 March 14, 2005 - Fremont, CA Engineered by ABIT in cooperation with the world's number one professional gamer Johnathan "Fatal1ty" Wendel, the AA8XE is literally designed by gamers, for gamers - and it shows! Let's take a look at what ABIT brings to the world of 925XE motherboards.
"The features of the Intel chipset alone are quite impressive, but what really sets this board apart from the rest (and there is a lot of competition out there) is the unique and effective solutions ABIT has engineered to address some of the most common needs and wants amongst gamers.
µGuru Technology
This includes ABIT AutoDrive overclocking, advanced audio features, auto FAN speed control, self-diagnostic H/W monitoring, one click BIOS updating, and 24 hours e-service. µGuru also combines EQ, OC Guru, FlashMenu and BlackBox applications with a user-friendly interface that runs at startup (by default) and allows you to monitor every aspect of your system imaginable, from component voltages to fan speeds, and make changes as you see fit. This is great for overclockers in particular, and in our experience the software has been rock solid reliable. I should point out that μGuru contains powerful software that is not just for overclocking."
Dual OTES
Two small, high-speed fans exhaust hot air away from your CPU. This system uses a clever ducted design to direct airflow and fan speed is fully controlled and regulated by μGuru according to system temperatures.
MOSFET Thermal Solution and OC Strips
"With a special layout and heatsinks, this special design encourages heat dissipation around the CPU.
Specially designed copper strips help draw heat away from the PCB.
That's a lot of cooling technology on one motherboard. In the past I have had issues with supposed "Smart" fan control systems, but I had no such issues with the AA8XE. In fact, the cooling systems integrated to the 925XE board are without a doubt the best in the industry at present, and that is saying a lot when you consider the number of manufacturers who offer similar systems. ABIT's system not only worked flawlessly in our testing, but it performed extremely well too."
Stunning Looks
"The case modders will love this one. Ultra bright red LEDs (matching the red PCB) have been mounted around the entire motherboard, which looks absolutely fantastic at night time. Since I installed the Fatal1ty board, I've lost count of the number of people who have commented on the cool look of the board. Despite all the LEDs, it still retains its elegance, which is important, as you don't want your case looking too cheesy!"
Reliability & Compatibility Testing
 "We've been testing the board extensively with the very latest technology. We picked up one of the new 64-bit Pentium 4 CPUs, the 640 to be exact. This was detected by the motherboard with no dramas and has run perfectly ever since.
Likewise, our X800XL and X800XT PCI-Express video cards both had no trouble working with the AA8XE. We used Geil DDR2 RAM at the supported speed of 533MHz and again had no issues.
It seems ABIT's claim of "BulletProof Technology" bears a lot of truth. They also go out of their way to state that the motherboard uses top quality components such as 100% Japanese capacitors for increased reliability. Since capacitors are often the first thing to die on a motherboard, this is very reassuring.
ABIT's pride in their quality is also a refreshing change in this industry, where some manufacturers seem content to cut corners and sacrifice quality in order to save a few dollars. No doubt ABIT have recognized that gamers want the best of the best, and they have delivered this to Intel gamers with their Fatal1ty AA8XE, which is now available at very reasonable prices worldwide."
It is fair to say that the Fatal1ty AA8XE is the star of the current generation of Intel 925XE motherboards. With ABIT's innovative cooling technologies, overclocking options including unlockable CPU multiplier settings, and rock solid performance, this is a true gamers motherboard. A separate 7.1 channel audio daughter board with Dolby Digital Live support tops it off, along with the awesome red LEDs and dual LAN. And with Fatal1ty's stamp of approval, you know you're getting the absolute best.
Rating: 98%
For the full review, go to: http://www.pcgameworld.com/article.php/id/280/
For more information on the Fatal1ty AA8XE motherboard, go here: ABIT Fatal1ty AA8XE | 
