Need 1155 mATX Motherboard (i7 3770k)

[EricPCNoob]

I got a microcenter add in the mail, and it is advertising a i7 3770k CPU for $229.99, and in my opinion, this is an amazing deal. You get the price of an i5 with an i7. The problem is, I have an AMD motherboard, and I have been looking for a reason to upgrade. Based on my understanding, i need...

1) micro ATX size, to fit in my case
2) socket 1155 for the processor
3) z77 motherboard for Overclocking (Maybe, read more below)
4) [Optional] Hopefully 2 PCIe 3.0 x16 slots for GPU's. I currently am not running SLI, but I want the ability to do so.

Is this correct?

I believe that is it. #4 is optional, but I would like to do so, in a year or so, and not have to go get a new mobo.

I have done some research on newegg.com. There was one motherboard that had all of this, but something was wrong with it. It had some problems, or it didnt have audio ports, or it is just broken... honestly I forget which one it was.

Could you help me out?

Also, if I am being to picky, what do you think I should get/ do?

Also, I have some other motherboard questions...

1) I know people like z77 motherboard for overclocking, but can you overclock well with a non z77 motherboard?
2) Should I just upgrade my case and get a ATX motherboard not mATX?
3) Should I go socket 2011 with a i7 3830 for the same price at microcenter?

Thank you! Please help me out!

PS- Reason I put this in the ASUS section is because I hear they make good products. It doesnt specifically have to be an ASUS board, though.

 

[C12Friedman]

2 3.0 x16 slots will not be found on a socket 1155 board, number 4 is out. For the other options, yes, you'll want a Z77 chipset - micro ATX isn't a problem Here are some possiblities http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=Property&Subcategory=280&Description=&Type=&N=100007627&IsNodeId=1&IsPowerSearch=1&srchInDesc=&MinPrice=&MaxPrice=&PropertyCodeValue=717%3A288642&PropertyCodeValue=757%3A7619

 

[EricPCNoob]

Best answer selected by EricPCnoob.

 

[ZeroWhite]

Actually, There are no 1155 CPUs capable of supporting dual pci-e 3.0 16x, motherboard manufacturers install a PCI-E bridge chip on their boards to allow the cards to run at 16x/16x but the CPU only has 16 lanes so the cards are still effectively running at 8x/8x. Better yet, PCI-E 3.0 @ 8x is the same as full PCI-E 2.0 @ 16x which most cards these days are not maxing out the PCI-E 2.0 16x bandwidth limit.

Basically, there is dual PCI-E 3.0 configurations for MATX boards that are just as effective as ATX boards with the bridge chip because the CPU is where the limitation lies.

Here is a list on Newegg of 2x PCI-E 3.0 / Z77 Boards: Click Me!

Everyone has their own brand preference, Mine is Gigabyte and ASUS but this list also has ASRock and MSI.