which mobo ?

[adapa]

No SLI, RAID or Games just heavy video use. I need to be able to upgrade to a Quad when the price is reasonable.
Which of mobo for the following build?

GIGABYTE GA-965P-DS3 LGA 775 Intel P965 Express ATX Intel
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16813128012

ASUS P5B LGA 775 Intel P965 Express ATX Intel
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16813131030

---------------------------------

2 Western Digital Caviar SE16 500GB 7200 RPM SATA $279.98

1 Intel Core 2 Duo E6300 Conroe $183.00

1 Antec Performance One P180 Silver cold rolled steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case $124.99

1 EVGA 256-P2-N624-AR GeForce 7900GS 256MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16 KO Video $149

1 CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) $195.00

1 OCZ GameXStream OCZ600GXSSLI ATX12V 600W Power Supply - $119.99

 

[bobak]

Probably the Asus for me. Can rely on good stuff from Asus. Would consider an Abit AW9D-MAX though too if you're going quad and not heavily clocking for games.

 

[billdcat4]

Im getting a similar rig. Im getting the DS3 though.



p180 w/ noctua fans
wd caviar se16 250gb
e4300 w/ ds3
Kingston 2gb value
evga 7900gs
blugears benspirer
seasonic s12 550w
arctic cooling Freezer 7 Pro and Zalman VF900
Hauppauge PVR500 MCE
Edimax wifi

I would recommend going for the Seasonic PSU though since it has less RIPPLE.

good luck

 

[adapa]

I think I'm gonna go with the gigabyte.

I picked out a mobo, placed the order for all the stuff & realized the mobo I ordered wasn't quad capable. I *am* planning on upgrading when the quad prices drop.

I chated with a csr at newegg & think I'll be able to get the restocking fee waved if I do the 'exchange' quickly.

 

[rwayne]

I would go with Gigabyte also. They are becoming a really good mobo manufacturer and have some really good features on some of there latest offerings.

 

[skyguy]

The DS3 is quad-ready. Great overclocker, better than the vanilla P5B. Easy to use BIOS, not picky about RAM or timings, decent NB cooling, very stable at stock settings, good board layout except for the IDE header is located at the bottom instead of the right side, solid state capacitors, easy/stable update to BIOS through Windows so no flashing required, proven winner around these forums, and a good price to boot.

Clear winner for the DS3.

 

[08nwsula]

definitely go with the ds3, you will save $4 :lol:
but I do think it is the better board.

 

[adapa]

Skyguy,
What is "quad ready"?

I have a Asus P5b-E arriving tomorrow. In the discription it says it's "quad ready" but in the spec under CPU. Quad is not listed.

 

[qwazzy]

Actually I had no luck with the DS3 a couple of months ago. Very very picky about RAM. BTW, the that P5B Deluxe you're talking about is super, no flawas in the 5-6 months I've had it.

 

[mx500torid]

Its a no brainer DS3 all the way. My rig 6400 running 3.2 ghz 400x8, 2 gigs Buffalo Firestix, x1950 xt, 7080 on 06 test.

 

[skyguy]

Quad ready basically means it'll take the upcoming quad core CPUs....ones that run on 1066 FSB, not the 1333 ones.

So basically, if you wanted to upgrade to a quad core CPU at the end of this year, then that mobo will take it. Some mobos will only work with current dual core CPUs, not quad core.

 

[adapa]

ahh OK

so the DS3 & the ASAU's will accept the Q6600 since it has a fsb of 1066MHz. I said it wrong but the point is "quad ready' =1066MHz = will run a quad cpu. eta, I just almost got bit by the "HD ready TV" dog a few years back. I'm leary of the "oh yeah sure, it'll run xxx when it comes out' type of statements.

Thanks for putting my mind at ease!!

I have to decide between the P5B-E & the DS3. I like the DS3's price & I don't particularly need the P5B-E's featurs.... I'm likeing the DS3 more & more.

 

[skyguy]

Correct, the Quad ready boards will take the quads that are already released, so you know it's true and not pie in the sky sort of thing. It WILL work, so no worries.

DS3 FTW!

 

[egel]

I beleive the DS3 revision 3.3 (latest) supports FSB 1333. I'm buying one too. If you want more features, pay a little more and get a DS3P.

 

[skyguy]

Ya I got a Rev. 2 for 1066, which suits me just fine because I can scoop up a 1066 Quad for an early Christmas present at a very nice price by then

 

[adapa]

oh, the quad's allready on my christmas list<grin>

well, I ordered DS3
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16813128012

I have to say, the automatic BIOS updates were the deciding factor.

Newegg waved the restocking fee, thankfully- I suspect it was because I hadn't open the box yet.

the only sucky thing is I've got to wait till Wed to get the DS3--- <sigh>