As has become somewhat of a trend on Iwill boards lately, the DVD266-R features 4.1-channel on-board, hardware sound. Iwill has incorporated C-Media’s CMI8738 PCI sound controller, which features HRTF-based 3D positional audio. The 8738 is hardware-based, and supports A3D 1.0 and EAX technology, making it a solid partner for light to moderate gaming.



Fig 5. C-media 4.1-channel on-board, hardware sound, featuring the CMI8738 PCI sound controller.

The C-Media sound solution isn’t quite capable of replacing a SoundBlaster Live! for an audio enthusiast or avid gamer, however it’s more than sufficient for a workstation or server environment, where its hardware-based nature will lead to a savings in CPU time over conventional AC’97 audio.



Fig 6. The DVD266-R features a standard 5/1 PCI/AGP configuration.

Rounding out the list is a conventional 5/1/0/0 (PCI/AGP/ISA/AMR) expansion slot configuration. An AGP Pro slot would perhaps have been nice for some workstation tasks. The board actually has a silk screening for an ACR slot (which is supported by the VT8233 Southbridge), but Iwill has evidently decided to omit that particular slot. This was a wise choice, as it helps to reduce the cost of the board. Further, an ACR slot just isn’t necessary, (a) because ACR is proprietary and not likely to become any sort of standard or success at all, and (b) because a value-oriented ACR slot would be out of place on a board such as this.