On Sun, 11 Jan 2009 00:06:31 -0500, kony
wrote:

Here's an example with an ECS GeForce 6100SM-M v. 1.0 motherboard:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3397/...b349938d_o.jpg


snip

I don't have an nForce /4xx series board available to check
it, but checking an old A7N8X board that uses a Silicon
Image SATA controller, it has the SATA data pins coupled
directly to the chip inputs with a 2200pF ceramic chip
capacitor in series.

The picture linked above is a little high in contrast so
it's hard to tell but might those empty spots be
corresponding to capacitors on the adjacent used SATA spots?
Further, if you can trace these data lines to the chipset,
are there unused surface mount pads adjacent to it?


I must be blind, upon looking at the picture again obviously
what I was thinking of is supposed to be capacitors as
marked with the C(nnn) silkscreening but now I wonder if you
were looking at the resistor, R(nn) silkscreened positions
above the SATA port in the pictures. They don't seem to be
for SATA?