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Today we are checking out the latest AMD 890GX based motherboard from Gigabyte, designed to deliver the very latest features to the AM3 platform. Features such as USB3 and SATA3 are included, as well as some pretty impressive overclocking abilities, that help make the Gigabyte 890GPA-UD3H a very well rounded motherboard...
Things are starting to really heat up in the battle between AMD and Intel, as just last week AMD released its most powerful desktop processor yet. The release of the Phenom II X6 series was significant for AMD and although few applications are ready to put six-cores to work, their current pricing strategy makes this less of a concern.
 Given that the flagship and now AMD’s most expensive desktop processor, the Phenom II X6 1090T, costs just $310 US, many users are going to be looking at migrating to the AM3 platform. Alternatively, if the flagship model is a little rich for your blood, then perhaps the Phenom II X6 1055T for just $210 US is more your style. The beauty of the new Phenom II X6 processors for those already in possession of an older AMD processor using the AM2/AM2+ socket, is that in order to get their hands on a new six-core processor they need not upgrade any other component. The only catch being that the motherboard manufacturer must provide a new BIOS revision to enable Phenom II X6 support. Those that cannot obtain Phenom II X6 support, who feel their AM2/AM2+ motherboard is getting too long in the tooth, or who are simply building a new AMD system from the ground up, are all going to be in the market for a new AM3 motherboard. There are a number of options to choose from and depending on your needs these options can often be quickly narrowed down. While we will discuss the new AMD 8-series chipsets on the next page, the 890GX is a good option for most users. This chipset offers a vast array of features, excellent performance, and most motherboards supporting it are reasonably priced. The 890GX was also the first 8-series chipset to make its debut and as such there are more motherboards supporting it right now than any other 8-series chipset. Pricing starts at $120 US and goes as high as $150 US. Impressively, one of the cheapest 890GX motherboards is also one of the best, as the Gigabyte 890GPA-UD3H is priced at just $130 US. Interestingly, Gigabyte is offering just a single 890GX motherboard at this point, though having said that, most motherboard manufacturers only have one or two boards on offer. However despite this, Gigabyte looks to have nailed it with the 890GPA-UD3H, by offering a perfect balance of features and value. In fact, if you compare the Gigabyte 890GPA-UD3H to the Asus M4A89GTD PRO/USB3 motherboard, there appears to be very little difference between them, and despite this the Asus board comes at a $20 US price premium. |
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Busta |
Posted on: 05/04/2010 10:06 PM
Nice review - very in-depth. This is a great looking motherboard. I think Gigabyte make the best boards IMO! |
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ArmyOfOne |
Posted on: 05/04/2010 10:43 PM
This looks like it could be my next board ... once AMD releases the Phenom II X4 960T so I can use it to unlock the other two cores  |
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Inigma |
Posted on: 05/05/2010 02:37 AM
Does this board support the Phenom II X6 processors properly yet? |
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ProX |
Posted on: 05/05/2010 03:29 AM
The review said that it used the first release BIOS which was pre-Phenom II X6 so I think you will have to wait for an updated release for full support. |
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RebateBill |
Posted on: 05/05/2010 05:29 PM
Yes, it support the X6's out of the box beware of rev 1 boards, Easytune6 has issues with either win7 or the X6. rev2(16 features on gigabyte.com.tw) boards, usb layout is different than rev1(15 features on gigabyte.com.tw)rev2 feature the unlock cpu on board for disabled chips. |
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Dave F |
Posted on: 05/05/2010 10:01 PM
I just purchased this motherboard along with the phenom x6 1055t and I cannot get the turbo core feature to work and there is no option for it in the bios. What should I do? |
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dinos22 |
Posted on: 05/06/2010 03:25 AM
Great write up there mate  |
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Robbo |
Posted on: 05/06/2010 01:34 PM
Very nice review thanks! I pulled the trigger on one of these today  |
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Garvey |
Posted on: 05/08/2010 09:53 AM
Excellent review thanks! I am keen to see some 890FX reviews please |
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Tiempo |
Posted on: 05/10/2010 09:05 PM
for me the asrock is the better one. anyone can give more infos asrock vs gigabyte (AM3 890GX)? |
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Steve Posts: 80 Joined: 2010-02-08 |
Posted on: 05/10/2010 11:17 PM
Thanks for all the great feed back guys! Posted by Tiempo on 05/10/2010 10:05 PM
Tiempo we do have the Asrock 890GX board on hand and will be posting a review on that soon... |