Advice for motherboard for E6600

[compressor]

I have been lurking here and there doing my homework to either build or buy
a Conroe e6600 with 2 gig ram system. This forum (and others) has been very helpful.

Any way I am looking for input on the motherboard for the system.

I will be using the system for video editing and mpeg encoding. I need firewire on board.
Stability and ease of setup are important.
I have built systems before but have not overclocked. It is not absolutely necessary.
I do not need to have SLI or Crossfire either.

I have narrowed the motherboards and chipsets to the following.

ASRock ConroeXFire eSATA - 945 chipset
This board seems like a ?good bang for buck? and has the features I need.
Any issues using this chipset? Is the board reliable and stable?
I can get a built system for under $1000, no OS, 2 gig ram, GeForce 7300GS 256MB, 300 Gig hard drive, etc.

ASUS P5W DH Deluxe ? 975 chipset
This board seems very popular here. It has 2 IDE controllers for up to 4 devices.
I can get this system built for just over $1100, no OS, 2 gig ram, 7300GS, 300 Gig hard drive, etc.

Intel D975XBX or Intel D975XBX2 ? 975 chipset
What are the differences here?
I can get a built system with the D975XBX for just over $1150, no OS, 7300GS, 2 gig ram,
300 Gig hard drive, etc.

ASUS P5B Deluxe - 965 chipset
Popular but I have read many issues with getting this board up and running.
Again, built for just over $1100, no OS.

ASUS P5B-E ? 965 chipset
This board seems like a good follow up to the P5B Deluxe and has the features I need.
Is it more stable and easier to setup?

GIGABYTE GA-965P-DQ6 ? 965 chipset
Looks like a winner too. Pros and cons?

MSI P965 Platinum
A possibility but am concerned with stability and reliability.

 

[Tyhr]

ASUS P5W DH Deluxe ? 975 chipset would get my top vote of the options you listed.

ASUS P5B Deluxe (965) would be my second choice

With the 6600 cpu, I've heard the 975 chipset is better than the 965. The 965 chipset may be better for overclocking, but if that's not a primary concern, 975 is the better performer/stable, IMO.

Options for 680i (not listed) are limited, and reviews/opinions seem to be lacking.

 

[Skott]

Intel D975XBX or Intel D975XBX2 ? 975 chipset
What are the differences here?
I can get a built system with the D975XBX for just over $1150, no OS, 7300GS, 2 gig ram,
300 Gig hard drive, etc.


Okay, this is the BadAxe and the BadAxe2. I'll refer to them as BA and BA2. There was one hardware change and a bunch of BIOS changes in the BA2. Consider the BA2 an revised edition of the BA. The BA2 is more stable and overclocks better than the BA. As far as these two mobos go the BA2 is the better mobo.


Were you thinking to overclock? Because unless you plan to overclock then AsRock might be the better choice since its a cheaper mobo. All the other mobos in your list are known for overclocking and extra features. Overclocking presents some extra considerations that you need to look into. For example some of the mobos have an auto default setting on a failed overclock and some dont. Also some mobos overclock higher than others with certain Conroe CPUs. And thats just two things. There are many more. Thats why I ask if you plan to overclock. If not, a cheaper stable generic mobo may be a better fit.

 

[compressor]

I will initially start at stock speeds. As I get comfortable with it I may attempt
some mild OC'ing. But I may not depending on encoding performance.

I am leaning heavily towards the P5W DH Deluxe (today).
The additional IDE channel and supposed Quad compatibilty make it attractive.
However I have heard there are problems using the IDE channels on this board.
Are there problems with it?

Since I will be using it for encoding mpeg I am thinking the larger cache of the 6600
makes sense but an OC'ed 6300/6400 seems to be on par.
Any thoughts?

Another question I have is regarding memory.
With or without OC'ing, should I get DDR2-800 or will DDR2-677 be OK?

Thanks for the replies.

 

[n7]

Howdy, welcome the forums

If it wasn't for the issues that seem to have become common with the P5B-D, it'd be my recommendation, as i have one & it works well.

But since there is, the P5B-E is my secondary recommendation

Or, if money isn't a concern at all, then the Bad Axe 2 or P5W DH Deluxe would do well also.

 

[Skott]

Assuming you have no interest in SLI and the 680i mobos I would say if wanting to use a E6300/6400 proc go with the P5B-E. Its the better overclocker for those chips. If you want to use a E6600 or higher then look at the BadAxe2 or the P5W DH. The BA2 now overclocks higher than the P5W DH but it doesnt have that default setting for a failed overclock. You have to reset jumpers each time from what I have read. IMO thats its one glaring fault for overclocking. A future bios update may change that though for all I know. The P5W DH however has a stock default it resorts to on a failed overclock. This makes it easier to play with when it comes to overclocking.

Stability wise all three mobos I just mentioned are pretty good now. They each have their own quirks though. You'll have to decide what it is you want to put up with and what you dont based on your needs/wants and budget.