790i Ultra SLI Motherboards Compared

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Software and Accessories

Since the XFX nForce 790i Ultra is supplied as a complete unit by Nvidia, it makes sense that the company also provides Nvidia’s reference overclocking software. This is more than the basic nTune package, however, as Nvidia Control Panel 6.00 Beta seeks to integrate additional functions.

CPU overclocking controls are fairly useless at this point, locking up the system with anything more than the slightest change. Adjusting the core voltage might have helped, except that this function is not yet, well, functional.

More extensive adjustments could be made under the Motherboard menu, if the settings were all functional. None of the voltage menus work with Nvidia’s own motherboard, though, so we hold out little hope for other 790i series models until major improvements have been made to the program.

Memory controls again look adequate, at a glance, but don’t work.

Nvidia Control Panel also supports automatic driver updates.

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Documentation & SoftwareUser’s Manual
Row 1 - Cell 0 Quick Installation Guide
Row 2 - Cell 0 Promo Door Tag
Row 3 - Cell 0 Motherboard Driver DVD (Windows XP, Vista)
Hardware1x Auxiliary Chipset Fan
Row 5 - Cell 0 1x SLI 3-Way Bridge
Row 6 - Cell 0 1x SLI 2-Way Bridge
Row 7 - Cell 0 6x SATA Data Cable
Row 8 - Cell 0 4x 4-pin to SATA Power Adapter (2-device)
Row 9 - Cell 0 1x 80-conductor Ultra ATA cable, Round
Row 10 - Cell 0 1x Floppy cable, Round
Row 11 - Cell 0 1x USB Break-Out Plate (4-ports)
Row 12 - Cell 0 1x IEEE-1394 Break-Out Plate (1-port)
Row 13 - Cell 0 1x I/O Panel Shield

All Nvidia-supplied 790i Ultra SLI motherboards include the same chipset cooling fan plus 3-way and 2-way SLI bridges. XFX adds a good cable kit and even a “Do Not Disturb” sign for your game room door.

Thomas Soderstrom
Thomas Soderstrom
Thomas Soderstrom is a Senior Staff Editor at Tom's Hardware US. He tests and reviews cases, cooling, memory and motherboards.
59 Comments Comment from the forums
  • trainreks
    FINNALY !!!! A Review on the 790i
    Reply
  • doxicity
    Mystery Motherboard = GA-N780Ultra-DQ6?
    Reply
  • Crashman
    This was ALL OF THE AVAILABLE 790i Ultra SLI MOTHERBOARDS: Other graphics brands with NVIDIA reference boards INCLUDING EVGA are selling the same unit as XFX, even with the same BIOS (except for the boot logo). XFX was the only one who cared to send one.
    Reply
  • giovanni86
    Thats what i was going to say!!! Thank god. Well i guess i made the right choice. XFX 790i, exactly what i am going to buy in the coming month. Just need to save for it XD.
    Reply
  • jaragon13
    Who would pay four hundred dollars,when you can just buy a P45 for 100-150 dollars which has roughly the same real world experience as an X48 or 790I?
    Nah,I'd rather buy better and more reliable parts-such as power supply,processor,GRAPHICS CARD,and maybe go buy a rifle :P
    Reply
  • kitsilencer
    $400 for a motherboard? What the hell is wrong with the X48 Express that people would rather consider buying a 790i? And it can't be because of SLI. Makes more sense to buy the X48 and Crossfire.
    Reply
  • Crashman
    jaragon13Who would pay four hundred dollars,when you can just buy a P45 for 100-150 dollars which has roughly the same real world experience as an X48 or 790I?Nah,I'd rather buy better and more reliable parts-such as power supply,processor,GRAPHICS CARD,and maybe go buy a rifle
    If you want SLI you're going to need an SLI motherboard. The article specifically stated that the reference design motherboard was almost as good in many ways as the winning board, but far cheaper.

    The site only has two awards, one is for top value and the other is for "best of the best". It's hard to award a $350 motherboard for top value, but it's not so difficult awarding the "best of the best" even if the price is outrageous
    Reply
  • Crashman
    kitsilencer$400 for a motherboard? What the hell is wrong with the X48 Express that people would rather consider buying a 790i? And it can't be because of SLI. Makes more sense to buy the X48 and Crossfire.
    It does! Well, sorta. If you want the absolute fastest rig on the planet, you're going to need at least two, possibly three, GTX280's. But if you can wait a few days or maybe a couple weeks, you might be surprised at how well a Crossfire set of HD4870X2's can perform using an X48 motherboard.
    Reply
  • jaragon13
    My point is that,even though you could theoritically have 3/4 GPU's all at once,you won't get nearly as much performance as you'd want.A simple 750I or P45 chipset will do nearly the same job.
    Reply
  • zer00000
    It is a foxconn board i bet.I just read a review elsewhere with same stuff except it had an x48 chipset."All manner of goodies are bundled with the Black Ops: a 120MM fan, a plastic dry ice cooling pot for the Northbridge, and a Plexiglas "benching table" for open-air use."
    Reply