Biostar TA890FXE review

Gallery

Verdict:

Biostar's TA890FXE has loads of features including four PCI-E x16 slots, but it's expensive and doesn't have USB3.

Review Date: 20 Aug 2010

Price when reviewed: £107

Supplier: http://www.cube247.co.uk

Reviewed By: Kat Orphanides

Our Rating 3 stars out of 5

Review
Specs

Basic Specifications
Part Code	TA890FXE
Review Date	20 Aug 2010
Rating
Processor socket	AM3
Form factor	ATX
Size	305x244mm
Processor support	Phenom II, Athlon II, Sempron 100
Processor external bus	260MHz (2.6GHz HyperTransport)
Chipset north bridge	AMD 890FX
Chipset south bridge	AMD SB850
Passively-cooled north bridge
Integrated graphics
Supported memory type	DDR3 800/1066/1333/1600
Maximum memory speed	PC3-15000
Memory slots	4
Maximum memory	16GB
Dual-channel support

Internal Ports
Power connectors	1x 24-pin ATX, 1x 8-pin ATX
PCI-E x16 slots	3
Dual graphics architecture	CrossFire
PCI-E x4 slots	0
PCI-E x1 slots	0
PCI slots	2
Fan headers	3
Floppy ports	0
IDE ports	1
Serial ATA ports	4
RAID chipset (max disks)	AMD SB850 (5x SATA III, RAID 0, 1, 5, 10)

Features
Wired network ports	1x 10/100/1000
Sound (ports)	Realtek ALC892 (6x analogue out, optical S/PDIF, coaxial S/PDIF)
USB2 ports / headers	6/3
Firewire ports / headers	1/1
Legacy ports	2x PS/2, serial header
Other ports	1x eSATA, 5x SATA III
Cables included	3x SATA, 1x Molex to SATA power, 2x CrossFire
Brackets included	none
Software included	drivers only

Setup and Overclocking
Voltage adjustment	CPU/RAM/Chipset
CPU clock max adjustment	600MHz

Buying Information
Price	£107
Supplier	http://www.cube247.co.uk
Details	www.biostar.com.tw

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User comments

"Biostar's TA890FXE is one of the most expensive AM3 motherboards that we've seen, so we were expecting a lot from it. It's surprising, then, that it doesn't have a single USB3 port, for use with super-fast external storage"
Why are you talking about AM3?Isn't it by far the cheapest 890fx/ sb850 equipped board, surely comparison should be with similarly equipped boards?
And can't you buy a usb 3.0 express card for about £10?
Just seen one for under £100 new so i might have to do it, i think this review misses the point to be honest.........

By stuey5266 on 15 May 2011