ASRock 880G Extreme3 & 890FX Deluxe3

Last week we examined the ATI Radeon HD 4250 integrated graphics performance found with the AMD 880G chipset introduced a few months back. We found the performance of the 880G IGP to be not that different from the higher-end AMD 890GX chipset when using the proprietary Catalyst driver, but today we are looking more at the 880G chipset along with the 890FX chipset as we review the ASRock 880G Extreme3 and ASRock 890FX Deluxe3, respectively. Both low-cost motherboards offer USB 3.0, SATA 3.0, and eSATA3 connectivity, and Turbo UCC overclocking, among other features.

880G Extreme3 Features:

CPU
- Support for Socket AM3 processors: AMD Phenom II X6 / X4 / X3 / X2 (except 920 / 940) / Athlon II X4 / X3 / X2 / Sempron processors
- Six-Core CPU Ready
- Supports UCC feature (Unlock CPU Core)
- Advanced V8 + 2 Power Phase Design
- Supports CPU up to 140W
- Supports AMD's Cool 'n' Quiet Technology
- FSB 2600 MHz (5.2 GT/s)
- Supports Untied Overclocking Technology
- Supports Hyper-Transport 3.0 (HT 3.0) Technology

Chipset
- Northbridge: AMD 880G
- Southbridge: AMD SB850

Memory
- Dual Channel DDR3 memory technology
- 4 x DDR3 DIMM slots
- Supports DDR3 1800(OC)/1600(OC)/1333/1066/800 non-ECC, un-buffered memory
- Max. capacity of system memory: 16GB

BIOS
- 8Mb AMI Legal BIOS
- Supports "Plug and Play"
- ACPI 1.1 Compliance Wake Up Events
- Supports jumperfree
- SMBIOS 2.3.1 Support
- CPU, VCCM, NB, SB Voltage Multi-adjustment

Graphics
- Integrated AMD Radeon HD 4250 graphics
- DX10.1 class iGPU, Shader Model 4.1
- Max. shared memory 512MB
- Built-in 128MB DDR3 1333(OC)/1200MHz SidePort Memory
- Multi VGA Output options: D-Sub, DVI-D and HDMI
- Supports HDMI Technology with max. resolution up to 1920x1200 (1080P)
- Supports Dual-link DVI with max. resolution up to 2560x1600 @ 75Hz
- Supports D-Sub with max. resolution up to 2048x1536 @ 85Hz
- Supports HDCP function with DVI and HDMI ports
- Supports Full HD 1080p Blu-ray (BD) / HD-DVD playback with DVI and HDMI ports

Audio
- 7.1 CH HD Audio with Content Protection
- DAC with 110dB dynamic range (VIA VT2020 Audio Codec)
- Premium Blu-ray audio support

LAN
- PCIE x1 Gigabit LAN 10/100/1000 Mb/s
- Realtek RTL8111E
- Supports Wake-On-LAN
- Supports LAN Cable Detection

Unique Features
- ASRock OC Tuner
- Intelligent Energy Saver
- Instant Boot
- ASRock Instant Flash
- ASRock OC DNA
- Hybrid Booster:
- CPU Frequency Stepless Control
- ASRock U-COP
- Boot Failure Guard (B.F.G.)
- Turbo 40 / Turbo 50 Technology
- Turbo UCC

890FX Deluxe3 Features:

CPU
- Support for Socket AM3 processors: AMD Phenom II X6 / X4 / X3 / X2 (except 920 / 940) / Athlon II X4 / X3 / X2 / Sempron processors
- Six-Core CPU Ready
- Supports UCC feature (Unlock CPU Core)
- Advanced V8 + 2 Power Phase Design
- Supports CPU up to 140W
- Supports AMD's Cool 'n' Quiet Technology
- FSB 2600 MHz (5.2 GT/s)
- Supports Untied Overclocking Technology
- Supports Hyper-Transport 3.0 (HT 3.0) Technology

Chipset
- Northbridge: AMD 890FX
- Southbridge: AMD SB850
- AMD Vision Black

Memory
- Dual Channel DDR3 memory technology
- 4 x DDR3 DIMM slots
- Supports DDR3 1800(OC)/1600(OC)/1333/1066/800 non-ECC, un-buffered memory
- Max. capacity of system memory: 16GB

BIOS
- 8Mb AMI Legal BIOS
- Supports "Plug and Play"
- ACPI 1.1 Compliance Wake Up Events
- Supports jumperfree
- SMBIOS 2.3.1 Support
- CPU, VCCM, NB, SB Voltage Multi-adjustment

Audio
- 7.1 CH HD Audio with Content Protection
- DAC with 110dB dynamic range (VIA® VT2020 Audio Codec)
- Premium Blu-ray audio support
- Supports THX TruStudio Pro

LAN
- PCIE x1 Gigabit LAN 10/100/1000 Mb/s
- Realtek RTL8111E
- Supports Wake-On-LAN
- Supports LAN Cable Detection

Unique Features
- ASRock OC Tuner
- Intelligent Energy Saver
- Instant Boot
- ASRock Instant Flash
- ASRock OC DNA
- Hybrid Booster:
- CPU Frequency Stepless Control
- ASRock U-COP
- Boot Failure Guard (B.F.G.)
- Turbo 50 / Turbo 60 CPU Overclocking
- Turbo UCC

Contents:

Both ASRock motherboard packages were specific to each model and advertised the various features and capabilities of each, which is a long way from ASRock's earlier motherboard boxes that were green and would often be generic across their entire selection of Intel/AMD motherboards. The contents for these Extreme and Deluxe motherboards are also a bit more extensive than what we have found with the many ASRock motherboards that we have tested over the past six years. Included with the 880G Extreme3 motherboard was the user's manual, driver CD, I/O panel, quick installation guide, Serial ATA data cables, an expansion slot adapter that provides a single eSATA connector, and pamphlets for ASRock's Intelligent Energy Saver and Instant Boot technologies. With the 890FX Deluxe3 motherboard we had the I/O panel, ribbon FDD cable, ribbon IDE cable, Serial ATA data cables, two 4-pin molex to Serial ATA power adapters, and the ASRock documentation.