 September 29, 2005 – When it comes to providing motherboards that deliver top-notch performance, users can count on ABIT. The latest creation, the Intel 955X-based AW8-MAX, has been making the rounds among the hardware community. The latest review comes from none other than PC hardware authority Hard|OCP. After taking the board to the limit, they found it fitting to bestow the AW8-MAX with their coveted Must Have Hardware Award!
Hard|OCP was blown away after testing the performance of the AW8-MAX: "ABIT is a heavily favored brand name among enthusiasts, and a top tier solution provider as well. The company continues to push the envelope on technology and performance, while maintaining product quality that is second to none. ABIT's latest board stays true to this trend…In a surprising show of force, the Intel-based AW8-MAX pulls ahead of all other boards -- including the Athlon 64 based systems -- when pairing a 1066MHz FSB CPU with 533MHz DDR2 memory. This is the first time in a long while that an Intel board's memory performance even came close to, let alone surpassing, that of an Athlon 64-based board."
Overclocking has always been ABIT's forte, and the AW8-MAX is no exception: "In the arena of overclocking, the ABIT AW8-MAX shined as well. With our Corsair 5400C4 Pro DDR2 memory, we were able to bring it up to over 800MHz on the memory bus. With Corsair 8000UL RAM, we were able to run the memory bus stable at 904MHz. Front side bus speeds of 325MHz were easily reached as well. For the Intel overclocker, the AW8-MAX is certainly a board to keep on your short list."
The bottom line? "ABIT appears to have another winner on their hands with the AW8-MAX. The board is solidly built and well engineered, with no real tight layout areas or glaring usage issues. Furthermore, its performance in relation to other Intel solutions is very good and it is even able to keep pace with the Athlon 64 boards in some cases...All in all, I am very impressed with this board and its overall quality. The ABIT AW8-MAX handled every torture test we threw at it. The AW8-MAX is a pinnacle of stability using both high-MHz and dual core processors. The ABIT AW8-MAX is an extremely stable and feature rich motherboard that should satisfy most any Intel overclocker or basic user on the planet."
The Must Have AW8-MAX with Guru Clock
For the full [H]ard review, go here:http://www.hardocp.com/article.html?art=ODEx
For more information on the AW8-MAX, go here: ABIT AW8-MAX | 
