So Im putting (to start) my existing stuff on a new board: E6600, Tuniq 120, P180, Geil DDR2 800, WD Raptor 150, evga 8800GTX. I may upgrade to the Q6600 a bit later.
I will not be running sli or crossfire, dont need raid, but do need firewire. I am a moderate overclocker, and am looking for something that can carry me through the next 1-2 years. Not a first adopter either, so I wont be dumping anything for nehalem.
So the frontrunners, and why:
Abit IX38 Quad GT. Not my favorite board, but if it restocks at newegg with the $90 MIR I would be an idiot not to go for it. Supposed to happen on 5/2/08 so I will wait until then to see what they have.
GA EX38 DS4. Like that it is reasonable at $206. Has 1600 FSB so might last me longer. Not running crossfire tho so not sure if 1600 FSB makes it worth the extra $40 over the...
GA EP35 DS4. Like the $169 tag. o.c. to 1600FSB is cool. Not sure if the cooling is better between this or the EX38, or which is really a better board.
P5E. Like the cooling (although I hear the EX38 runs cooler??). 1600FSB, and still in budget (which is below $250) at $224. Flashable to rampage formula bios (what does that get me btw?) and same board as maximus formula. Just seems solid.
DFI DK X48 T2RS. New! $224! Its DFI! And X48! But it might just be overwhelming bios for me. And there are no reviews on it yet so buying would be a risk. Cooling unknown. But it sure looks cool, and X48 is great.
DFI LT UT P35 T2R. Love the cooling on this, and its DFI, ratings are great. Only 1333 FSB. $219 seems a bit stiff for a P35 board, is it worth it?
What would others pick here, or what great boards did I miss? The goal is to get an easy oc on my current eq to 3.4 or 3.6. Which board will get me there, and be good for future quad processors?
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