GIGABYTE GA-MA790FXT-UD5P (rev. 1.0) Pro Reviews

The Gigabyte GA-MA790FXT-UD5P on the other hand did very exceptionally as well. Its overclocking potential allowed us to overclock the AMD Athlon II X2 240e processor to 3.85GHz. It is nice to see that the GA-MA790FXT-UD5P can also support the new AMD processors on the market. We had to update the BIOS to the latest revision to get everything stable, but this is acceptable since the Athlon II X2 240e is a new processor. The motherboard ran really cool, and we never had any problems with it.

Altogether a motherboard this fully-featured is a steal at just $235 CDN ($190 USD, £130 GBP). While other motherboard manufacturers might have slapped the word "Gamer" on it and raised the price by $100, Gigabyte has sensibly kept the price low, in line with AMD's CPU pricing scheme. When paired with one of the new socket AM3 Phenom II processors, the Gigabyte GA-MA790FXT-UD5P can become a real powerhouse.

Ultimately, the Gigabyte is certainly worth considering, but left us wanting in a few key areas. The design is a feast for the eye, it's very stable, the performance is competitive but inside something uncharacteristic for Gigabyte has infested. The result is a less than optimal BIOS, frustratingly fussy overclocking and silly (non-)power saving software. The Gigabyte GA-MA790FXT-UD5P has many exemplifying points like all Gigabyte boards, but the fun and draw to play with this one in particular is completely lost, unlike the impressive MSI 790FX-GD70.

As with Gigabyte's X58, this lavish-looking board totes its 'Ultra-Durable' tech. It sounds a lot like an extra-thick condom, but it's really two ounces of copper designed to spread heat away from the usual hotspots. In theory that makes it an overclocking king, but it could only stomach a frequency bump from 200 to 250MHz.

Overall the board will not disappoint, because it's stable and gives you much room for overclocking. But as the power-consumption tests have proved, one board is still superior to it. But maybe Gigabyte will improve the BIOS, and if they do so, we will report it.

Gigabyte has done it well with a rock solid board that offers a lot of features for your hard earned cash. If you are a gamer, the LAN teaming feature will let you have an edge over your online opponents, and if you are an enthusiast, you can beat the life out of your system knowing it will remain cool and intact with the Ultra Durable 3 design. Whether you are designing a new system or looking for a nice board to upgrade your AM3 CPU to DDR3, you will not go home with a sour face from the Gigabyte MA790FXT-UD5P motherboard. I recommend it, and for the price it will make you smile.

The Gigabyte GA-MA790FXT-UD5P was a fun board to work with. It is a board that overclocks great, performs very well and continues the quality that Gigabyte has been known for.

The features of the board are extremely impressive, as is the performance. Overclocking on AMD needs a bit more tweaking, but we are seeing things getting better with their upcoming CPUs. In all, this board is a great choice for the price.

It's official - Phenom II on Socket AM3 is a real winner and the Gigabyte MA790FXT-UD5P delivers the goods at a very reasonable price.

From a platform point of view the Gigabyte MA790FXT-UD5P motherboard fits the bill as a motherboard that supports AMD's latest CPUs on the AM3 platform including the 810 we used for this review. Features-wise this board has all of the features that an enthusiast will want from a new AM3 motherboard except for one. For those expecting to run three or four ATI cards in CrossfireX mode will be disappointed as this board only has two PCI Express x16 slots but that is not the target audience of this board. Performance on the board was exemplary with performance that is higher than some of the other boards I've tested. Gigabyte has done a great job with this board. Overclocking on the board allowed it to reach 3.25GHz, on the 810, an excellent 25% overclock on air cooling and default voltages.

On the flip side, it's a board that runs cool and mostly without a hitch. Consumers may feel reassured by the solid feel of its Ultra Durable 3 enhanced PCB. Gigabyte's proprietary features are also a familiar comfort, from its Q-Flash BIOS flash utility to its energy saving technologies. Besides, let's not discount its highly competitive price, which could just suit the budgets of some consumers.

We'd like to thank Gigabyte for providing the GA-MA790FXT-UD5P for our review today. This was the first board we've tested with the 790FX chipset and it gave us a lot to think when compared to the 790GX chipset and other AM3 boards on the market. Consumers might chose the 790GX-based boards for their onboard video capabilities, while other users might go with the 790FX boards for their gaming and overclocking prowess.