Best Core I7 board for my needs

[Moondoggy]

I was thinking about buying a new system from either Dell or HP and many people suggested that I should build my own instead and save money. So...... Since I've never built my own system before and know zero about motherboards and motherboard manufacturers other than a couple by name recognition, I'm looking for some suggestions on Motherboards for my new system. Here are a few things that you should know about me and what I'm looking for.

I'm not a big gamer although I to play a few games on occasion. I'm not an overclocker either although I might be tempted if I could be assured of not burning something up and it was fairly easy to do. For several reasons I want to run Windows 7 Pro on when it comes out. I want the CPU to be an Intel Core I7 920 and I want the motherboard BIOS to be able to support the XP virtualization mode available in Windows 7 Pro and with the Core I7 CPU. I also want to run Windows 7 in 64-bit mode and want at least 8 GB of memory. Beyond the above I'm looking for a board that will be easy to install (again, first time to build a system) and well supported by the manufacturer. Price is certainly important but I certainly don't think I need the most high end or low end board either. Pretty much I'm looking for a pretty mainstream board as long as it will support the virtual mode offered by the CPU and will hold up over time.

Given the above, what should I narrow my focus to?

 

[ucjp]

I would go with the ASUS P6T. Which one in particular is up to you, they are all solid boards with some slight variations. Asus has one of the best, if not the best reputation for motherboards so i would highly recommend them. They also overclock well and they are pretty first time user friendly.

Here's a fantastic P6T board. Kinda pricey, but then again all x58 boards are above 200 so it's pretty fair.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131365

 

[gkay09]

+1 for the ASUS P6T...
The P6T has nearly all the features that you would require...and is cheaper than the Deluxe V2...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131359

Other good alternative -
Gigabyte UD4P...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128374

EVGA 141-BL-E757-TR LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX X58 SLI LE
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813188049

 

[gkay09]

And as you are going with i7 and require more than 8GB of RAM, get the RAM in these configs...

6x 2GB kits - Preferred

Reason - The i7 CPUs have Tri- Channel memory controllers, hence it would be good to take full advantage of them...

 

[stonie_rocks]

The only thing I don't like about my Asus P6TDv2 is the Marvell ESATA controller doesn't support hot-swap (Like Asus claims it does). If your requirement was 6GB RAM instead of 8GB, I would have suggested the Intel DX58SO. Oddly enough, Intel only put 4 memory slots on that board instead of 6, when it's a triple channel board.

Asus' quality seems to be rapidly going downhill. Their driver and utility support is horrible.

 

[machack]

Another Opinion - I just put together a PC with the Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD5 motherboard and it has been a really good product.

It has 10 SATA ports and 12 USB 2.0 ports with 6 memory slots and capability of up to 3 video cards.

 

[TexasRattleSnake]

+1 for eVGA