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LOSTCIRCUITS	SHORTCUTS: SHORTCUTS: Top Page At One Glance Features SecureIDE µGuru HW Bundle / OTES VRM - Layout On-Board Sound Integrated Peripherals BIOS Test Configuration Overclocking Memory Performance I/O Performance Gaming Performance Conclusion Best Prices for Athlon 64 Processors Please give us some feedback to help us improve our reviews
ABIT KV8 MAX3 Taking it to the streets
(Review by MS, November 24, 2003)

Conclusion

At the end of any review like this, always the question pops up about what the real conclusions are. In this case, there are a few points that are easy made, first and foremost, the KV8 MAX3 is an excellent board. The next step is to backtrack and try to list what could be improved about it and there are a few things that caught our attention.

• The OTES arrangement is out of place here since in its current form it interferes with proper mounting and, moreover, it does not really contribute anything. A smaller, redesigned unit would be a much better choice here.
• The µGuru is at present mostly "work in progress". This is not meant totally negative, but as we pointed out, there are a number of issues that need to be improved, expecially in the case of the OC-Guru which, in the current form is of rather limited usefulness.
• The BIOS needs some work since some of the switches are not functional, one example is the CPU Multiplier, a second problem, which is more annoying is the illegal divider issue that effectively kills any overclocking at 232 MHz external CPU speed.
• The documentation and manual are a far cry from earlier ABIT manuals. There are many omissions of vital information, some of which are simply blatant.
• Last not least, there is the omission of the back plate and the retention mechanism. To be sure, the retail version of the CPU ships with both, also, the A64-specific heatsinks may have the missing parts included, but what if I want to use my Zalman CNPS7000, by far the best air-cooling solution out there? In that case the quest would begin for the missing parts.

In other words, the recommendation here is to leave out the OTES and rather add the backplate.

How does the KV8 MAX3 compare to the ASUS K8V Deluxe? This is where it gets more interesting. Both boards, as similar as they are have very different characters. The ABIT board is much more forgiving with respect to memory configurations than the ASUS board. The ASUS board throws in the WiFi (with all associated security issues) whereas the ABIT board features the far superior SiliconImage SATA controller. The audio, both in terms of the signal to noise ratio and overall quality, not to mention the physical interface is a class better on the ABIT than on the ASUS board but the ASUS board is a better overclocker.

Personally, if I had to make a decision, I would probably end up like the mule that starved between two bales of hay because he couldn't make up his mind which one was tastier. Both boards are in a league of their own as far as we can tell from some still rather limited experiences with the Athlon 64 platform.

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