Best mobo out there under $300

lolzorz · Jul 12, 2013

So im kind of stuck with deciding a motherboard, im going to be OC a haswell i5 or i7 to a MAX of 4.5ghz(meaning that most likely ill stay at about 4.0ghz), and most likely overclocking my card by a little. I will never go past 2 way sli and would prefer a good looking motherboard but I absolutely dont mind skipping over looks if the performance is good. The looks i prefer is somewhere like the asus maximus series. I would prefer full atx.

This mobo is strictly for gaming and my rig will be around $1.5k if that helps at all.

luckiest charm · Jul 12, 2013

No point of investing so much money into motherboard.

An ASRock Extreme4 Motherboard would perform as good as an Extreme6 or Extreme11 when it comes to gaming and overclocking. It is so far a very very successful motherboard and has won many awards too due to its sheer performance.

If you have money burning hole in your pocket then buy a bigger SSD or a better video card. Those are the things which decide your PC performance.

Still if you want to go buy too expensive motherboard, buy Asus Sabertooth. It looks really fantastic. Sorry I can not give you links to it because you have not mentioned your CPU choice and thus I do not know which socket it is supposed to be for you.

Here is a picture -

http://motherboards-reviews.com/motherboards/ASUS/SABERTOOTH_P67/ASUS_SABERTOOTH_P67_box_board.jpg

Someone Somewhere · Jul 12, 2013

This for value: http://pcpartpicker.com/part/gigabyte-motherboard-gaz87xd3h or this: http://pcpartpicker.com/part/asrock-motherboard-z87extreme4

This: http://pcpartpicker.com/part/msi-motherboard-z87g45gaming if you really want a red/black board.

lolzorz · Jul 12, 2013

So you guys are saying that past the 150$ price point, the increase in performance and features is negligible?

luckiest charm · Jul 12, 2013

lolzorz :

Yes exactly. You got that right.
No one is going to open your case and admire the beauty of the motherboard. One should buy any of the PC component which gives best value for money.

If you are getting same performance or the performance which you want (and have no need for other useless features) from a $150 motherboard, why buy another one for double price?

Agreed the $300 motherboard would be better than $150 but look at price performance ratio and your own needs too. You would not cross 4.5 GHz, You would not go past 2 way SLI, You would not mind good looks then what is the need of an expensive motherboard?

Gaming performance would not at all be affected even if you buy ASRock Extreme11 motherboard. 32 GB RAM support is enough for most people too.

Dark Lord of Tech · Jul 12, 2013

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130690

MSI Z87 MPOWER Max LGA 1150 Intel Z87 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Extreme OC Flagship High Performance Triple CFX/ SLI Platform Intel Motherboard

Ranked 1st in Computer Shopper with Editor’s Choice

Dark Lord of Tech · Jul 12, 2013

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130692

MSI Z87-GD65 Gaming LGA 1150 Intel Z87 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Extreme OC High Performance Triple CFX/ SLI Intel Motherboard

The Computex 2013 Best Choice Golden Award

Great overclocker because of MORE power phases than the GD45.

Someone Somewhere · Jul 12, 2013

The first one is definitely overkill. Second is probably diminishing returns over the GD45 - if you don't plan to push it, you don't need to spend extra.

Get a SSD or better GPU. If you're spending this much on a MB/CPU, I hope you plan on at least a 770.

schmuckley · Jul 12, 2013

I'd say for what you're doing:
ugh..this pains me as i hate AsRock..but.. z87 Extreme4 would do what you want nicely
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157369

and..the Nick Shih Z87M OC Formula ..quite sturdy http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157393

Giggity Giga z87-OC http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128594

Asus with the bling bling http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131998
I've always been a fan of WS boards..hmm..is debatable now.I'm sure is as sturdy as it predecessors, though.

Okay..I'd say this is the "best" @ 300 or under http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157380 Conformal coating even

PlanarX999 · Jul 12, 2013

Agree with SR-71 Blackbird,
MSI Mpower Max edge out Z87 OC Formula in heat, power consumption and price. Actually they on par in performance, but MSI better in other aspect.
Z87-GD65 Gaming's features not as good as Z87 Maximus VI Hero but still surpass in term of raw performance.

Someone Somewhere · Jul 12, 2013

This is for someone who says they'll spend most of their time at 4.0 GHz. Not going to matter if it OCs 3% better...

lolzorz · Jul 12, 2013

Definitely running at least a gtx 770 in there, probably even a 780.
Would any of the boards mentioned in here do everything I want?
Should I bother with the x8 vs x16 vs x4 slots or is the bandwidth of x4 way more than we will need for a long time?

Dark Lord of Tech · Jul 12, 2013

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131989

ASUS MAXIMUS VI HERO LGA 1150 Intel Z87 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

Legit Reviews Recommended Award Winner

I'm getting this for my new build , I don't go any higher than around $200.00 , to get all the features I need.

For the money , I consider this a great value.

luckiest charm · Jul 12, 2013

But why do you recommend it if a cheaper motherboard is getting him more than everything he wants?

He said he would not be overclocking more than 4 GHz and 4.5 GHz max. Also would not be crossing 2 way SLI so I wonder what is "need" of such high end motherboards?

I believe we should go for need not the bling.

luckiest charm · Jul 12, 2013

lolzorz :

ASRock Z87 Extreme4 gives you everything you want and would ever want in your life from a motherboard.
No point of buying anything better than that.

http://hexus.net/tech/items/mainboard/42849-asrock-z77-extreme4-got-toms-hardware-2012-approved-award/

Dark Lord of Tech · Jul 12, 2013

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130693

MSI Z87-G45 Gaming LGA 1150 Intel Z87 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Pro Gaming with Killer Networking & Sound Blaster Intel Motherboard
Pro Gaming with killer NIC, SoundBlaster, CFX/SLI

Great board for $149.99

luckiest charm · Jul 12, 2013

Now this is a great one.

Best mobo out there under $300

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