ASUS F1A75-V PRO Pro Reviews

AMD provides a heck of a lot of integration with its A-series APU processors, as it couples CPU cores, a memory-controller, and graphics on to one chip. Going further, AMD provides a controller chip with built-in USB 3.0 and SATA 6Gbps high-speed connectivity. One can make a case for any A-series motherboard to be simple in design; AMD has done most of the hard work. ASUS, however, believes there's a market for premium APU-based motherboards, and the F1A75-V PRO is a case in point. Presented in a full-ATX form factor and improved by the inclusion of additional USB 3.0 SATA/eSATA support, along with a quality UEFI BIOS and an array of video outputs, this is an AMD A6/A8 platform with almost all the bells and whistles tacked on. Being critical, we'd like to see FireWire specified as standard, and understanding the premium nature of the board, being able to independently overclock the GPU core would be preferable.

When talking about motherboards in this price range, there is usually very little to separate them in terms of hardware. One or the other may sport a single different controller, or use different implementations to get better results.With a lot of users wanting a lot of options, for $120 it seems you are not going to cover everything in the A75 market from the two largest motherboard manufacturers, so it is hard to give a nod either way. Personally, if it were between these two boards (users should note that A75 ATX boards from other manufacturers are available), if I were a single GPU gamer (or looking to CFX with the APU), or looking for a quiet system with enough HDDs, I would go for the ASUS board for its functionality. If I were a dual AMD discrete GPU gamer, an overclocker, or wanting to work with onboard audio, I would splash for the Gigabyte board.

With that, we can conclude that you can't really go wrong with either board overall, but depending on your needs you should focus on Asrock's board if you demand certain features such as its superior PCIe configuration. Value-minded folks should consider Gigabyte's board for its higher build quality, better overclocking capabilities and slightly lower price. Ultimately, Asus offers the best overall solution, providing a feature-packed board with the best overall performance, solid overclocking and power consumption.

Although the ASUS F1A75-V Pro is on the higher end of the price spectrum,it proved that it has what it takes to carry the ASUS name. Great performance, great overclocking capability, and great features make the ASUS F1A75-V Pro a board that should be on the top of any short list!

The overclocking performance the board allowed us to squeeze out of the A8-3850 APU is thoroughly impressive. We wouldn't have known the untapped potential of the chip without it. The A75-series boards all come laden down with purely SATA 6Gb/s ports, and a healthy smattering of USB 3.0 sockets too. It's an impressive Asus debut for the A75-series of motherboards, giving the A8-3850 a serious platform.

If you're after a motherboard for your AMD A6 or A8 processor, there's little to choose between the Asrock A75 Pro4 and Asus' F1A75-V Pro. Asrock's board is easier to set up and diagnose should anything go wrong, but Asus' board has more SATA III and USB2 and USB3 ports to help expand your PC's capabilities and is slightly cheaper. Like the Asrock board, the F1A75-V Pro can be tricky to set up thanks to some odd USB behaviour, though, so it misses out on an award.