Best budget board for a i5 2400 + sli build

[rglaredo]

I decided that my old phenom 9850 with 4 gigs of mem and galaxy gt 440 is no longer adecaute for playing new games. I decided to build a new system around the i5 2400 chip and my two evga 550 ti's 2gbs cards ( yes two 550 ti's!! i knowthere are better but, those cards where free!! lol and upgrade for my 440 gt galaxy card). I cant find a decent low budget p67 or z68 board that can do sli for under 130 dlls. Any suggestions? Anyone is acually doing sli with a good board under 140dlls ? I dont plan to oc but i do want to upgrade the chip later on ..so i want to stay inside the 1115 chips.

 

[venur]

I decided that my old phenom 9850 with 4 gigs of mem and galaxy gt 440 is no longer adecaute for playing new games. I decided to build a new system around the i5 2400 chip and my two evga 550 ti's 2gbs cards ( yes two 550 ti's!! i knowthere are better but, those cards where free!! lol and upgrade for my 440 gt galaxy card). I cant find a decent low budget p67 or z68 board that can do sli for under 130 dlls. Any suggestions? Anyone is acually doing sli with a good board under 140dlls ? I dont plan to oc but i do want to upgrade the chip later on ..so i want to stay inside the 1115 chips.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157271 121$

But it dual at 8.0 pcie instead of 16pcie

 

[kelthic]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157271 should be a solid option.

also, for $30 more on that cpu you could get the unlocked 2500k which is an excellent gaming cpu. I know you said you don't plan on overclocking, but leaving yourself that option open and reading up on it is a very good investement you can make, so i thought i would provide that suggestion anyway.

 

[jmsellars1]

This board looks OK.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128488

I'd spend a tad extra to get this though:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157271

EDIT: Haha we all linked the same board at the same time

 

[venur]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157271 should be a solid option.

also, for $30 more on that cpu you could get the unlocked 2500k which is an excellent gaming cpu. I know you said you don't plan on overclocking, but leaving yourself that option open and reading up on it is a very good investement you can make, so i thought i would provide that suggestion anyway.

didnt realised that i5-2500k was only 30$ more then a 2400. Definatly go for the i5-2500k its a beast and you'll find yourself upgrading your two 550ti before you will upgrade an i5-2500k. With adequate cooling this CPU is just a monster.

edit: My bro own that mobo with an i5-2500k and its awsome for the price.

 

[rglaredo]

Thank you for your sugestions. Thank you for the newegg links. I'm planning on using newegg to order stuff because they offer the billme later option. I wish i could get the 2500k but since I only have around 450ish credit with bill me later I want to use it for getting the mobo, cpu, mem, and computer case . The OS, SSD, and other stuff I can pick it up at the local Bestbuy stores since I have some reward points and a 100+ dlls on gift cards from last xmas lol ..

 

[kelthic]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115072 i5 2500k
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231394 8GB Ram Kit
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157271 ASRock z68 Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119247 Cooler Master Elite 311 case (the reason i picked this is there is a lot of room to add fans later on).
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103065 Hyper 212 CPU Cooler

Total: 436.95.

You still need a psu and GPU, as well as the OS, HDD/SSD and optional fans for the case from Best Buy like you talked about above.

 

[kelthic]

Nevermind, i forgot you had the 2 550 ti's. So unless you already have a solid PSU, i'd recommend: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139027 for an additional 59.99.

That puts your out of pocket at around $46.94

 

[kelthic]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139028 change that one i suggested with a 600w. sorry about that, i forgot to change the psu calculator for the SLI config when i remember that's what you had. this one is 69.99.

that puts your out of pocket at $56.94.

Again sorry about that!

 

[Swolern]

Second the i5 2500k, it's a beast for gaming. Microcenter has it for $179 plus an additional $50 off when u buy a motherboard with it also. In store pick-up only.

 

[rglaredo]

Thanks for the replies. with the extra cash to spare maybe I get a http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119233 for a computer case. the reviews said that it fitted the 212 cooler with room to spare.

 

[kelthic]

That is an excellent case option as well

 

[rglaredo]

Best answer selected by rglaredo.