| Gigabyte GA-EX58-EXTREME Core i7 Motherboard |  |
| Reviews - Featured Reviews: Motherboards | |
| Written by Olin Coles | |
| Friday, 12 December 2008 | |
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Page 18 of 18
EX58-EXTREME ConclusionWhenever a new hardware platform launches, I feel that manufacturers owe it to consumers to educate them on the changes. To this extent, Gigabyte does only offers a few tiny bullet points of information pertaining to QPI, and 3-channel memory. What you get is a whole lot of information on Ultra Durable 3 and the benefits of using 2 ounces of copper, some marketing points pertaining to Hybrid Silent-Pipe 2, and a little about Dynamic Energy-Saver. This is all fine if you're a lifelong Gigabyte motherboard user, but buyers compare apples to oranges, and Gigabyte needs to remember this. The overall appearance is very impressive. My first impression was that the GA-EX58-EXTREME left behind all of the colorful pastels as a reminder that it came to do business. Gigabyte has a winning combination of shiny silver and anodized blue components. The colors used for expansion card slots are matched to bus speed and type, and the power phase and onboard LEDs give just as much for user feedback as they do for captivating looks. At the end of my testing I was pleased to say I don't miss copper heatpipe tubing winding around the motherboard, because the EX58-EXTREME traded in this look for polished nickel. For the first time in several product releases, I have found a motherboard with a near-perfect component layout. The construction is what you would expect from a top-class premium product: second to none. I know that there has been a long history of being second-best in the motherboard industry, but the GA-EX58-EXTREME has done a convincing job of saying otherwise. All ten SATA ports are turned sideways, which allows full access to them even with large video cards installed. Even the six memory module banks are located away from the action for better access and cooling. Considering the performance was equal or slightly better than Intel's own X58 Smackover motherboard, I believe it's a safe bet to claim that Gigabyte has given the GA-EX58-EXTREME more functionality than any other motherboard they've previously designed. I won't rehash two pages of Gigabyte-specific features, you can always revisit those sections, but instead I will add that both graphics and application performance were noticeably improved with the X58 platform. At the time of this writing, NewEgg offers the Gigabyte GA-EX58-EXTREME for $328.99. I recognize that this is Gigabyte's flagship X58 motherboard for overclockers, but it seems like the days of old when Gigabyte motherboards offered the same great features without he premium price tag have sadly come to pass. NewEgg also has the ASUS P6T Deluxe we recently reviewed currently selling for $338.99, which means that price-shoppers will want to use our Price Comparison Tool for the best online deals. In conclusion, I recommend the Gigabyte GA-EX58-EXTREME X58-Express DDR3 motherboard to enthusiasts wanting the absolute best possible performance and functionality out of their Intel Core i7 system. Overclockers are guaranteed to enjoy the myriad array of settings and BIOS configuration options, while the performance enthusiast will admire the scalability of 3-way SLI and CrossFireX. 24GB of total DDR3 capacity will please 64-bit users, and ten total SATA ports will ensure that no drive is left behind (a popular initiative for my SSD collection). The full depth of Gigabyte's proprietary product features is well worth the asking price, and there isn't another motherboard available that can offer much challenge to the EX58-EXTREME. Considering the matched performance against Intel's DX58SO, the final choice will depend on your needs. Pros:
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Comments
Very usefull information
I really enjoy your articles.
Concerning the hybrid silent pipe ,once you have installed it. Can you just run the motherboard on air cooling or is watercooling mandatory?