Introduction

Several weeks ago, we took a look at a few FM2 boards by a couple different manufacturers, with the Gigabyte F2A85X-UP4 clearly being meant for overclocking. With FM2 being such an affordable platform, and with very decent GPU performance for your dollar, it's no surprise to me that Gigabyte isn't the only OEM with an overclocking board for this platform. I have many fond memories of grabbing a cheap AMD chip on a Friday night and clocking the crap out of it all weekend long, only to do it all again a week later. With tweaking on Intel platforms being a bit limited, AMD definitely stands out right now, since they offer a lot of user-specific adjustments to clocks that can potentially improve performance, even if it is only by a few percent.

We had so many readers requesting I cover ASRock products early this year that I asked W1zzard to make contact during last year's Computex, and I have, since then, covered many ASRock products that really set themselves apart from similar products on the market. I'll never forget the ASRock X79 Extreme11: a board with a built-in LSI SAS controller and not just one, but two PLX PEX8487 PCIe 3.0 bridge chips. It also featured a VRM that let me push my Intel i7 3960X CPU further for daily usage than any other motherboard. I cannot forget the ASRock Z77 OC Formula either - such a good board. The worst comment I could come up with was that the choice of yellow and gold was overly garish. With that in mind, it's clear to me that ASRock's hardware engineers are definitely on top of their game.

Several weeks ago, ASRock contacted me, letting me know that they had an FM2 sample, the ASRock FM2A85X Extreme6, ready to be shipped to me. The ASRock FM2A85X Extreme6 is obviously ASRock's high-end overclocking option for FM2, and given that their past clocking products impressed me so much, I was quite eager to get my hands on this one too. After so many good products from ASRock in my house, I do expect quite a bit from the ASRock FM2A85X Extreme6 - the question is, does it deliver?

Specifications

AMD FM2 Chipsets

You will, in order to get your new APU up and running, need a supporting chipset; not just any supporting chipset, but one that is also mated with the proper FM2 socket. The AMD FM1 socket's usefulness was, although it was only launched last year, pretty short-lived. Instinct tells me that the physical changes made to the socket are quite similar to the change from AMD's white AM3 socket to the black AM3+ socket, which also changed power delivery a fair bit in order to add support for AMD's newest Bulldozer cores. Bulldozer cores themselves never made it to the APU market, and these new APUs are fitted with the new Piledriver cores rather than taking last year's tech and making a new product out of old parts. Those shiny new Piledriver cores need slightly different power delivery and connectivity to the chipset, which is why FM2 is here. No, it is NOT backwards compatible with older APUs, nor can you pop a new AMD A10-5800K into your FM1-socketed motherboard.

AMD has three chipsets lined up to support AMD FM2 APUs: the AMD A55, AMD A75, and AMD A85X. The former two, the AMD A55 and AMD A75, have been on the market since the FM1 APU launch, and the features offered by those chipsets are not going to change at all. The AMD A55 offers a slightly different feature set than that of the AMD A75 chip, and the new AMD A85X simply expands on that.


The AMD A85X supports eight total SATA 6 Gb/s ports with FIS-based switching and adds in CrossfireX support. The new AMD A85X targets gamers and enthusiasts as well as those that like to keep up with the latest and greatest in technology. AMD intends you to pair this chipset up with AMD A10 and AMD A8 APUs, and their "K"-level, "unlocked" APUs.

Each chipset, or Fusion Controller Hub (FCH for short), has a specific use, and, thereby, a specific target market. Those that don't need as much can pick a chipset that doesn't give them as much while saving money through features that chipset lacks. It looks like you might get exactly what you pay for. It will be interesting to see how AMD's board partners assess AMD's FM2 APUs, and what products they design for them. ASRock took things quite seriously with the ASRock FM2A85X Extreme6 by packing it chock-full of features, including full overclocking support. Add in ASRock's nearly universal "XFast 555" technology grouping, and not only do you get a board that's ready for everything, but one that includes some stuff you would pay extra for if you were to choose a different brand.