14 DAY TRIAL // Intel couldn't miss out from all the LGA 2011 motherboard demonstrations that are taking place at IDF 2011 right now, so the company has come out with its own solution based on the X79 Express PCH that adds support for the upcoming Sandy Bridge-E processors.
Intel latest creation is known as the DX79SI and is a full-ATX board designed to be used in gaming and other high-end desktop systems.
Its most distinctive feature is the inclusion of eight DIMM memory sockets that are placed right above and bellow the CPU socket, to the left of these Intel installing the all-too-important expansion slots.
These include three PCI Express x16 slots, with support for 3-way CrossFireX and SLI, a pair of PCIe x1 slots as well as a single 32-bit PCI slot for legacy add-on cards.
The rest of the specs list isn't as impressive as one would think, as the board features only four SATA 6Gbps ports and two SATA 3Gbps ports, with no additional ports being routed as eSATA connectors to the rear panel.
Speaking of the rear I/O configuration, the DX79SI comes with two Gigabit Ethernet connections (one driven by an Intel controller, and the another by a Realtek IC), two USB 3.0 and a FireWire port, and 7.1-channel audio with an S/PDIF optical output.
No additional USB 3.0 pin-headers are present, but Intel's solution does feature Power and Reset on-board buttons as well as a BIOS debug LCD for easy bootup diagnosis.
Intel's Sandy Bridge-E processors are expected to debut in mid-November and the initial CPU batch will include three chips, two featuring a six-core design and a quad-core model. The Intel DX79SI is also expected to debut in Q4 2011. (via AnandTech)