Best Gaming Mobo for QX6700

[crazy032]

I will be upgrading my PC soon, and I would like to know what is the best gaming mobo out there for a QX6700 or QX6800? To me the most important feature is number of SATA connectors. I have a tower case with room for up to 10 hard drives, and I have no problem buying new ones as I start to run out of space. Also, I don't need 2 PCI-E slots as I only use 1 video card. PCI slots are kind of important as I have an Audigy sound card and may want to add another ide controller. I was looking at the MSI P35 Platinum, and the Gigabyte P35-DS3R or GA-P35-DQ6. Any recommendations, including those I haven't yet looked at? BTW, I am currently on an MSI Neo4 Platinum, and would like to know if I can keep my memory or if I will have to upgrade that as well.
Thanks.

 

[Maziar]

ASUS P5K-E
GIGABYTE P35 DS3R
ABIT IP35 PRO

 

[chookman]

ASUS P5K-E
GIGABYTE P35 DS3R
ABIT IP35 PRO

2nd


But why are you getting the Qx6700 or 6800 now? when penryn flagship QX9650 is around the corner? If you dont wont this then id recommend the Q6600. That is a crazy amount of cash to send on flagship or near one when a newer one will be available soon.

 

[Zorg]

I second chookman and third Maziar. Wait for penryn or get the Q6600 and OC it to 3G/1333 very easily.

I built three systems with these parts. The mobo may be higher end than you need, but if you stick with Gigabyte the RAM will work well. Many other people like the ASUS better for serious OCing. Pick the VGA of your choice and a couple of DVDs. There are all kinds of things that can be downgraded here to save some cash, but based on your CPU choice you won't need to. If you go with the Raptor you will probably want to add a storage drive.
Q6600 G0 OC to 3.0G/1333 FSB
GIGABYTE GA-P35-DQ6 Rev. 1.0
Thermalright Ultra-120 Extreme CPU Cooler
Scythe S-FLEX SFF21F 120mm Fan
Crucial Ballistix 2GB DDR2 800 4:5 divider 800Mhz effective
Silencer® 610 EPS12V Power Supply
Western Digital Raptor X WD1500AHFD 150GB

 

[crazy032]

I don't really like to buy top of the line CPU's because they get outdated so fast. I was thinking the best bang for my buck would be a used QX6700 or 6800, but it appears I was mistaken. Also, I really don't like OC, I just don't feel safe doing it, but if your PCs run stable, then I'll give it a shot. I'll go w/ the gigabyte mobo, could you post your settings? Thanks again.

 

[Zorg]

I'm not sure I follow. What settings exactly. If you want I'll take BIOS snapshots and post them or PM them to you. It is really painfully easy to OC to 3G/1333 with a decent HS like the Ultra-120. I even lowered my Vcore from 1.3V to 1.275 and dropped load temps by about 11C, if I remember correctly. If you do get the Ultra-120, mount the fan before you put it in the case, or it will be a PITA.

 

[Maziar]

OC'ng is very easy and very enjoyable

 

[MrCommunistGen]

Even if you don't get the new gen quad-core you might wait until they come out to see if there is a price drop on current gen quads.
My vote: P35 DS3R

-mcg