ABIT AN8 32X SLI Motherboard Review

The Tests: 3D and Gaming Performance

3DMark05

3DMark05 is best suited for the latest generation of DirectX 9.0 graphics cards. It is the first benchmark to require a DirectX9.0 compliant hardware with support for Pixel Shaders 2.0 or higher! By combining high quality 3D tests, CPU tests, feature tests, image quality tools, and much more, 3DMark05 is a premium benchmark for evaluating the latest generation of gaming hardware.

3DMark06

3DMark06 is the latest version in the popular 3DMark series, including advanced SM2.0 and HDR/SM3.0 Shader graphics tests and now including single, multiple core and multiple processor CPU tests as part of the 3DMark score! We are showing off the CPU Test results as it better shows off system memory usage than the GPU tests.

Note: We did not have any results for 3dMark06 for the DFI SLI-D board.

AquaMark3

AquaMark3 is a powerful tool to determine reliable information about the gaming performance of a computer system. Again, resolution is set 1024×768.

Unreal Tournament 2004:

Doom 3

Doom 3 is a great choice for system benchmarking because of its built in time demo. For this test, we used Time Demo 1 with resolution set to 1024×768 with detail set to high.

Far Cry

Far Cry is another super popular FPS title that seriously taxes your systems graphics. HardwareOC developed this specialized benchmarking utility that automatically runs the test twice and averages out the score. V 1.41 was used here, with a resolution of 1024×768 and detail levels set to high.

F.E.A.R

First Encounter Assault Recon or F.E.A.R. Anyone who has played this game knows that it brings any computer to it’s knees. Fantastic visuals, this is one of the most advanced graphic engines we have seen. If you haven’t played this game you should really check it out. Both graphics and machine settings were on “Maximum” in the F.E.A.R. performance menu. Soft Shadows were turned OFF. Settings were at 4xAA and 16xAF.

Note: We did not have any results for 3dMark06 for the DFI SLI-D board.

Our 3d and gaming tests bring about the same conclusion: all the boards that are represented here are very close in performance when it comes to default settings. So the question then becomes: What separates the boards so that you know which one to buy? The answer basically comes down to a few things. First off, many people are brand loyal and will buy a product from a company that they have had good success with. Second, as long as the price is similar, the bundle that comes with the board could be the deciding factor. Thirdly, and this is where enthusiasts will be looking at: How well does this thing overclock? Well, we know that price point of this board and the bundle that it comes with, so the next thing we need check on is the overclocking, so let’s get to it!