More ASUS A8N-SLI Deluxe

Onboard features run inline with NVIDIA’s nForce4 chipset. Four SATA 2 ports are exposed natively, as are 10 USB 2.0 ports (four on the back panel, four through rear I/O brackets, and two through front-panel connectors). ActiveArmor and NV Firewall both come standard, as does NVIDIA’s integrated Gigabit Ethernet controller. Unique additions include a Silicon Image SATA controller that exposes four more ports, albeit at 1.5 Gbps, a Texas Instruments IEEE 1394a controller, another PCI-based Gigabit chip, and the familiar ALC850 codec for mainstream eight-channel audio. ASUS’ EZ Plug feature, which is claimed to be the only way to operate stably in SLI mode, is another ASUS original A8N-SLI-specific feature.

Memory timing screen

Manual or auto: you overclock

Use PEG mode for higher graphics clocks

From a feature perspective, the A8N-SLI is a commendable value. Its bundle includes enough SATA cabling to utilize all eight onboard ports, plus the power connectors to adapt older supplies, a back-panel bracket for external SATA connectivity, four back-panel USB 2.0 ports, one back-panel Firewire port, standard IDE cables, a serial port, an I/O shield, a retention bracket, an InterVideo software package, and related ASUS documentation. If that sounds like a lot of extra hardware, it is. ASUS’ package comes with more cables and connectors than any other motherboard.

System health

Peripherals a-plenty

Another strong point for the A8N-SLI is its BIOS, which ASUS equips with plenty of customizable features. The JumperFree Configuration menu facilitates different types of overclocking, such as manual, AI Overclock, and AI NOS. Using AI Overclock, the BIOS raises CPU bus frequency by a given percentage and maintains it constantly. AI NOS, on the other hand, offers dynamic overclocking so that the extra speed kicks in when intensive processing situations are detected through power consumption. In either case, setting too aggressive of an option will result in system instability.

Manual overclocking, as expected, exposes all of the voltage and frequency settings. CPU bus speeds are available between 200 and 400MHz, while PCI Express bus frequencies are available between 100 and 145MHz. You can also choose between memory voltages between 2.6 and 3V, processor voltages between .8 and 1.65V, and CPU multipliers between 4x and 20x in .5x steps.