EVGA X58 3X SLI Classified LGA1366 Motherboard Review

Hardware Installation

Another motherboard, another Thermalright Ultra-120 eXtreme (TRUE) fitting. Today we will get fancy and use the TRUE Copper Edition. It has the same dimensions as the TRUE or TRUE Black Edition but weighs a lot more. Let's start with the East/West orientation on the EVGA X58 3X SLI Classified.

The first order of business is to check if the heat sink hangs over the top edge in this orientation. Facing toward the front and rear of the case, it does, just slightly. This is about the same amount all motherboards have allowed with the TRUE mounted on them. The other item of note in this orientation is that the north bridge heat sink limits how far down the TRUE can sit on the CPU. If we look at the IHS in the second photo above, we can see the TRUE base hangs over the right side of the IHS a little bit more than the left. This won't affect performance but just goes to show how tight the fit is.

Moving on to the available fan options, we have again chosen to show both 25mm and 37mm fans since there has been some positive feedback from people about including the fatter fans in the photos. The first three photos above show that a standard 120mm x 25mm fan fits nicely at both ends of the cooler on the Classified, even when using all six DIMM slots. At the PWM side, the heat sink is quite a bit shorter than the original X58 3X SLI heat sink and allows a fan to sit pretty much as low as the mounting screws would let it. On the DIMM side of the heat sink, the 25mm thick fans fit with modules in the first spot no problem, even with the new fan attachment clip being used. The 37mm thick fan, however, doesn't allow for the first memory slot to be used.

To recap, in the East/West orientation with six DIMM slots full, we can use either a 120mm x 25mm fan in the push or pull position. We can also use a 120mm x 37mm fan in the pull position but not push. Clearance on the PWM heat sink will allow for any 120mm fan on that side of the heat sink. EVGA did a good job upgrading the PWM heat sink from the original X58 3X SLI.

In the East/West orientation with only three DIMM slots being used, we can run 120mm x 37mm fans in either the push or pull spot without any issues.

In the North/South orientation, we can see immediately that the first DIMM slot is being covered in the first photo. Like all other X58 motherboards we have looked at, the TRUE is just too wide to fit Dominator modules in this slot with a North/South Orientation. With regular height modules, however, there is no problem filling all six DIMM slots.

The second photo above shows that a 37mm thick fan sort of fits in the push position. The north bridge heat sink does limit how far down it can sit, even in this position it will work just fine, but I would like to see it a little lower. The last photo above shows a 120mm x 25mm fan pushing air through the TRUE and a 120mm x 37mm fan pulling from the top side. This setup works perfect so if you have space above the motherboard and a top exhaust fan, the North/South orientation with a regular 120mm x 25mm fan pushing will work nicely as it also adds some airflow over the north bridge heat sink.

With video card setups now on the menu, we can see that a single GTX 295 fits very comfortably in the X58 3X SLI Classified. The extra width of the board manages to contain the entire length of the card like it was made to fit. With only a single card populating the top slot, we have all the available slots at our mercy including the single PCI slot and three other PCI-E 16X slots.

The ideal position for a second card when going for SLI, or in this case quad SLI with a pair of GTX 295s, is the third slot down for the second card. We still have access to the second PCI-E 16X slot for a raid card or video capture card, plus the single PCI slot is available as well. In addition to the available slots, both video cards will get ample airflow, and the bottom card does not exceed the bottom of the motherboard. The second photo above illustrates that the bottom video card does not overhang in this position. This is an important piece of information as a number of cases do not allow for any overhang at the bottom of the motherboard.

For this last set of photos we had to borrow an ATI 3870X2 to illustrate a 3X SLI setup as we didn't have another dual slot NVIDIA card available at the time. As we can see, with 3X SLI, we lose all other access to expansion slots except for the 1X PCI-E slot above the top card. We can of course fit all three cards without having to overhang the bottom of the motherboard as described above. In the second photo we show the orientation of 3X SLI with the third PCI-E 16X slot open for either a dedicated PhysX card, or even a PCI-E raid card. This is the much acclaimed setup that EVGA has been pushing with the Classified as this motherboard is the only consumer motherboard on the market that can do this right now. Of course, the major drawback is the fact that the bottom card hangs over the edge of the motherboard as shown in the last photo.

Obviously your individual case will determine whether this plays a role or not, but no matter how you look at it, the EVGA X58 3X SLI Classified really opens the doors to a multitude of PCI-E video card configurations. It offers the most favorable setup for two card SLI, like a couple other motherboards offer, as well as a favorable 3X SLI setup. In addition to having the two best setups for either two or three card SLI, it also offers the unique ability to run 3X SLI and still have a dedicated PhysX card. The benefits of a dedicated PhysX card won't be debated here, the point is, the Classified gives you the decision; unlike any other motherboard out there.