P35/X38- No ECC Memory?

[gbohn]

I haven't seen anywhere that states if the the X38 will/won't support ECC memory. All the P35 motherboards spec's I've looked at seem to be for non-ECC memory.

So, should I assume that Intel (or the Motherboard manufacturers) have abandoned ECC memory for this generation of chipset motherboards?

Thanks;

-Greg

 

[aka1nas]

They are both desktop chipsets. You usually only get official ECC support on workstation/server chipsets. Also, aren't all ECC DDR2 sticks FB-DIMMs?

 

[gbohn]

> They are both desktop chipsets. You usually only get official ECC support
> on workstation/server chipsets.

I was under the impression that the X38 was being billed as a replacement for the 975X, which does appear to support ECC.

Crucial lists DDR2 ECC modules for an ASUS 975X P5W DH as 'unbuffered', for what that's worth.

 

[NXIL]

The P35 does not support ECC:

<a target=_blank class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="ftp://download.intel.com/design/chipsets/applnots/31697101.pdf">ftp://download.intel.com/de......lnots/31697101.pdf</a>

Page 11, section 3.3.

Looks like X38 *will* support DDR3 ECC:

http://forums.hardwarelogic.co...set-surfaces-7496.html

No official mention on Intel site yet, however...and, only release date info I can find is "Q3 2007".

From:

http://techreport.com/news_archive_overview.x/2007/6/1


***
Intel's X38 chipset to be a power hog?
by Cyril Kowaliski - 11:38 am, June 1, 2007

When we reviewed Intel's new P35 Express core logic chipset, we noticed that its power consumption was notably higher than that of Intel's previous P965 and 975X chipsets, even when we used the same type of memory with all three. Well, the folks at VR-Zone have word that the X38 Express?Intel's upcoming top-of-the-line enthusiast chipset that will have support for PCI Express 2.0 and multi-GPU configurations with dual 16-lane PCI Express slots?may also have rather high power consumption.

VR-Zone says the X38's north bridge chip will don a heat spreader, a feature uncommon for Intel north bridges. According to motherboard manufacturers, the chipset "runs pretty hot when running dual graphics cards in x16/x16 mode. It runs up to more than 60 degrees [Celsius] in this case." The site adds that mobo makers plan to outfit their X38 motherboards with elaborate heatpipes to keep the chipset cool.
***


As dor DDR2 ECC: it is not expensive right now:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...tyCodeValue=527%3A7870

About $65/GB (Kingston 2 x 1MB DDR2 800)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16820134113

Just a small sample of the boards at Newegg that support ECC:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...8020%2CN82E16813182095


If you need the security/stability of ECC, maybe consider a 5000X motherboard, and only fill one CPU socket? (You don't have to install two.) The 5000X chipset has been out for a while, and is well debugged...the 5000X is the chipset used in the Mac Pro as well.

HTH

NXIL

 

[gbohn]

Thanks.

Too bad about the X38 power draw. After seeing the 680i power use I was hoping for something cooler from the Intel series...