Conclusion

While it’s a strong overclocker, the Sapphire Pureblack doesn’t have particularly good performance numbers. While this wouldn’t be a real problem if the boards were of comparable cost, but the Asus P8P67 LE can be found for as little as £60 whereas the Hydra board is over £150 in most places.

Also, the Hydra technology is a pain in the ass. It’s not one or the other and doesn’t have full support for the absolute latest drivers. I’m sure they’ll keep pace, but they need to pick it up a little.

Pros

Strong overclocker
USB 3, SATA 3, lots of features
Hydra chip allows for GPU mistmatching

Cons

Performance isn’t great
Hydra chip drivers are a pain
Bang for buck is very low
Naff bundle