Which mobo would you recommend?

[Poulsonator]

I'm building an AMD system, using a 1700+. I originally decided on a ABIT KX7-333, but I'm having second thoughts based on reviews, features, etc.

Basically, I'm looking at the MSI KT3 Ultra2 (6380E-050) as another option. The presence of USB 2.0 and the thermal diode protection (I think this board offers this - can anyone confirm this?) is swaying me a bit. Plus, the MSI board got a good review from Anandtech (better than the ABIT).

Onboard sound and ethernet isn't an issue as I have a sound card and a network card. I also have a video card, so I'm not worried about onboard video.

Anyway, can anyone say which board I should go for? I don't need anything fancy, just some piece of mind on (hopefully) choosing a good, reliable board.

Thanks!

 

[crapito]

the best AMD board I ever used was an Epox 8KHA+ (VIA KT266a) motherboard. it doesn't have USB2.0, but it's fast and overclocks really well (ie 200+ MHz FSB).

 

[Zim Hosein]

TenaciousJGP, while it doesn't have USB 2.0, I'd suggest either the EPoX 8K3A or the 8K3A+, the only difference between the two is that the + version has on-board RAID, do a search on this board and make the decision for yourself, hope this helps 🙂

 

[MatthewF01]

How about Chaintech 7VJL? I think im about to buy one.

Seems like an awesome board!

 

[Insane3D]

I like the Epox 8K5A2+. It is the succesor to the 8K3A+. It has the newest Via Southbridge, the 8235, which has native USB 2.0 support and a upgraded V-Link connection to the Northbridge. The board has onboard 6-channel sound, LAN, and USB 2.0, and full support for the XP thermal diode. The board also has a very large Vcore adjustment range of 1.4v-2.2v without any modification.

It's also very reasonably priced @ $100 @ Mwave. I just ordered one for myself. 🙂