Which motherboard for new i5 2500k

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Lights Out

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I just bought a i5 2500k processor for a new build I'm working on. Finally made the plunge with all the buzz around this cpu. I've decided on the z68 chipset and narrowed it down to 5 motherboards, thoughts? Opinions on the best one? Would much rather spend under $200 but would buy one of the ones listed slightly above if its really worth it.

MSI Z68A-GD65 (G3)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130611

ASRock Z68 Extreme4
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157250

ASUS P8Z68-V PRO
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131730

MSI Z68A-GD80 (G3)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130610

ASRock Z68 PROFESSIONAL GEN3
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157263
 
You need to tell us what you're using this computer for as well as "must have" motherboard features that you need.

Absent that information, I would recommend the MSI Z68A-GD65. The ASRock boards have a one-year warranty, which is ridiculous when you're spending nearly (if not over) $200 on a board. The MSI Z68A-GD80 may not be worth the price if you aren't using all of the features it has. The Asus P8Z68-V PRO is well regarded, but the Z68A-GD65 has PCI-E 3.0 for around the same price. (Granted, PCI-E 3.0 is more of a luxury at this point in time, but it's a feature nonetheless.)
 
I have the MSI Z68-GD65 in my new i5-2500K build and love it. It's got lots of great features, overclocks are super easy (even for a simpleton overclocker like myself) and a 5 year warranty. The GD80 was almost $40 more and all it has are more USB 3.0 ports.
 
I would go with the MSI GD65 mobo myself. I like the new MSI boards now. The Z68-GD65 like the P67-GD65 chipset mobo from MSI are both solid boards. Plus, Mr. Wolf already has first hand experience with the MSI Z68-GD65 mobo. I would go that route.
 
You need to tell us what you're using this computer for as well as "must have" motherboard features that you need.
Click to expand...

I'll be using the computer mainly for gaming.. maybe some engineering design programs for school if I sell off my other computer. Will be overclocking as well.

Must have features
-sata 6 gb and 3 gb
-raid
-hdmi would be nice so I can have two displays hooked up (one via gpu and other via mb)

-pci express 3.0 and usb 3.0 isnt needed but a nice luxury to have for a bit of future proofing
-crossfire just in case, I could see myself just buying a single stronger card as an upgrade but wouldn't mind crossfire as an option just in case I want to go dual gpus but no more than 2

I think I covered everything

I figured it would be between the msi and asus board, both seem solid..the v pro just scares me a bit with the problems some people have, seems to be great WHEN it works tho

have the MSI Z68-GD65 in my new i5-2500K build and love it. It's got lots of great features, overclocks are super easy (even for a simpleton overclocker like myself) and a 5 year warranty. The GD80 was almost $40 more and all it has are more USB 3.0 ports.
Click to expand...

Yea I wasn't sure but this was also the only difference I could really see and that doesn't warrant the huge price gap
 
Id go the msi or asus. Probably the asus since it has intel nic.
 
As I stated in another thread in another part of the [H], most people don't really need the P8Z68-V PRO if they must go with an Asus Z68 board with an onboard Intel NIC. They can get most of the PRO's features if they pick the plain P8Z68-V for $20 less. The only things on the P8Z68-V PRO that the plain P8Z68-V omits are the Firewire 400 controller with its associated port and header and the Marvell SATA 6.0 Gbps controller with its associated two SATA 6.0 Gbps ports. The plain P8Z68-V still has the onboard Intel NIC, six SATA ports (two of which are SATA 6.0 Gbps capable), SLI and Xfire support and one eSATA port.
 
So any other input? opinions seem to be split between the msi gd65 and asus v. Is there really any noticeable difference to set them apart? I hear the msi mb is a top overclocker and I hear the asus has a superior uefi. Again, the only thing that worries me about the asus is a lot of the problems people claim to have.

Also, difference between the asus v and vanilla asus v-le?
As far as the pci-e 3.0 on the msi, is it worth having or will I end up having to upgrade my mobo to better support the ivy bridge cpu if I chose to upgrade in the future? I really wouldn't mind spending less on a mobo instead of paying for features I may never be able to utilize.

The more I research, I get more confused with the chipset, would it be better to get a cheaper p67 mobo and upgrade the mobo later on if anything? And will there be more support and updates for the z68 since its the new chipset?
 
Last edited:
Lights Out said:
So any other input? opinions seem to be split between the msi gd65 and asus v. Is there really any noticeable difference to set them apart? I hear the msi mb is a top overclocker and I hear the asus has a superior uefi. Again, the only thing that worries me about the asus is a lot of the problems people claim to have.
Click to expand...
I'd probably go with the Asus P8Z68-V due to its inclusion of an Intel NIC. What problems are you talking about? Source?
Lights Out said:
Also, difference between the asus v and vanilla asus v-le?
Click to expand...
The V-LE doesn't have:
- Intel NIC
- eSATA
- second PCI-E x16 slot operating at x8 speeds
- Better cooling for the mosfets/VRMs/phases
- Bluetooth
- Parallel/horizontal SATA ports (useful depending on the case)

Lights Out said:
As far as the pci-e 3.0 on the msi, is it worth having or will I end up having to upgrade my mobo to better support the ivy bridge cpu if I chose to upgrade in the future? I really wouldn't mind spending less on a mobo instead of paying for features I may never be able to utilize.
Click to expand...
PCI-E 3.0 doesn't really matter. It'll be another 5 or so years before it becomes remotely useful.

Lights Out said:
The more I research, I get more confused with the chipset, would it be better to get a cheaper p67 mobo and upgrade the mobo later on if anything?
Click to expand...
Not really since you lose the onboard video capability.
Lights Out said:
And will there be more support and updates for the z68 since its the new chipset?
Click to expand...
Probably.
 
I went for the P8Z68-V (non-pro) myself, for the reasons already mentioned above. You get all the best features of the Pro for less money, and I didn't need the couple extra ports provided by the Pro anyway.

I stayed away from the LE version of the board because it seemed a pretty big step down in the components/features.

Been super happy with it (have had it about a month and a half or so), rock solid and overclocks great. Was really easy to flash the Bios and really like the new Bios GUI.

Don't have anything against the MSI, but I definitely can recommend the Asus P8Z68-V as an excellent choice, been great for me so far.
 
Danny Bui said:
The V-LE doesn't have:
- Intel NIC
- eSATA
- second PCI-E x16 slot operating at x8 speeds
- Better cooling for the mosfets/VRMs/phases
- Bluetooth
- Parallel/horizontal SATA ports (useful depending on the case)
Click to expand...

QFT. The onboard NIC on the V-LE is the more usual Realtek NIC. Still, it's a fine though somewhat pricey choice if the user never intends to:
- use dual Nvidia GPUs in SLI (however, the V-LE does support dual AMD GPUs in CrossFire albeit in a less desirable x16/x4 mode)
- overclock the CPU above 4.0 to 4.2 GHz
 
What problems are you talking about? Source?
Click to expand...

I don't really have any links on hand but I've read about some boot issues and problems with bringing the computer back from sleep mode in various forums along with some other issues but they didn't seem to wide spread. Also a large amount of DOAs, basically a decent amount of people saying they've had more problems with the board than they're use to with their experience of asus's superior quality. If it's a known problem, has it already been fixed with updates? Or is this really a non issue?
 
Are you sure you're not reading about the P67 versions of those mobos? Haven't heard of any widespread issues with the Z68 mobos.
 
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