Motherboards

[TwinTail]

Looking forward to the future, at this time, what would be one of the better motherboards out there to use in a PC build. Im looking for quality at todays standards for a reasonable price. Thoughts anyone?

[Dragon]

I just used this one for a customer build, I built it with the I5, but an I7 will also fit on this board.  The LED display is a nice feature and with a clear sided case, you can keep an eye on CPU temp at all times.  The big E in the middle of the board pulses like a heartbeat.  Good bus speeds and builder friendly layout at a good price.  I was surprised at how many fan connectors were on the board, enough for all case fans. 


http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=5083733&CatId=4720

-edit-
For a couple bucks more, I recommend this one though:

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=5083734&CatId=4720

[humble]

A lot of it depends on your actual build. If your building a gaming rig and intend to consider OCing it then I'd concur with the post above. You can get an awful lot out of a "budget" build as raw performance continues to outstrip the growth in resource demand for all but the cutting edge games. This years "budget build" often equals last years gaming rig.

ASRock makes a good mid range MB that many here (including me) have mentioned in the past...link is to one MB but I'd browse what they offer...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157181

I've used Gigabyte and MSI on my last 2 builds and been very happy with both. Both boards happened to be the best "bang for the buck" at the moment I bought them. Both are very OC friendly but running stock at the moment...

I'd start with either a budget or an idea of what you want the system for and I'm sure you'll get a lot of idea's.

My general thought is money goes to a good PS 1st, then pick the CPU and match it to a MB then add a GPU that syncs with the CPU. If $$$ come into play then PS still rules but you try and balance a "better" GPU with a MB/CPU that allows an upgrade to the CPU later. Especially if your open to OCing a "lower end" CPU can give tremendous performance for the $$$

[BaldEagl]

I wouldn't even be thinking about a motherboard until you're ready to build.  CPU's continue to advance and as they do the socket configurations continue to change.  So do the video and RAM slots as advances occur in those areas.  What might be a good motherboard today could be outdated in six to twelve months or less.

More and more I've come to the conclusion that building with the idea of upgrading in the future is a waste of money because the upgrade path is stuck in old technology.  The better use of funds is to build with current bang for the buck in mind and the thought that that machine will need to be replaced when it reaches the end of it's usable life.  Of course, buying at the higher end of the spectrum makes that usable life longer.

I built my machine 2 years ago.  My upgrade path is to a Wolfdale E8400 or E8500 CPU but my E6750 overclocked (3.2 Ghz) still runs fine so I have no need to do that.  I'm "stuck" with DDR2 RAM and am already running 4 Gb at speeds that are in sync with the fastest CPU's so there is no upgrade path there.  I'm also running a Nvidia 8800 GTS 512 powered by a 750W PCP&C Silencer so I could upgrade the GPU but mine still runs the game at my refresh rate.  About the only thing I could upgrade and transfer to a new build would be the video card.  A legitimate upgrade for me would be a new build with an LGA 1156 or 1366 CPU and DDR3 RAM which means starting over after only two years.

[Spikes]

Also keep in mind the newer i7's run off the 1366 socket mobo (ie the six core new one, and the 920s+). Evga makes good stuff. But thing is don't think about it until you are ready...because times change.