With Intel's Sandy Bridge kicking off a new era of high-performance computing, you might have thought the days of the power-hungry and costly X58 platform were numbered.
Just don't tell that to Gigabyte, who has used the CES stage to unleash a new line of "G1-Killer" extreme X58 motherboards.
The range, topped by the G1.Assassin (pictured above), is aimed directly at the gaming crowd and touts a lengthy list of high-end features. The Assassin board, utilising an enlarged XL-ATX form factor, expands on Intel's X58 chipset by integrating a Bigfoot Networks Killer E2100 network processing unit and a Creative Soundblaster X-Fi digital audio processor.
Gigabyte's promise of the highest-quality components is ever present, and the spec sheet has almost everything a growing gamer needs. The highlights include support for four-way CrossFire or three-way SLI, up to 24GB of 2,200MHz DDR3 memory, USB 3.0, SATA 6Gbps and a bevy of overclocker-friendly features. If you're an FPS junkie, you're probably going to like the fact that the southbridge heatsink is shaped to look like a magazine - and we're not talking about the Radio Times.
No mention of pricing or availability as yet - and no sign of a P67 version - but Gigabyte's detailed specification sheet can be found below along with images of the lesser Sniper and Guerrilla boards.
G1.Sniper
G1.Guerrilla
