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It's been months...still not sure about this computer build...

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  • KotatsuKotatsu Member Posts: 57

    Originally posted by mrxennon

    Originally posted by Ridelynn

     




    Originally posted by ronpack

    I only read about half the posts so not sure if anyone else mentioned it. But, you should consider matching the videocard maker with the motherboard maker. Two of my friends decided to try it and their PC's are more magical than Steve Jobs dust...

     

    I know people are going to argue against it and say it doesn't matter but I've been told that when you do match them up, you get bonus features that make them run great together.



     

    I won't tell you all the things that I've been told, that just aren't true... The cake is a lie.

    You absolutely do not need to match motherboard and video card manufacturers. While you could do it via Asus, MSI, or even eVGA or Gigabyte, it won't grant you any bonuses to your total geek score. You won't get any more FPS or performance. Nothing magical will happen. Not even if you sprinkle magic Steve Jobs Pixie Dust over your computer.

    That said, there's nothing wrong with doing it, but I certainly wouldn't go out of my way to do it for any mythical bonus points.

    I really dont know where people get these myths from.  I supose these same people suggest I only put my intel i5 or i7 in an intel made motherboard to?



    Intel MOBOs make great frisbees. They hurt like hell. So does the performance.

    (o'')-O Vs Q('' Q)
    image

  • A few people have suggested this motherboard instead of the ASUS:

    http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128523

    I had considered getting this one awhile back but could not find it again until today. I can't actually order all the parts until tomorrow since my pay stub doesn't come in until tonight at midnight, so a few laster minor adjustments such as this will do no harm. The board I was previously thinking about is this:

    http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131770

     

    So tell me what you guys think about the two. The only advantages the Asus motherboard seems to have are these:

    About $50 more

    Has more options for overclockable RAM

    Has three original PCI slots, while the Gigabyte has none

                Not sure if this a big deal or not though...

    Has a slightly more up to date intergrated sound

    Has 2 ps/2 slots instead of one

    Another thing to note is that I have heard ASUS is the highest quality mobo manufacturer

    Lastly, the asus motherboard has what looks to be up to Quad Crossfire capability

     

    So yeah...it would save me about $50 but I don't wanna go cheap if those features/possibly quality of board would be better. What do you guys/gals think?

     

    P.S. At the time of posting this, it seems that the newegg servers were having some issues, atleast for me.

  • RidelynnRidelynn Member EpicPosts: 7,383

    They both are pretty good motherboards.

    The Gigabyte doesn't have any USB 3.0 ports, and the Asus does have one more PCI port (for a sound card or something). The Asus also has built-in Bluetooth. Gigabyte has the Lucid Virtu chip which lets you switch between the on-die graphics and your video card for power savings (at about a 10% loss in performance, so I probably wouldn't use it unless you rip a lot of video and need the on-die video compression).

    Now USB 3.0 and Bluetooth can be added after the fact without too much problem, and I'd say combined that would cost about $50. But if you never use Bluetooth (great for wireless headsets.

    The Asus claims quad-GPU capability, but it only has 2 PCI ports to plug video cards into, and they are x16/x4... so I wouldn't Crossfire 2 cards on that board (although it would do it, you wouldn't be happy with it).

    If you don't need Bluetooth or USB 3.0, you can save $50, but QuadGPU support and Lucid Virtu are not worth anything at all.

    Try this motherboard:
    $10 less than your first Asus - has Lucid Virtu + Intel Smart SSD caching, has USB 3.0 and the same PCI slot configuration, no Bluetooth

    http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131773

    *edit*
    I should add, if you are looking to do any real over clocking (anything past just a mild bump) for either RAM or CPU, you need to look at a different class of motherboard entirely. These motherboards are fine for stock use, and for very mild over clocks, but get too aggressive with them and the power circuitry on the boards will probably severely limit your ability to over clock.

  • Honestly, what is so amazing about USB 3.0 anyways? I don't even have any usb ports that are anything past 2.0 to use :/ I will not be using bluetooth most likely because I just bought a pair of sennheiser pc 360's and am very happy with them...they are wired. Plus, does not every z68 mobo have the intel ssd smart caching? If that's the truth then I might as well just go with the GIGABYTE model unless ASUS is just flat out known for having a much longer lifespan? If that's the truth, then I would be more then happy to spend the extra $50 if it means a year or to for of a lifetime...which I have heard from a few friends of mine that have built a few pc's.

    Oh, and going over the overclocking...I'm not a big fan of it, but I was considering pushing the i5 2500k a bit after a few years down the road...just to kind of get as much longevity that I could out of it, but in about 3-5 years, pushing it to about 4.0ghz...would that be an issue with this grade of mobo?

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  • czekoskwigelczekoskwigel Member Posts: 458

    Originally posted by Nunez1212

    Honestly, what is so amazing about USB 3.0 anyways? I don't even have any usb ports that are anything past 2.0 to use :/ I will not be using bluetooth most likely because I just bought a pair of sennheiser pc 360's and am very happy with them...they are wired. Plus, does not every z68 mobo have the intel ssd smart caching? If that's the truth then I might as well just go with the GIGABYTE model unless ASUS is just flat out known for having a much longer lifespan? If that's the truth, then I would be more then happy to spend the extra $50 if it means a year or to for of a lifetime...which I have heard from a few friends of mine that have built a few pc's.

    Oh, and going over the overclocking...I'm not a big fan of it, but I was considering pushing the i5 2500k a bit after a few years down the road...just to kind of get as much longevity that I could out of it, but in about 3-5 years, pushing it to about 4.0ghz...would that be an issue with this grade of mobo?

    Individual motherboards will very, every manufacturer can have a hit or a dud, but on the whole you will get much better performance and much better life by going with Asus over Gigabyte.

  • RidelynnRidelynn Member EpicPosts: 7,383


    Originally posted by Nunez1212
    Honestly, what is so amazing about USB 3.0 anyways? I don't even have any usb ports that are anything past 2.0 to use :/ I will not be using bluetooth most likely because I just bought a pair of sennheiser pc 360's and am very happy with them...they are wired. Plus, does not every z68 mobo have the intel ssd smart caching? If that's the truth then I might as well just go with the GIGABYTE model unless ASUS is just flat out known for having a much longer lifespan? If that's the truth, then I would be more then happy to spend the extra $50 if it means a year or to for of a lifetime...which I have heard from a few friends of mine that have built a few pc's.
    Oh, and going over the overclocking...I'm not a big fan of it, but I was considering pushing the i5 2500k a bit after a few years down the road...just to kind of get as much longevity that I could out of it, but in about 3-5 years, pushing it to about 4.0ghz...would that be an issue with this grade of mobo?

    USB 3.0 is nice for external hard drives, that's about it to be honest. If you don't need it, you don't need it.

    Not every Z68 has every option (Lucid Virtu, SSD caching, etc) - it's up to the motherboard manufacturer to pick and choose which options they want to implement (and how much to charge). It's a big Intel F-job...

    There's nothing wrong with the Gigabyte board - like I said. And if you don't need any of the other options, certainly don't pay for them.

    A 4.0G OC probably wouldn't be an issue on these motherboards. Anything past that may very well be though.

  • KabaalKabaal Member UncommonPosts: 3,042

    Originally posted by czekoskwigel

    Originally posted by Nunez1212

    /SNIP

    Individual motherboards will very, every manufacturer can have a hit or a dud, but on the whole you will get much better performance and much better life by going with Asus over Gigabyte.

    That is absolute nonsense and you know it.

  • CatamountCatamount Member Posts: 773

    Asus motherboards are great, but better than Gigabyte's? I'd say not, and even if they were, it wouldn't be by much.

    Both companies are fantastic.

  • RidelynnRidelynn Member EpicPosts: 7,383


    Originally posted by Catamount
    Asus motherboards are great, but better than Gigabyte's? I'd say not, and even if they were, it wouldn't be by much.
    Both companies are fantastic.

    Agree - the difference is mainly in BIOS layout and component selection/power regulation. Both have shown to be pretty quality products. Asus just is a bit bigger company and has a bit more selection in their lineup.

    If there is a difference in performance, it is ~extremely~ slight. That applies for all motherboards running chips at stock speeds - the CPU is the CPU and not part of the motherboard, and the southbridge basically just provides for USB ports and ethernet anymore, so all the motherboard has to do is give power to the CPU and hook it up to the PCI slots and DIMM banks. Now overclocking, that's a bit different, but that's an all together different conversation too.

    But it is true that not ~all~ Asus or Gigabytes are super great products, you have to look at each individual product and make a determination.

  • Ok, well then I think I might go with the GIGABYTE board. Besides one last concern..that one doesn't have a normal PCI slot on it, do you think I'll need that at some point?

  • RobgmurRobgmur Member Posts: 322

    Originally posted by Nunez1212

    Ok, well then I think I might go with the GIGABYTE board. Besides one last concern..that one doesn't have a normal PCI slot on it, do you think I'll need that at some point?

     http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157253

    Great motherboard , I highly recommend getting it and it's not that expensive at all. however if you plan on SLI/CF later on you will need one that fully supports it. They will run you quite a bit more $$. I wouldn't look into SLI/ CF soo much. You will be much happier with one higher end solid GPU.

    *Corsair Obsidian Series 650D *i5-2500K OC'd ~ 4.5
    *Asus P8Z68-V PRO/GEN3 mother board
    * Radeon HD 7970
    *8GB (4GBx2) 1600MHz Kingston HyperX
    *240GB Corsair Force GT Series SATA-III SSD

  • Why would you recommend that one?

  • RobgmurRobgmur Member Posts: 322

    Originally posted by Robgmur

    Originally posted by Nunez1212

    To NoQuarter:

    I don't think it would be worth it upgrade past my current gtx 260 core 216 since the performance gains would not be huge and much better cards should be out moderately soon. On the topic of CPU, the benchmarks that I have seen do not seem to warrant the i5 2500k for me since by the time the x4 is outdated in performance I should have a much better economical position for putting money into a pc, though right now I'm looking to save money if possible. I am planning on getting a smaller 64gb Sata III SSD to put the OS and a few main games on to optimize performance, but other then that I believe the performance/price should be adaquate for now and will not be a waste of my money. If you really think about it...money is relative. To me, $500 is a lot of money, but to perhaps a millionaire it is quite small. So by formulating what the best build would be by using finances that span for years and years seems quite pointless when in that much time my ecnomonical stance could be quite different, and since things point to them being much better in the future then situationally I would be saving more money if I just got the cheaper version now and the more expensive pieces later. 

    Okay for the love of all that is good just get the 2500k and a small SSD and keep your 320gbHDD for now. Don't let them rope you into thinking  the AMD cpu is a good choice, it is weak and out dated. Why spend 120$ now and another 120-150$ a year or two from now and still (for GAMING) having an equivalent CPU as the 2500k that you could just get now and be done. The other posters are throwing too many options and variants at you. Just get the recommended by the book build for performance. the 2500k and a SSD now and a new GPU a few months from now when the new lines arrive. You get what you pay for.. so don't go for the cheapest ways out (especially if you're a perfectionist). There is a line for performance hardware in gaming (Low budget / Low performace-----------High budget / Extreme performance), people will obviously argue this because I guess they get offended when a person spends 2000$$ + on a build. Don't try hopping to different sides if your budget is 700$$ or so, just stay center and game.

     Honestly instead of asking me why, just read the many reviews it has, a lot of the tech guys will go more in depth and easy to understand pros and cons. For what your paying and the quality you get, it's a good buy.

    *Corsair Obsidian Series 650D *i5-2500K OC'd ~ 4.5
    *Asus P8Z68-V PRO/GEN3 mother board
    * Radeon HD 7970
    *8GB (4GBx2) 1600MHz Kingston HyperX
    *240GB Corsair Force GT Series SATA-III SSD

  • I'm confused at what your saying Robgmur, but it does seem like a nice board besides the fact that I'm not sure how great of qualiyt Asrock is.

  • czekoskwigelczekoskwigel Member Posts: 458

    Originally posted by Nunez1212

    I'm confused at what your saying Robgmur, but it does seem like a nice board besides the fact that I'm not sure how great of qualiyt Asrock is.

    ASrock has made many great boards, though I wouldn't say that their quality is as consistent as Asus or Gigabyte.  Generally Fatality doesn't slap his name on garbage, though...

  • RobgmurRobgmur Member Posts: 322

    Originally posted by czekoskwigel

    Originally posted by Nunez1212

    I'm confused at what your saying Robgmur, but it does seem like a nice board besides the fact that I'm not sure how great of qualiyt Asrock is.

    ASrock has made many great boards, though I wouldn't say that their quality is as consistent as Asus or Gigabyte.  Generally Fatality doesn't slap his name on garbage, though...

     Amen. My buddy who just built his PC has this MB in fact, no problems at all and runs strong

    *Corsair Obsidian Series 650D *i5-2500K OC'd ~ 4.5
    *Asus P8Z68-V PRO/GEN3 mother board
    * Radeon HD 7970
    *8GB (4GBx2) 1600MHz Kingston HyperX
    *240GB Corsair Force GT Series SATA-III SSD


  • Originally posted by czekoskwigel

    Originally posted by Nunez1212

    I'm confused at what your saying Robgmur, but it does seem like a nice board besides the fact that I'm not sure how great of qualiyt Asrock is.

    ASrock has made many great boards, though I wouldn't say that their quality is as consistent as Asus or Gigabyte.  Generally Fatality doesn't slap his name on garbage, though...

    I do not exactly keep up with Fatalityes quality of branding lol...so I wouldn't know, but the board does have great reviews on newegg.

  • RobgmurRobgmur Member Posts: 322

    Originally posted by Nunez1212

    I'm confused at what your saying Robgmur, but it does seem like a nice board besides the fact that I'm not sure how great of qualiyt Asrock is.

     What that means is... You're a perfectionist on a budget, so get what meets both ends of your requirements right at center field.

     

    *Corsair Obsidian Series 650D *i5-2500K OC'd ~ 4.5
    *Asus P8Z68-V PRO/GEN3 mother board
    * Radeon HD 7970
    *8GB (4GBx2) 1600MHz Kingston HyperX
    *240GB Corsair Force GT Series SATA-III SSD

  • Oh I see, so your justifying the AsRock mobo because it is smack in the middle?

  • RobgmurRobgmur Member Posts: 322

    Originally posted by Nunez1212

    Oh I see, so your justifying the AsRock mobo because it is smack in the middle?

     Is a ducks ass water tight?

    There will be a few other MBs that match this one for roughly the same price, if not cheaper. I simply recommend this one because for the price it has everything you will need, has great reviews accross the board and a 3 year warrenty as well.

    *Corsair Obsidian Series 650D *i5-2500K OC'd ~ 4.5
    *Asus P8Z68-V PRO/GEN3 mother board
    * Radeon HD 7970
    *8GB (4GBx2) 1600MHz Kingston HyperX
    *240GB Corsair Force GT Series SATA-III SSD


  • Originally posted by Robgmur

    Originally posted by Nunez1212

    Oh I see, so your justifying the AsRock mobo because it is smack in the middle?

     Is a ducks ass water tight?

    There will be a few other MBs that match this one for roughly the same price, if not cheaper. I simply recommend this one because for the price it has everything you will need, has great reviews accross the board and a 3 year warrenty as well.

    That was one strange metaphor my friend...

     

    Thanks for the mobo recommendation though. I believe this is the one I will be purchasing tonight. The only thing I am not super fond of is that I will see Fatality's face every time I boot up :P

  • RobgmurRobgmur Member Posts: 322

    Originally posted by Nunez1212

    Originally posted by Robgmur

    Originally posted by Nunez1212

    Oh I see, so your justifying the AsRock mobo because it is smack in the middle?

     Is a ducks ass water tight?

    There will be a few other MBs that match this one for roughly the same price, if not cheaper. I simply recommend this one because for the price it has everything you will need, has great reviews accross the board and a 3 year warrenty as well.

    That was one strange metaphor my friend...

     

    Thanks for the mobo recommendation though. I believe this is the one I will be purchasing tonight. The only thing I am not super fond of is that I will see Fatality's face every time I boot up :P

     I wanna say you can change that, i'll have to ask my buddy, he never said anything about that as being a problem. You will indeed have a fine machine. I will be with you buying a new video card when the new lines release. I think i'll be getting one the high end southern island card and when Nvidia launches i'll grab one of their higher end keplar.

    *Corsair Obsidian Series 650D *i5-2500K OC'd ~ 4.5
    *Asus P8Z68-V PRO/GEN3 mother board
    * Radeon HD 7970
    *8GB (4GBx2) 1600MHz Kingston HyperX
    *240GB Corsair Force GT Series SATA-III SSD

  • You must be hoarding money like a gremlin to get one of each.. I already pulled the trigger on everything but the SSD and thats because my pay has still not activated into my account yet >:(    But hopefully it will be in soon so that I wont have everthing but the SSD next week...  I pre-ordered Skyrim after my classes today, so I'm pretty much all set at this point. Now all I have to do is wait one more week...

  • RobgmurRobgmur Member Posts: 322

    Originally posted by Nunez1212

    You must be hoarding money like a gremlin to get one of each.. I already pulled the trigger on everything but the SSD and thats because my pay has still not activated into my account yet >:(    But hopefully it will be in soon so that I wont have everthing but the SSD next week...  I pre-ordered Skyrim after my classes today, so I'm pretty much all set at this point. Now all I have to do is wait one more week...

     Military?

    *Corsair Obsidian Series 650D *i5-2500K OC'd ~ 4.5
    *Asus P8Z68-V PRO/GEN3 mother board
    * Radeon HD 7970
    *8GB (4GBx2) 1600MHz Kingston HyperX
    *240GB Corsair Force GT Series SATA-III SSD

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