Need help choosing a mobo for my new e6400

[ibex333]

*Topic closed. I just cannot afford the ram required for this system*


Yes, I know there's a sticky about this, but it's way too long and it doesnt have the info that I need. (tried reading it)

I cant decide on a mobo.. I was going to get Asus P5B, but I really dont like how so many people are saying that this is a good board... AFTER YOU FLASH THE BIOS. I'm sure this kind of stuff is easy for you guys, but I dont want to deal with this unless I absolutely have to. (That being said, I'm perfectly capable of blashing BIOS when it's my only option)

Also, I dont like how the manufacturer limits you to only a certain type of ram... DDR 800, was it?

for $183, I dont think it's fair that one should have to go through BIOS flashing, and painstaking RAM selection to enjoy his PC.

/end of b*tching.


Anyhow. I'd really appreciate it if someone could recommend me a good mobo for $183 or less with good overclock options. I dont need Wi-Fi, and I dont think I need SLI, allthough if I could have SLI, on a board in my price range, I'd certainly like to have it.
Also, it would be nice if this mobo would require no BIOS flashing.. at least not from the start. And would not be picky about RAM. I really dont feel like spending more than $200-230 for 2gigs of ram.

Thanx in advance for your help.


*Topic closed. I just cannot afford the ram required for this system*

 

[Centurin]

No offense, but there is about 50 threads on this forums regarding different boards for the Conroe. Just do a little searching.

 

[ibex333]

No offence, but how hard is it to just give me a couple of names?

Think about it... 2 min of your time... vs hours of my time sitting here browsing through those threads and still not understanding anything.

 

[socketman1]

No offense, but centurin is right.

Ive spent 2 months researching and even though you are clear about what you want, there is no simple answer. It sounds like you need a mid-range intel 965 mobo. Your best bet is to do a newegg search by chipset (the 965) and then narrow your choices based on that list.
Im really not an encyclopedia of mobo knowledge, so I cant narrow it better than that. But IIRC there are a few out there that fit your needs.

 

[n7]

Everyone wants a simple answer.

However, while i'm not trying to be harsh here, there's no such thing.

There are pros & cons with every motherboard out there.

That's why sometimes doing that painfully long research is worth it, so you know what to expect.

That being said, right now i'd lean toward the P5B-E as being the best overall bang for value OCing mobo with minimal issues.

 

[FightTest]

At around $150ish it comes down to the Asus P5B-E or the Gigabyte DS3. I opted for the DS3 (despite using Asus boards for a long time) because the P5B-E is limited to 2.1v to the vDIMM, whereas the DS3 can go higher. I considered getting the P5B Deluxe just so I could stay with Asus (it doesn't have the low vDIMM limit issue) but I couldn't justify paying for things I would never use (like the extra PCIe 16 slot).

I ordered my parts last week, got my stuff in today, everything is working fine so far. Have an Orthos blend going as I type this for 30+ minutes now. See my thread here for my little build story with updates.