Foxconn 945P7AA-8KS2 architecture

Evgenie Rudometov

http://www.rudometov.com

On the basis of the newest chip set of Intel 945P company Foxconn has released a series of the motherboards received the name 945P7AA and supporting high-powered processors of Intel, including recently declared two-nuclear models

In development of the computer market more and more the companies are engaged in production of computer accessories. Among these corporations is both well advertised brands, and rather new names, little-known to wide layers of potential users.

It is difficult to name company Foxconn as the beginner in the computer market though its brand while is not so known as for eminent competitors. Here it is necessary to remind, that Foxconn is registered trade mark Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.

Company Hon Hai (Foxconn) — the world leader on production of mechanical and electromechanical solutions for link branch, and also home and computer branches. Being in the lead in production of computer interfaces and tanks, it also is one of the largest suppliers of cables and motherboards. In 2004 this company has made 33 million motherboards that is the size of production second for the size in the world. For 2005 is planned to release already an order of fifty millions pieces of the given products which essential part will be realised under an own brand.

One of the newest products recently announced by this company, motherboard Foxconn 945P7AA-8KS2, a part of a series 945P7AA is.

The newest chip set of Intel declared on May, 26th, 2005 945P Express, capable to support two-nuclear models of processors of Intel became a basis of this card.

Features of a chip set of Intel 945P

Intel chip set 945P Express (i945P) is oriented to creation of high-powered desktop personal computers. He has inherited the newest processing techniques and parametres of the predecessor in the name of Intel 915P. However the new representative has gained in the course of evolutionary development and rjachd additional properties.

First of all, it is linked to support of clock rate of 266 MHz that corresponds to a transmission frequency of the given 1066 MHz. This property has provided support of appropriate processors, for example, such as high models of Intel of Pentium 4 Extreme Edition which could work earlier only with i925XE.

Besides, the chip set i945P provides support of two-nuclear processors of Intel.

Such processing techniques as Hyper-Threading (the multistream fulfilment perceived by the operating system as additional virtual processors and possible at support by a chip set, OS and BIOS) and EM64T (performance of 64-bit commands on 32-bit processors are not forgotten also at support by a chip set, OS and BIOS).

From additional gained by a chip set i945P the possibilities concerning a subsystem of memory, it is necessary to mark support of DDR units II 400/533/667.

Handle of computer peripheral devices is carried out by the second component of a chip set presented by chip ICH of the seventh version. According to this fact it has received name ICH7 and is presented by Intel chip 82801GB. This chip enters into a base set of a chip set i945P.

Except Intel 82801GB usage of the expanded version of hub ICH7 — ICH7R (Intel 82801GR) is possible . This chip provides support of functions RAID.

Structure of package Foxconn 945P7AA-8KS2

Photo 1. Structure of package Foxconn 945P7AA-8KS2

Into structure of package Foxconn 945P7AA-8KS2 enter (the Photo 1):

·         the Packing box,

·         Motherboard Foxconn 945P7AA-8KS2,

·         the Cover plate of plugs of input/output, 

·         the Compact disc with the software from Foxconn,

·         Cable Floppy,

·         Two cables Ultra DMA 66/100/,

·         Two cables Serial ATA,

·         Two adapters for power supplies of arrangements Serial ATA,

·         the Documentation.

Main technical parametres Foxconn 945P7AA-8KS2

Company Foxconn releases some models of the motherboards which are a part of a series 945P7AA. Parametres of presented sample Foxconn 945P7AA-8KS2 (the Photo 2 and the Photo 3) in comparison with more complete variant Foxconn 945P7AA-8EKRS2 are more low resulted.

Photo 2. Motherboard Foxconn 945P7AA-8KS2

Photo 3. Motherboard Foxconn plugs 945P7AA-8KS2

Key parametres Foxconn 945P7AA-8KS2

Features of Foxconn 945P7AA-8KS2 architecture

The motherboard is fulfilled on textolite of dark blue colour. It is created according to requirements of operation of modern components.

As resources of cooling of chips of a chip set i945P the passive coolers presented by heat sinks are applied.

It is necessary to mark, that motherboard Foxconn 945P7AA-8KS2 is oriented as a basis of mass high-powered systems of wide application. It supports the newest models of processors of Intel. These models concern topovye variants of Intel of Pentium 4, bar Extreme Edition processors. Besides, given card supports also powerful two-nuclear models, but can be applied as well the processors of Intel Celeron calculated for the bus of 533 MHz.

In a memory subsystem DDR units of II 533/667 MHz in an one-channel or two-channel pattern can use . Thus two-channel patterns are preferable.

The videoadapter is hooked up by means of bus PCI Express x16.

For handle of input\output devices the second component of a chip set responds. As this component in Foxconn 945P7AA-8KS2 Intel chip 82801GB (ICH7) uses.

The network controller Gigabit Ethernet realised on a chip of controller Broadcom BCM5789KFB is built in the motherboard architecture.

The multi-channel audiosystem is realised on the basis of chip Realtek ALC880 CODEC. In Foxconn 945P7AA-8KS2 it is realised eight audiochannels.

For the extension of the computer system created on the basis of motherboard Foxconn 945P7AA-8KS2 the appropriate slots presented by traditional PCI plugs (to 133 Mb per second) and PCI Express x1 (to 500 Mb per second) are  .

The motherboard architecture thanks to support of the component of chip set ICH7 incorporates four ports Serial ATA 300 (four arrangements) and one port Parallel ATA-100 (UltraDMA 100/66/33, two arrangements IDE).

Thanks to specialised chip IT8212 functions RAID 0, RAID 1, RAID 0+1, RAID JBOD are realised    . Here it is necessary to remind, that RAID allows to store more safely valuable data and at the same time increases a read rate and data records.

The presented variant of the card has in the architecture four ports USB 2.0 output on a backboard, but support of ports IEEE 1394 is not provided. However the place on the card under an appropriate chip is selected.

Power supply of units of motherboard Foxconn 945P7AA-8KS2 is carried out through system of impulse stabilising devices — fourline VRM the processor, and also corresponding VRM subsystems of video and audio.

Traditionally in the motherboard architecture possibilities of the hardware monitoring providing the control over supply voltages and operation of cooling fans are realised.

Productivity

Estimating productivity of the motherboards created on the basis of I945P it is necessary to mark, that the given chip set, represents evolutionary, instead of a revolutionary product. Therefore to expect a considerable gain does not follow.

Really, at usage of traditional processors with the bus of 800 MHz and DDRII 533 units MHz productivity is at level of cards with I925/915. However in case of application of the newest processors with the bus of 1066 MHz and DDRII 667 units MHz productivity all the same above the systems created on the basis of prior specialised sets — not only chip set I915P, but also more powerful chip set I925X. It is necessary to remind, that the resulted card supports also two-nuclear processors which for a number of software products provide to 80 % of a gain.

All it allows the underplate to recommend the considered motherboard as a basis of high-powered computer systems.

Motherboard Foxconn 945P7AA-8KS2 is given by the Moscow representation of company Foxconn