Motherboard Question

[ChingChong23]

Hello all, well im good with knowing everything i need in a part, except for motherboards.. ive never known what a good motherboard is, usually the motherboards id buy are just the features id need/use.

Features i look for in a motherboard

SLI Compatible
Socket AM2
PCI-E 16x
Supports SATA
Integrated Sound (any type, dosnt matter id buy an external sound card)
10/100mpbs Ethernet connection
USB 2.0
DDR2/3 ram compatible
4x ram slots


Now thats the features i only look for. Is there anything else i should be looking for in a good gaming motherboard? Im currently slowly making my new build, buying the 8800GT tomorrow.. next thing ill need to buy are Motherboard/Ram/CPU all at once, because im upgrading from a Socket 939 setup.

 

[Puddle Jumper]

If you don't already have an am2 cpu you might want to consider switching to Intel. They are currently dominating the market and Core 2 Duo's offer better performance and overclocking ability than Athlon x2's.

 

[NightSurge]

Agreed. They are more expensive, but they also perform about twice as good as the AMD equivalents.

If going Intel I would say to get the EVGA 750i FTW for SLI. It only supports DDR2, but DDR3 is not necessary and probably won't be for at least a few years.

 

[veedubfreak]

1: Evga 750i FTW
2: Intel Q6600
3: ???
4: Profit

 

[ChingChong23]

Thanks guys, ill look into Intel now. Always wanted that Q6600

Ah.. thats so expensive, would you guys please be able to help me find an intel motherboard with SLI for alot cheaper? i dont care too much about the overclocking. Im thinking a combo with a Core 2 duo + motherboard + some ram might be ok, for around 250-350$ if possible?

 

[veedubfreak]

The 750i FTW from evga is -the- cheapest sli board you are going to find unless you buy it used.

 

[brewabeer]

As the good folks here told me, and trust them they know their stuff, unless you're going to play on a 24" or higher monitor, or plan to get one soon you dont' need SLI. I was going to get the EVGA 750i FTW board until folks here told me I'd have the same performance with a P35 board and one really smoking GPU like the 8800GTS or what I ended up with, the 9800GTX. If money is an issue, think about a P35 board. I got and like the Gigabyte P35 DS3L and Q6600 CPU.

 

[arcticap]

You can run an E8400 and this ASRock SLI MB easily within your budget, and it has solid state capacitors.

Newegg.com - ASRock Penryn1600SLI-110dB LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 650i SLI ATX Intel Motherboard - Intel Motherboards

ASRock has other 1600 Series MB's that support Crossfire.

Newegg.com - ASRock 4Core1600P35-WiFi+ LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Intel Motherboard - Intel Motherboards

 

[kobe24]

if u dont have much money why get sli mobo? waste of money gettin sli. just get a abit p35 or a ds3r. then ull have enough left for q6600.

 

[veedubfreak]

if u dont have much money why get sli mobo? waste of money gettin sli. just get a abit p35 or a ds3r. then ull have enough left for q6600.

Its not a waste of money for SLI. Especially if you play on a 24" monitor. Good luck pushing 1920x1200 all settings high with some AA on a single video card in a game like Age of Conan. That being said, dont cheap out on the motherboard. 650i mobos are junk, they are only 8x/8x in SLI mode and most dont overclock for squat. IF you are going SLI, get the evga 750i FTW board as it is a great overclocker, and is 16x/16x, and the cheapest GOOD sli board you are going to be able to find.

/endwalloftext