Need a Mobo for my new cpu

sbudbud

Honorable
Oct 16, 2012
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10,630
I just picked up a new i7 3770k for $120 and wanted to get a motherboard for it.
The current mobo in my computer is AMD based so thats a no go.
Im looking for the best motherboard, Im planning to run SLI/Crossfire and do some overclocking.
So shoot me some info and which is the best (for the money)
I don't really have a budget but I'm not trying to throw Donald Trump down on a motherboard.
 
Great buy for $120!
For overclocking, you will want a Z77 based motherboard.
Unless you are looking at competitive record seeking overclocks, any Z 77 motherboard will do.
No need for a expensive enthusiast level motherboard.
A budget of $100 will do. Pick your favorite brand, they are all good.
The guts, the Z77 chipset all come from the same source---Intel.

Do not exclude the M-ATX, or even ITX format if you are interested in small cases.

You indicated an interest in sli/crossfire.
Here is my canned rant on that:
-----------------------------Start of rant----------------------------------------------------
Dual graphics cards vs. a good single card.

a) How good do you really need to be?
A single GTX650/ti or 7770 can give you good performance at 1920 x 1200 in most games.

A single GTX660 or 7850 will give you excellent performance at 1920 x 1200 in most games.
Even 2560 x 1600 will be good with lowered detail.
A single gtx690 is about as good as it gets.

Only if you are looking at triple monitor gaming, then sli/cf will be needed.
Even that is now changing with triple monitor support on top end cards.

b) The costs for a single card are lower.
You require a less expensive motherboard; no need for sli/cf or multiple pci-e slots.
Even a ITX motherboard will do.

Your psu costs are less.
A GTX660 needs a 430w psu, even a GTX680 only needs a 550w psu.
When you add another card to the mix, plan on adding 150-200w to your psu requirements.

Even the strongest GTX690 only needs 620w.

Case cooling becomes more of an issue with dual cards.
That means a more expensive case with more and stronger fans.
You will also look at more noise.

c) Dual cards do not always render their half of the display in sync, causing microstuttering. It is an annoying effect.
The benefit of higher benchmark fps can be offset, particularly with lower tier cards.
Read this: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/radeon-geforce-stutter-crossfire,2995.html

d) dual card support is dependent on the driver. Not all games can benefit from dual cards.

e) cf/sli up front reduces your option to get another card for an upgrade. Not that I suggest you plan for that.
It will often be the case that replacing your current card with a newer gen card will offer a better upgrade path.
The GTX780 and amd 8000 series are not that far off.
-------------------------------End of rant-----------------------------------------------------------

Here is one such example:
ASRock Z77M @$90
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157325