New motherboard (LGA 775)

[Kwisatz-X]

Hi, I am looking for a suggestion about buying a new motherboard.
My current one is Asus P5Q3 Deluxe and due to known problems with this board, I need a new one.
From what I've read, problems with P45 chipset and DDR3 RAM are common, so I was considering P35, X38 or X48 mobo, but P35 seems a bit too old.
If you know any another chipsets suitable for my build, tell me.

My hardware:
CPU: Core 2 Duo E8400
RAM: DDR3 OCZ Platinium 2x2 GB 1333Mhz Low Voltage (OCZ3P1333LV2G)
Graphic Card: nVidia GTX 260 Core 216
PSU: 650W from OCZ
HDD: SATA2 Seagate 500 GB

The comp is going to be used mainly for hardcore gaming.
I want it to run fairly well and stable for a couple of years, until moving to a newer socket mobo.
By the way, I want to avoid asus motherboards due to incompatibility with OCZ memory.

Additional Details:
Budget: up to 140 USD (400 PLN)
Overclocking: Maybe, in the future
SLI or Crossfire: No

Regards,
Tom

 

[puttsy]

Not to burst your bubble but, honestly it isn't worth buying a new 775 board. I've got 3 775 machines (1 C2Q, 2 C2D's) and needed a new board due to issues and simply broke down and bought a P35 from eBay because anything new is simply not worth spending money on. You are better of saving for an i3 1155. (An i3 would be about the same performance of your C2D...I built an i3 for a client and was sadly put in my place with my 2 C2D's but my quad out performed a larger amount of i5's I've built...I've got a new machine too but that's not for here)

Also, you won't find a 775 board that will do the gaming you are looking for. The socket is just not supported anymore. (Still a dang good socket with solid processors, love my core 2's) Either buy an eBay board that works with the DDR2 you have and the Core 2 or buy a new, socket 1155, DDR3 setup.

I don't say this because I have money to burn, I say this because I was in your same situation. An eBay board should get you through another year or 2 but, for that processor, don't expect miracles. Socket 775 outlasted most any other socket and it too must have it's end.

 

[Kwisatz-X]

But wouldn't buying a good x48/x38 mobo that can support 1600 MHz DDR3 and most newer graphic cards be enough for gaming?
Since for the next few years I could be saving for a better graphic card, because I don't think they will need more than PCI-E 2.0 x16 (at least the cards that came out this year),
and C2D should still handle most of the new games.