September '98 BX Motherboard Comparison

If money wasn't an object (yeah right), the majority of the buying population would want nothing but the best.  The best food, the best clothing, the best homes, and in a more related sense, the best motherboards.  However, this isn't a perfect world, and we can't always have the best of the best.  But how are you to know which motherboards to stay away from and which you should grant a heartfelt "welcome-home" to in the form of cash, check, or a credit card number?

It is a scary marketplace out there, and without the proper knowledge of the competing products in this industry you are essentially a fish on dry land.

Just about 4 months ago Intel announced their 440BX Pentium II AGPSet, and with the release of the chipset came the release of a great number of motherboards based on this new product.  With these motherboards we saw the return of some greats to the thrones they once held, a few new threats to the top contenders, and a couple unfortunate disappointments.  With the first wave of BX motherboards having come and gone, it is time for the true winners to step ahead and take the throne from those that preceded them.  While a few manufacturers took home the fame they received with their first generation boards and went home, a few came back for a second try at the gold, and one did accomplish just that.

AnandTech rounded up 18 of the best BX boards on the market today and pit them head to head in terms of performance, quality, features, stability, reliability and more.  There can be only one winner of the Best Overall BX Motherboard Award from AnandTech, which board grabbed the title?  Which boards fell short?  Stop wondering and start reading, as we enter the realm of the most fierce BX competitors out in the field today.