Today Rage3D gets a look at AMD's 8-series chipset.  In this article, we'll be reviewing the 890GX equipped ASUS M4A89GTD PRO/USB3 motherboard. Join us as we examine the features and benefits of the ASUS implementation and bundle, featuring AMD's latest desktop chipset.

AMD is launching the 8-series chipset beginning with the mid-range 890GX. This chipset replaces the previous 790GX, offering improvements in storage, connectivity, onboard graphics and multi-GPU possibilities. It's also the first board to support the new AMD Phenom II X6 hexacore processor, due out very soon.

ASUS M4A89GTD PRO/USB3

Product Highlights

• $130 - $160USD MSRP

• 890GX Chipset with SB850

• 140W TDP Processor Support w/Core Unlocker

• ATX form factor with 24-pin main power + 8-pin additional power (EPS-12v)

• Integrated ATI Radeon HD 4290 graphics

• DVI, VGA and HDMI (+Audio) integrated outputs

• ALC 892 8 channel HD Audio, HDMI 5.1 HD Audio

• Two PCIe 2.0 x16 slots (x8 + x8 in discrete CrossfireX)

• Cross-generation CrossFireX support

• Six SATA 3.0 6Gbps ports with IDE/AHCI/RAID 0/1/5/10 support

• Two onboard USB 3.0 ports + Twelve USB 2.0 ports (4 onboard, three port headers )

• 4x DDR3 DIMM slots, max 16GB (ECC & non-ECC)

• 100% Solid Capacitorss

We'll begin with a look at the 890 Chipset architecture and the changes from the previous generation, before testing some of the specific features ASUS provide.We'll begin with a look at the 890 Chipset architecture and the changes from the previous generation, before testing some of the specific features ASUS provide.