Good MB for under $220

I am looking for a good MB for under $220. I have my eye on the Asus P5K Deluxe WiFi...it is at the top of the price range. I am looking for a board that will last for a few years, hopefully it will be compatible with the next generation of Intel CPUs with only a BIOS flash. I know that many of the lower end boards don't have the flexability to be more future-proof. I currently have an Asus P5B Deluxe, so I need something like a P35 or better. I see many good comments on the Gigabyte boards, but I still have a bad taste in my mouth from the 965 that I was barely able to return...Gigabyte seems to have issues with heat that cause instabilities without even overclocking. Is the Asus board going to be the most stable and future-proof board out there in my price range? I tinker with overclocking and I do some gaming, but I don't really do FPS games very much. I also use the computer for video editing, so I will need good stability. I am also thinking about picking up an Intel 6300 CPU. Maybe a good CPU/MB combo for under $400. Thanks in advance for any help.


I plan on sticking with my 2GB of DDR2 800 memory.
I will use a Firewire port, I suppose an add-on card would work if the MB is cheap enough.
I don't need any IDE ports, I only use SATA now.

avoid x38..Really not worth it imo if you aren't going a dual card solution. Also penryn will be compatible obviously. But unfortunately..Any intel mobo you buy is not going to last...End of 2008, Nehalem comes out....It will need a new socket/chipset thanks to it's integrated memory controller and the new intel "Quick Connect" interface....So yea..You'll be able to jump to penryn if you want. But getting a future proof board from intel is almost always impossible unlike AMD.

Regarding your price range..that's pretty damn high for a motherboard. Just do yourself a favor and dump the p5k deluxe wifi mobo.

Nab either a Gigabyte p35-DS3R, or a Asus P5K. As long as you stay with asus or gigabyte you'll be fine...The other brands aren't as good as these two choices.

Also...If you do gaming, and video editing..drop the idea of the 6300...Not worth it..Nab yourself a q6600. considering the gigabyte p35-ds3r can be purchase for around 120-130, with the asus p5k in the similar range...It'll be a much better but. Especially considering you can nab a q6600 for around 260-290. Try to nab a G0 stepping if possible, you can get that from clubit. The G0 stepping will run cooler, as well as take less voltage and can OC farther.

mobos---

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] k=p35-ds3r

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813131180

----cpu

retail

http://www.clubit.com/product_deta [...] o=A1938452

oem

http://www.clubit.com/product_deta [...] o=A1938460

.....

Nab the retail if you don't want to buy a seperate fan, regardless I'd always get the retail though since it comes with it's own heatsink. Just iincase anything happens to your current one if you have something to use.

Have you nabbed memory yet?..Here's a inexpensive memory that offers fantastic performance.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820146565

don't let the price fool you. They use to be around 95 dollars with a 40 dollar mail in rebate. But I guess they decided to make it a instant saving for christmas. These chips use D9GMH micron IC's. Fantastic overclockers, Micron D9GMH and D9GKX are the most desired IC's since they overclock extremely well, they can also handle high voltages without burning up quickly unlike other IC's. Simply a fantastic price, plus, a lifetime warranty...If you want got 2 sets for 4 gigs, depending on how extensively you edit/game. I'm a video editor myself...So I have 4 gigs in my rig, although my rig is older doesn't have these modules..bah..I need a new pc.

But yea...Great setup...Hope this helps.