a PCI Express x1 slot and two PCI slots.

Expansion

PCI Express x16 locks

PCI

PCI Express x1

Hard disk expansion on the EVGA board includes 6 SATA ports controlled by the nForce 780i SLI chip. Some major motherboard chipsets on the market today support up to 8 or 12 SATA via external SATA devices but most of the users needing more can always buy a PCI card with more if they need it. There is also a single IDE port and a FDD port on the board, allowing for DVD-ROM IDE drives and FDD drives to be installed if necessary.

SATA

External SATA+FDD

IDE+24-pin power

CPU Socket

The layout of the board is pretty good in many respects. The CPU area is completely clear of obstacles, meaning that the use of an aftermarket cooling system is very easy and pain free. The right side of the board contains the MOSFET heatsinks which are low profile. 6 capacitors line up at the top of the processor to provide power to the CPU area.

8-Pin Power

NB Fan

SB

MOSFET heatsinks

Heatsink

Back of NB Heatsink

Back of Board

Front Panel I/O

The 24-pin power connector is in the lower right hand side of the board, the normal place for that connector. The 8-pin power connector is at the top of the board above the CPU Socket area. The connector is at an angle, meaning that easy access to the power supply is assured. An active cooling fan covers the Northbridge with a copper heatpipe leading to the rear heatsink. The nForce 780i MCP lies under the fan.

LED

Power/Reset

Rear I/O

Four DIMM slots provide support for up to 8GB of DDR2 533/667/800/1200MHz (SLI Ready EPP memory) in dual-channel mode. To install memory in dual channel mode the user must install memory in like colored DIMM slots. DDR2-1200 memory is rare but available and can be enabled on the. Four SATA ports are under the DIMM Slots two are next to the FDD port in a sideways position. I love SATA ports in the sideways position as the cables are easier to install and remove.

The rear I/O on the board includes six USB 2.0 ports, SPDIF Input, Firewire port, 6 jacks for the onboard audio, two RJ-45 jacks for the onboard LAN and PS/2 mouse and keyboard ports for the legacy owners out there. The nForce 780i SLI board from EVGA has a Realtek HD CODEC meaning that it supports all of the Azalia features including multiple independent audio streams and more.