Best Z77 Motherboard for upgrade

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Username12321

Username12321

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Dec 7, 2013
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I am going to be upgrading my rig and will need to have a good Z77 motherboard to suit my gaming build for under £160 if possible.

Rig after upgrades:
i7 3770
2x 8GB RAM (32gb supported would be good but not necessary)
2xSLI EVGA GTX 970 (Air cooled, maybe a slot between them to keep them cooler?)
Corsair 750D
PSU (Haven't decided yet, probably EVGA)
{insert motherboard here}

TL;DR
Basically, good for air cooled SLI, 1155 socket, 16GB RAM (preferably 32), for gaming, less than £160.

Blue = Already Owned
 
Solution
chesteracorgi
There are several good options, and a "best" choice will depend on some of your choices. Do you plan for an air cooled CPU or a water cooled CPU (closed loop cooler)? If you are planning for a CLC I would say that ASRock Extreme 4 may be the best bang for the buck. If you are going to use a large air cooler (over 500 g) I would opt for an ASUS or a Gigabyte mobo because their PCBs are heavier (more layers) and support the weight better.

I generally advise against the large air coolers for CPUs because they usually run over 1 kg and provide a constant torque to the mobo. Other swear by them and, as long as the mobo is reinforced for the heavier torque they perform well.

I'd also wait for aftermarket cooling solutions for the GTX...
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chesteracorgi

chesteracorgi

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There are several good options, and a "best" choice will depend on some of your choices. Do you plan for an air cooled CPU or a water cooled CPU (closed loop cooler)? If you are planning for a CLC I would say that ASRock Extreme 4 may be the best bang for the buck. If you are going to use a large air cooler (over 500 g) I would opt for an ASUS or a Gigabyte mobo because their PCBs are heavier (more layers) and support the weight better.

I generally advise against the large air coolers for CPUs because they usually run over 1 kg and provide a constant torque to the mobo. Other swear by them and, as long as the mobo is reinforced for the heavier torque they perform well.

I'd also wait for aftermarket cooling solutions for the GTX 970, as the reference card design is not optimized for cooling. If you are going for air cooling of the GPUs I highly recommend a well cooled case (I run 470s in SLI in a Corsair 600 case).
 
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Solution
Username12321

Username12321

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Dec 7, 2013
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I don't know much about water cooling but I will probably get a H100i CPU cooler at some time
 
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rockie_

rockie_

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Username12321

Username12321

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Dec 7, 2013
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Yeah, I have the 3770. I don't mean to have a go or anything (I'm grateful that you are trying to help). I'll make the question clearer
 
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Username12321

Username12321

Honorable
Dec 7, 2013
47
0
10,540
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Username12321

Username12321

Honorable
Dec 7, 2013
47
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10,540


Im very surprised by the small difference. I was expecting a fair bit. Thanks for the help
 
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