What Mobo for 2 gtx 670's

[hint172]

I'm getting two gtx 670's put in either a ASRock Z77 Extreme4 or ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 with the i5 2500k. Will these boards give me any bottlenecking/problems handling these two cards? If so please recommend a better one. Thanks

 

[nikorr]

The ASRock Z77 Extreme4, is probably best price/performance motherboard out there.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157293

 

[jaquith]

Q - Why SLI GTX 670's?!

If getting a 'new' LGA 1155 then stick to the Z77, and as far as bottlenecking in most all cases PCIe 2.0 x8/x8 won't with a SB CPU.

Great article PCIe Scaling -> http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Intel/Ivy_Bridge_PCI-Express_Scaling/1.html

Great MOBO review -> http://www.anandtech.com/show/5793/intel-z77-motherboard-review-with-ivy-bridge-asrock-asus-gigabyte-and-msi/1

My picks:
ASUS P8Z77-V PRO - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131819
ASUS P8Z77-V DELUXE - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131818

If primarily about gaming then ASRock Z77 Extreme4 is an excellent deal.

 

[JackNaylorPE]

I'm gonna agree with Jaq on the ASUS P8Z77-V PRO tho I'd add the Sabertooth to my short list

 

[hint172]

Q - Why SLI GTX 670's?!

If getting a 'new' LGA 1155 then stick to the Z77, and as far as bottlenecking in most all cases PCIe 2.0 x8/x8 won't with a SB CPU.

Great article PCIe Scaling -> http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Intel/Ivy_Bridge_PCI-Express_Scaling/1.html

Great MOBO review -> http://www.anandtech.com/show/5793/intel-z77-motherboard-review-with-ivy-bridge-asrock-asus-gigabyte-and-msi/1

My picks:
ASUS P8Z77-V PRO - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131819
ASUS P8Z77-V DELUXE - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131818

If primarily about gaming then ASRock Z77 Extreme4 is an excellent deal.
Thanks for the review link..but I was looking at the performance benchmarks of both the asus pro and asrock and in most cases the asrock either out performs or has slightly less results. So my question is why do you recommend the asus over the asrock? I'm fairly new to the computer scene and I'd greatly appreciate any insight on this. Thanks

 

[jaquith]

The ASUS is more about prolonged and long-term hardened use and not 1~15 minutes of benchmark testing. Poor but similar example, a Camry can go 135MPH (I think) -- try it for 24 hours straight vs say a Corvette at the same speed; the Camry will be broken down and a greasy smear on the road. ASUS is pretty good about hard-core testing and cooling their e.g. VRM and Chipsets (depending upon the model), all digital voltages, sufficient and smooth phase control .... very distant ... not to mention the doodads (add-ons).

 

[hint172]

The ASUS is more about prolonged and long-term hardened use and not 1~15 minutes of benchmark testing. Poor but similar example, a Camry can go 135MPH (I think) -- try it for 24 hours straight vs say a Corvette at the same speed; the Camry will be broken down and a greasy smear on the road. ASUS is pretty good about hard-core testing and cooling their e.g. VRM and Chipsets (depending upon the model), all digital voltages, sufficient and smooth phase control .... very distant ... not to mention the doodads (add-ons).

Good analogy, I'm going to pony up the extra cash for the asus then...even though my primary use for the computer is gaming. Another question about the board.. If in the future I wanted to add a third gtx 670 in sli would I have any problem since the third pci is a 2.0 slot?

 

[nikorr]

I agree with one thing, when u spend so much on the cards and CPU,

why look for budget mobo Hint172?

ASUS P8Z77-V LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

I would draw the line here and up @ http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131820

 

[nikorr]

And one from the ASRock Z77 Extreme6

Read this @ http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/z77-extreme6-z77a-gd65-z77h2-a2x,3187-2.html
Solid board all around for decent price.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157295

 

[hint172]

I agree with one thing, when u spend so much on the cards and CPU,

why look for budget mobo Hint172?

ASUS P8Z77-V LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

I would draw the line here and up @ http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131820

Im not particularly looking for a budget mobo, I just went to newegg an started looking at the highest rated. I don't know much about mobo's so I appreciate all the suggestions, thanks

 

[nikorr]

My favorite is this one @ http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131821

[flash=480,270]http://www.youtube.com/v/lHvE9hjaZ5c?version=3&feature=player_embedded[/flash]

 

[jaquith]

It entirely depends on what you need, as I understood it (SLI GTX 670's) Hardcore Gaming... For online gaming I prefer Intel to Broadcom NIC's. It's the little things that drive me nuts with ASRock, stuff that 99% of the folks never realize...

As the prices go up then I'd rather pony up for the ASRock Z77 Professional, great for OC'ing the crap out of the CPU & RAM (still has the Broadcom LAN) :

 

[jaquith]

My favorite is this one @ http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131821

[flash=480,270]http://www.youtube.com/v/lHvE9hjaZ5c?version=3&feature=player_embedded[/flash]

^+1 Yeah, I like the Sabertooth lines -- active cooling (fans) of both the VRM and Chipset. 5 year warranty to boot!

I have the ASUS Sabertooth X79 -- no complaints

 

[nikorr]

Yeah, I like the Sabertooth lines -- active cooling (fans) of both the VRM and Chipset.

I have the ASUS Sabertooth X79 -- no complaints

I've seen your case pic, looks great. Its massive board.

What did u OC out of it?

 

[jaquith]

4.8GHz (1.36v~1.40v) is the sweet-spot with 32GB of RAM.

Stable most environments - http://valid.canardpc.com/show_oc.php?id=2320509
Rock solid (kitchen sink) - http://valid.canardpc.com/show_oc.php?id=2261309

I can get 5GHz but I don't like going >1.44v vCore and/or wacky LLC/Phase control to keep it stable. >1.50v starts to degrade the SB-E, and higher OC'ing you're also adding +0.01v~+0.03v from LLC.

 

[nikorr]

4.8GHz (1.36v~1.40v) is the sweet-spot with 32GB of RAM.

Stable most environments - http://valid.canardpc.com/show_oc.php?id=2320509
Rock solid (kitchen sink) - http://valid.canardpc.com/show_oc.php?id=2261309

I can get 5GHz but I don't like going >1.44v vCore and/or wacky LLC/Phase control to keep it stable. >1.50v starts to degrade the SB-E, and higher OC'ing you're also adding +0.01v~+0.03v from LLC.

That is good : )