ASRock 990FX Extreme3 motherboard: an overview, features and reviews

The functional motherboard of the premium segment for the last several generations of processors from "AMD" from the well-known and eminent computer equipment manufacturer is all ASRock 990FX Extreme3. It is her strengths and weaknesses, technical parameters and other important nuances that will be covered in this article.

The niche of this product and its technical capabilities

It is on computer enthusiasts that ASRock 990FX Extreme3 is primarily aimed. This is indicated by the support of all chips (including the most productive semiconductor crystals for the AM 3+ socket), and the availability of 3 slots for graphics accelerators, and 3 slots for installing RAM modules.

Among other features of this solution, it is necessary to note the possibility of overclocking the chips with the unlocked multiplier and unlocking the unused computational modules on the 3-core models of the central processing units from AMD. All the above listed allows with a great degree of confidence to attribute this board to the premium segment.

Equipment

The ASRock 990FX Extreme3 motherboard comes with these components and accessories:

• A disk with additional software, an electronic version of the documentation, necessary for setting up a computer system.
• In turn, the list of complete documentation is presented by the user's manual (immediately in an impressive number of languages, including Russian) and, of course, a guarantee coupon.
• Panel for the back side of the system unit for installing I / O ports - 1 piece.
• Just two wires for switching with drives.
• One wire for connecting audio ports on the front of the PC case.
• The bridge for creating a graphics system based on two video cards from the company "AMD".

The above list is redundant, and all of these components are sufficient to assemble the PC without additional purchases.

The layout of the elements of this product

Immediately three aluminum radiators are used for heat dissipation in the ASRock 990FX Extreme3. Overview of the layout of the board indicates that the largest of them is installed on the north bridge. The second, which is slightly smaller, is on the south bridge. Well, the smallest passive cooling system is located on the power supply unit of the central processor. Also on this motherboard there are no electrolytic capacitors, instead of which polymeric capacitors are used. This engineering solution, according to the manufacturer, allows you to extend the life of this product by 2.5 times. Strictly in the middle of the top of the board is a processor socket. To the left of it is a power supply system for the CPU together with a passive cooling system.

It is followed by the wired ports of the board. Above the socket is a port for connecting the cooler of the central processing unit. On the right, there are 4 slots for RAM and a connector for supplying voltage to the motherboard. Just below the processor socket is the north bridge. Below it, slots for creating a graphics subsystem and additional controllers are displayed below it. In the lower right corner of the connector is connected to the front panel of the PC case. A little higher above it is the south bridge, next to which there are five ports for connecting external storage.

System logic

This product company ASRock is built on the basis of the most advanced set of system logic for the platforms "AM3" and "AM3 +". This is a 990FX chipset. Unlike the most advanced solutions of the competing company Intel on the basis of just one chip, in this case the layout is made on the basis of the north and south bridge. The first is the 990FX chip. As the second - SB950.

Both these chips are developed by the company "AMD". Initially, they were developed for the "AM3" socket, and sales of this card started in 2011. Therefore, the latest innovations in the field of motherboards in this case are absent.

Processor connector and CPU

Sales of this product started with the release of the sAM3 processor connector. ASRock 990FX Extreme3, the review of which we are conducting, after updating the BIOS and installing the latest version of the latter also allows you to install chips for AM3 + in the socket. The only limitation in this case is the nominal thermal package of the chip, which is limited to 140 watts. Only 8-micron solutions of the 9XXX series are of great power. As a result, only the two most productive AMD chips can not be used in combination with such a motherboard.

Ports built into the motherboard

On ASRock 990FX Extreme3 there are such wired ports:

• Two PS / 2 for connecting a wired mouse (green) and a keyboard (purple).
• 6 ports of the standard "USB 2.0" and 2 ports of a more high-speed format "USB 3.0".
• One eSATA3 for connecting an external drive to a PC.
• One LAN port for connecting to a computer network.
• Six 3.5 mm ports for creating an acoustic system.

Slots for additional controllers, random access memory and graphics accelerators

An impressive number of expansion slots allows you to install almost any additional boards in a PC based on this product. The presence of 4 slots RAM allows this solution to address immediately 32 GB (4 slats of 8 GB). At the same time, even the fastest modules for "DDR3" - "DDR3-2100" are supported. The number of slots for installing a discrete graphics card is 3. The PCI EXPRESS 1X slot is only one, and the outdated PCI in this case is 2.

Users opinions about this product, dispersal

Most of the opinions of the owners of this product indicate an excellent and reliable operation in conjunction with the established components. And the functioning of any components of this solution in most cases is problem-free. Only a certain gripe on the older versions of the drivers called the network card. But the software update solves this issue. Also, you can often find feedback about the unstable operation of the CPU with the 6th or 8th computing units. But in this case, as a rule, not the board, but the cooling system is to blame. Users want to increase PC performance in combination with a complete cooling system. And you can not do this, and you need to apply more advanced solutions.

The pros of this product is much larger. This and excellent functionality, and affordable price, and the ability to install just 3 discrete graphics accelerators. Well-designed "BIOS" allows even a poorly prepared user to overclock the 8350 to ASRock 990FX Extreme3 without any problems and consequences.

The cost of the product and its relevance

For the time being, you can buy ASRock 990FX Extreme3 inventory for about 8,000 rubles. The reviews highlight the very low cost of such a solution, which refers to the premium segment. But, on the other hand, it is necessary to understand that the "AM 3+" platform has not been modernized properly since 2012. And there are not any significant updates in its framework. So you have to be content with what's already there.

The most productive chips for this product are FX-8350 and FX-8370. And they are already struggling to cope with the most complex software. We also need to understand that at the end of 2016, the announcement of a new platform from AMD is planned - AM 4. Its chips will not be installed in this socket. As a result, it is better to wait for the assembly of a new PC in this case. But when repairing a failed system unit due to a malfunction of the motherboard, this product can be an excellent solution.

Results

Essentially, ASRock 990FX Extreme3 has only one drawback - it is oriented to work in combination with the processor solutions of the obsolete platform. And this is one of the best products for chips based on AM 3 and AM 3+.