MSI Announces First AMD RD790 Board

MSI announces its first RD790-based board

MSI today announced its K9A2 Platinum Motherboard based on AMD’s RD790 chipset, officially dubbed the 790FX. The 790FX serves as AMD’s primary single and dual-processor platform and replaces AMD’s antiquated 580X chipset. The new MSI board comes with support for a host of new features, including support for AMD quad-core processors and Crossfire X.

The K9A2 Platinum supports all AM2+ processors, which means it will work with AMD’s upcoming Phenom quad-core, tri-core and dual-core desktop processors. Existing AM2 processors are also supported by the newest board BIOS.

The 790FX also brings 41 PCIe 2.0 lanes to AMD’s AM2+ platform, allowing manufacturers flexibility in the number of PCIe slots integrated on the board. The K9A2 comes with four PCIe 2.0 x16 slots and supports AMD’s Triple-Play Technology. In addition, MSI goes a step further by offering Quad Crossfire capability on the mainboard.

As of right now, AMD has not officially launched Triple-Play technology. MSI indicates, however, the official debut should take place soon. AMD guidance claims ATI RV670, Phenom and RD790 will simultaneously launch together next month.