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Foxconn X38A Review
[Abstract]
IntroductionAbout a month ago, Foxconn sent us a review sample of their latest flagship motherboard, the Foxconn X38A. As this was before the official launch of the Intel X38 chipset, we could ...
[Content] PCDigitalMobileGame
Features
From our preview of the X38A motherboard, it seemed to us that it was Foxconn's intention to target a wider market with this product. Unlike Gigabyte or ASUS, both of which design specialist boards to target every market segment, the Foxconn X38A was built to fit comfortably from best-of-class performance to the ultra enthusiast crowd. Beneath the demure design of the board, the X38A actually packs quite a punch as a high-end motherboard. Foxconn has also followed suit with a full solid capacitor design and Ferrite chokes around the CPU PWM as well as upgraded the original active fan cooler (on our sample) to a silent heat-pipe structure as can be seen on the first page. This means that you can put aside any noise concerns you may initially have had for the board as well. Catering to overclockers and power users, the board also features a POST debug LED as well as onboard power/reset/CMOS clear buttons.
Our review set still used the older active cooler instead of the heat-pipe system, but what's important to note is that the X38A uses Ferrite chokes and solid capacitors for its PWM. |
Based on the newest Intel X38 chipset, the X38A features dual full-speed PCIe x16 slots for proper CrossFire multi GPU configuration support. In addition, there is a third PCIe x16 slot onboard (in black). Foxconn's technical specifications aren't exactly explicit about this, but they imply that all three PCIe x16 slots support the new PCIe 2.0 standards. However, it would seem that the third slot actually operates at PCIe x4 and driven by the Southbridge instead, which would mean that it really only supports PCIe 1.1. The new X38 MCH is the only chip to feature PCIe 2.0, thus, only the two main PCIe x16 slots (in blue) will be able to take advantage of upcoming PCIe 2.0 cards.
The third (black) PCIe x16 slots seems to draw its PCIe lanes from the Southbridge, which will make it an PCIe 1.1 slot operating at x4. |
Another indication that Foxconn is playing on the fence is the fact that the X38A features both DDR2 and DDR3 memory support, appealing to early adopters while not shutting out the upgrade path for users that are still on DDR2. The rest of the features on the X38A are pretty much expected from a board of its class today. Familiar chipsets can be seen on the board such as Realtek's ALC888S HD Audio CODEC powering onboard audio, Texas Instruments' TSB43AB22A enabling FireWire-400 support and a JMicron JMB363 controller for legacy IDE as well as eSATA support. The X38A also features dual Gigabit LAN through Realtek's PCIe RTL8111B and PCI RTL8110SC ASICs. Interestingly enough, Foxconn chose to limit the USB 2.0 ports on the X38A. While most manufacturers enable all 12 USB 2.0 ports available to the ICH9R Southbridge, we only count eight on the X38A – four on the rear I/O panel and two more optional headers. There is actually reserved space on the PCB for two additional headers, but one still wonders why Foxconn chose not to enable them.
Memory flexibility of the X38A. |
Note the two remaining USB header pinouts reserved on the PCB, but never used. |
Lastly, the Foxconn X38A has now been classified under Foxconn's latest Digital Life product segment. However, unlike other manufacturers, this doesn't necessarily mean that the board itself includes all these features. Instead, from what we understand, the X38A will feature a proprietary Foxconn Digital Connector (which our sample lacks) that can be used to interface with upcoming Foxconn Digital Life products to enhance the board's multimedia capabilities. At the moment, there doesn't seem to be any such devices out yet, so we can only hope that its inclusion means that Foxconn is committed to deliver some useful devices that will take advantage of this port in the upcoming months.
Layout
The board has a simplistic nature to it and we can't really find anything seriously wrong with its component placement, but the X38A looks like a very cluttered and busy motherboard, possibly due to the gamut of colors Foxconn chose for its components. Seen from afar, the X38A looks like it is made from Lego blocks. Even so, space should not be an issue. The CPU area is relatively spacious and users should be able to comfortably fit two large Radeons into the board, and have sufficient room for RAM installation. Larger cards may however, interfere with the upper row of SATA ports.
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