Best MB for C2D E6600 and 8800GTS/X

Endrithius said:
. But, in all honesty - to the op - if your going to get a GTS - may as well go SLi and grab two - get the 680i board - go for a later eVGA - they appear to have the least amount of problems - earlier models - its a trip to the zoo.
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Getting two GTS and putting them in SLi is horriable advice just buy a gtx. Uses less power, makes less heat and uses less cash. There are very few times that 2 8800gts make more since than a 8800gtx
 
msg1285 said:
Getting two GTS and putting them in SLi is horriable advice just buy a gtx. Uses less power, makes less heat and uses less cash. There are very few times that 2 8800gts make more since than a 8800gtx
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Yup, only get SLI if you realize later on you need the extra umph.
 
mellojoe said:
I was just searching trying to figure out which of the chipsets to go with, myself. And then here is this lovely thread. THANK YOU!

So, for someone who doesn't care at all about multiple video cards (SLI or CrossFire), then the Intel 965P or 975X are the two choices to go with.

975X vs. 965P

965P is cheaper, and a better overclocker.
but the 975X is faster in a clock-for-clock battle.

Is this a correct assessment?

If this is the case, then what are some of the minor differences to differentiate between the 975X and the 965P?
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Just because you don't want to do SLI doesn't mean the 680i chipset is out of the game. Out of the three mentioned it's the only one that can run memory unlinked. Not that it's vital or necessary, but it's a plus. Voltage options are also pretty good on these mobos. If you like xtreme OCing (like getting a Conroe to ~4GHz) than this chipset should still be considered along with the other two, in fact it should be considered more than the 975X. That said, it's expensive and runs hotter than both other chipsets. If all you want is a moderate solid OC for 24/7 (like a Conroe at 3.3~3.4GHz), then yes, I would suggest getting either the 975X or the 965P over the 680i.

The 965p is cheaper and it's a better overclocker in terms that it can reach a much higher FSB. But if you don't need or are interested in hitting that high of an FSB then they both have pretty much the same OC potential. Note that the difference in speed between the two is very small. Unless you're interested in getting the highest scores you can get in benchmarks (like SuperPI) don't mind that factor too much since you probably won't notice it in real world apps.

Not much differences between the two chipsets. I would say that the biggest differences are:

- 975X chipset uses the older Intel ICH7R Southbridge, whereas 965p uses the newer ICH8R.

- 975X can do CrossFire with both lanes at 8x. 965p can do Crossfire but with one of the lanes at just 4x.

- 965p mobos can achieve a much higher FSB clock than 975X mobos.
 
Just want to mention the Asus 650i board can do an FSB of almost 500 if you drop the multi on the CPU, and over 400 with full fsb multi. Only mentioned because on www.legitreviews.com they dubbed it the 680i killer. Thought it might be a worthwhile mention since you guys mentioned buying a 680i. The 650i is a good deal cheaper, and still supports SLI at 8x. I dont think anything more than 8x will be needed once Dx10 is implemented, and even still the 8800 GTX still cant saturate and 8x lane until you go over 2500x1600 res with full AA and AF, and after that its around a 5% increase going from 8x8x to 16x16x.
 
nissanztt90 said:
Just want to mention the Asus 650i board can do an FSB of almost 500 if you drop the multi on the CPU, and over 400 with full fsb multi. Only mentioned because on www.legitreviews.com they dubbed it the 680i killer. Thought it might be a worthwhile mention since you guys mentioned buying a 680i. The 650i is a good deal cheaper, and still supports SLI at 8x. I dont think anything more than 8x will be needed once Dx10 is implemented, and even still the 8800 GTX still cant saturate and 8x lane until you go over 2500x1600 res with full AA and AF, and after that its around a 5% increase going from 8x8x to 16x16x.
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Yeah I considered the 650i board before getting the 680i, but after doing some research I found it apparently has lots of stability issues. Meaning it takes a lot of tweaking to get overclocks stable. I would only recommend it if you want SLI and don't have enough money for 680i.
 
If you believe is fine, go for it. I haven't used one of those boards so I can't talk from experience this time, I'm just saying what I learned about the 650i from research before buying my 680i board.
 
I actually just had one arrive tonight and ive been toying with it and so far im pretty happy. Didnt do any CPU OCing, just messed around with memory and timings. I have 2x512mb of Micron D9s that are PC5300 5-5-5-15, and 2x512mb Crucial Ballistix PC5300 3-3-3-15. They are both D9 chips, both work well together on this board, and both OC very well together. I was able to get them up to DDR2-900 4-4-4-12, at less than their standard voltage, around 2.17v not accounting for droop. Coming from two other boards i am pretty damn happy so far. One board would not accept the Micron ram and the other board would not let them OC together at all
 
with a 650i I have heard the onboard sound is very lacking, while this might not a be concern for some, but for people who might want to do SLi and also use a PPU (or something else in a PCI slot) will leave no room for a PCI sound card. The 650i may be a great chipset, but it lacks the expansion slots and onboard sound, wheres as the 680i has different onboard sound which works a whole lot better. Of course this is one situation, and more of a rant on my end.
 
I've been looking for this thread for hours. I only type here so I subscribe to it so I can read it later on. I'm on school and they have old macs that can't even render this page right.
sorry. but i have no paper or pen. I'll forget when i get home.
 
Ok, I read the whole 3 pages. WOW, a lot of information in them. Nice job "MakubexGB".

Well, I was looking to do something pretty similar to what "nyczxplizit" wanted to do. I'll be getting a e6600 and G.Skill ddr2 800 RAM. Also, I'll be getting a ScyThe Ninja Rev.B heatsink in there to cool the CPU. Also a 8800GTS as the video card.

This is going to be for a new rig. I don't have anything of this yet. I would like to overclock the CPU to maybe 3.2 or so. It all depends how far I can go without burning it. LOL:p . Also, I'm going to be overclocking the 8800GTS some.

What do you think would be my best choice here for no more than $150?

I don't need onboard sound since I'm getting an X-fi card, but I do need the space so I can put it in, also that big Ninja. Also, placing all this in a Lian Li PC-7 Plus II case.

Also, How much can I overclock it and make sure my whole rig lasts AT LEAST 6 years?

Thanks for any reply. Any help would be really appreciated.

NOTE: I'm a n00b at overclocking, and haven't ever even build a PC for that matter. :( So far going for the P965 sence here I read is the easiest to OC.
 
For less than $150 I recommend these motherboards:

- DFI INFINITY P965-S (If you can find it in-stock)

- ASUS P5B-Plus

- GIGABYTE GA-965P-DS3

But if you're planing to build a rig too keep that long, you might want to wait for the upcoming chipsets that support DDR3.

As for how much can you OC your rig so it'll last 6 years, no one knows. There's no way to know. All I can tell you is, if you want your rig to last that long, don't raise the voltage too much and keep your PC cool. Try to get the best OC you can with stock voltage or just a little bit raise in voltage. If you get to 3GHz or more 100% stable with stock voltage then you're in luck.

PS. Do yourself a favor and upgrade your rig in at most 3 years, 6 is just too much in PC lifetime. :p
 
MakubexGB said:
For less than $150 I recommend these motherboards:

- DFI INFINITY P965-S (If you can find it in-stock)

- ASUS P5B-Plus

- GIGABYTE GA-965P-DS3

But if you're planing to build a rig too keep that long, you might want to wait for the upcoming chipsets that support DDR3.

As for how much can you OC your rig so it'll last 6 years, no one knows. There's no way to know. All I can tell you is, if you want your rig to last that long, don't raise the voltage too much and keep your PC cool. Try to get the best OC you can with stock voltage or just a little bit raise in voltage. If you get to 3GHz or more 100% stable with stock voltage then you're in luck.

PS. Do yourself a favor and upgrade your rig in at most 3 years, 6 is just too much in PC lifetime. :p
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Thanks for the quick answer.
Well, I'm not gonna use this PC for that long. I'll only use it for about 2.5-to-3 years, and then pass it on to my sister to use it for the +/- the same time. That's what I do since she's not into High-End Pc's. Just something so she can do a few tasks and that's it. I'll be building this new PC, and giving my current Pentium 4(read sig) to her. So yeah, the 6 years is going to be it's entire lifespan pretty much.
I don't think that I'll wait for DDR3, since I bet it's going to be really expensive, and I'll just rather take advantage of the cheapDDR2 prices now. I'll be getting this RIG in about 1 month, and we don't even know when DDR3 is comming, so yeah....:confused:

About those mobos you listed there:
How come the DFI one has 4 reviews, the ASUS 0, and the GIGABYTE has 596?
Why do people keep buying the GIGABYTE one over the others? Is there a special feature that makes it superior to the others?
All I know is that read the reviews and says that it supports the Ninja, so that is a PLUS+.

Thanks again.
 
Odin75 said:
Thanks for the quick answer.
Well, I'm not gonna use this PC for that long. I'll only use it for about 2.5-to-3 years, and then pass it on to my sister to use it for the +/- the same time. That's what I do since she's not into High-End Pc's. Just something so she can do a few tasks and that's it. I'll be building this new PC, and giving my current Pentium 4(read sig) to her. So yeah, the 6 years is going to be it's entire lifespan pretty much.
I don't think that I'll wait for DDR3, since I bet it's going to be really expensive, and I'll just rather take advantage of the cheapDDR2 prices now. I'll be getting this RIG in about 1 month, and we don't even know when DDR3 is comming, so yeah....:confused:

About those mobos you listed there:
How come the DFI one has 4 reviews, the ASUS 0, and the GIGABYTE has 596?
Why do people keep buying the GIGABYTE one over the others? Is there a special feature that makes it superior to the others?
All I know is that read the reviews and says that it supports the Ninja, so that is a PLUS+.

Thanks again.
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That's because the Asus and DFI boards are new. The Gigabyte board has been available since the beginning.
 
My computer is still my main computer and I've been using it for 6+ years. I'm still on single SDR memory. :eek:

It can be done. Just build the most solid thing you can with today's technology. Upgrade when you can. And be happy. I'm obsolete, now. I can't upgrade a single thing without having to upgrade everything. But, boy, it was a great ride.

Now to the next one.
 
Ok. I'm going to add those mobos to my whishlist, and then see how they turn out when I buy it in 1 month. Thx a lot men.
 
More and more options keep coming up. They are seem good. :confused:

Also, if the mobo only has 1 IDE connector, is that going to be a problem with installing more than one Cd/Dvd drive? Or is there cables to split a signal to multiple drives?
Or, should I take invest the money on those SATA drives so I get better cable management? Or they are not really worth it?

Just wondering.
 
If your going to look at the 650i chipset i would i recommend you take a look at the Asus P5N-E SLI as well. It takes a little tweaking but so far its a very solid board.
 
I have 2 boards with a similar setup, I got sick of the 680i, and I would not recommend it, tough I may be an isolated incident. Currently I'm running a GA-965P-DS4, it's the best motherboard I've ever had, if it is available in your area I recommend you seriously consider it.
 
AliP said:
I have 2 boards with a similar setup, I got sick of the 680i, and I would not recommend it, tough I may be an isolated incident. Currently I'm running a GA-965P-DS4, it's the best motherboard I've ever had, if it is available in your area I recommend you seriously consider it.
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Better fix that sig then. :p
 
You do it, im too lazy. I got a new cooling system coming ill do it then.
 
AliP said:
Currently I'm running a GA-965P-DS4, it's the best motherboard I've ever had, if it is available in your area I recommend you seriously consider it.
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& my abit AB9 QuadGT is better than the DS4 that I had before.
It's also better than my P5N-E SLI.
 
@Makubex.... I think we both have this thinking that the grass is greener on the other side cos youre recommending what I have and Im recommending what you have lol....... In real world apps, there wont be any noticable difference between chipsets or motherboard and people should just buy what they want..... Though Ive never had a 680 board, Ive always considered them to be more stable tahn the 965..... And the fact taht I cant get any multi to work makes it even more desireable....

My rig was built primarily for benching, and when I see high multi system using 2:3 dividers, it pisses me off knowing 1. That I cant do it and 2. taht I cant tighten my timings enough to even come close.... But at the end, Im happy to have a 965 mobo cos with the cooling I have now, no 680 board will do...... actually make that no other chipset will do..... :D
 
luihed said:
@Makubex.... I think we both have this thinking that the grass is greener on the other side cos youre recommending what I have and Im recommending what you have lol....... In real world apps, there wont be any noticable difference between chipsets or motherboard and people should just buy what they want..... Though Ive never had a 680 board, Ive always considered them to be more stable tahn the 965..... And the fact taht I cant get any multi to work makes it even more desireable....

My rig was built primarily for benching, and when I see high multi system using 2:3 dividers, it pisses me off knowing 1. That I cant do it and 2. taht I cant tighten my timings enough to even come close.... But at the end, Im happy to have a 965 mobo cos with the cooling I have now, no 680 board will do...... actually make that no other chipset will do..... :D
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Not really. As I said before I have all three chipsets. My 975X (Asus P5W64 WS Pro) is going on RMA this Monday and my 965P (Asus P5B Dlx) is on my other PC. As I also said, my favorite of them three is the EVGA 680i A1, but that's me. From experience, according to his needs I think the 965p is the way to go.
 
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