Want A New Motherboard, Completely New User with Ivy Bridge

[airs0ft3r]

Hey Guys,

I'm a guy who used to be a PC buff but kind of faded away after Android and iOS came out. Now, I'm looking for a new motherboard for Ivy Bridge processors, with very little needs. I want it to be cheap, reliable, and not have a lot of features.

I don't overclock, I'm looking to install 24 GB of RAM (for shits and giggles), and I want a baseline Ivy Bridge processor with a slot for a single mid-range graphics card. Cheap is the big word. Any idea on motherboards that fit that criteria?

Much thanks in advance (and after too)

 

[WiseUp216]

i5-3570K & Asrock Z77 Extreme4 are a popular combo and almost always available via Microcenter at a discount if purchased together.

The unlocked 'K' version is worth the extra couple bucks in case you change your mind about overclocking down the road. If every dollar counts, the non-K 3570 or i5-3450 will do the job.

What will the primary usage be?

 

[VirtualLarry]

you would want 32GB of RAM for IB, not 24.

 

[mv2devnull]

you would want 32GB of RAM for IB, not 24.

Furthermore, since "cheap" IB boards have only four slots, those have to be 8GB modules that still are a bit less "cheap" than the 4GB modules.

Besides, using more than 16GB requires something better than Windows 7 Home Premium. (But cheap being the keyword, Linux is the obvious choice?)

 

[Apologiliac]

8gb of ram is all you need, but go ahead lol

 

[airs0ft3r]

Well, another option for me is to get "only" 16 GB of memory with a 4x4GB slot, but I wanted to go with 3x8GB. Haha, I don't know why I want/need 24GB. Future proofing, maybe...?

If I go with Sandy Bridge (very real option), could I get motherboards with six memory slots and have a 6x4GB array?

With regards to cheap, I mean... not top of the line. I won't mind mid-range or bottom-shelf options, but I'm not going with liquid cooling, OC (ever, because when by the time I'll need to OC I'll look into upgrading to modern components)

Cheers

 

[mv2devnull]

Both SB and IB have dual channel IMC.

 

[airs0ft3r]

I think I'm going with the ASRock Z77. It seems like a good motherboard (Newegg certainly thinks so).

Thanks guys. Is there anything else I should know about anything?

 

[santilmo]

but I wanted to go with 3x8GB. Haha, I don't know why I want/need 24GB. Future proofing, maybe...?

this doesn't make sense at all and there's no benefit as it may only be a cause of your system's instability (unbalance RAM).

and there's no such thing as "future proof"... ^_^

 

[philipma1957]

this doesn't make sense at all and there's no benefit as it may only be a cause of your system's instability (unbalance RAM).

and there's no such thing as "future proof"... ^_^

actually death is pretty good for future proofing pretty much anything.

 

[airs0ft3r]

I actually looked up what you guys said, mostly because I didn't understanding it. Ideally, I get it a bit better now. I now know what 2 channel memory is. Dodged a bullet there.

Newegg had a good Open Box deal on the extreme 4, and I just picked up an i5 3570 and 16 GB of corsair (it was a hard choice to compromise). Now I'm just looking for some SSD space for the extra $$$ I just saved by going i5 and 16 GB, and the graphics card comes last.

Thanks for all of your help guys. Really, you saved me an assload of trouble.