Introduction

The chipset is the core component of the motherboard and is responsible for the operation of the CPU and other peripheral devices. If the central processing unit (CPU) is the heart of the entire computer system, then the chipset will be the torso of the entire body. In the computer industry, the manufacturer that designs chipsets is called Core Logic. The Chinese meaning of Core is core or center. The literal meaning alone is enough to show its importance. For a motherboard, the chipset almost determines the functions of the motherboard, which in turn affects the performance of the entire computer system. The chipset is the soul of the motherboard. The performance of the chipset determines the performance and level of the motherboard. This is because there are currently many models and types of CPUs with different functions and features. If the chipset cannot work well with the CPU, it will seriously affect the overall performance of the computer or even fail to work properly.

[Edit this paragraph] The role of the chipset

The motherboard chipset determines almost all the functions of the motherboard, including the type of CPU, the system bus frequency of the motherboard, memory type, capacity and Performance, graphics card slot specifications are determined by the Northbridge chip in the chipset; and the type and number of expansion slots, the type and number of expansion interfaces (such as USB2.0/1.1, IEEE1394, serial port, parallel port, notebook VGA output interface ), etc., are determined by the south bridge of the chipset. There are also some chipsets that incorporate functions such as 3D accelerated display (integrated display chip) and AC’97 sound decoding, which also determine the display performance and audio playback performance of the computer system. The current chipset evolved from the so-called very large-scale integrated circuits of the past 286 era: gate array control chips. The classification of chipsets can be divided into servers/workstations, desktops, notebooks and other types according to their uses. According to the number of chips, they can be divided into single-chip chipsets, standard south and northbridge chipsets and multi-chip chipsets (mainly used in high-end servers / workstation), according to the degree of integration, it can also be divided into integrated chipsets and non-integrated chipsets, etc.

[Edit this paragraph] Requirements for chipsets in different fields

Chipsets require strong performance, good compatibility, interchangeability and scalability, as well as cost-effectiveness requirements. The highest, and moderately considering the user's upgradeability within a certain period of time, the scalability is the highest among the three. In the earliest notebook designs, there was no separate notebook chipset, and they all used the same chipset. With the development of technology and the emergence of notebook-specific CPUs, there were matching notebook-specific chipsets. Notebook chipsets require lower energy consumption and good stability, but their overall performance and expansion capabilities are also the lowest among the three. The comprehensive performance and stability of server/workstation chipsets are the highest among the three. Some products even require full-load operation throughout the year. The memory capacity supported is also the highest among the three, and can support up to more than ten GB or even dozens of GB. Memory capacity, and it has the highest requirements for data transmission speed and data security, so its storage devices mostly use SCSI interfaces instead of IDE interfaces, and RAID is often used to improve performance and ensure data security.

[Edit this paragraph] Companies that produce chipsets

So far, the manufacturers that can produce chipsets include Intel (USA), VIA (Taiwan), SiS (Taiwan), AMD (USA), NVIDIA (USA), Server Works (USA), etc., among which chipsets from Intel, AMD and nVIDIA are the most common. On the desktop Intel platform, Intel's own chipsets occupy the largest market share and have a complete product line, including high-end, mid-range, low-end and integrated products. VIA, SiS and other companies together can only have a comparative share. Small market share, mainly in the low-end and integrated fields. On the desktop AMD platform, AMD occupies a large market share, and NVIDIA occupies a part of the market share of AMD platform chipsets, while VIA and SiS still play supporting roles, mainly in the mid-range, low-end and integrated fields.

In terms of notebooks, the Intel platform has an absolute advantage, so Intel's notebook chipsets also occupy the largest market share. Other manufacturers can only play a supporting role and design products for the AMD platform, which has a very small market share. In terms of servers/workstations, the Intel platform has an absolute advantage. Intel's own server chipset products occupy the vast majority of the mid- and low-end markets, and Server Works occupies the largest market in the mid-to-high-end field because it is authorized by Intel. Share, even Intel original server motherboards also have products using Server Works chipsets. In the field of server/workstation chipsets, Server Works chipsets mean high-performance products; while AMD server/workstation platforms mainly have smaller market shares due to their smaller market share. It uses AMD's own chipset products.

[Edit this paragraph] Current status of chipsets

Chipset technology has also advanced by leaps and bounds in recent years, from ISA, PCI to AGP, from ATA to SATA, Ultra DMA technology, dual channel Memory technology, high-speed front-side bus, etc., every new technological advancement brings improvements in computer performance. In 2004, there will be another major change in chipset technology. The most eye-catching one is PCI Express bus technology, which will replace PCI and AGP, greatly increase device bandwidth, and thus bring about a revolution in computer technology. On the other hand, chipset technology is also developing in the direction of high integration. For example, AMD Athlon 64 CPU has integrated memory controller, which greatly reduces the difficulty of chipset manufacturers to design products, and now chipset products have integrated Audio, network, SATA, RAID and other functions greatly reduce user costs. The chipset is the core component of the motherboard and can be compared to the bridge between the CPU and peripheral devices. According to the arrangement position on the motherboard, they are usually divided into Northbridge chips and Southbridge chips. The Northbridge chip provides support for CPU type and frequency, memory type and maximum capacity, ISA/PCI/AGP slot, ECC error correction, etc. The Southbridge chip provides support for KBC (Keyboard Controller), RTC (Real-Time Clock Controller), USB (Universal Serial Bus), Ultra DMA/33(66) EIDE data transmission method and ACPI (Advanced Energy Management), etc. . Among them, the Northbridge chip plays a leading role and is also called the Host Bridge. It is also very easy to identify the chipset. Take the Intel 440BX chipset as an example. Its north bridge chip is the Intel 82443BX chip, which is usually located close to the CPU slot on the motherboard. Due to the high heat generation of the chip, this chip is equipped with Heat sink. The Southbridge chip is located near the ISA and PCI slots, and the name of the chip is Intel 82371EB. The arrangement of other chipsets is basically the same. For different chipsets, there are also differences in performance. In addition to the most common north-south bridge structure, chipsets are currently developing towards more advanced acceleration hub architectures. Intel's 8xx series chipsets are representatives of this type of chipsets, which integrate some subsystems such as IDE interfaces, sound effects, MODEM and USB is directly connected to the main chip and can provide bandwidth twice as wide as the PCI bus, reaching 266MB/s.