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Review: ECS PF5 Extreme

by Tarinder Sandhu on 25 July 2005, 00:00

Quick Link: HEXUS.net/qablt

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Specifications

ECS PF5 Extreme
CPU Support All LGA775 processors (including dual-core models)
Northbridge Intel i945P
Memory Support 4 slots, DDR-II only. Supports DDR2-400MHz, 533MHz, and 667MHz at 200MHz FSB. 4GB max, dual-channel
AGP None
PEG 2x x16 (second slot runs at x4 when used concurrently) NOT SLI
Southbridge Intel ICH7R
Audio 8-channel high-definition feed from ICH7R to Realtek ALC880 CODEC
Audio Connectivity I/O 6-port speaker. S/PDIF optical input/output
PCI 3x 32-bit 33MHz PCI 2.1 slots
PCI Express 1 x1 slots (disabled if using both x16 slots)
IDE 1 ATA100 compliant port from ICH7R
IDE RAID None
SATA 4 ports from ICH7R. Supports SATA2
SATA RAID RAID0, 1 and 0+1 from ICH7R (Intel Matrix Storage Technology)
Additional SATA RAID Silicon Image Sil3132 PCIe. Supports 2 ports, SATA 2 compliant, RAID0 and RAID1
Networking Dual LAN Ethernet Controllers. Marvell Yukon 88E8053 PCIe Gigabit and Realtek RTL8100C 10/100
USB 8 USB 2.0 ports from ICH7R. 4x I/O USB 2.0 and 4x onboard
FireWire 2 ports from VIA VT6307 1394a controller, 1 on I/O (4-pin), one via supplied bracket
Other I/O PS/2, Serial
Form Factor 305mm x 245mm, ATX
Expected price £90
Notable features Possible 4-display setup. Dual-core CPU support


ECS goes to lengths to promote the fact that the PF5 Extreme supports Intel's new dual-core CPUs. The classic combination for this board would have to be the £170 Pentium D820, offering dual-core goodness at a modest 2.8GHz clock speed.