Gaming M-ATX/M-ITX vs ATX w/ 1 GPU no OC

[ibkcknurass]

I want to have a simple discussion about mobo performance. I cant decide if I want ATX or smaller form factor, But I dont need 3 or 4 PCIex16 slots. So I want smaller form factor that more portable.

Motherboards have 2 or 3 extra PCI x16 slots that people will never use. Everything I read says that a single powerful GPU is more effective than 2 sli/cfx that match the price of the single GPU(2x150$ sli/cfx wont beat 1x300$ GPU).

And then there is OC, I honestly dont like it. I don't want to pay for extra cooling cost. I don't think I'm cheap, I am spending 550$ to 650$ for say a i7 3775k or lga 2011 and a high end Z77 or a x79 mobo. Then another 300$ to 400$ on a decent GPU.

So why should I buy mother board with features I will never use?

My ideal machine would be able to game(at full performance) and stream a movie for the kids at the same time. I dont know if I am asking to much but if I am then why put 16 or 32 gb of gskill ares if I just need a good 4 to 6 (gskill sniper) for gaming.

Anyone who has comments on anything above feel free to let me know what you think. To me some of it just seems to excessive.

The Mobos I am looking at right now.
Asus Sabertooth Z77(ATX)
Asus P8Z77 i deluxe(Mitx)
Asus RoG Maximus V Gene (Matx)
Gigabyte Z77X-UD5H or UD3H (ATX)

Im leaning toward the mini form factors right now. Feel free to convince me why I would need a full atx board.

 

[System Analysis Program]

No point buying a ROG board if your not gonna overclock. I personally own a Sabertooth Z77 and its a good board but i would go for something cheaper if your not overclocking (The Armour is a marketing gimmick). Maybe just a P8Z77-V for atx. The gigabyte boards are also geared for overclocking so that would just be a waste of extra money. The mitx deluxe would be the most logical since your not going to do SLI or Crossfire. But that board is also geared towards ocing as it has an 8 + 2 power phases which is due to it's unique daughter board design and also a lot of phases for a mITX board. i think you mean ivy bridge 3770K for i7 and i would not recommend a K edition since your not gonna overclock. The whole point of a unlocked CPU is for easier overclocking. i think your should do more research before listing suggestions. And be careful what you get, a good graphics card can easily be bottlenecked if your other parts aren't as good. For the mitx board, i would suggest an MSI Z77IA-E53. Personally the only matx boards i know for gaming are also for overclocking. So i can't really give any recommendations. For ATX, the P8Z77-V would be perfect as it is a good gaming board and also has some overclocking utilities avaliable if you decide to change your mind on ocing. ATX formfactor has more ports for USBs , esatas, Fan connectors... so if your using alot of external devices or you want to have a high cooling capability rig then atx could be a viable option even though your not using the extra PCIe slot for SLI/Crossfire.
Personally, i recommend you change your mind on overclocking since you want a gaming rig, ocing is almost an nessesity.