motherboard suggestions

[gators1223]

i am looking for a mother board with 2 full 16x slots and 8 sata ports, if possible onboard usb and firewire, i know there aren't many out there but any suggestions

 

[Synthetickiller]

Well, we need to know, do you care if the CPU is AMD or Intel?

There's many to choose from ( I know, its a cop out answer), but I think you want to say what type of processor you'll be using before asking. That narrows down the field very much.

As well, what's the purpose of the computer you will be building? Building an SLI gaming desktop? Server?

 

[occdavid]

Abit IN9 32Max - has 2 full 16x slots plus a 3rd 8x slot. Has 6 sata plus 2 eSata out the back. I have a single 750 HD in an enclosure for backups.
If you need full hardware raid I would go with an Adaptec 3805 - has 8 ports and full raid in multipule forms. I'm thinking of adding one of these or the 4 port version.
If you just need more sata ports you can always add a card.

Note: the IN9 32Max is not getting very good Bios support from Abit right now for major overclockers... but the board can be stable. You should read up on it over at abits and extreme overclockers forums before you buy.

 

[chaddeus]

The nVidia n680i chipset does support dual 16x slot.

Your requirements seems high but I know Gigabyte GA-N680i

http://www.gigabyte-usa.com/Products/Motherboard/Products_List.aspx?VenderType=Intel&CPUType=socket+775#NVIDIA%20nForce%20680i%20SLI%20MCP

Review @ http://anandtech.com/mb/showdoc.aspx?i=2936

but its going to be pricey at ~$320

http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=242713

Alternative will be the MSI P6N Diamond.
http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=249650

 

[SuperFly03]

i am looking for a mother board with 2 full 16x slots and 8 sata ports, if possible onboard usb and firewire, i know there aren't many out there but any suggestions

Why 2 x16? This needs to be addressed before anything.

 

[gators1223]

it needs to be intel, sorry about that and i need the 2 for sli and its a desktop

 

[SuperFly03]

You don't really need x16 for SLI, x8 works fine. Having said that the nVidia 680i is the only Intel chipset I know of that uses full x16 lanes. Any motherboard based on that chipset will server your purpose. The 650i chipset uses x8 dual lanes.

 

[aevm]

My favourite mobos these days are Gigabyte n680i DQ6, Asus Striker Extreme, Asus P5N32E-SLI. Check them out...

 

[gators1223]

thanks for the suggestions, im liking the look of the gigabyte mobo thanks