Tiger Lake-H module claims to be first with PCIe Gen4 x16

Tiger Lake-H module claims to be first with PCIe Gen4 x16

Aug 3, 2021 — by Eric Brown

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Adlink’s rugged, Linux-ready “Express-TL” COM Express Basic Type 6 module features up to octa-core Tiger Lake-H CPUs with up to 128GB DDR4, optional NVMe, quad 4K displays, 2.5GbE and GbE, 4x USB 3.2 Gen2, and PCIe Gen4 x16.

Adlink announced the second embedded board we have seen based on Intel’s new hexa- and octa-core H-series additions to its dual- and quad-core 11th Gen Tiger Lake processors. The Express-TL follows TQ’s TQMx110EB, which similarly deploys Tiger Lake-H on the 125 x 95mm COM Express Basic Type 6 form factor. TQ may be the first to market — it was previously listed as “coming soon,” but has now changed to “new.” The Express-TL is “preliminary.”

Express-TL, front and back
(click images to enlarge)

Adlink claims the Express-TL is the first COM Express module to offer PCI Express Gen4 x16, which “effectively doubles the bandwidth of previous COM Express modules.” By comparison, the company’s earlier cExpress-TL Compact Type 6 module, which uses the original, up to quad-core Tiger Lake UP3 parts, provides PCIe Gen4 x4. TQ TQMx110EB simply lists “PCIe Gen4” for the TQMx110EB, which is likely x4, as well.

Like the 12-28W TDP Tiger Lake UP3 and its slightly slower, more industrial focused ”E” and “GRE” UP3 variants, Tiger Lake-H is fabricated with a 10nm process. This second round of Tiger Lake CPUs offers the same, much-improved Intel Iris Xe graphics with Intel Gen12 technology, as well as support for PCIe Gen4, USB 4.0, TSN, and Intel TCC.

Tiger Lake-H offers at least twice the Level 3 cache as Tiger Lake-U at 24MB. Like and TQMx110EB and cExpress-TL, the Express-TL supports Tiger Lake’s AVX-512 VNNI (Vector Neural Network Instructions), which whips up some AI magic from both the CPU and Iris Xe cores.

Like the TQ module, the Express-TL provides Core i7/i5/i3 and Xeon W models, including the octa-core, 2.6GHz/4.2GHz Xeon W-11865MRE. Unlike the TQ COM, there is also support for the dual-core, 2.6GHz Celeron 6600HE.

Express-TL block diagram and list of available Tiger Lake-H models
(click images to enlarge)

Adlink mentions in its press release that the Express-TL will offer an unnamed, octa-core Tiger Lake-H model with 25W TDP. TQ now lists three 25W Xeon-W models on its TQMx110EB product page that were not there in May, including the octa-core, 1.5GHz/4.5GHzx Xeon W-11865MLE. This model is also one of several new leaked Tiger Lake-H models mentioned in a recent CNXSoft post.

The Express-TL supports twice the RAM of the TQ module with up to 128GB of 3200 MT/s DDR4 via 4x sockets. ECC support is available on the Xeon-W parts when paired with the RM590E PCH. Otherwise, you have a choice of QM580E or HM570E chipsets. OS support includes standard support with Yocto Linux, VxWorks, and Win 10 IoT Enterprise, as well as an extended BSP for Yocto.

A build option is available for on-module NVMe storage. (This appears in the block diagram as a BGA SSD build option using 2x PCIe Gen3.) The Express-TL provides a single PCIe Gen4 x16 interface and 8x Gen3 x1 lanes, which can be split into various combinations with fewer lanes.

The Express-TL supports 1.5GbE and 1GbE ports, both using Intel i225 series controllers. TSN support is a build option.

Like the TQ module and many Tiger Lake boards, the module supports up to 4x independent displays, and it can also deliver all four at 4K@60 resolution. Like the TQMx110EB, the module can also drive 2x 8K260 displays at once (given sufficient RAM).

The module offers 3x DDI interfaces for DisplayPort/HDMI/DVI. The fourth 4K display is available if you swap out the LVDS interface for an eDP build option. There is also an optional, HD-ready VGA link in place of one of the DDI interfaces. Intel HD Audio is available along with support for an ALC886 codec on a carrier.

The Express-TL is further equipped with 4x SATA III, 4x USB 3.2 Gen2, 4x USB 2.0, 2x UART, 8x GPIO, SPI, I2C, SMBus, and LPC bus. Other features include a SEMA Board Controller with watchdog, etc. plus a debug header and TPM 2.0.

The module supports a 8.5-20VDC input and is available in 0 to 60°C and -45 to 85°C models, both with 5-90% RH operating, non-condensing relative humidity protections. Shock and vibration resistance is compliant with IEC 60068-2-64 and IEC-60068-2-27, as well as MIL-STD-202F, Method 213B and Method 214A.

The Express-TL is available with an optional Express-BASE6 Type 6 carrier, which we covered in an earlier report on the Coffee Lake based Express CF/CFE module. Features include PCIe x16, PCIe x4, and 2x PCIe x1 slots, as well as SATA, VGA, LVDS, USB 3.0/2.0, GbE, and more.

Further information

No pricing or availability information was provided for the “preliminary” Express-TL. More information may be found in Adlink’s announcement and product page.