Motherboard Suggestions

[Fedaykin311]

So, I have a tax return burning a hole in my pocket, and I've decided it's time for a system overhaul. The core of my current rig is about 3 years old, so the first step is finding a good motherboard. This go around I want to avoid the hassle of working through several different motherboards before finding on that isn't a total POS.

I would like a Core i7 system as that platform seems to be the only current (Intel) one with a potential upgrade path. And, while I'll list some things here I am looking for, my most important feature is stability. The only other real deal breaker besides stability would be lack of support for SSD devices (specifically the Intel SSD and and OCZ Vertex series).

Other things I am interested in (in order):

* Silent PC features (e.g. good cpu/sys fan control) (this is very important to me, but not a deal breaker as this can be added)
* Gaming/DVD movie quality onboard sound
* e-SATA
* Firewire

Now, I've done some research and it looks like Gigabyte boards are the front runners right now, though I have concerns about some defects in them (e.g. lots of reports of failing LAN devices) and also I don't have a good feel for how good their fan controls are.

I used to be a very happy customer with MSI boards, but their quality seems to have dropped off vastly in the last decade. My current board is an Abit IP-35 Pro which I have been extremely pleased with, but alas Abit is no more.

Anyway, any recommendations would be appreciated.

 

[AstroGuardian]

I haven't heard of LAN problems with Gigabyte yet since i have much experience with all range gigabyte boards.
The fan control is great and those make the intel stock fan spin at 800rmp and more. They all have e-sata and most of them have Firewire onboard (check before ordering).
Gigabyte boards support AHCI and NCQ which suggests indirectly support for SSD (haven't tried that combination yet though).

As long as you don't overclock too much, stability is not a concern. You need DDR3 by the way.

 

[lopri]

Hello and welcome to AnandTech.

Your requirements for motherboard selections look very well defined and even sophisticated. Obviously you're an avid PC user, and it seems long overdue that you register @AnandTech!

On to your specific concerns:

Originally posted by: Fedaykin311
* Silent PC features (e.g. good cpu/sys fan control) (this is very important to me, but not a deal breaker as this can be added)
* Gaming/DVD movie quality onboard sound
* e-SATA
* Firewire

BIOS Fan control in today's motherboards is pretty bad. This is not limited to a certain vendor but rather across the board. Most will do OK for CPU fan control, but rest of the fan headers leave much to be desired. But as you said this can be worked around via software or hardware, thankfully.

Furthering on the same interest, it's a good idea to look for a cool-running board to begin with, if you want a quiet machine. Some boards will run cooler than others, and that could translate to one less fan in your system. This kind of info may not easy to come by. Sometimes a board's power consumption can be an indication, but not always. I have no experience with i7 boards, so can't comment on which or why - maybe other AT'ers can chime in.

On-board sound, e-SATA, and Firewire are largely equal among different vendeors. Not a surprise because they all use the same/similar ICs for those peripherals. On-board sound is dominated by Realtek, e-SATA by JMicron, and Firewire by VIA or TI. I would look for the overall build quality of a board as well as layout. Some board has on-board sound header on a weird location and thus could interfere with other components you wish to use. Usually these can be worked around, too, however.

Don't be too alarmed by other members' posts before you see a trend. It is natural to encounter posts regarding trouble-shooting than what's working as expected.