Board layout

The IC7-MAX3 builds on the layout of its predecessor, the IC7-G Max II Advance. ABIT continues to utilize a distinctive black PCB, giving the IC7-MAX3 a sharp, all-business look that’s pleasing on the eyes. ABIT also carried over the AGP Pro slot present on the IC7-G to the IC7-MAX3, making it suitable for use in workstations. In fact, if you look at the layout of both boards, you’ll see that other than the inclusion of the Silicon Image Sil3114CT176 controller and the two additional Serial ATA ports it supports, the layout and basic component placement of both boards is the same.

This is certainly a good thing, as the IC7-G had one of the better board layouts among 875P motherboards. The big changes however are in the form of adding cooling.

New North Bridge cooler

Not much space between the North Bridge and CPU interface

Motherboard back plate

ABIT starts by replacing the North Bridge cooler found on the IC7-G with a larger cooler, which features an Orb-style heatsink. The heatsink on the IC7-G was tiny, with the fan doing the bulk of the work. The IC7-MAX3’s heatsink offers substantially more surface area than its forerunner, and is cooled with a small fan. This new cooling unit is a dramatic upgrade; helping to ensure that the North Bridge’s temperature remains in check.

OTES cooling

In addition to the new North Bridge cooler, ABIT also brings active cooling to the MOSFETs and capacitors in the form of OTES, which is short for Outside Thermal Exhuast System. Behind the CPU and North Bridge, the motherboard’s power circuitry is the third hottest component on your motherboard. Traditional motherboard designs have neglected this aspect of cooling, but the IC7-MAX3 tackles it head-on.

ABIT OTES cooling

Large heatsinks on the MOSFETs

Little room for heatsink here

ABIT starts with a plastic duct that enshrouds these components. Vents are placed throughout the enclosure with an exhaust fan placed at the end, right next to the PS/2 mouse and keyboard ports on the motherboard’s backplate. This fan occupies the space held by the serial and parallel ports on the original IC7, so these legacy devices aren’t supported by the IC7-MAX3. To add an extra bit of flair ABIT includes three green LEDs within the OTES enclosure, although we have to wonder how much heat the inclusion of this “feature” adds to the OTES system.

The one downside to all the additional cooling is the sheer size of the coolers. The new North Bridge heatsink and OTES duct take up so much space that removing Intel’s stock Pentium 4 heatsink was an enormous headache, even in our open-air testing environment. We wouldn’t want to attempt this with the motherboard installed in a case. Eventually we decided to just remove the plastic enclosure as there just wasn’t enough room to work with. As a result, CPU removal was much easier.

Not much space here either

Motherboard mount used by OTES

Underside of the mount

Fortunately this isn’t a huge problem if you’re not swapping out processors on a frequent basis, but it is something you’ll likely curse about that first time you’re ready to remove your current CPU. Another problem with OTES is that it consumes the motherboard mounting hole in the upper left corner of your motherboard. This mounting hole is pretty important for securing your motherboard to the system chassis. The second mounting hole is also occupied by OTES. You will have to remove the plastic nuts used for OTES on the underside of the board in order to mount your motherboard to your case.

Overall the layout of the IC7-MAX3 is very good, the ATX power connector and ATX12V connector are both located in positions that won’t interfere with the CPU and its cooling, and the memory sockets are located high enough that AGP video card installation should be a snap, you aren’t forced to install system memory before the graphics card. Basically all the components are placed in such a way to minimize installation hassles, right down to the rounded motherboard edges. These are all very nice touches.