ECS P67H2-A Black Extreme review - ECS Black Extreme P67H2-A

Intel's new Sandy Bridge microprocessors sport a newer socket LGA 1155 and therefore require new chipsets P67 Express (without integrated graphics) and H67 Express (with integrated graphics). ECS had sent us a review piece of their Black Extreme P67H2-A motherboard based on the Intel P67 Express chipset of which we had posted a sneak preview.

A unique thing about this motherboard is that, along with 3-way SLI and 3-way CrossFireX, it sports the ability for multi-GPU gaming by combining graphics cards from ATI and NVIDIA. Just like several ECS motherboards of late, this motherboard also comes with three times thicker gold contacts for better durability and conductivity. This motherboard also features Deep Green Technology to lower power consumption in the sleep state. Being a premium motherboard, it comes loaded with features such as a huge number of SATA 6.0 Gbps ports and USB 3.0 ports.




Everybody's doing it and so is ECS, releasing its top-end Sandy Bridge motherboard, the P67H2-A Black Extreme.

ECS may not be as well known as some of its rivals, but it does seem to come out with some interesting boards, especially its Black Extreme series for the enthusiasts.

And the latest addition to this line is no exception.

It combines Intel's Sandy Bridge combination of the Socket 1155 CPU support and the P67 Express chipset with Lucid's Hydra graphics technology to support mix-and-match combinations of graphics cards.

That is to say you can use Nvidia and AMD cards together in the same board. While the jury may be out on the performance benefits of the technology itself, it's an interesting route for ECS to take.




There's also not one but two USB 3.0 controllers on the board, meaning you get four ports on the rear panel as well as an aluminium two port USB 3.0 front expansion adaptor. That adapter is bundled with the board and sits in any spare 3.5-inch panel at the front of any PC case.

The ECS P67H2-A comes packed in a nice-looking box, which opens like a book, showcasing the motherboards premium features.
Bundle :

# 6 SATA cables with right-angled SATA connectors
# I/O Plate
# User's Manual
# Multilingual Installation Guidebook
# Driver and Utilities Disc
# Two case badges
The bundle includes six SATA cables along with covers to protect unused SATA cables.

ECS also provides USB 3.0 front ports along with a bracket adapter for rear installation for the extra USB 3.0 header present on the motherboard.