Best motherboard for £150

[Dark Comet]

Hi, I am looking to buy a new motherboard. I was going to get the a Nvidia motherboard but I have heard they are not as good for overclocking compared to Intel. So what is newest Intel chipset out now? What is the best brand for motherboards? What is the best motherboard I can get for £150? I want to use it for overclocking. I want to put a Q9450 in it. I want to use DDR2 as it is the best price/performance out right now. I want to put a 8800 GTS in it. (Although I may use EVGAs step up so it maybe a 8800GTX or 9800GTX). I do not want anything to get in the way of the card (Like the sata cable did with my old motherboard). This is my case http://www.specialtech.co.uk/spshop/customer/product.php?productid=492&cat=0&page= (Should get a Antec Twelve Hundred when it comes out).

Ok cheers for any help anyone can give me.

 

[Dark Comet]

What about asus. Are they a good brand? I've heard they are, I just want to double check. They also have overclocking software with their motherboards I have heard.

 

[chookman]

Asus and Gigabyte are the favourites here... you probably want an x38 chipset board too... then just look at other "features" you need (RAID, firewire etc.)

 

[Dark Comet]

What about the X48. If I get a Q9450 and overclock won't the max FSB of 1333mhz limit me?

 

[dagger]

What about the X48. If I get a Q9450 and overclock won't the max FSB of 1333mhz limit me?

P35 runs natively at 1333mhz fsb, and can reliably oc to 1600mhz. X38/48 run natively at 1600mhz fsb, and can reliably oc to 2000+mhz. 1600 fsb=3.2ghz for Q9450.

 

[Dark Comet]

So 3.2ghz is max I can get with Q9450 on the X38? I was looking at this http://www.komplett.co.uk/k/ki.aspx?sku=342074&view=detailed#ProductTabs It seems to fit all my needs. What do you think?

 

[dagger]

So 3.2ghz is max I can get with Q9450 on the X38? I was looking at this http://www.komplett.co.uk/k/ki.aspx?sku=342074&view=detailed#ProductTabs It seems to fit all my needs. What do you think?

3.2ghz is not the highest. Basically, with a x38, it means you can reach 3.2ghz without overclocking the board. X38 can oc its reliably to 2000mhz, which is 4ghz for Q9450. 3.2ghz is the reliable oc limit for p35. Even then, you can probably go higher than 3.2 on p35, it's just beyond that speed, it's not guaranteed.

That board looks good.

 

[Dark Comet]

Ok thanks. I think I will get it. There is no reason to pay the extra £40 for the X48 is there?

BTW is the name Dagger from Final Fantasy 9?

 

[dagger]

Ok thanks. I think I will get it. There is no reason to pay the extra £40 for the X48 is there?

BTW is the name Dagger from Final Fantasy 9?

From reviews and benchmarks thus far, x48 offer no performance benefits over x38. They're basically the same.

And no, haven't played it.

 

[Dark Comet]

So the Asus one I linked would be the best one for that price?

Oh ok its just Daggers a rare name (At least where I live) and it was on that game so I thought it may have been from that.

 

[dagger]

So the Asus one I linked would be the best one for that price?

Oh ok its just Daggers a rare name (At least where I live) and it was on that game so I thought it may have been from that.

Not sure if it's the best price where you live. I brought the Gigabyte x38 board because it's cheaper here than the Asus board, and offers similar performance. It might be different elsewhere though.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128089

And I don't remember where the name is from.

 

[Dark Comet]

I use Komplett.co.uk. I was going to get the Asus because they have software to overclock with them. Not much but its a small extra so at the same price why not.

 

[dagger]

I use Komplett.co.uk. I was going to get the Asus because they have software to overclock with them. Not much but its a small extra so at the same price why not.

Ideally, you should not use overclocking software. They tend to mess things up, especially for higher overclocking. You should really do it yourself in bios.

 

[Dark Comet]

Well its 2.8ghz stock so I would have only wanted to go to 3.2 maybe. I will go higher when I spend the 100 hours to learn how to overclock fully.

 

[Dark Comet]

Also is Windows Vista normally this cheap. It is the full version ain't it? http://www.play.com/PC/PCs/4-/5375166/Microsoft-Windows-Vista-Ultimate-with-Service-Pack-1/Product.html

 

[dagger]

Also is Windows Vista normally this cheap. It is the full version ain't it? http://www.play.com/PC/PCs/4-/5375166/Microsoft-Windows-Vista-Ultimate-with-Service-Pack-1/Product.html

That doesn't look cheap at all. Lol

But then, I'm not familiar with pricing where you live. Just make sure to get the 64bit version instead of 32bit.

 

[Dark Comet]

If its the full version it should come with both disks. It looks like the full one to you don't it? I don't think its the OEM. Will all games run ok on the 64 bit version?

 

[dagger]

If its the full version it should come with both disks. It looks like the full one to you don't it? I don't think its the OEM. Will all games run ok on the 64 bit version?

Yes, they should run without problems.

 

[Dark Comet]

This motherboard should fit in my case shouldn't it. http://www.specialtech.co.uk/spshop/customer/product.php?productid=492&cat=0&page= (Bad case I know )

 

[dagger]

This motherboard should fit in my case shouldn't it. http://www.specialtech.co.uk/spshop/customer/product.php?productid=492&cat=0&page= (Bad case I know )

It should. All ATX mid-towers should be standarized.

 

[Dark Comet]

Ok thanks for your help. I hope I don't run into any problems with the SATA cable and 8800 GTS again I'll get a 1.8 dual core for now with the motherboard untill I can afford the Q9450 sometime next month.

 

[cisco]

There are several good board makers out there, but you can't go wrong with Asus. They make several excellent X38 boards. Gigabyte makes excellent boards as well. If you decide to go with Nvidia Chipset, I love EVGA motherboards.

 

[Dark Comet]

So you would also agree that this http://www.komplett.co.uk/k/ki.asp [...] roductTabs is a good motherboard.

 

[Dark Comet]

http://www.komplett.co.uk/k/ki.aspx?sku=342074&view=detailed#ProductTabs Opps don't know what happened to link.

 

[cisco]

Yes, that is an excellent board. Tons of features, well built and a good overclocker.