EVGA 750i or XFX 680i -both RAID 0/SLI

[x_2fast4u_x]

Ok, to start i am a little bit of a XFX fan boy, second if i get the XFX i will have enough to buy a Q6600 almost right away iw ill have to wait quite a while longer if i get the EVGA.

my current CPU is:
Intel Core 2 Duo E6320, i do not know if it would work in either board if it will work in the XFX i will almost defiantly buy the XFX then, so my question is whats the better one all around, i don't really care if the 750i is to much better because I have read that the 680i is a better overclock'er and i WILL be OC'ing the Q6600 to 3.2 if i am lucky.



EVGA 750i
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=3839553&CatId=1533


XFX 680i
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4240124&Sku=E145-2046


My final build:
MoBo^
CPU Q6600 / E6320(while waiting and if possible)
2x 250gig WDC WD2500AAKS-00VYA (232 GB) (RAID0)
2x 8800gt Zalman EDT.
4x 1gig Crucial ballistiX ddr2 PC6400
1x SuperMulti drive
1x Asus Xonar DX PCIe 7.1 Sound Card
1x 350watt PSU (will upgrade to 750watt when i have the money)
Vista 64bit





Thanks in advance!

 

[spathotan]

750i. The 680i is a piece of junk, and there is absolutely no reason to buy a 600i series board anymore.

Not to sound like a jerk so dont take it that way, but in this case I think your brand loyalty needs to take a back seat to reality. The 680i is plagued with memory issues and overclocking is hit or miss, emphases on miss, Nvidia chipsets are bad with voltage. If you can afford it, invest in the EVGA 750i FTW version. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813188026 Its tried and tested, and is one of the most stable/solid 700i boards. Not to mention it has full 16/16 SLi, while the "value" 750i you are looking at is 8x/8x, incase that is important to you.

 

[x_2fast4u_x]

REALY i heard somewhere that the 750i is haveing problems it's self and that the 680i was a strong choice still....

Heres a 750i in my price range...what do you know about OC'ability and its an OEM-barebone...nothing but the MoBo
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130159R

 

[spathotan]

I used that exact board for my wifes system. The board layout is great, the only problem I had was constant BSOD's and windows install corruption when using a SATA dvd drive. However, after using an IDE drive and installing the chipset drivers (which contained the VITAL Mediashield /driver/firmware) it was smooth sailing. Hooked the SATA drive back up after that and no problems.

However, buyer beware with open box items.

 

[x_2fast4u_x]

well i belive they give me a 30day

 

[V3NOM]

evga 750i FTW. no questions about it.

 

[x_2fast4u_x]

Well i was doing some more research and found that

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130159R

has some MAJOR "POST" issues so thats a no go, anyone else wish to submit there thoughts

 

[spathotan]

Youre not going to find the perfect motherboard, espically with Nvidia chipsets. Even the 750i FTW only has 4 out of 5 eggs. (Take newegg "reviews" with a grain of salt mind you)

The 780i/790i are too expensive to gamble on, the 680i is too old and unreliable to even bother buying. The 750i is the best thing for you.

 

[Zorg]

I never would have considered you were a fan boy, except your avatar. :lol:

Do yourself a favor and consider switching camps to 2 x 4850's and an X48.

At any rate, if you want to continue your path to money wasting and frustration, get the 750i.

Here is the reason why. nVidia, fix the 680i chipset! Petition

I'm not a fanboi, I don't give a crap.

 

[spathotan]

Lol, I rememeber signing that petition back around when I first bought my EVGA 680i SLi board. RMA'd the first one due to RAM slots 0 and 1 being dead, RMA'd the second one for RAM voltages sticking way too high, they got it right on the 3rd board, however I sold it about 3 months later. Worse way to waste $280..ever.

EVGA had like 4 different revisions of the board within a 2 month period and had EVERYBODY confused and pissed off. AR...TR...all that garbage.

 

[Zorg]

So I guess that the avoidance of the 680i has been validated. But you continue to recommend [strike]them[/strike] Nvidia. Fanboi? No, I say loyalist.

We need more loyalty in this world. We don't get it.

 

[DFGum]

The only issue with 680i is with the newer cpu's its a trip updating your bio's and making sure memory timings are correct. Theres tons of posts with people with simple problems. 750i seems more solid if you want to avoid that sort of stuff.

 

[Zorg]

You could be right. The only problem I have with that is the fact that the people that would bytch are the enthusiasts. I suspect that you don't want to be put in a room with them. If you do, then at your expense and peril, I want to watch. I promise to stand against all others that would harm you. Wait ... that makes it my peril, no matter, I'm with you. Gotta love a good fight.

 

[bobbknight]

When I was looking to buy a board for my Q6600 I read about the 680I problem, it was only a few items one some of the forums I go to. So I ended up with an Asus P975 chipset motherboard. That one went south and it took Asus 6 months and 5 board to get it resolved. I replaced the Asus board with a DFi P965 board and it's working great. More stable than the Asus board too.

 

[Zorg]

Bob, we all feel your pain, but you have to let it go.

This bitterness hurts you not them.

Remember the future.

 

[x_2fast4u_x]

ok can we get back to the subject at hand....i need a mobo for NO MORE then $120 and thats pushing it would like to find one for 100 or less that can SLI/RAID0 support my ram have good OC'ability, and supports quad cores...http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4240124&Sku=E145-2046 this is the only one i found in my pricerange with m needed options, any one have som other MoBo choices?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157133

would this one be ok?...never mind however if u manage to find one liekit with SLI technology..i got 2 8800gt zalman edts. with me now...

 

[x_2fast4u_x]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813135093

Looks like a deal! OMG apaun further investigation this is also a Crossfire!

 

[spathotan]

P45 runs Crossfire yea. But youve got two 8800GT's which are nvidia-SLi. And ECS isnt exactly a great brand, although their newer boards are far better than past products.

 

[x_2fast4u_x]

ok so i planed on buying MoBo useing my current CPU and upgradeing to a Q6600 in about a month however im looking at

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4179115&CatId=3586

as a viable option, or going with a Intel bundle that has raid/SLI support with a quad core in it already!

Spathotan, i appreciate all your help =)

 

[spathotan]

The AMD Nvidia boards are rather decent. But the Phenom 9550 is significantly weaker than the Q6600 in the long run. AMD processors dont really overclock as well as Intels do.

 

[x_2fast4u_x]

ok thank you sounds like i will be sticking with finding a MoBo not worring aobut a CPU in a month or 2, most likely will be going with the FTW version u posted earlier thanks

If ANYONE has anything to add please do so now...any deals u see, i will be ordering the MoBo tomorrow

 

[x_2fast4u_x]

Another "pre-final" question does the EVGA 750i FTW support raid 0?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813188026
support my CPU Intel Core 2 Duo E6320, 1866 MHz (7 x 267) and does the board support Overlocking on my chip and the new Q6600 i will be ordering does?

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4240124&Sku=E145-2046

This one is the same chip set and does Everything i need it to do for $30 less is it worth is to the the FTW version?

 

[spathotan]

The EVGA FTW version is so recomended because it dosent follow Nvidia's reference design, its EVGA's own. Also that board supports SATA RAID 0/1/0+1/5/JBOD. And yes it will support your E6xxx.

 

[x_2fast4u_x]

yayzor!@! thanks i will MO FOSHO be buying that