If you've wondered why the nForce 790i based motherboards are so expensive, we can tell you that it's all down to the chipset, as Nvidia is kind enough to charge its so-called motherboard partners the neat sum of US$115 per nForce 790i Ultra chipset.

Considering that half of it is a recycled Northbridge from way back, which has found its way onto the nForce 680i and 780i before the 790i, one has to wonder what there is to charge so much money for. We're also curious why there's such a huge price gap between the NSF and Ultra version, as the NSF version is a bargain in comparison at US$78 a pop.

Intel actually decided to reduce the cost of its X48 chipset in the end, making it a little bit better value for the money than the initial price point of US$70, but at around US$50-60 it is still far from cheap.

With pricing like this, there's no wonder that Nvidia is losing support from its partners, and with many motherboard manufacturers skipping the 780i chipset alltogether after the EVGA upgrade scheme which upset many of the Taiwanese motherboard manufacturers, it's looking like it's getting a lot tougher for Nvidia's chipset team.