Final Words & Conclusion
We already mentioned in our reference review that we like the 890GX chipset quite a lot for it's features, performance and tweakability, and especially on a board like ASUS offers here things really make sense.
What the 890GX you get to have some more features and compatibility, let's talk about that for a second. Not only will you be ready for the upcoming 6-core Phenom II X6 processors the chipset also harbors a slightly improved IGP within the Northbridge, it's a little faster and though daunting similar to AMD785, it offers the benefit of UVD 2.0 and armed with 40 Shader processors that simply opens up gateways to proper post-process of high-definition video. Especially with software like Media Player Classic HT edition this is a tremendous feature.
So the Northbridge SB890GX ASIC definitely is creepy similar to the AMD 785 Northbridge, but we do see a very nice update for the Southbridge. The SB850 can now support 14 USB 2.0 devices, it has an embedded Gigabit Ethernet and the most prominent feature is of course the support of six SATA 6G storage devices, and that my friends is the sweet butter on top of the waffle. By doing so AMD is separating itself from Intel and takes a large step forward. Especially compared to H55 with a Clarkdale Core i3 / i5 processor the dynamic shifts a lot. The AMD 890GX chipset is without doubt much faster and more feature rich and sure, combined with the right processor cheaper as well. And that has always been AMD's strong point, value for features and performance, this is a very future proof motherboard chipset,
Where AMD already made a good and versatile chipset, ASUS figured they had to improve then end-result, and as such they added a NEC USB 3.0 controller, extra overclock features, CPU uncore functions and really a very nicely designed and performing motherboard. Speaking of that uncore function, we feel it is just extremely cool to have a switch on the motherboard that enables any disabled cores inside a processor. And if the disabled core still refuses to work or causes problems, well .. put the switch back and things get back to normal.
The ASUS M4A89GTD has a little something for everybody. It's an awesome net PC or work PC that is quite power efficient while delivering good performance. The wide connectivity (monitor output) feature set and embedded IGP make this motherboard a truly excellent HTPC as well. You can go nuts as the package has plenty of features and performance to deal properly with high-definition content.
The last segment is the more enthusiast user and the gamers. Again the board offers a lot, the combination of SATA 6G will make sure your RAID is as fast as can be, and current and future SSDs will receive the bandwidth they deserve. In addition to that the choice of adding USB 3.0 was a very clever one as well, it's the hottest feature currently requested by enthusiast end-users. Due to the ATX design you'll also have a couple of more slots to play around with, two physical x16 slots, a x1 and x4 slot and then two PCI slots, very nice.
One quick last note, if you plan to purchase this motherboard and want USB 3.0 then lookout for this model: M4A89GTD Pro / USB3. If it does not have that USB 3.0 extension it will not have it, though you save another tenner on the price though.
Where the ASUS motherboard shines are enthusiast features like the extensive and tweakable BIOS, the overclock switch, the easy to use core unlock feature and all the extra's combined with the AMD 890GX chipset makes this a grand motherboard and a perfect platform for Phenom II processors, but looking at it from a more enthusiast point of view, it might be one of the best motherboards out there to combine with the upcoming 6-core Thuban processors. As such the motherboard comes definitely recommended.
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