Top tier motherboard for a high-end rig?

[Tekt]

I was currently going to go with http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813130574, but after building my friend's PC with that and a Noctua I changed my mind. That combo only allows two RAM slots to be used, and barely has room for two video cards.


I was looking at http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131760

What are the added perks and differences compared to the P67 by going with the ASUS Maximus IV Extreme?



Pretty much just looking for a really great motherboard with UEFI. (which I believe all most recent MBs have now)



Thanks.

[vesseblah]

That MSI P67A-GD65 is far from high end.

MSI Big Bang Marshal is their top of the line board comparable to Asus Maximus IV board. Another choice is Gigabyte GA-Z68X-UD7 for high end Sandy Bridge motherboard.

And you don't need any of those unless you're planning on adding third or fourth graphics card into the system.

[Cyanotical]

if the maximus comes loaded with the same features as the rampage and crosshair, it's worth getting over the others

[pansertjald]

if the maximus comes loaded with the same features as the rampage and crosshair, it's worth getting over the others

it does plus more. now you can allso OC realtime over your Iphone or Ipad via Bluethooth, wich works realy well.

[Tekt]

What's the purpose of two gigabit LAN ports?

[Skelly]

What's the purpose of two gigabit LAN ports?

I can't think of too many uses off the top of my head.. But one of my gigabit ports failed the other week.. So having two was great. Obviously not the kind of thing that happens often. but it was nice to have the second one.

[vesseblah]

What's the purpose of two gigabit LAN ports?

- Redundancy (backup connection)
- Bundled connections for more speed
- Use the computer as a router

[Cyanotical]

EVGA is another excellent choice for motherboards, however, they don't load up on the same kinds of features that asus does, they are more oriented at overclockers and basement enthusiasts, one of my personal favorites is the analog gauge that you mount in your case that shows your current cpu frequency, kinda like a steam pressure gauge

[Tekt]

EVGA is another excellent choice for motherboards, however, they don't load up on the same kinds of features that asus does, they are more oriented at overclockers and basement enthusiasts, one of my personal favorites is the analog gauge that you mount in your case that shows your current cpu frequency, kinda like a steam pressure gauge

Nice. What board would you personally recommend that has some kind of UEFI with going i7 2600K (plan on OCing) and 2x 570GTXs?

[Asmekiel]

Nice. What board would you personally recommend that has some kind of UEFI with going i7 2600K (plan on OCing) and 2x 570GTXs?

Don't need any "top tier" motherboards for that..
An Asus P8P67 Pro or equivalent should do the trick.

[Neeko]

What's the purpose of two gigabit LAN ports?

It's Fairly usefull for many stuff:
- when ur having a LAN and ur router does not have nuff internet ports (and u cba buying a switch) then u can connect another pc trough your own pc
- U know those once in 26 hour router resets that disconnect you for one second? if you link two different internet connections to ur pc and one fails, the other will take over (No, you cannot use them both at the same time)
-Use your pc as a router, like someone else said
-When one port fails, use the other, like some1 else said aswell.

OT: Go with the MIVE it is pure quality, trust me. And if your a first time pc builder like I was, those debug leds+ POST leds will help you out ALOT

And as I heard, i think MIVE is the ONLY motherboard that can not like voltage drip/rise whatsoever under load ( other motherboards can only get close to doing that)

Don't need any "top tier" motherboards for that..
An Asus P8P67 Pro or equivalent should do the trick.

Highly disagree, the most money/quality of your whole build should be in your motherboard.

[Asmekiel]

It's Fairly usefull for many stuff:
- when ur having a LAN and ur router does not have nuff internet ports (and u cba buying a switch) then u can connect another pc trough your own pc
- U know those once in 26 hour router resets that disconnect you for one second? if you link two different internet connections to ur pc and one fails, the other will take over (No, you cannot use them both at the same time)
-Use your pc as a router, like someone else said
-When one port fails, use the other, like some1 else said aswell.

OT: Go with the MIVE it is pure quality, trust me. And if your a first time pc builder like I was, those debug leds+ POST leds will help you out ALOT

And as I heard, i think MIVE is the ONLY motherboard that can not like voltage drip/rise whatsoever under load ( other motherboards can only get close to doing that)


Highly disagree, the most money/quality of your whole build should be in your motherboard.

He wants a board for his 2600K and 2x 570.
Don't tell me that mobo isn't good enough to support him all the way through. Sure, spending 300+ euro on a board is fun and all, but if you can get roughly the same performance for up to 150 euro less, why do it?

[Neeko]

He wants a board for his 2600K and 2x 570.
Don't tell me that mobo isn't good enough to support him all the way through. Sure, spending 300+ euro on a board is fun and all, but if you can get roughly the same performance for up to 150 euro less, why do it?

whaaaa... are you insane? any self respectin computer builder knows that the last piece you should cheap out on is your motherboard.

i'm gunna give you some random cases:

-MIVE has 2 MOLEX adapters on the board to power the gfx cards, this is to lower the load the 24pin-connector
you could argue that this is useless, but what happens if you overclock those 570's (which you should do, they're great cards), too much load, crappy motherboard=> bam, 24 pin overloaded, motherboard dead, voltage spike, everything on mobo is dead

... goodluck getting RMA for all those pieces

worst case scenario? yes.
one in a trilion? yes.

but it happens.

-Motherboards matter for a HUGE deal in performance of the pc
-I have no fcing clue what i would've done if the debug leds weren't there when i assembled my pc


It's the same reason people don't buy a <insert cheapass generic PSU here>
is it cheap? yes
will it do what u ask from it? sure
is there a big chance it will fuck everything up? hell yes!

I do not want to show you what this cheapass PSU did to the pc of a friend back in the pentium 4 days


end of the line

1->DO NOT GET A CHEAPASS MOTHERBAORD WITH HIGH END STUFF
2->GET A HIGH END MOBO WITH CHEAPASS STUFF INSTEAD

that's if you can't afford both ofc and for some reason you dont want to pair mid stuff with mid mobo
(in this case ur running high end stuff so dont cheap out on ur motherboard)


to continue on synthaxx's post: MIVE even has a one-klick button to OC ur cpu to 4.6 GhZ and its guaranteed to work

[Asmekiel]

Ok, sorry. it's late...

[Neeko]

Ok, sorry. it's late...

we're supposed to be sorry for having an opinion now?

[Asmekiel]

Provided the chip is capable. I still wouldn't ever use it due to the mass of voltage it gives "just in case". Manual overclocking will almost always end up with better results, but it's nice to have the option.

I also wouldn't cheap out on a PSU either. PSU and motherboard are the core of everything. With CPU's and GPU's, you're getting a specific model and the lines are very clear on which one is which and what features it has. With motherboard, you're given a model number which is in an oceans worth of model numbers. There's no implication on the real features it has, and you can't really recall them from memory like you could with CPU speed or socket, etc. RAM is somewhere in the middle. You sometimes get sticks that perform like mad, but there's no real definition between different modules. PSU's are similar in that it relies completely on end-user ratings and dedicated review sites to get a grip on how well they perform.

So, personally, i wouldn't ever go full cheap out on motherboard or PSU. I might go for a cheaper board if it's got a lot of good reviews, but i'd go for the best one i could afford without having to scrimp on CPU model, Memory capacity, or Graphics Card model (unless there's something equally good at a better price).

With the money you have, you don't ever have to buy something less than the best :P

we're supposed to be sorry for having an opinion now?

I forgot about the quality vs performance ^^
But I still think my mobo is more than quality enough (for my needs)

[heatrage]

That MSI P67A-GD65 is far from high end.

MSI Big Bang Marshal is their top of the line board comparable to Asus Maximus IV board. Another choice is Gigabyte GA-Z68X-UD7 for high end Sandy Bridge motherboard.

And you don't need any of those unless you're planning on adding third or fourth graphics card into the system.

And doing overclocking/benching

[vesseblah]

I forgot about the quality vs performance ^^
But I still think my mobo is more than quality enough (for my needs)

And the funny thing regarding this thread... Most of the high end parts are all about features and performance, not quality. Exactly same components are used in $200 and $300 Asus motherboard, there's just more features in the $300 version that requires few more parts.

There's no real build quality in any consumer electronics anymore, only in the hardware designed for extreme use conditions like the Panasonic Toughbook line of portables.

[Tekt]

Thanks for the information.

Which would you go with and what are the differences:


http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131700

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131760


Also, what RAM is best for either of these boards? (I was originally going to go with http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-428-_-Product when I was thinking of getting the MSI P67 board)

[Asmekiel]

Thanks for the information.

Which would you go with and what are the differences:


http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131700

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131760


Also, what RAM is best for either of these boards? (I was originally going to go with http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-428-_-Product when I was thinking of getting the MSI P67 board)

Uhm, ye, at those prices I'd go for the M4E-Z. Features the Z68 chipset instead of the P67 chipset. Maybe has some features you'll never use, but it's only 10 dollars difference anyway.

As for RAM, never really got the difference between "good and bad" there. The ones you linked are used by lots of people and are proven trustworthy though.