First PC. Looking for a motherboard compatible with the i5 4690k and the Nvidia GTX 970

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McChizzle

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Jun 28, 2015
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Like I said in the title this is my first PC. trying to find a good motherboard was more overwhelming than I though. I'm building a gaming PC with the i5, the GTX 970, 3TB HDD, 250Gb SSD, with probably 12-16Gbs of RAM.

I dont really care about OVERCLOCKING my hardware as long as I can play games on ultra with 60fps. I don't plan on upgrading for a long time (probably 2-4 years). I'm not on a tight budget but I don't want to break the bank. I'm hoping to spend 100-150$ but I am flexible. Also, if you have any suggestions about the RAM I would appreciate it. I also still need to find a case so if you have any suggestions I would appreciate at also
 
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yeskay


Hello McChizzle,

Get these parts:

PCPartPicker part list / Price...
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yeskay

yeskay

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Jul 12, 2014
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Hello McChizzle,

Get these parts:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97X-UD3H-BK ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($121.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($54.89 @ OutletPC)
Total: $176.87
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-06-28 16:07 EDT-0400

- 8GB RAM is the sweet spot for gaming, which is more than enough. Having 12/16/24 GB of RAM is going to give only negligible performance difference in gaming or we can even say non-existent! Also having higher frequency RAM its the same story. Check this video:

High Speed RAM - Is it Worth it? DDR3 1333MHz vs 2400MHz Test - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWgzA2C61z4

What Gigabyte says about their Black Edition Motherboard?

GIGABYTE Black Edition motherboards undergo an extra 168 hours (7 days) of stress testing before shipment to ensure premium quality for our customers.

During the 168 hour test, each motherboard needs to pass rigorous, full system validation testing for 1 full week. GIGABYTE has built a custom testing facility at our Taiwan (Nanping) factory.

A Certificate of Validation is included with every board, issued by the GIGABYTE factory and signed by the manufacturing VP & GM to indicate that each board has passed our highest test standards.

Why Gigabyte Motherboard?

Because they make stable, durable and performance oriented Motherboards with lowest RMA %. See the images below:

Gigabyte with least RMA percentage over the past two years
de2f1104-5aa0-4b48-84dd-c4c7dbdbf28c.png

Major Motherboard and Graphics Card Manufacturers RMA Ratings
e5f3f8fc-54aa-4d1f-bac9-e831a4713f7b.jpg

Read the full article here - Reliability report: Gigabyte top for motherboards, MSI for graphics cards

Update #2:

If you think beta testing a game needs more RAM, then go for 16GB (2x8GB) kit:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($87.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $87.99
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-06-28 16:43 EDT-0400

Cheers!
 
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McChizzle

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Jun 28, 2015
2
0
4,510


Thanks a lot for the help. I'm just getting started and the motherboards seem to be one if the most complex things to decide on. One more question though. I forgot to mention it but I'd prefer a 12 or 16gb ram because some beta or early access games take up a lot more ram than regular ones and I'd like to run the well. Basically what I'm asking is, what 12 or 16gb ram would you recommend?
 
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