I like the AOpen AX4SPE a heck of a lot. In fact, the difference between making this my primary Pentium4 motherboard and the one I actually use, is ADI's Sonic Focus system which this board doesn't include. The Realtek CODEC included on this board doesn't hold a candle to the ADI solution. Hopefully Aopen will include the Sonic Focus system in their future Intel motherboards.

In terms of performance, the A4XSPE is one of the fastest P4 motherboards I've ever tested. In fact, with a 9800 Pro and a P4 2.8 GHz P4, I had a hard time stressing the system while playing any of the games I'm currently playing, even at maximum resolution and with AA and AF! Half Life 2, when it's released will play very well indeed on this system.

In terms of bundle, the AX4SPE includes virtually everything you would want in a motherboard. 8 included USB 2.0 ports, 2 IEEE-1394 ports, SPDIF bracket, SATA, this board has all of these. Norton's Antivirus is a wonderful addition to the board bundle, as well. The very useful system monitoring and other utilities are extremely useful.

I highly recommend the AOpen AX4SPE board to anyone looking for a 865 based motherboard today. Stability, performance, and compatibility were all excellent. As a 865 based board, it only lacks PAT from Intel's 875 chipset. I'm happy to give the AOpen AX4SPE a Gamepyre Gamer's Choice Award. I look forward to reviewing more motherboards from AOpen in the future.

Performance - 9 Features - 9 Compatibility - 10 Price - 10 Availability - 10 Setup - 10 Overall Value - 9 Ease of Use - 10 Support - 10 Bundle - 8 Total: 95