Shootouts

Mainstream AM3 - AMD 790GX Motherboard Showdown

By Vincent Chang - 18 May 2009

Conclusion

Conclusion

Scoring Breakdown
  Performance Features Layout Overclocking Stability Value Street Price (US$)
ASUS M4A78T-E 4.5 4.0 4.0 4.5 4.5 4.0 140
BIOSTAR TA790GX A3+ 4.0 3.5 3.5 4.0 3.5 3.5 125
MSI 790GX-G65 4.0 4.0 4.5 4.5 4.5 4.5 130

As usual, we have prepared a table listing our various criteria and how we judged the boards in this shootout. The prices listed are representative of what you'll find on online retailers so the local prices may differ. Since these are the summarized ratings, you can read more about our detailed opinions for the boards below:-

ASUS M4A78T-E - ASUS' only entry at the moment for the Socket AM3 790GX platform emerged as the best performer in our benchmarks. The difference in scores may not be the most convincing, but consistently, the ASUS M4A78T-E has shown that it can perform. The build quality is what we have expected from ASUS, though compared to some of the company's premium models, the M4A78T-E is strictly mainstream. Of course, that did not prevent the company from adding its proprietary technologies and software and there are quite a number of them found on this board. Whether you'll find them useful will vary on the individual's needs.

The layout too is on par with current motherboard trends, with only minor quirks that could be improved. At US$140 however, it also happened to be slightly more expensive than its competitors, which obviously could affect its appeal given such a small performance gap.

BIOSTAR TA790GX A3+ - BIOSTAR's AM3 790GX board is the odd one out here among the three. While it has slightly less of the features we would have preferred, like the absence of eSATA and S/PDIF at the rear, this was not the main grouse we had. Rather, it is the need for a 'paddle' card just so that the graphics card could run at the full 16 lanes. While this is surely something born out of a cost savings issue on the board design (less complexity), it is a bit more hassle for the users.

The layout of this board is another issue that could be improved. The SATA ports are slightly further away from the edge of the board than the others and the power connector was also close to the IDE and DIMM slots
. However, we have to say that at US$125, BIOSTAR has produced a competitively priced board that performs on par with its competitors on most aspects. The BIOS and overclocking tool included will seem a bit more raw or unusual to those used to boards from the big brands but we can't say it's not affordable.

MSI 790GX-G65 - Finally, our last AM3 790GX board came from MSI, which has a feature-list and layout that reminded us of MSI's 790FX board, the 790FX-GD70. The color scheme however is not its forte and given its mainstream nature, some of the features are scaled down from the 790FX version. In terms of performance, the MSI 790GX-G65 did not stand out from the rest. The auto-overclocking did not work successfully in our testing and our own manual attempt found it just a tad short of what the ASUS M4A78T-E managed.

Just like its 790FX compatriot from MSI, this board excelled with its layout. There were no complaints from us, not even a minor one about its design. The onboard heatsinks utilize heatpipes for better heat transfer and was the most impressive of the three. Convenient and clearly labeled buttons for power, reset and clear CMOS complete the user friendly design of this board. Also, its US$130 price tag placed it just above the BIOSTAR in terms of cost but for its ease of use and overall performance, these factors are more substantial than the price difference.

To conclude, all three boards serve their purposes fine as 790GX motherboards. You cannot go wrong with any if you're only looking at benchmark numbers. Their differences are more in the features, layout and design and lastly, price. We believe that based on all that, the MSI 790GX-G65 just about convinced us over the ASUS M478T-E that it should take the top honor for this shootout, for its layout, ease of use and competitive price in this mainstream AM3 motherboard segment.

Our Final Ratings
The MSI 790GX-G65.

The ASUS M4A78T-E.
The BIOSTAR TA790GX A3+.

 

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