1. Best is hard to answer when you haven't given a budget.
Gaming Builds up to 2 cards in SLI:
Best MoBo in $300 Price Range = Asus Maximus VII Formula (comes out this month) ($ ?)
Best MoBo in $250 Price Range = Asus Z97-WS ($275)
Best MoBo in $200 Price Range = MSI GD65 ($180)
Best MoBo in $150 Price Range = MSI G45 ($135)
One note on the Asus boards is that users have reported (RoG Forums / newegg reviews) that Asus Z97 boards are similarly afflicted with the BIOS Clock Freeze Bug as with the entire Z87 line. Seems to affect a small number if users ..... with chance of occurence greatly increasing if you use BIOS tools to save OC profiles, back up user settings to a USB stick or spend time overclocking and stress testing. there's many threads on the topic about but here's one if you want to familiarize yourself with the issue before making a purchase.
http://rog.asus.com/forum/showthread.php?33895-Hero-Time-Clock-Problem/page11
A fix was announced on June 11, but haven't seen yet. Support to date has been "less than helpful" on the issue.
2. 12 Gigs is less than ideal...... ya wanna put dual channel memory in pairs.... so 2 x 4GB .... 2 x 8GB .... 4 x 4 GB .... 4 X 8GB etc.
3. Consider an SSHD if ya don't have the budget for an SSD at this time
http://www.tomshardware.com/charts/hdd-charts-2013/-17-PCMark-7-Gaming,2915.html
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822178380
SSD boots in 15,6 seconds, SSHD on 16.5
4. I look to Mushkin Redline first .... Remember like PSUs, most people who sell memory don't actually make the chips, so what is inside is important. Corsair for example released their current Vengeance Pro line with Hynix memory. Then, IIRC at version 4.51 they switched to a cheaper vendor. With the Redline's, so far every one I have gotten has been Hynix. Why does that matter ? Hynix is the Gold Standard in among memory makers and they are generally capable of the best overclocks and withstanding the highest voltages (over 1.9). Compare Vengeance Pro and Redlines at 2400 for example and the Mushkin is identifiable by the better timings (10-12-12-28) versus Corsair's (10-12-12-31). Not a lotta difference but at the same price lower is better.
As for speed and timings, the 1866 and 2133 modules are oft the same price as the 1600 so get the highest available within a reasonable price range. Remember tho that High CAS will reduce speed and to compare use the formula CAS x 1000 / DDR speed..... for example 2400 CAS 10 would be 10 x 1000 /2400 = 4.17 nanoseconds.
When memory 1st comes out the price premium on the faster speeds is hefty accounting for the yields in an early production line. As time goes on and the lines mature, yields improve and the price difference shrinks. So when those reviews are done and 2400 is 4100 or more higher in cost than $1600, it's hard to make the case for the investment as gaming doesn't benefit much. or does it ?
-Most games will see from 0 - 5% increase in speed. In other cases (STALKER series, F1) it can be as high as 11% in average frame rates.
-It has bigger impact on minimum frame rates than on average frame rates.
-It has a bigger impact when multiple GFX cards are used.
memory pricing has been bouncing all over the place of late so advice is hard to give with the volatility. So whether spending a few buck more for faster memory is worth it depends on that day to day pricing.
2400 CAS 10 ... usually about $190
2133 CAS 9 ... usually about $180
1866 CAS 8 ... usually about $180
1600 CAS 7 ... usually about $165
1600 CAS 9 ... usually about $160
So is it worth it to go say from the cheapest tot he most expensive on that list ? $30 is a:
1.7 % cost increase on a $1800 box
2.0 % cost increase on a $1500 box
2.5 % cost increase on a $1200 box
Depending on what you do with the box applications wise, whether you have multiple cards, what games you play .... the answer could very easily be yes or no. For me it's a yes.
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