Best motherboard for the Conroe e6600? Buyin 2nite!!

[crewxp]

Hey, sorry about the probably asked a million time topic, but I'm trying to get all my parts ordered between now and tomorrow.

But anyways, I just ordered my e6600, ships tomorrow. But I was wondering what's the best motherboard for the processor? I want to overclock it, and like all the features that usually come on mobos, but I'm kinda outa the loop now.

I heard about the asus p5w-sh, but is that really the best motherboard out for conroe right now? Thanks alot!!

 

[godman]

this is gonna be some long post... soz ... well i thought id say that now, before you read it... :lol:

oh sorry it might be too late now but try and get either the gigabyte p965 dq6 (uses the newer 965 northbridge and newer ICH8 southbridge) it allows overclocks of around +400 - 480 mhz...or so thats what ive seen on some websites. its the one hardwarezone use for their conroe benchmarks

Our earlier overclocking attempts were based on an early sample board, but we've since gotten hold of the retail Gigabyte GA-965P-DQ6 motherboard and loaded it with the latest available retail BIOS, which is version F2. Armed with a full-fledged retail model, we set out overclocking once more with another Core 2 Duo processor for our recent article titled "Core 2 Duo E6300: Small Budget, Big Overclocker " and we finally struck gold as we hit a rock stable FSB of 480MHz! Clearly, Gigabyte has been busy tweaking their boards and the retail version is doing a good job. This places it among the highest motherboard overclocks we've seen in our years of testing. However, it's still too early to determine the best overclocker yet as we've had as good of an outcome from Gigabyte's own lower end GA-965P-DS3 board in we're still exploring it at the time of updating this article. But that's for another article. For performance results of the GA-965P-DQ6 board at 480MHz FSB, check out the above mentioned link for the full details, but here's a CPU-Z screenshot to tease you:-

http://www.hardwarezone.com/articles/view.php?cid=6&id=1956


problem is it doesnt include sli or crossfire...

though you could buy the asus 975x DH deluxe, it uses the older enthusiast 975x nothbridge and older ICH7 southbridge.... AND IT ENABLES THE USE OF CROSSFIRE!!! and i think it seems good it costs a bit more than the gigabyte

In our overclocking tests, we managed to attain a stable FSB overclock of 330MHz on stock FSB and MCH voltages, and coaxed it to work well up to 340MHz with voltage boosts, which works out to a very favorable 1360MHz PSB.

http://www.hardwarezone.com/articles/view.php?cid=6&id=1958
it doesnt have as high overclocks as the gigabyte but enables the use of a multi GpU system...but anandtech say something different and they use this board for their conroe benchmarks/system http://www.anandtech.com/mb/showdoc.aspx?i=2797&p=3


or you could (if you want it) wait until the new nviida 5 series come out and have sli or if you want a sli motherboard now you could buy the ASUS P5N32-SLI SE which is noforce 4 and uses sli but it is one of the worst boards for overclocking with a fixed multiplier

sorry for the long post ... hope it helps though :lol:

 

[windego]

If you just want to oc, try the gigabyte 965 DS3. Just becareful with ram selection.

 

[IcY18]

laf, i cant believe you said the 965 chipset overclocks better than the 975x, any 975x board has superior overclocking ability than any 965 chipset board, like that gigabyte one, but anyway the gigabyte is still a decent board but i would still recommend any mobo with a 975x chipset as it performs much better with conroe

 

[IcY18]

or you could (if you want it) wait until the new nviida 5 series come out and have sli or if you want a sli motherboard now you could buy the ASUS P5N32-SLI SE which is noforce 4 and uses sli but it is one of the worst boards for overclocking with a fixed multiplier

sorry for the long post ... hope it helps though

ok well anand says that you CAN infact lower or raise the multiplier, the exactl link you provided too, Anandtech, only the use of the e6700 conroe or lower has a locked multiplier

 

[chuckshissle]

Well if you don't run dual graphics card then get Intel mobo. It's is very expensive for it's over $200 but you can overclock well and stable. If you want more features then get the one from Asus and Gigabyte.

 

[godman]

or you could (if you want it) wait until the new nviida 5 series come out and have sli or if you want a sli motherboard now you could buy the ASUS P5N32-SLI SE which is noforce 4 and uses sli but it is one of the worst boards for overclocking with a fixed multiplier

sorry for the long post ... hope it helps though

ok well anand says that you CAN infact lower or raise the multiplier, the exactl link you provided too, Anandtech, only the use of the e6700 conroe or lower has a locked multiplier
i meant that if you dont have an etreme eidition cpu (x6800) where you can change the multiplier and you want to overclock a core 2 duo (e6300,e6400,e6600 or e6700) you have to overclock through the fsb. i have read reviews of the ASUS P5N32-SLI SE and they say that the board doesnt reach very high fsb overclocks (unlike the gigabyte boards mentioned).
8)

 

[godman]

o how well will the gigabyte p965 ds4 overclock? how high can you push the fsb? oh and are there any reviews around...i havent seen one anywhere for the ds4

 

[suzukii]

laf, i cant believe you said the 965 chipset overclocks better than the 975x, any 975x board has superior overclocking ability than any 965 chipset board, like that gigabyte one, but anyway the gigabyte is still a decent board but i would still recommend any mobo with a 975x chipset as it performs much better with conroe

Can I butt in? I'm deciding the same for tonite on gettin a mobo for my "supposedly" shipped e6600. I'm curious,...
(1) So I can go ahead & use a 975x chipset Mobo with a E6600 CPU & not have to get a 965 chipset mobo? FYI: I don't need a mobo with SLI right now.
(2) OCing isn't so important, but if I can OC to within a 5-15% boost, yet still have stability that's a plus.
(3) Can I still use the stock cooler that comes with the Retail E6600 & get away with a little OCing?
Anyone???...Anyone???...

Thanks.

 

[thornado]

wat d'you think about Abit AB9 pro?

 

[GigabyteRules]

hey i think u should get the p965-dq6 as its the board i have and its fantastic, its lots a lot but u get what u pay for + it supports 4core coming up

 

[4Aces]

The best motherboard for your chip isnt available yet.

Yeah Intel decided to release conroe when the only chipsets available were there own, therefore forcing the consumer they baited for months with conroe hype to buy an Intel chipset and pay and exuberant amount of money ($250). Suckers.

Nforce5 will be available soon, for less money, that will be far superior to any Intel chipsets available today.

I agree, wait for either the 590 or 570 SLI.

 

[godman]

does the ds4 overclock as well as the ds3?

 

[suzukii]

hey i think u should get the p965-dq6 as its the board i have and its fantastic, its lots a lot but u get what u pay for + it supports 4core coming up

It's specs look impressive, but it broke the bank for me.

I just ended up getting the following this morning:
Mobo: ASUS P5B #N82E16813131030 - $155
Memory: CZ2G8002GK 2GB Kit PC2-6400 Gold Gamer eXtreme XTC - $149
CPU: Intel E6600 - $372
Case: Ultra Grid 33137 ATX Black case - $164
Vid Card: Aiw X1900 256MB - $212
Addon-s from previous system:
Dual 750GB (already had 'em)
Audio: SBLIVE 5.1
3 port 1394 Firewire Card

"Can't wait till next week as this stuff starts to trickle in." Then the frustrations begin!!!

 

[GigabyteRules]

will still be kick ass system u getting, i would really like a case that looks like the new MACPros. and how much is ur setup cost

 

[suzukii]

Thanks. I needed that compliment.
I was really tempted by the mobo you recommended, but my motorcycle is also in the shop ($800), so I had to make a sacrifice somewhere else. I'll kick myself & the bike later.

 

[GigabyteRules]

the new core duo 2 u will be so happy wit, for encoding to avc nero digital its so fast that the HD bottlenecks and i only get 60% use of it so its really really good, and ive got e6400 u got the e6600 so u should get even better. wot u using ur puter for gaming or just business?

 

[suzukii]

the new core duo 2 u will be so happy wit, for encoding to avc nero digital its so fast that the HD bottlenecks and i only get 60% use of it so its really really good, and ive got e6400 u got the e6600 so u should get even better. wot u using ur puter for gaming or just business?

It's personal use; some lite gaming with Doom3,Quake4, Flight Sim 2000 & lots of DVD burnings using Nero. Also, using it for video editing of family videos with Studio 10 which takes freakin 4ever on my 2.8Ghz Prescott P4 w/2GB RAM with an Intel 865GBF mobo & an ATI AIW 9600 Pro capture vid board.
It was a hot!!! system 2yrs ago. Now it's going to a 12 yr old soon as I get my new one put together.
I was going for an AMD 64 X2 4800+ for a change of scenery, but Intel released these new CPU's & based on the reviews here my choice has been basically & highly influenced by the forumz here on THG.

 

[godman]

will still be kick ass system u getting, i would really like a case that looks like the new MACPros. and how much is ur setup cost

i seen a case that looks like it

new MACPRO

case that looks like the mac pro (almost)
[/list]
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/ProductInfo.asp?WebProductID=127841
its from scan for only £42.83 i dont know what its like inside though :lol:

 

[GigabyteRules]

tthat case is pritty good, but all those drive slots take away the good looks. Thx.

 

[godman]

yeh i kno or i guess you buy a mac pro for ££££ and then like strip all the stuff inside and use the case ... and then put all yer stuff in :lol:
although the stuff inside is probably better than the stuff youd wana put in because it costs loads :lol:

 

[GigabyteRules]

lol yer they cost 4400AUD my system was just 2300, and mac pro is 2x 2core xeons, all i know is the next gen of mac pro guna be so good then they get 4xcore xeons x2, 8 cores would be insane. that my next puter for sure , ive actualkly started saving for it already.

 

[godman]

or how about if they made a mac pro that uses 2 or 4 clovertown xeon processors? :lol: meaning 16 processors in one system with only 4 cpu dies

 

[GigabyteRules]

that would be so insane, makes me wana drool lol. ive always wanted a mac. would u ever get a mac of some sort?

 

[suzukii]

PS: As of this writing http://www.Tigerdirect.com is the only one actually saying they have the E6600's in stock.
Tiger has/had them for $372.00USD including 2-3 day shipping.
Everyone else (buy.com, Newegg, ZipZoom, Monarchcomputers.com & "DELL") aren't making that claim.
Hmmm... LET's SEE Tigerrrrr!!! Otherwise I'll be putting the "Grrs" in their Tiger.

Funny thing is I was on Newegg.com this morning & for about 2min. their web site said they had some $369.00USD E6600's in stock. When I went to place my order, which took about 2 mins, cuz I was looking for my VISA & it was already in my shopping cart, the "In Stock" changed to "Out of Stock" in an instant when I clicked to submit the order.