Gigabyte GA-990FXA-UD3 AMD Socket AM3+ Motherboard Review

Manufacturer Gigabyte
Name GA-990FXA-UD3
Type / Chipset Socket AM3+ CPU / AMD 990FX Chipset (AMD SB950 Southbridge)
Dimensions +++ 22 mm (43 mm radius) around the socket to the next capacitor or other mainboard parts – for further information see Fit for Fan. The space to the next bigger heatsink is approx. 39 mm (60 mm radius). The overall size of this ATX mainboard is 305 x 244 mm.
Slots ++++ 1x pci, 6x PCIe 2.0: 4×16/2×1, 4x DDR3-800 – DDR3-1600 / DDR3-2400 OC max 32GB RAM
Connectors

++++ 1x PS/2, 6x SATA3, 2x eSATA3 (Marvell 88SE9172), 1x serial (optional), 1x TPM, 1x 10/100/1000 Mbps base-T Ethernet (Realtek RTL8111E), 4x USB 3.0 (2x of them internal, slot bracket for additional ports is not included), 14x USB 2.0 (6x of them internal, slot bracket for additional ports is not included), 2x IEEE1394 (1x of them internal, slot bracket for additional ports is not included), 8-Channel ALC 889 onboard 7.1 sound with 6x 3.5 mm connectors (1x optical S/PDIF out, 1x int. HDMI S/PDIF out, 1x int. Aux, ext. Line in, ext. Mic, ext. Front out, ext. Side out, ext. Rear out, ext. Center/Subwoofer) and 4x fan connectors (2x 4-pin and 2x 3-pin).

Vcore ++++ BIOS between -0.600 Volt and +0.600 Volt / 0.7000 Volt – 1.9000 Volt (Vcore depends on CPU)
Multiplier ++++ BIOS between 5x and 13x (max. multiplier depends on CPU) and 1x – 10x HT / 5x – 10x NB
Host Frequency ++++ BIOS between 200 and 500 MHz (PCIe 100 – 150 MHz)
VIO/VDD ++++ DRAM Voltage 1.025 – 2.135 V, DDR VTT 0.515 – 1.145 Volt, NB 0.865 – 1.975 Volt, CPU NB VID -0.600 – +0.600 Volt (0.600 – 1.800 V), NB/PCIe/PLL Voltage 1.325 – 2.435 Volt, HT Link 0.725 – 1.435 Volt, CPU PLL Voltage 2.025 – 3.135 Volt.
Performance* ++++ Benchmark ratings with some video cards and benchmark tools.

SiSoftware Sandra 2010c Benchmark ratings with AMD Phenom II 710 processor. SiSoftware Sandra 2010c Arithmetik Processorperformance in Windows 7 RC: 26,3 GOPS SiSoftware Sandra 2010c Multimedia Processorperformance in Windows 7 RC: 54,54 MPixel/s

SiSoftware Sandra 2010c Benchmark ratings with AMD FX-6100 processor. SiSoftware Sandra 2010c Arithmetik Processorperformance in Windows 7 RC: 49,3 GOPS SiSoftware Sandra 2010c Multimedia Processorperformance in Windows 7 RC: 117,42 MPixel/s

3DMark11 Entry Benchmark ratings with AMD Phenom II 710 processor. 1x Sapphire HD6870 1024MB AMD Radeon HD6870 PCIe 2.0 video card: 3DMark11 Entry Test in Windows 7: E4400 (GPU: 6128 / Physics: 2662 / Combined Score: 2640)

3DMark11 Entry Benchmark ratings with AMD FX-6100 processor. 1x Sapphire HD6870 1024MB AMD Radeon HD6870 PCIe 2.0 video card: 3DMark11 Entry Test in Windows 7: E5262 (GPU: 5943 / Physics: 4180 / Combined Score: 4102)

3DMark Vantage Entry Test Benchmark with AMD Phenom II 710 processor. 1x Sapphire HD6870 1024MB AMD Radeon HD6870 PCIe 2.0 video card: 3DMark Vantage Entry Test in Windows 7: E19374 (GPU: 48231 / CPU: 6931) 1x Sapphire HD4870 512MB AMD Radeon HD4870 PCIe 2.0 video card: 3DMark Vantage Entry Test in Windows 7: E17436 (GPU: 36039 / CPU: 6841)

3DMark Vantage Entry Test Benchmark with AMD FX-6100 processor. 1x Sapphire HD6870 1024MB AMD Radeon HD6870 PCIe 2.0 video card: 3DMark Vantage Entry Test in Windows 7: E28437 (GPU: 47800 / CPU: 12837) 1x Sapphire HD4870 512MB AMD Radeon HD4870 PCIe 2.0 video card: 3DMark Vantage Entry Test in Windows 7: E24607 (GPU: 35570 / CPU: 12786)

3DMark06 Benchmark with AMD Phenom II 710 processor. 1x Sapphire HD6870 1024MB AMD Radeon HD6870 PCIe 2.0 video card: 3DMark06 in Windows 7: 14293 3DMarks 1x Sapphire HD4870 512MB AMD Radeon HD4870 PCIe 2.0 video card: 3DMark06 in Windows 7: 13344 3DMarks

3DMark06 Benchmark with AMD FX-6100 processor. 1x Sapphire HD6870 1024MB AMD Radeon HD6870 PCIe 2.0 video card: 3DMark06 in Windows 7: 15566 3DMarks 1x Sapphire HD4870 512MB AMD Radeon HD4870 PCIe 2.0 video card: 3DMark06 in Windows 7: 14444 3DMarks

3DMark03 Benchmark values with AMD Phenom II 710 processor. 1x Sapphire HD6870 1024MB AMD Radeon HD6870 PCIe 2.0 video card: 3DMark03 in Windows 7: 64182 3DMarks 1x Sapphire HD4870 512MB AMD Radeon HD4870 PCIe 2.0 video card: 3DMark03 in Windows 7: 51713 3DMarks

3DMark03 Benchmark values with AMD FX-6100 Bulldozer processor. 1x Sapphire HD6870 1024MB AMD Radeon HD6870 PCIe 2.0 video card: 3DMark03 in Windows 7: 63832 3DMarks 1x Sapphire HD4870 512MB AMD Radeon HD4870 PCIe 2.0 video card: 3DMark03 in Windows 7: 45514 3DMarks

Manual and Labeling

++++ Complete and well placed motherboard description, colored connectors and a good manual.