Gigabyte GA-MA69G-S3H Motherboard

Former staff writer - August 5, 2007
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Conclusion:

I have mixed feelings about this motherboard. On the one hand, it has some nice extras, it did better in the video benchmarks overall and it does have HDMI onboard. I also like the fact that it is a full sized ATX motherboard and it has a lot of onboard headers. What I do not like is that you can only run the second Crossfire card at 4X. On the front of the box, there is an icon stating that Gigabyte motherboards are a gamer’s choice. What type of gaming, PC LCD gaming or HTPC gaming? Yes, for an HTPC, just having the extra frames per second is a plus.

As an enthusiast, I don’t appreciate the hidden “Advanced Chipset Features.” I already know that since this board leans more toward being used for a quality second inexpensive PC or an HTPC, that its overclocking capabilities are not going to be that of a true enthusiast board. So why insult me and make me work to find the advanced options?

Fortunately, I have a set of Crossfire cards that are a little dated and would be just perfect for this type of concept (HTPC). So I don’t have to pick up the cost of purchasing an extra card or two to run it. Again, I remind myself why I would buy this board, and that is for a second PC or an HTPC. Meaning that I have components lying around and if I chose this motherboard, I could build a system around that. So the price does match its performance, and with the extras that can be utilized, the board can be a choice for that HTPC or second computer you're building.