Intel’s X58 Chipset to Cost Less than X48?

Regardless of the motherboard, the most expensive component is the chipset, which includes both the North and Southbridge. Though prices aren’t confirmed, the rumored price for an Intel P45 chipset is $40 in quantities of 1,000, while X48 hovers around $55. So with that, we’d imagine that the upcoming X58 chipset would be even worse, right? Well according to sources close to Fudzilla, that might not be the case at all.

In fact, their sources state that X58 is about $20 less expensive than X48. I have a hard time believing this, personally, because we are dealing with a revamped chipset that’s capable of a bit more than previous generations. Why it’s $20 less expensive is what I’d like to know.

Aside from the chipset itself, what strikes me odd is the prices of the motherboards, which are rumored to be over $400 at launch for a “mainstream” model, like the ASUS P6T or Gigabyte’s GA-X58-DS4. So, if the chipset is lower, then why are the boards so expensive? Fudzilla goes on to state that the reason lies with the required components, like an eight-layer PCB, which is apparently around 25% more expensive than a six-layer.

Could it be that Intel priced X58 accordingly to offset the prices of the motherboards? If X58 is indeed less expensive, I’d be curious to see if the tradition would continue onto future mainstream models.

We don’t know exactly what the price of a motherboard PCB is, but we’re sure it’s a fair share of the cost of a motherboard. However, we have a feeling that in this case, a lot of the motherboard manufacturers want to cash in on the new platform and they also want to sell their X58 products at a higher price than their X48 models, since it’s the latest and greatest model in their line-up.