How to find the right MB?

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vidoprof

Limp Gawd
Joined
May 3, 2007
Messages
468
So. I am trying to find what MBs would work for me and not break the bank.

I just don't know where to start really. I don't think I need or am asking for a whole lot. What i need is a MB that will allow pretty simple things.

Intel 12700
(2) MAYBE (3) m.2 drives
(2) sata SSDs
64gb of DDR4 ram (ddr5 is overpriced and not a huge benefit yet, from what I have read).
I want to run a 3060 GPU.

I don't need
Wifi
TB

Nice to haves
USB-C

I don't know what the phases are.. I see some 20+1, 18+1+2, etc. no clue what that means or why that's important.

I WILL NOT be overclocking. I want a rock stable system for video editing. It's my main job. I've built my last system 4-5 years ago.

Thanks for any and all advise.

Ryan G
 
Pretty much that. Any board will drive a 12700, and any medium-grade board B660 or Z690 will handle your requirements easily.
 
Any specific recs?

I know there is a big difference in price between the 660 and z690 boards, but what do the z690 get you over the 660? All the stuff I really don't need?
 
Also.. Do i need to worry about how many PCI lanes with what I plan on using?
 
vidoprof said:
Any specific recs?

I know there is a big difference in price between the 660 and z690 boards, but what do the z690 get you over the 660? All the stuff I really don't need?
Click to expand...
z690 adds K series CPU overclocking so if you aren't using one it is not necessary.
 
what are you guys thoughts of H670?

I am ok with spending more for more stability, but I really don't think I need too much.. I also don't plan on overclocking.. but i did plan on going with the 12700k, because I hear it's better than the 12700 (NON K cpu) Unless you guys can tell me why I would NOT go with the 12700k...
 
The K has higher heat output/power draw and higher boost clocks, the 12700 non-k also comes with a small heatsink. The difference usually isn't super huge to be honest. They're both fine, really and I don't think either is a bad choice.
 
pendragon1 said:
go to newegg, search for a b660 board that is high rated, is ddr4 and in your price range. then look on other sites to buy it.
Click to expand...
Since you aren't overclocking this is probably the best answer, don't pay for more than you need. The only caveat is I would suggest going to Z690 for your use case if you have a bunch of peripherals, specifically USB C. You may have multiple cameras or devices and want to plug in more than 4 at a time (don't forget your phone and other devices). You get more/faster ports with Z690 and even H670 over B660. Also be sure the size whether ATX, ITX, etc.

So if you want more ports, spend as little as you can on an H670/Z690 which is around $150/$200ish respectively. You may want more of those faster 10/20gbps USB C ports to transfer your data. Also consider how many drives you'll actually have hooked up, you may want more than a B660 board if you have more than 3-4 hard drives.

Otherwise, save your money since you're not overclocking and get a cheap B660 board for almost half the price

Check these videos if you want more info:

 
vidoprof said:
H670
Click to expand...
didnt even realize there was this one. heres a chart that might help.
1651102246866.png
 
H670 has more lanes so I suppose better with multiple M.2 drives vs the B660. If the OP is going with a 12700k then the Asus Tuf H670 may be a solid choice.
 
Thanks again for all the responses..

I actually have a server that houses all my data. Here is my setup.

M.2 500GB for OS
M.2 1tb for current project files and photos
m.2 500gb for scratch for Premiere pro
2tb ssd for photos and longer term projects

I have a QNap 8 bay server that houses all my video projects that I edit off of real time over a 10gb NIC directly to the server. That Qnap backs up to a synology 8 bay server as well.

I don't really connect anything external to the computer except a card reader, my phone to charge it, and then sometimes a few older external usb 3.1 HDs for an additional backup of the servers.

That's it. I don't use any PCIe expansion cards (only the GPU)..

Maybe that would help with any recommendations for you all. :)

Thanks so much again
Ryan G
 
vidoprof said:
Thanks again for all the responses..

I actually have a server that houses all my data. Here is my setup.

M.2 500GB for OS
M.2 1tb for current project files and photos
m.2 500gb for scratch for Premiere pro
2tb ssd for photos and longer term projects

I have a QNap 8 bay server that houses all my video projects that I edit off of real time over a 10gb NIC directly to the server. That Qnap backs up to a synology 8 bay server as well.

I don't really connect anything external to the computer except a card reader, my phone to charge it, and then sometimes a few older external usb 3.1 HDs for an additional backup of the servers.

That's it. I don't use any PCIe expansion cards (only the GPU)..

Maybe that would help with any recommendations for you all. :)

Thanks so much again
Ryan G
Click to expand...
For that, if some or all of your m.2 SSDs are only PCI-e 3.0 x4, then even the B660 chipset would suffice. But if all three of your SSDs are PCI-e 4.0 x4, then you may need an H670 or (more common) a Z690 chipset, especially if all three SSDs are being accessed simultaneously.
 
Every 4-5 years? I'd say get the H670 and be done with it.
 
vidoprof said:
So. I am trying to find what MBs would work for me and not break the bank.

I just don't know where to start really. I don't think I need or am asking for a whole lot. What i need is a MB that will allow pretty simple things.

Intel 12700
(2) MAYBE (3) m.2 drives
(2) sata SSDs
64gb of DDR4 ram (ddr5 is overpriced and not a huge benefit yet, from what I have read).
I want to run a 3060 GPU.

I don't need
Wifi
TB

Nice to haves
USB-C

I don't know what the phases are.. I see some 20+1, 18+1+2, etc. no clue what that means or why that's important.

I WILL NOT be overclocking. I want a rock stable system for video editing. It's my main job. I've built my last system 4-5 years ago.

Thanks for any and all advise.

Ryan G
Click to expand...
The power phases are listed as CPU vCore+phases for other things like SoC functions or the iGPU. It is primarily the first number that we are concerned with. However, sometimes a reviewer or publication might simply confuse you further by listing a phase count as 16 instead of 14+2. The reality is, 14+2 and 16 aren't the same thing as the +2 is dedicated to something other than the CPU.

To make matters worse, sometimes companies are deceptive about how they market these values. ASUS for example marketed the ASUS ROG Maximus XII Hero as having a "Twin 8-phase" design. That implies something like an 8+8, 8-phase design with double the inductors or you could even interpret it as having 16 phases. However, it was really a 4+1 phase design using twice the inductors per phase. It's what we call a "fat phase" design. That is, there are fewer phases but they use massively powerful MOSFETs and each phase is beefier than what you'd traditionally see in designs that utilize a 14+2 phase setup or a 16+2 that's really an 8+1 phase design using phase doublers.

The problem is that you often have to buy relatively high end parts to get a good VRM implementation. It's not just for overclocking. The motherboard's efficiency and power delivery capability comes into play when used with power hungry CPU's and machines that are run hard. Unfortunately, you are probably not going to get what I'd consider a decent VRM on any B660 board or even H670's. Those are more budget oriented chipsets. Hell, even all the Z690's running DDR4 are just midrange boards at best. I'm not saying you need to spend hundreds and hundreds of dollars on something like the ASUS ROG Maximus Z690 Extreme, but you tend to get what you pay for with computer hardware.

All that said there is a big difference between running a 12900K or KS versus a 12700 non-K. You can certainly get what you need out of a midrange board. If you are going for B660 or H670, I'd buy on the higher end of that spectrum rather than the cheaper side of it.
 
Dan_D said:
The problem is that you often have to buy relatively high end parts to get a good VRM implementation. It's not just for overclocking. The motherboard's efficiency and power delivery capability comes into play when used with power hungry CPU's and machines that are run hard. Unfortunately, you are probably not going to get what I'd consider a decent VRM on any B660 board or even H670's. Those are more budget oriented chipsets. Hell, even all the Z690's running DDR4 are just midrange boards at best. I'm not saying you need to spend hundreds and hundreds of dollars on something like the ASUS ROG Maximus Z690 Extreme, but you tend to get what you pay for with computer hardware.
Click to expand...
At BB I almost pulled the trigger on an i9-12900K. The truth is that I use my PC for video editing rather than gaming. The 12900K would be a nice upgrade over my current AMD Ryzen 9 5900X in this application. (I would be moving the 5900X to another reserve PC in my case.)

Unfortunately, at BB my only choice of motherboards is between an MSI Z690-A PRO (DDR4) without WiFi and an Asus PRIME Z690-A (DDR5) - both budget motherboards. Those motherboards would be OK for an i5-12600K or an i7-12700K, but my planned i9-12900K deserved better.

Enough said.
 
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