Final thoughts and rating
AMD's continued use of the AM3 form factor for its wide range of chips means that differentiating motherboards is more difficult than it is for Intel, which is a company that segregates classes of CPU by having different sockets.You could use a sub-£100 8-series chipset and run a six-core Phenom II X6 1090T without a problem, but if you hanker after the very last ounce of performance then the 890FX chipset, released a few weeks ago, is the clear choice. Loaded with a surfeit of PCIe lanes for eclectic multi-GPU usage and supplemented by AMD OverDrive for fine-grain tweaking, 890FX chipset-based boards etail at around £150.
ASUS has taken on the 890FX chipset and gone to town on it with the Crosshair IV Formula board that currently etails for around £165. Packed to the rafters with features and bolstered by a good layout, it's backed up by an excellent BIOS and solid performance in all of our tests.
The company misses a potential trick by not equipping the board with a second GigE connection and right-angled SATA connectors can potentially cause problems in small chassis, but that's all the negatives we can think of without really resorting to nitpicking.
You can buy cheaper AMD-based boards that will give you most of what the Crosshair IV Formula offers, but as an out-of-the-box solution for someone looking for a quality AMD-centric build, it's hard to fault. Want something a little more adventurous? How about the ASUS Crosshair IV Extreme?
The Good
Good layout for a high-end board
Looks the business
Comprehensive BIOS and auto-overclocking features
The Not So Good
Single GigE is a bit stingy for a £165 board
Angled SATA connectors may be a nuisance in small chassis
HEXUS Rating
ASUS Crosshair IV Formula
HEXUS Awards
ASUS Crosshair IV Formula
HEXUS Where2Buy
The ASUS Crosshair IV Formula can be purchased from the following reputable etailers:
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As always, UK-based HEXUS.community discussion forum members will benefit from the SCAN2HEXUS Free Shipping initiative, which will save you a further few pounds plus also top-notch, priority customer service and technical support backed up by the SCANcare@HEXUS forum. |
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HEXUS Right2Reply
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