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Need a Z77 recommendation

raasco

raasco

Platinum Member
My current P67 MSI motherboard is failing on me just after it's warranty has expired. I figure that I might as well upgrade to a Z77 chipset, but I'm a little confused on some of the options out there. I plan on overclocking my 2500k once again and possibly adding a second GPU. I'm not particular to any one brand and I would like to spend up to $150-$200 max.

Thanks in advance.
 
The availability of Z77 boards isn't very broad at this point... At NE, once you get past the refurbs and open box stuff, there are only 3 Z77 boards listed. Find something in the price range you want and go with it.
 
mistersprinkles said:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-293-_-Product

That would be my personal pick.

BTW you realize if you run dual GPU on SB/IB/HW you're limited to 8X/8X right? And being that you have a 2500K, that'll be PCIE Gen 2.0, equivalent to 3.0 at 4X/4X. If you use modern cards, you will bottleneck them heavily.
Click to expand...

That's an option. There's also a Z77-A board by ASUS -- which I bought, to upgrade my old Mom's system. Without further investigation, I don't know what the OC'ing limits for these boards might be. I thought the "A" board seemed a bit flimsy, but it's perfectly consistent with the price.
 
mistersprinkles said:
BTW you realize if you run dual GPU on SB/IB/HW you're limited to 8X/8X right? And being that you have a 2500K, that'll be PCIE Gen 2.0, equivalent to 3.0 at 4X/4X. If you use modern cards, you will bottleneck them heavily.
Click to expand...
NowpymE.jpg


http://www.pugetsystems.com/labs/articles/Impact-of-PCI-E-Speed-on-Gaming-Performance-518/
 
Z77 MPower will be your best bet - you will definitely be able to get it at a great price 😀 It is a strong board that performs very well and will give you plenty of tweaking options.
 
If I was picking a new z77 it would probably be the asrock z77 extreme 3 for $98.- shipped.

Have you considered a used ebay board? I just picked up an asus z77 atx board for $50.- shipped to my door. And not the cheapo -A version, one that supports sli/crossfire. Works flawlessly.
 
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therealnickdanger said:
I've been using this exact board for a couple years now (ever since it came out). My 3570K purrs at 4.5GHz (CM Hyper 212 Plus). I only use a single GPU at the moment, so I can't comment on the SLI/CF capabilities. No complaints.
Click to expand...

Good to know that Extreme4 is still available -- but probably for not much longer.

This is always a dilemma for those of us who are squeezing extra years out of our systems. Especially, the SB-K chips still have some mileage in them. If you didn't plan on building a replacement system until a year later, but your motherboard goes on the fritz today -- whaddya do? Who ya gonna call?

I've been tempted to buy "spare" components when I first put a system together. This time (July, 2011) I didn't do it. But my Z68 mobo still keeps chuggin' along. I hope I can say that for the next six to eight months, though.

How many times in one's life has it occurred -- where everything was just dandy for the longest time, and a piece of hardware you counted on goes south in a New York minute?
 
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