If you want to combine one of Intel's swanky new 45nm processors with an SLI multi-GPU graphics configuration, there's a problem. You see, while nForce 600-series chipsets are compatible with Intel's latest Penryn-based CPUs, current motherboard implementations are not. The incompatibility runs deeper than what can be addressed with a simple BIOS update, as well—a board-level circuit change is required.

Motherboard makers could respin their nForce 600-series designs with the necessary changes, but the nForce 600 series is more than a year old now, so it's due for a refresh anyway. That refresh comes in the form of the nForce 700 series, led by the flagship nForce 780i SLI.

In many ways, the nForce 700 series is identical to the 600 series that preceded it. However, Nvidia has added a few new wrinkles to the equation, including support for second-generation PCI Express, three-way SLI configurations, and its proposed Enthusiast System Architecture. There's a new reference motherboard design for the nForce 780i SLI, too—one that will work with Intel's upcoming 45nm processors.

So what's actually new in this nForce 700 series and the 780i reference board design? More importantly, is this refresh enough to keep the nForce 780i SLI competitive with Intel's recently released X38 Express chipset? Keep reading to find out.