Motherboards...recommendations?

[FM]

In my never-ending search for parts to my new system, I've finally narrowed it down to ASUS motherboards (unless someone can convince me other wise )

Now, any good recommendations on them that I may have missed...

I'm torn between Intel & Athlon...definitely want dual core either way...and I know the quad's hit sometime soon which would drop the prices a bit, but by my timeframes of getting this system, quads are out (but man are they sweet )

Sli-compatibility would be nice, but at least 1 PCI-e slot...

At least 4Gb of RAM (preferably more)

I've seen too many with 2 PCI slots; would *ideally* like 3 (as I'm ripping a lot of parts out of hte old system and dropping into the new).

At least one IDE connector for the burners; if I have to SATA-adapter the hard drives, I will...

Problem is I had the one I was really eyeing picked out in an older issue of Computer Shopper and I think I ended up throwing it out with a bunch of other old mags because now I can't find it...

[Kamal]

Re: Motherboards...recommendations?

save your money dude and get a quad core supported Asus.... that is the ONLY way ahead imo

[Corven]

Re: Motherboards...recommendations?

with the new quad core coming up .. imo its not really wise to get a new system now .. probably june next year would probably be a better bet

[FM]

Re: Motherboards...recommendations?

I can't wait until June of next year...sorry to say...this system I have now is driving me up the wall, mainly due to hardware sharing/incompatabilities....

I know quad cores are great even if hardly anything supports it now...I would suppose not after it comes out but if the prices drop shortly thereafter then *maybe* I would get one then...which isn't 100% out of the question...but I definitely need an upgrade either way..I've been running an Athlon 800 for over 6 years (768MB RAM) on a cheap, PCChips mobo...

[evangelion]

Re: Motherboards...recommendations?

As always, it comes down to how much you want to spend and what you want to do with it.


Got a bunch of money...you can't touch a Core 2 Duo on an NVIDIA 680i chipset motherboard.

Want to save a little...an AMD X2 on a NVIDIA 590 chipset motherboard is a great price/performance setup.

And as you said...ASUS is the only way to go.


Either of those setups with a good video card, hard drive and 4GB of memory will let you do just about anything you want. It just depends on how fast you want to do it.

[Yao]

Re: Motherboards...recommendations?

Asus M2N-E nF570U RG SA + AMD Athlon X2 4200+ is what i got. Schweeeeeet stuff so far....and if you take an AM2 mobo like this one, it should be easy to upgrade to a quad-core chip without having to replace your mobo alltogether.

[FM]

Re: Motherboards...recommendations?

yes I saw a couple of those AUS board that are quad-core ready...definitely considering something with that to save a lot of upgrading/"new system" buy...

Though if my new side gig goes the way I'm expecting, money to get a new system may not be quite a huge object after all (so I'm biting the bullet for the moment)

[Lifeless]

Re: Motherboards...recommendations?

K9N Platinum socket AM2 of course

[Jammer8]

Re: Motherboards...recommendations?

There are plenty of other MB Manufacturers other than ASUS that make very high quality parts. I am in the IT business and build many systems. EVGA, EPOX, MSI, GIGABYTE are all quality builders. Definitely go with a Core 2 Duo, they hammer anything AMD is making (I own a X2 3800+) if you are on a tight budget a E6300 or E6400 are great, if you can afford more go with a E6600 or E6700. As far as the MB goes any Intel chipset only supports one IDE Port (2 devices) The 590 chipset is good, but the P965 (intel) is great. I do most of my shopping at newegg.com they have great prices excellent shipping and a broad selection. they also provide all the specs and many detailed pics. I would stay away from AMD right now as they cannot hold a candle to Intel. Also most P965 (975 enthusiast, expensive)are extremely stable and support quad core (if not now, with a bios update) . If that is what you are looking for. Right now the 680i boards are extremely expensive.

[FM]

Re: Motherboards...recommendations?

well the kicker with AMD is they're releasing their quad-core chips this Thursday...this version is dual socket vs. Intel's single socket (the true quad-core single dies aren't until next year)....so it may turn the tide a bit; I'm sure many boards at the moment aren't going to support it, but it would be interesting to see in a month or 2 what will...whether new, or with BIOS updates being developed.

I love Newegg...plain and simple

Still on the checking mode a bit with the holiday season now upon things...that and I managed to work out some of the bugs in my old system finally (it was freezing up like no tomorrow)...so it still can stay for a little while longer

[Yao]

Re: Motherboards...recommendations?

I got an AMd dual core, but it depends on your requirements what you should take: I don't believe in this AMD or Intel bullshit anymore - admittedly since very recently. AMD gives much more FSB, Intel gives more L2 cache: choose between being able to give a stack of orders, or have a certain amount processed quickly. In tests I've seen the only cpu that really kicks the shit out of everything is the Dual Xeon by Intel, otherwise you can go with either of the two depending on your needs for the computer.

As for Mobo's: The brand itself doesn't bother me, the chipset manufacturer does: VIA gave me a lot of problems last time with my video card. I'm avoiding them as much as possible since then .

[evangelion]

Re: Motherboards...recommendations?

I don't believe in this AMD or Intel bullshit anymore.

There's really no debating that Core 2 completely destroys anything AMD has on the market at this time. In any and every application or game.

[picklemonkey]

Re: Motherboards...recommendations?

get this one http://www.mercuryserver.com/forums/...ad.php?t=35060

[FM]

Re: Motherboards...recommendations?

it does at this moment...the bottom line is that my board right now is an AMD processor off of a PCChips chipset...which is basically crap

AMD used to kick Intel's ass, but now it's neck and neck...so I'm not like "I'm an AMD whore now" or anything like that

[beanzncheez]

Re: Motherboards...recommendations?

So what did you end up getting? My rig is a year old and it's currently got the A8R32-MVP Deluxe, Opteron 165 running at 2.8GHz, 2x1GB of DDR400 Corsair TwinX, 1x74GB Raptor (original SCSI design, not the newer style) and 2x300GB Seagate SATA300. It runs like a champ and does what I need.