Intel's next-generation Core i7 processors are imminent, and board manufacturers will be rolling out a selection of X58 motherboards over the coming weeks.

Today, it's GIGABYTE's turn and the Taiwanese manufacturer has a duo of solutions; the high-end GA-EX58-EXTREME (pictured) and the toned-down GA-EX58-UD5.

Both Core i7-compatible boards include support for all of the goodness that Intel's Nehalem architecture brings, including the FSB-replacing QuickPath Interconnect (QPI) and tri-channel DDR3.

GIGABYTE has opted for a "cool blue" design, and it's both easy on the eye and gentler than the usual selection of dark-coloured high-end boards. Don't let the cute cooler scheme fool you, though, both the EXTREME and UD5 boards provide three PCIe x16 slots that support both NVIDIA SLI and ATI CrossFireX.

While the UD5 sticks to the heatsink-and-heatpipe method of cooling, the EXTREME introduces GIGABYTE's Hybrid Silent-Pipe 2 - a solution that includes towering heatsinks and a built-in chipset water block for attaching an optional liquid-cooling system.

Setting apart GIGABYTE's offerings are a long list of manufacturer-specific additions including Ultra Durable 3 - the well publicised design that features a two-ounce copper-layered PCB and Japanese capacitors - as well as Dynamic Energy Saver (DES) and DualBios.

For the overclocking crowd, there's an equally long list of useful features including Precision OV, Debug LED, on-board Power and back panel clear CMOS switches, 2-Phase power for the North Bridge and memory, four sets of over-voltage LEDs, a visible temperature reminder and more.

CPU3D already had an exclusive first look at the Gigabyte GA-EX58 Extreme motherboard ... feast your eyes on our photo gallery.

http://www.cpu3d.com/review/6258-1/preview-gigabyte-ex58-extreme-motherboard/introduction.html