Totally Lost

[Daves255]

Ugh, I've been looking through all of my options for motherboards, and I've gotta say, I can't decide. There's just far too many options for me to have any idea what to get. Let me first explain my specs and wants/needs:

Q6600 Quad Core
EVGA Geforce 8800 GTX
2x WD Caviar SATA Hard Drives
Auzentech Prelude
Windows Vista
Patriot eXtreme Performance 4GB (2x2GB) RAM

I need a motherboard that has the following:
1. Support/sockets for all of the above.
2. Won't be too slow and bottleneck the components
3. Conforms to ATX standards
4. DDR3 support is preferable for a future proof motherboard
5. Software that helps you overclock without having to go to the BIOS is preferred. Even better is if it automatically overclocks the PC (like Nvidia's nTune).
6. Having onboard sounds is a big plus. I need something to listen to while waiting for the Auzentech Prelude to come out!
7. Preferably under 230$.

Any help is greatly appreciated. I honestly have no idea where to begin. I was thinking the 680i A1 revision, but I was pointed to the P35 boards...there's just too many versions of everything for me to not become quickly frustrated by the options, so make it easy for me and tell me what you would do!

Thank you

 

[Mondoman]

2) Stick with an Intel P35 chipset if this is important to you. Intel's chipset drivers are more stable, too.
4) You'll never have a future-proof MB. Stick with DDR2, as you'll get more performance for the money.
5) Stay away from OCing software like that. If you want a stable OC, set the settings yourself in the BIOS.

Don't forget to budget about $100 for a decent power supply.