Budget AM3 Board

[gregoryvg]

Looking for a good inexpensive motherboard for a new AMD build. Anyone have a recommendation on a good board with the right tradeoffs for not a lot of money (max: $75)? I am leaning towards getting an Athlon X3 and would like to try to unlock a fourth core.

Edit: This is primarily a game system. Other parts (besides the Athlon 2 X3, would be 4GB RAM (so only 2 memory slots absolutely needed) and probably an AMD HD 5770.

 

[86waterpumper]

hmm options are fairly limited below 75 bucks...you might look at the 880g chipset boards, asrock and biostar both have them at that pricepoint, ASRock 880GXH has the core unlocking, heatsinks for the vrms, plus usb 3.0 but does not have 6gb sata, my thing I don't like about boards at that pricerange is that some of them are the micro atx and things get tight. Asrock also has a 770 EXTREME3 that has both usb 3.0 and sata 6, so they look to have the most options for the money, but I haven't used one of their boards before so cannot comment on the quality etc. If you want a particular brand that is better such as gigabyte etc then you might have to go for some open box deals? What features are you looking for? Some boards have onboard vid and some don't but have other features etc.

 

[Vidman]

ASRock 880GMH/USB3. I have one and it's a kickin' piece.

 

[stargazr]

I recently had good luck with an Athlon II X3 445 Rana on a this -

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131406

I know it's an older chipset but the newer versions apparently haven't changed a whole lot. Here's a review with a comparison of chipsets 785 & 790 -

http://benchmarkreviews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=497&Itemid=69

880g chipset -

http://www.bit-tech.net/news/hardware/2010/03/23/amd-880g-chipset-detailed/1

 

[Cstefan]

Everyone has their own prefs, mine right now is MSI 785GT-E63. Unlocked a Phenom II X2 BE560 to X4 np and I used some ddr2 laying around. At MC the bundle was $109 after rebate. The board itself is $65 AR at newegg.

 

[Vette73]

$79 shipped
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813157212

$89 shipped (has USB3.0)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813157198

and if you really need cheap then...

$67 after rebate
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...E16813135271te

$78 with USB3.0
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813157200



But 870 or 880g chipset are the lowwer cost AMD chipsets that are current.

 

[Iron Woode]

I am using a GA-770TA-UD3 board and it works great.

 

[WT]

What would be the Biostar equivalent board to the Asrock 880G with USB 3.0 ?? Looking at a board to match up with my Ph2 X4 965 BE and it looks like a tossup between the Asrock and a Biostar board.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813138147

Is the 880 chipset that much better than the 790 ?

 

[Bass]

I would go with the 800 series chipsets because they have improved storage performance, and it is always good to be current. They are a little more expensive, but you can still find a good 870 board for under $100.

 

[WT]

Thanks, Bass !! To further elaborate on my question and your answer, would it matter if I was using older SATA drives that were not 'performance' drives to begin with ?

Funding is my main concern, as I am making the jump to DDR3 which means another $50 for RAM rather than re-use my DDR2 sticks. Trying to go ultra budget and keep the mobo and RAM under $120.

PS - I've seen some passable mATX boards as well, but I have a full tower case, and other than disliking 2 slot mATX boards for this build, I hate seeing an mATX board in a 28" high full tower.

 

[jacktesterson]

If you don't need video 770 or 870 board would be cheapest option.

I've got a 770 board running a 405e stable with 4th core unlocked.

MSI 770-G45

 

[jacktesterson]

In my opinion,

Biostar > asrock