Best Bang For My Buck?

[ahumphers91]

I want to buy another ATX motherboard, but not up to date on everything. Don't want to spend more than 100.00 on the board, less if possible. What would be the best bang for my buck?

 

[pepperman]

What's the rest of your system specs?

 

[ahumphers91]

This is what I have now. I am going to be building another computer and giving this one to my dad but was wondering what board I should go with? I would like to stay with AMD though.

Mainboard : MSI K8N Neo4/SLI (MS-7100)
Chipset : nVidia nForce4
Processor : AMD Athlon 64 3200+ @ 2000 MHz
Physical Memory : 2048 MB (4 x 512 DDR-SDRAM )
Video Card : Nvidia Corp GeForce 6800 [NV41.1]
Monitor Type : SONY SDM-HS95 - 19 inches
Network Card : Ralink Technology Corp Ralink Technology Corp
Network Card : Marvell Semiconductor (Was: Galileo Technology Ltd) Yukon 88E8053 PCI-E Gigabit Ethernet Controller (Copper)
Operating System : Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition 5.01.2600 Service Pack 3
DirectX : Version 9.0c (November 2006)

 

[pepperman]

A compatible mobo would be hard to find, as the 939 socket has been phased out for a few years now, but you might be able to find one used on ebay. What exactly is wrong with your current one that makes you want to upgrade?

 

[ahumphers91]

Nothing. I am building another computer for myself and giving the one I currently have to my father. There is nothing wrong with the one I have. Instead of buying a dual core used on ebay for my AMD 939 socket I just decided to buy another board. I just want to know which board right now is the best bang for my buck. I am leaning toward something that supports the AM3 triple core CPU.

 

[pepperman]

so you want to build a whole new system? I was confused; I though you were just upgrading your mobo for your current setup.

Do you just want a mobo to build off of, or do you want a list of parts for a new build?

 

[ahumphers91]

Sorry, just the mobo. I already know which cpu and graphics card im going with, just would like some advice on the motherboard selction.

 

[pepperman]

will you be crossfiring or sli-ing in the future? What type of ram will you be using?

 

[ahumphers91]

gona go with whatever ram the board takes. I don't think i will do the sli thing. My current board has it but I have never used it. heh.

 

[pepperman]

Depending on if you will upgrade in the future or not, you may want to go with DDR3 ram over DDR2 ram; right now, the price lies in favor of DDR2, and the performance increase is negligible. If you decide to upgrade to next gen AM3 cpus, however, they may only have a DDR3 controller (right now they have both), which would mean you would have to get a new mobo. The choice is ultimately yours, so I present you with two mobos; one DDR2, one DDR3, otherwise they are pretty much the same (one has onboard gpu, but you can disable it).

DDR2- $110
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128387

DDR3- $115
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128398

 

[pepperman]

btw, both are crossfire enabled, but Nvidia cards will still work in single card configs just like ati cards work in sli mobos in single card configs.

 

[ahumphers91]

Thanks! I appreciate your time.

 

[pepperman]

That's what we're here for. Good luck with your build, and if you have any more questions, feel free to ask.