650i vs. 680i

[STiStein]

I've been planning on a new build and would love to get a new 680i but I've been reading that a lot of people have been have all sorts of issues with the 680i. I just want a nice system that is future proof for at least three years as far as games go.

My friend has a 650i and has had zero problems, he said he used this site for reviews so I figured I'd do the same..

The only difference that I know between the two is that 650i uses DDR2 and 680i uses DDR3..

What I've been planning on..
ASUS Striker Extreme LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 680i SLI ATX
Intel quad core 2.44
OCZ Gold Edition 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR3
XFX PVT80GTHD4 GeForce 8800GTS 640MB 320-bit GDDR3: core clock 600mhz
Ultra PS 1000w

Thanks

 

[SerpentRoyal]

P35 board would be best if you don't want SLI and plan to upgrade to 45nm Peryn. A high-quality board like $61 AR Abit IP35-E should be able to take any capable Intel CPU north of 3.7GHz. I'd avoid DDR3 for now unless you are willing to speed $200 on RAMs. Antec Earthwatts 500 ($30-$50 AR) will have more than enough power for ANY single GPU rig.

 

[Blazer7]

680 boards use DDR2. If you are interested in SLI and you can wait, then the upcoming 780i maybe the best choice for you. Expect this to be a really hot chipset though. If you don't need SLI you should go for a P35 or X38 mobo. As for DDR2 vs DDR3 I agree with SerpentRoyal.

 

[STiStein]

Well I wanted to SLI in the future but not right away cause I heard the 680i boards have problems with SLI, overclocking, and running dual channel memory... So I was going to wait till they made new drivers to SLI.. Like I said I want something future proof so its easier for me just bitting the bullet the first time then having to spend the money down the road to upgrade memory and another motherboard. I really want SLI in the long run but I want something stable also so thats why I was looking at the 650i as an option.

 

[SerpentRoyal]

Future proof in this business is 9 months.

 

[STiStein]

Well I've been able to run games fairly well, up until about early march with a system I built back late 2002 to early 2003. The only thing I've done since then is added more memory.

I've heard the best 680i board is the evga has anyone had any experience with this board?

 

[Blazer7]

Have a look at this : http://www.theinquirer.net/gb/...0i-chipset-bug-ignored

I don't know if the 680 boards are a good idea anymore.

 

[BoboKatt]

Hey there,
First off don't be discouraged about 680i chipsets and reviews. Yes there have been problems and at the same time there have been many 'user issues" as well. Also most have updated their revisions on these boards like eVGA did to improve quad core OC.

I currently own an eVGA 680i SLI. It is, as I have stated before, the best board I have ever owned (and I?ve worked, played and built many many). All the areas and issues I read others having I NEVER HAD. Does that mean they were all wrong? No not at all just that maybe, possibly many issues can be avoided when you properly build, power and cool a system.

I have read and can probably confirm from some others I know that the 680i chipset boards did indeed have issues with very fast and high voltage DDR2 like the Dominator series. I personally use Crucial Ballistix PC26400 4-4-4-12(4 sticks of 1 GIG each). I can run those at so many different speeds and volts that it amazes me and my OC are just as good.

I've thrown in that board already 3 different CPU's and all have been stellar and have had great OC's and best of all very nice temps. Make sure you get good after market cooling but most importantly install said cooling PROPERLY.

I have had no issues running 2 x 8800GTX cards (also from eVGA). I removed one since I had to build a second system and needed a card. For the games I played I found that the SLI power from those 2 cards was simply overkill so really a waste of money for now.

I was worried about good power supply and I can swear to you that many dead computers are as a result of BAD CHEAP power supplies. In the last 2 years I have helped out a good 20 of my friends and colleagues with their systems just crapping out on them. I would say that the ones that had actual hardware issues where the system did not power on, 80% were as a direct result of a bad or dead power supply and even if the power supply was a month old.

I went out and actually bought a few power supplies between all my systems and those of friends. I currently use a PC& 750 Quad silencer. It's good for what I do and I am happy. But my OCZ and even my older Antec 550 were just as good.

As for eVGA, I love them. Their support is fantastic. The boards and forum are great and their lifetime support and RMA is fantastic.

On a side note, I recently also purchased an Asus p5K-E/wifi. It's also a great board (so far) and honestly as others have said... if you do NOT need SLI for sure then there really is no point in spending the coin for a 680i or future 780i. The P35 boards are very good indeed.