SLI AM2+/AM3 Board

[remety]

In the market for an ATX AM2+/AM3 compatible SLI board. I currently have an ECS non SLI board and looking to upgrade just the mobo. Overclocking capability would be nice to have but I'm not that big on it. I have an OCZ GameXStream 700W PSU that should be enough to power the whole rig right?

This is my current hardware that will be going into the new board.

AMD Phenom 9950
G.Skill 4GB DDR2 1066
x2 BFG GTX 260 OC Maxcore 55nm
x2 74GB Raptors
x2 750GB HD's
Sound Blaster X Fi sound card

Any help is appreciated.

 

[Crashman]

In the market for an ATX AM2+/AM3 compatible SLI board. I currently have an ECS non SLI board and looking to upgrade just the mobo. Overclocking capability would be nice to have but I'm not that big on it. I have an OCZ GameXStream 700W PSU that should be enough to power the whole rig right?

This is my current hardware that will be going into the new board.

AMD Phenom 9950
G.Skill 4GB DDR2 1066
x2 BFG GTX 260 OC Maxcore 55nm
x2 74GB Raptors
x2 750GB HD's
Sound Blaster X Fi sound card

Any help is appreciated.

AM3 is AM2+ with DDR3 only, so you're basically looking for an AM2+ motherboard that supports AM3 and AM2 processors. The only board I could find at newegg is this:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131367

 

[remety]

So AM3 is just basically an AM3 proc with DDR3 memory and it can work in some AM2+ only boards that support DDR3? I seen that board but they are OOS.

 

[shortstuff_mt]

Here's an AM2+ board that supports SLI.

ASUS M3N-HT Deluxe $138.89

It looks like it's a special order piece from Provantage, though.

Buy.com has it in stock, but their price is considerably higher.

ASUS M3N-HT Deluxe $200

Here's a list of other possible places to buy the board:

http://www.google.com/products/catalog?q=ASUS+M3N-HT+Deluxe&oe=utf-8&client=firefox&cid=16827375264000916510&ei=HQD_S8yLDqWglASPjPW3DA&sa=button&ved=0CAkQgggwADgA#p

 

[Crashman]

So AM3 is just basically an AM3 proc with DDR3 memory and it can work in some AM2+ only boards that support DDR3? I seen that board but they are OOS.

OOS? An AM3 board holds AM2+ or AM3 processors and DDR3 RAM. An AM2+ is the same thing with DDR2 RAM. AM3 boards don't take legacy AM2 processors because those processors don't have DDR3 support. AM2+ boards DO take legacy AM2 processors because the board has DDR2 slots.

 

[remety]

OOS? An AM3 board holds AM2+ or AM3 processors and DDR3 RAM. An AM2+ is the same thing with DDR2 RAM. AM3 boards don't take legacy AM2 processors because those processors don't have DDR3 support. AM2+ boards DO take legacy AM2 processors because the board has DDR2 slots.

So I can slap my 9950 into an AM3 board just need to get DDR3 memory? So AM2+ and AM3 is backwards compatible as long as you have the correct memory for whichever board it is?

OOS = Out Of Stock.

Thanks for the help

 

[Crashman]

So I can slap my 9950 into an AM3 board just need to get DDR3 memory? So AM2+ and AM3 is backwards compatible as long as you have the correct memory for whichever board it is?

OOS = Out Of Stock.

Thanks for the help

Nope, 9950 has no DDR3 memory controller.

 

[remety]

See that's why I needed clarification.. You said AM2+ will work the 9950 is AM2+ but apparently has no DDR3 controller. So where is the line drawn? Which AM2+ proc can go into an AM3 board as you stated above?

 

[Crashman]

See that's why I needed clarification.. You said AM2+ will work the 9950 is AM2+ but apparently has no DDR3 controller. So where is the line drawn? Which AM2+ proc can go into an AM3 board as you stated above?

I believe the "AM2+" Phenom II's have DDR3 controllers. But you already have a DDR2-only processor and DDR2 memory, so I'd start looking for an nForce 700 series board to hold those parts.

 

[remety]

Phenom II's are AM3's... I see what you said in the beginning now... You were saying those AM3's are "AM2+" because they simply added a DDR3 controller that is why they can be used on an AM2+ board since they have both controllers.

 

[remety]

I'm looking for a 780a chipset, but I doubt I will come across one for AM2+ I can't find jack of the boards I want.

 

[HansVonOhain]

AM3 CPU's have 2 seperate memory controllers, so you can run DDR2 on AM3 socket. Trust me, my friend went with that route.

 

[Crashman]

AM3 CPU's have 2 seperate memory controllers, so you can run DDR2 on AM3 socket. Trust me, my friend went with that route.

If you get an "AM3" board with DDR2 slots, it's called "AM2+" Really. Newegg calls some of its boards "AM2+/AM3" but that's just to tell you what processors are compatible.

 

[remety]

I think I found an M3N-HT on eBay... Might pull the trigger on it.