EVGA X58 Classified - Trophy Board
by Rajinder Gill on May 8, 2009 3:30 AM EST- Posted in
- Motherboards
The Board
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The final rendition of the heatsink is a little smaller than what was on our ES sample. The reduction in size makes the heatsink compatible with the bulkier CPU coolers and allows the use of a "long" soundcard in the top PCI-E slot. Feature wise, everything we mentioned in our ES preview made it to retail release.
The ES board did leave us hopeful of a release with minimal end-user issues. On the BIOS front at time of publication, the one remaining requested fix is proper CPU FAN Speed recovery from S3 Sleep states. EVGA is addressing this and a fix should be ready shortly.
A certain amount of "pickiness" has also been revealed with certain batches of PSUs. We've encountered no problems ourselves using the venerable PCP 1200W and Corsair HX1000w PSUs. Based on these problems and ones that we have experienced with other X58 boards, we suspect the problems are with start-up current protection timing on older units. We recommend you head over to the EVGA forums to see if your PSU is on the potential hazard list before you purchase the components for your build. Units from Enermax and Thermaltake seem to be those with the most compatibility issues thus far, although not all batches seem affected, suggesting that revisions are already in the wild.
The retail board exhibited excellent compatibility with our own test hardware. Everything from onboard sound to various USB devices and peripheral cards including RAID controllers works. We can find nothing negative when it comes to overall functionality of the board.
Despite its size, the IOH cooler employed by EVGA on the Classified is not suitable for passive cooling of the IOH/ICH and NF200 when used in a closed PC case during overclocking runs. We have found temperatures can easily soar over 80C if there is no cross-flow across the heatsink. EVGA's design allows the user to mount a small 40mm fan to the PCI-E slot side of the heatsink that should help reduce temperatures into the 50C region and ensure stability when overclocking.
Unfortunately, you will have to buy a fan separately, which we think should have been included in the retail package considering the price of the motherboard. A well-executed waterblock option with a heatpipe linking all critical areas would also have been welcome on a board in this price range. Active cooling of this heatsink is necessary in any overclocking configuration; expect overclocking and even stock stability in poorly ventilated cases to be somewhat flaky without some form of cross-flow.
CPU side mounting holes are not provided, because the space between the heatsink and most of the larger CPU coolers is not sufficient to place a dedicated fan into this area. It is possible to mount coolers like Thermalright Ultra 120 or Noctua NHU12P in either direction. There's just enough room to allow for push-pull fan configurations too, leaving a paper width of space between either the memory modules and the fan or the IOH heatsink and the fan in both orientations.
The PWM heatsink is segregated from the IOH heatsink and cools both the PWM FET's and inductors. The low voltage situations experienced in daily use do not require active cooling in this area. However, you'll find that cross-flow is again needed to keep temps in the 40-50C region when overclocking as the heat dump from the FET's and Inductors into the sink becomes quite substantial as soon as you elevate VID above 1.4V or so. It's not always easy getting airflow into this area of a board either. Again, a 40mm fan will suffice for the most part, but you'll probably have to find some way of balancing it around the heatsink or using a case like the CM Stacker 830 with fans in the side door that blow air across the board.
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TA152H - Saturday, May 16, 2009 - link
You're really an idiot if you don't see any difference here.PCI-Express can, in rare, situations offer additional performance to AGP, or the AT-Bus (ISA is properly called the AT-Bus, IBM invented it, so they get to name it).
USB gives no additional benefits for keyboards or mice, and in fact cost performance.
There's no parallel here. If you admit they use clock cycles, then what system you use is irrelevant. They waste clock cycles for no reason. As I mentioned, it's very, very slight, but why pay for it at all? Especially with a board geared for performance, why waste clock cycles on USB? It makes no sense. If USB keyboards or Mice did something PS/2 port versions couldn't, I'd at least see some point. But, they don't, so there's no point. This is different from the moronic examples you gave, where there can be some advantages.
takumsawsherman - Tuesday, May 12, 2009 - link
I completely agree. This unit forces you to use a USB mouse, which is ridiculous at $450. I was being sarcastic. Personally, I use all PS/2 input devices, because they just work. Every time. That can't even nearly be said about USB.TA152H - Sunday, May 10, 2009 - link
You make $450 sound like a real lot of money for people. I remember when the 386 was out, you'd pay over a grand for it, if you wanted the 82385 and 32K cache. That's when a grand was worth almost twice that now. $450 is nothing, I'd buy it just so I got a warm fuzzy feeling, if it were actually worth it.For that price, throw some SRAM on the motherboard, and get a few extra percentages of performance at any speed. Why sell a half-rate motherboard for $450, when you could slap a nice L4 cache on the motherboard, for not too much more, and then boast real performance improvements no matter how you run it? Seems silly to me.
Besides, who would get a warm fuzzy from buying a motherboard from a EVGA? It's a stupid name, it sounds like a video card of the late 80s that ran VGA resolutions on an EGA, digital card. Supermicro, yes, or a killer Intel motherboard, or even IBM if they still made them. EVGA????? Well, I guess they have to start to build a reputation somewhere, and maybe this is a good move by them to get some press, and become known as a high end motherboard maker. So, I guess I understand it. Just add some SRAM and make it a real killer!
bob4432 - Saturday, May 9, 2009 - link
weak. evga is for the Microphallus crowd.i wouldn't own one of their items and really wonder why anandtech is wasting the time on this that 99% of the readers wouldn't even give too looks at.
Screammit - Tuesday, May 12, 2009 - link
I like to see a company raising the bar, even if it is ridiculously priced. Someone has the cash and the will to buy it, which hopefully will prompt other manufacturers to compete with similar devices, eventually driving prices down. It may be a microphallus product, but it has only positive effects on the market as a whole. What could be wrong with that?Rajinder Gill - Sunday, May 10, 2009 - link
As I stated on page 1 of the comments, this is a perf product and generally speaking these reviews fall under my duristiction for the audience these products are aimed at (nobody said they were the majority). We're in the process of introducing someone new to take over the more mainstream stuff. The perf review will continue as is, while the lower-mid market stuff gets a boost in article frequency by adding somebody else to the mix.later
Raja
Rajinder Gill - Sunday, May 10, 2009 - link
*jurisdiction*..lolhemipowered - Saturday, May 9, 2009 - link
For absolute OC'ing I haven't seen any better. But I bought mine for looks and its ability to OC, it is a shame Anandtech didn't report/show screenshots of what the board does when running with the Lights on itrazorsimon - Saturday, May 9, 2009 - link
I'm really disapointed that you guys have given EVGA the free marketing on this board. Thier treatment of us in Europe over supply is so shamefull that I will always look to buy another brand from now on.The Classified is unique and the only EVGA product worth waiting for. I really hope another manufacturer comes up with something better and blows the Classified and EVGA where they belong.
Just to clarify the situation - my supplier in the UK gets told every week by EVGA europe that they are due this week. This has been going on for 2 months and so far about 20 boards have come through... yet they are in stock with suppliers in USA.
EVGA are not being honest and stringing us poor customers and thier retailers along.
EVGA's credability in Europe has been destroyed.
Fluxcored Arcweld - Sunday, May 10, 2009 - link
Made me laugh cause at the same time I'm unable to get the German watercooling I want for my i7 build here in the US. Low production products in a niche market segment trans Atlantic; we have to be realistic about availability methinks...Shout out to watercool.de !!