Z68A-GD80 and Running Crossfire

I'd like to purchase a motherboard to match up with an i7 2600K cpu that I have and the Z68-GD80 is the board I'm leaning towards but the information on Crossfire is a little confusing at the moment. I already have a pair of MSI R6970 Lightning Radeon HD 6970 2GB 256-bit video cards. Will one card only take advantage of the x16 speed and the second automatically default to x8 or if I understand right that both cards can be run as x16 but that shuts down some of the USB connections and some of the other slots on the board. I need at least one PCI-E 1 slot for my sound card which is a HT Omega eClaro. I've tried searching the internet on the subject but haven't come up with any solid information for this type of setup. I'll be using Windows 7 Ultimate 64 bit version loaded on an OCZ Vertex 3 120GB drive to boot from and I have a 240GB G.SKILL Pro Series SATA II SSD for my work apps and a 750 GB WD Black edition to install my games on. I also have a USB 3.0 2TB WD external HD to back my files up on. As for RAM I have G.SKILL Ripjaws X + Turbulence II Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 2133 time two for a total of 8GB with a pair of optical drives powered by an 850W Corsair PSU. If you need anymore info just ask.
Any information sure would be welcome so I can get this rig up and running.

Thanks HU16E after doing more digging I see that just about every board with the Z68 chip-set has the same limitations. Even many of the 67's are the same way. I should be okay then since the only add in card I plan on using is my sound card and that should work just fine in a PCI-E 1 slot.
Several years ago I built a mess of AMD Athlon systems all of which were put on MSI boards and every single one of them are still running today. I had switched to another manufacturer but after my first build with them that went fine I've had nothing but trouble with them since. After some long nights reading every review I could find I decided to come back to MSI. My parents have asked me to build them an AMD based system and from what I've seen MSI boards are just as good as any other though I talked them into holding off until Bulldozer comes out.
Again thanks for your help.

Similar Messages

  • Z68A-GD80 new owner questions

    So I got a new Z68A-GD80 and have a Somme questions:
    1. If I install my 4 X GSkill ripjaws (f3-10666cl7q-16gbxh) the board will power on for maybe 2 secs and shutdown and re power on for a other 2 secs and so on. If i go down to 2 Dim not in bank (slot 1 & 2) MB will start but will randomly freeze. If I run on only 1 Dim everything work like a charm.... well so far let knock wood  Any one also got that ?
    2. what is the deal with the 10 leds cpu phases flashing crazy while in windows ?
    3. when I run the live update5 it report I currently have version I.51 for bios and version I.50 on the internet what is up with this ? should I downgrade or m'I a MSI test subject ? lol
    Thanks

    Quote
    did boost the voltage to 5.36 giving me 4.88
    Surely you mean 1,536 and 1,488V  
    Quote
    enabled XMP on ram did a 5 GHZ peak
    If you intend to overclock then start a new thread in the overclocking section of the forum.

  • Z68A-GD80 vs Z68A-GD65 vs X79 boards

    Hello!
    I'm building a new computer. I intend to use i5-2500k, OC'd above 4.4GHz.
    A google search yielded no results, so I'm asking here.
    What are the differences between the Z68A-GD80 and GD65 boards?
     How do they affect performance in terms of gameplay?
    What are the differences between the Z68A-GD80 and an X79 board?
     How do they affect performance?
    Thanks a lot in advance!

    Quote
    That would mean that I can plug in 4 RAM sticks and get the most out of it? Is it a lot better over dual channel?
    In terms of memory bandwidth, yes, definately.
    Please keep in mind that an i5-2500K won't work on an X79 board (different socket).
    Quote
    It also supports DDR3 memory at 1600MHz (which is what I'm getting) without the OC tag. Is that any different from the z68 board, which has the OC tag?
    Different CPU/Memory architecture.

  • Z68A-GD80 DVI Port Woes

    I've been having problems (like many others) getting the on board DVI port to work. I've done some testing and here is what I've found.
    My monitor is an ASUS VE247H.
    A direct connection between the DVI port of the mainboard and my monitor results in no output. Monitor gives a "no signal" message. A single link or dual link DVI cable yields the same result. There is no difference between the two.
    A DVI to HDMI adapter connected to the HDMI input of the monitor works.
    A DVI to VGA adapter connected to the VGA input of the monitor works.
    An HDMI to HDMI connection from mainboard to monitor also works.
    Monitor worked with my previous PC connected via DVI. Monitor also works with Z68A-GD80 and a discrete card connected via DVI. That should rule out the monitor being the issue.
    At this point I figured the DVI port was just faulty. I have already received a call from MSI, after discussing my DVI problems in a Newegg review, and was instructed to RMA the board back to Newegg for a replacement. Before taking everything apart, I decided to try the only other "monitor" available to me with a DVI input, my Samsung DLP TV (model#HLP4663WX/XAA). So I directly connected the mainboard to the TV (DVI to DVI), with a single link DVI cable and amazingly, that worked.
    This leads me to believe there is definitely some issue with the way the BIOS handles communication to/from the monitor, and not just a faulty DVI socket.
    Another observation I've made, the same monitor is detected differently depending on what interface is being used. For instance, when I connect via HDMI, the Intel Graphics and Media Control Panel shows my display as "Digital Television VE247".
    If I connect with VGA, the display shows up as "Monitor VE247".
    Hopefully this is of some use to MSI. We really need these port issues fixed.

    Quote from: owcraftsman on 11-June-11, 00:40:06
    Have you tried a HDMI connection with the Asus VE247H? The reason I ask is the DVI-D connection "D" meaning Dual with that monitor may not be compatible with the Single link out put of the motherboard. You would think it's backward compatible but maybe not. I hope this helps you avoid an RMA GL
    Yes, I tried every connection I could to the monitor. Straight HDMI from board to display worked. Using the DVI port on the board and some adapters, DVI -> HDMI (worked), DVI -> VGA (worked), DVI -> DVI (doesn't work).
    And FYI, in DVI-D, the "D" is for DIGITAL not dual. The mainboard has a DVI-I port, the "I" meaning integrated. It supports both digital (DVI) and analog (VGA) connections from the same port.
    Quote from: HU16E on 11-June-11, 02:34:35
    Not really sure if this may be a possible factor or not, our board HDMI port is compliant v1.4, maybe an issue with the backwards compatibility with v1.3 devices & cables? After everyone contacts & opens a ticket with MSI Tech Support, please be sure to post their response.
    AFAIK, the monitor is HDMI v1.3 compliant, the cable I'm using definitely is. I have no problems with an HDMI connection though. Either straight HDMI from board to monitor, or DVI port on board -> DVI to HDMI adapter -> HDMI cable to monitor. I've contacted support with my results thus far and linked them to this thread as well. Their reply "Ok, thank you for the update. I will look further into this and update you as further information becomes available."
    I've RMA'd the board back to newegg for a replacement and will repeat this process when I get it back (probably another week). I even went as far as to try one of the beta BIOSes before RMAing, no improvement there.

  • Z68A-GD80 (B3) Bios problem

    Hello experts,
    I want to build up a new machine. So I bought the mainboard Z68A-GD80 and an Intel 3570k. This cpu was not supported from start of the mainboard but the seller told me that he updated BIOS to the newest version before selling the board and he ran it successfully with this BIOS. So I installed all componenets and what happened:
    - The dual bios LED tells me that primary bios failes.
    - CPU phase led showing phase 10 after switching on power and then changing to phase 2
    - Screen is dark
    - I dont have a case speaker so I cannot hear beeping
    What do you suggest du do now?
    Thanks so much!!
    Florian

    The CPU phase lights are first at ten then at two is nominal. Those aren't going to tell you what's wrong unless none of them are on.
    If you kept the power disconnected from a power source, grounded yourself before touching the circuitry, carefully put the CPU in, put in compatible RAM in correct slots, then all of the PSU connectors attached securely to the motherboard connectors, double checked the heatsync is attached securely, then connected the power cord, then powered on the computer. If BIOS doesn't appear on the monitor, go back to the sales person.
    The heatsync is very important, if the thermal compound isn't carefully applied, or the heatsync itself incorrectly attached; the computer will not boot.

  • Z68A-GD80 (B3): "virtu cannot run on this iGPU"

    I have the following system specs:
    Motherboard: MSI Z68A-GD80 (B3), bios 17.5/20120111
    CPU: i7-2600K
    Win 7 x64
    Intel iGPU drivers 15.26.8.64.2696 (latest version for win 7 64)
    2 MSI nvidia GPU cards (1 580 and 1 570) in SLI
    I run folding at home on the graphic cards of this system most of the time when not running graphics intensive programs, and the hit on the system is not so bad most of the time, but after nearly a year of it, I decided to try running the IGPU, so that the system could use that for web browsing, videos etc, while the folding processes could churn away on the discrete GPUs. 
    I enabled i mode in the bios, and loaded an old set of virtu drivers I had downloaded when I first got the MB (1.2.102).  The Virtu control panel loaded without error.  The panel has an update check feature, which I used and then downloaded the most recent version, 1.2.114.  When the system rebooted after the installation, virtu would not run, instead displaying the message "Virtu cannot run on this integrated graphics processor.  Disabling Virtu, and exiting. (Remember to enable Virtu after the problem is fixed.)" 
    What's the problem that I need to fix?  What really puzzles me is that 1.2.102 worked, but 1.2.114 wouldn't. 
    Thanks
    Mark

    Have you retested with 1.2.102 and does that still work ?
    If it does, then I would report the anomaly with the latest driver to Lucidlogix. I don't quite know how to interpret the expanded release notes of Virtu, but one of the known issues with the latest version states:
    Quote
    Known issues in this driver version
    The following are the open issues with current driver release:
    General
     Antivirus and firewall may popup a message box – the user should approve ‘Virtu Control panel’ access the net
     Control panel may flicker when switching between Tabs
    i-Mode (display connected to integrated GPU output)
     3DMark Vantage may crash with FRAPS
     Virtu control panel may show some artifacts when system’s desktop background is configured to Windows Classic theme.
     When Dual GPU optimization (SLI/Crossfire) is enabled, performance may stay unaffected.
    The very last known issue may be the problem 

  • Z68A-GD80 B3 Boot Loop and Failed BIOS LED Flashing

    I've been having "boot loop" issues with my system since it was built in June. Basically, when the system is powered on the lights/fans come on for around 3 seconds then it shuts itself off for another 3 seconds and repeats the loop infinitely. Meanwhile there are no POST code beeps and nothing shows up on screen. I also noticed today that the Dual BIOS control LED is flashing during boot loops indicating that the primary BIOS has failed.
    As this was my first build in quite a while I didn't initially worry about it too much, figuring that it was probably just a BIOS setting or improperly seated hardware issue. Shortly there after my son was born and needless to say there wasn't a whole lot of time to trouble shoot a PC for a couple of months. Fast forward four months later to today and the boot looping is driving me nuts. It seems to occur when the system has been powered down overnight and more frequently if the reset button is used. I've read a lot of stuff saying that the Gigabyte boards are prone to this issue, but can't find anyone else with the same issue on a MSI z68 board. I've check/done the following to try and trouble shoot the issue.
    1. Flash to BIOS 17.3 (twice)
    2. Installed system speaker to hear post codes. Got a whole lot of nothing.
    3. Installed one stick of RAM in slot one. Tried all four sticks. Nothing works.
    4. Set BIOS values to default.
    5. Tried disabling and enabling XMP profiles for the RAM.
    6. Upped the voltage on the RAM to 1.5V, since the board reports an under-volt around 1.48 on auto. No effect.
    7. Disabled PLL overvolt.
    8. Enabled VDroop (still not clear on what this is).
    9. Removed both video cards and used the on chip video. No effect.
    10. Unplugged all USB devices.
    11. Tried XMP enabled and disabled for the memory.
    12. Hard drive plugged in and removed makes no difference.
    13. Bare system with only one stick of RAM installed, no difference.
    11. Lots of other crap that I can't think of right now.
    Any help would be great as I'm at a loss here.
    System specs are as follows;
    Intel 2600K
    Corsair H50 Cooler
    MSI z68a-gd80 B3 with BIOS v 17.3
    PNY Geforce GTX 560 Ti (2x in SLI)
    Linksys Wireless G PCI card
    Crucial Ballistix Sport RAM (4x2GB at 1600 MHz XMP enabled)
    Segate Barracuda 7200 RPM Drive 500GB (2x in RAID0)
    OCZ Vertex2 64 GB SSD as system cache
    Corsair TX750 Power Supply
    Corsair 600t case

    More wierd stuff.
    I couldn't get the board to boot without looping last night, tried the usual unplugging and clearing the CMOS nothing. Boot loops at every turn.
    I wonder if maybe I've got some bad pins or a poor connection on my RAM slots. I removed the RAM and began testing one by one. First stick gave a boot loop. Second stick worked. On restart the BIOS LED wasn't flashing anymore, which is odd since I hadn't yet set the BIOS fix feature to enabled. I powered down again and put my RAM back in, set my BIOS settings as suggested, and then clocked the RAM to 1333MHz. Seemed stable last night through a number of restarts.
    As for the backup BIOS reporting v 17.3. Yeah, that is odd. The manual says it can't be flashed either. Maybe BIOS just reports what the primary version number is no matter which chip (primary or secondary) is actually active and being booted from?
    I'd like to think this is over, but I'm sure when I go home and power up I'll get another boot loop. I'd rather not be without a PC for a couple weeks, but I may just have to RMA so I don't have to deal with this anymore. It's quite frustrating to have fiddle around for 10+ minutes to get your PC up and running, plus with a RAID0 setup and SSD cache I'm just asking for a system failure with all these power on/off cycles.

  • Problematic Motherboard MSI Z68a GD80 (B3) and bad customer service

    I opened a support ticket at MSI's support site (http://support.msi.com/index.php?mod=questions&dop=reply_list&question_no=102573)  and still waiting for a response since last week.     Not only that, but there is no way you can talk to customer support and you can only submit tickets online.   What if your PC is not working because of the MSI motherboard?  How is then the customer able to talk to customer support?!  eh!!!?!?!???
    To describe the issues I experience I will copy-paste some of the info from my existing support ticket....
    Recently I noticed that my new PC's performance degraded considerably, without me having made any changes to its settings, software or hardware. After extensive testing I realised that the RAM was faulty so I replaced it with new DIMMs which I tested again and work correctly. However after replacing with new RAM  (memeory is in the "approved" list of the motherboard) the PC's performance is still very slow, especially when it comes to hard disk access. So I tested all, memory, hard disks (checkdisk, defrag, and also used WesternDigital utilities to check all disks) and all tests came back fine. I also checked all BIOS settings and re-installed all Motherboard drivers to ensure that the issue was not due to a damaged driver file. But none made a difference. So given that everything appears to be working correctly and all tests for individual components come back as normal, I uspect that it's the motherboard to blame.
    In addition to the above the PC has now started behaving strange too: when rebooting pc restarts..and then turns off and then on again and off again. ...or it restarts but then does not boot at all.  Just now i turned it off and then on again and the pc behaves as if it boots up but nothing is showing on the screen. not even the bios.
    Once, when i turned on the PC and when logged into windows I got a popup saying "you have booted from your second BIOS rom. Please update your BIOS using Live Update". I then went to live update and it said i am running the latest BIOS.
    The issues exist also outside the OS.  I also tried to boot from Norton Ghost DVD and take a backup from there and see the backup speed (which normally takes an hour). It took 2-7 times more, depending on the PC's "mood". I also tried booting from a DVD into Windows PE (pre-installation environment) and tried to take a disk backup from there too.   Same issue everywhere.
    I did various tests with Western Digital to eliminate the hard disk, and all come out fine.  I even formatted the hard drive (low level format) and reinstalled a fresh OS.  The problem was still there and the mouse pointed would stutter when the disk was active.
    Another thing I noticed which might help: sometimes disk to pc/disk-over-network file copying works at a reasonable speed. But local-disk to local-disk copying is very slow and affects the mouse pointer and overall pc performance.
    I use this PC for business so it's critical that this is fixed asap or that I am sent a replacement motherboard promptly before I send this one back so that I am not left without a working PC.
    Any suggestions?
    My spec:
        * CPU brand, model and speed:   Intel i7 i2600K 2.5 GHz
        * Motherboard model:  MSI Z68a GD80 (B3)
        * Memory brand, type/speed, size, number of sticks:   Kingston KHX1333C9D3B1K2/4G  (2 sticks x 2 Gb each.  total of 4gb)
        * Video card brand, chipset type, memory size:  XFX 7600GT 256MB
        * Hard drive(s) brand, size, type, speed:  Westerd Digital Velociraptor 600Gb
        * Operating system and version (including if 32 or 64bit!):   Windows XP SP3 32bit
        * Power Supply Unit brand and output in watts and DC output (amps) - OCZ 650W

    Quote
    Well on the MSI UK website that is the only support which is listed for motherboards!  Global or not, that's the one listed there.
    Yes, I know.  But there is an E-Mail Contact listed for RMA procedures.  When you go to the Global support site:
    http://ocss.msi.com.tw/
    ... you'll find the same E-Mail contact address listed under the heading
    Quote
    If you live in the following country and have any request about RMA, please go to Online RMA Request:
    Quote
    Ok, I will contact both the reseller and send an email to the email address you mentioned and see what happens.  
    Quote
    In fact the reseller has an online system specifically for returns and as per UK distant selling regulations their system does not accept any returns and won't allow you to make a returns request after 28 days from the date of purchase.  ..and given that I've been dealing with these issues for 10-14 days weeks now I am not sure they will allow a returns request.   But I will contact them and see what they will say.
    Yes, contact them.  
    Quote
    But have a look at the returns policy anyway: http://www.ebuyer.com/help/returns#1
    Look:
    Quote
    Items Faulty in Warranty Period
    If any of your purchases develop a fault, and it's more than 28 calendar days since receipt, then provided your item is within its warranty period, you are entitled to a warranty repair.
    ... more:
    http://static.ebuyer.com/customer/help/index.html?action=c2hvd190ZXJtcw==&type=personal
    Quote
    9.  Our refunds policy
       9.1 When you return a Product to us:
            9.1.2 for any other reason (for instance, because you have notified us in accordance with clause 21 that you do not agree to any change in these terms and conditions or in any of our policies, or because you claim that the Product is defective), we will examine the returned Product and if you are entitled, we will notify you of your options to either repair, replace or refund via e-mail within a reasonable period of time. We will usually process your elected repair, replacement or refund as soon as possible and, in any case, within 30 days of the day you confirm whether you opt for repair, replacement or refund for the defective Product. If you elect a refund of a Product returned by you because of a defect it will be refunded as per our refunds policy, including a refund of the part of the delivery charge which related to that defective Product for sending the item to you and the cost incurred by returning the defective Product to us. If you elect a repair or replacement of a defective Product we will not charge you for redelivery of the repaired or replaced Product.
            9.1.3 If you elect to return the defective Product to us using your own method of delivery, we will refund up to £4.00 of the costs incurred by you. This will only be refunded upon the receipt of proof of the carriage costs.
    Just for your record:
    Quote
    and still waiting for a response since last week.
    MSI Technical Support has responded to you giving you the following advice:
    Quote
    Dear sir/madam
    Thanks for contacting MSI technical support.
    Regarding your concern,if the issue appears when loading windows,we suggest you reinstall your os for a try.If it appears when post,we have to suggest you contact your reseller (The place you bought this MB from) and have them test the MB completely for you to check if this MB is faulty or not, then ask for some help.
    If the reseller for some reason cannot help, we have to ask you to contact MSI distributor or MSI office near your place to seek further help.
    Thanks for your cooperation in advance!
    Best Regards,
    MSI Technical Support Team
    ... and as I said before, this is precisely the next logical step in your situation.

  • Z68A-GD80 (G3) and Port 7/esata port

    Hallo everyone, please give me a little help here, I have a Z68A-GD80 (G3) MB and I connected a hard drive er 2 or 5 how and sata port 1 -> 6 is running 100% ok but port 7 doesn't show and I have a drive connected also if I connect a external drive to the Esata port it doesn't show. I installed the marvell 88SE9128 drivers bit no sata controller shows. I have the intel side set to raid mode because I have striped volume with ssd enhanced acceleration option on it does this make a difference to the marvell side ? how do I get the marvell port 7 and esata to show and work ? 

    Sometimes the Drive Letter for the device your trying to plug in is trying to use the same letter of another drive currently in use for example D: drive or F: drive etc  if you goto the drive management see if your drive shows up there and if it shows an error you can right click the drive letter or Volume and allocate(change) the letter to one that is not in use. maybe this will work i had similar issue with an previous computer, and as Always if you do not know what you are doing then dont do it , i am not responsible for any mistakes that you may cause. Hope this helps if your comfortable doing so!
    02/01/12 3:22 P.M. Edit: btw this may not fix your issue worth the look into!
    1.   Click the Windows Start Orb and then Right-Click Computer and Click Manage from the context menu.
    access the device manager from windows 7 start menu
    2.   Click Storage > Disk Management from the left panel.  Next Right-Click the drive letter that you would like to change and Click Change Drive Letter and Paths…
    use the disk management feature to enter the change drive letter dialog in windows 7
    3.   Select the drive letter you would like to change then Click Change.  In the pop-up dialog use the drop-down box to Select a new drive letter.  Click OK to save and exit both windows.
    assign a new drive letter to your windows 7 hard disk
    Now your drive should have the new letter you just assigned to it.

  • Z68A GD80 (G3) PRE BOOT BİOS OPENİNG BEEPS AND CODES

    Hi to all,
    I'm using MSİ Z68A-GD80 (G3) MOTHERBOARD.
    My problem occurs when i turn on the computer. Maybe, It is not a problem actually, but the error beeps make me annoy, maybe there is a problem that i am not aware of. When i turn on the computer before the system information come up on the upper-left corner of the screen there are codes appearing in a row like 99 B4 98 B2 in the lower-right corner of the screen. There are also beeps while this error codes are appearing.
    When i start to investigate on google about this error. İ found that these codes are American Megatrends Aptio 4.x codes.
    Here is the link
    http://www.ami.com/support/doc/AMI_Aptio_4.x_Status_Codes_PUB.pdf
    Please help me to solve this problem, Is it because I forgot to make a bios setting or something else ?

    Quote
    are these error codes ?
    No, first and foremost those are intialization checkpoints every system cycles through after start-up.  When your system really gets stuck and comes to a complete halt/freeze at one of these checkpoints, then you'll know where the system halts and the respective checkpoint ID will hint you to the potential cause.
    Since your system does not seem to come to halt at any of those checkpoints but seems to properly boot the operating system, there is no critical error to be concerned about.  Again, these codes signify checkpoints and not errors.
    About those beeps:
    When your system boots up fine, then there is also no reason to be looking for errors.  Probably just status beeps for each USB device.

  • MSI Z68A-GD80 (B3) and (G3) intel vt-d support?

    Hello guys,
    I would like some information....
    the MSI motherboard Z68A-GD80 (G3) or (B3) in both its variants supports Intel VT-d?
    I am thinking of buying a 2600 I7....
    Thanks in advance!

    It shows in CPU Features submenu on the Z68A-GD80(B3), so would expect it to be included in the (G3) as well. Download the pdf manual from the Global Website for the (G3) & have a look.

  • PCIE 3.0 test with MSI Z68A-GD80 G3 :)

    The Z68A-GD80 G3 is MSI’s first motherboard with PCIE 3.0 connectivity. Currently there are no PCIE 3 devices available yet but later on we can test its performance by using a PCIE SSD. Aside from this, the board has also a new UEFI Bios named “Click Bios II” which for me is way better than the previous version. 
    Before we take a closer look on the board, let’s check out the package first.
    Box design is a bit the same as the GD80 B3 version before.  Once you open it up, all main features of the said board are enumerated
    Extreme Power Design, Military Class II Components (SFC, Hi-C Caps, Multi Bios), 3 PCIEx16 Slots, Super Charger and OC Genie II
    For the bundled accessories, you have the same old story – Manual, Software Disc, four SATA cables, two Molex to SATA power connectors & SLI Bridge. Then for some extras - PCI USB 3.0 two ports bracket, guide headers for faster and easy connectivity and lastly voltage check points.
    Next, the “Mainboard”.  By physically looking at it and by comparing it side by side against the Z68A-GD80 B3 motherboard. You won’t find any difference except for the PCIE X16 locks. It has also the same black and blue color theme, two vrm heatsinks connected by a flat heatpipe and  V-Check points.
    Moving closer to the board you have 8 Power Pins to power up the processor, 2 PCI slots, 2 PCIE x1 slots for devices such as TV Tuners or Audio Cards. 2 PCIE Gen3 & 1 PCIE Gen2  x16 Slots. With one VC connected at the top most slot, speed will be @ x16. If both top and middle are used, it will be @ x8/x8. Lastly, by using the 3rd PCIEx16 Gen2 slot. You have x8/x8/x4. It would also disable certain onboard devices such as eSATA Port, Sata 7, one onboard front USB 3.0, two PCI Slots and firewire. So if possible avoid using the last VC slot. 
    At the top most PCIE x1 area. You will find a 6-pin power connector. This will provide more juice/power for multi-GPU setups.
    Next, at the bottom part of the board. You have the Easy Buttons (Power and Reset) and the popular one button “OC Genie”. The red colored USB header is for the Super Charger while the blue is a regular USB 3.0.  For the SATA Connectors  you have a total of 7. 4 regular SATA 3GB/s, 2 SATA 6GB/s controlled by Intel chipset and another SATA 6GB/s by Marvell.
    Wrapping things up, we have now the IO terminal ports. Starting from the left we have combo PS2 port and SPDIF Optical Out. Clear CMOS Button, e-SATA port running under Marvell, 2 USB 2.0 and Firewire ports controlled by Via. Moving across, 2 Gigabit Lan by Realtek 8111E, 2 USB 2.0 and 2 USB 3.0 run under NEC D720200 controller. Next, we have DVI and HDMI output connections and 6 analog audio ports by Realtek ALC892.
    Once you are into the bios, you will find the new and improved Click Bios. Nice and professional looking, faster navigation and easier to use.
    To test the performance of the new PCIE Gen3 technology, we will be using this Photofast PCIE SSD device http://www.photofast.tw/comboproducts.asp?pid=1.
    We will be connecting the PCIE SSD device on the GD80’s Gen3 and Gen2 slots and compare the results using the disk benchmark software ATTO.  I ran the benchmark 9 times for the two set of tests.
    System Configuration as follows:
    Processor:  Intel Core i7 2600K at default stock speed
    Memory: Kingston HyperX Genesis Grey 2x2GB DDR3 2133MHz
    SSD: OCZ Vertex 2
    Motherboard: MSI Z68A-GD80 G3
    Softwares: CPU-Z 1.58, Windows 7 Ultimate 64 Bit with SP1, Latest Atto Software 1.47 I think.
    First test, Photofast running on Gen2 (third VC slot).  One screenshot from the 9 tests made
    Second, using the Gen 3 connectivity. One screenshot from the 9 tests made
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    Quote
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    801greg,
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