Best Motherboards For The Money: October 2014 (Archive)

[Crashman]

Are you having a hard time keeping track of the best motherboards out there? Our resident motherboard expert helps you pick the right platform with this collection of award-winning boards covering today's top AMD and Intel processors.

Best Motherboards For The Money: October 2014 : Read more

 

[srap]

You guys just solved a lot of my problems with this new "Best X for the money" article

 

[hmp_goose]

Soooo where's the Page 2, featuring Teh Chipset Guide for Derps?

 

[Onus]

Where are entry level (e.g. basic office) and mainstream boards (e.g. B85, H87)? This applies to only a small fraction of the market, most of whom do not need advanced features.

 

[Memnarchon]

WOW! Awesome idea. We wanted and need an article like this.

Thanks for this new article of "Best X for the money: x month"!

edit:

Where are entry level (e.g. basic office) and mainstream boards (e.g. B85, H87)?

+1 to what Onus said.

 

[c kretzman]

Nice list. Maybe I like it because I own a board on this list

Speaking of "Where is the...": Where is the "Best Server Board" list?

 

[patrichpachich]

hoping to see B85, H87 and H97

 

[ta152h]

Thomas,

Two things. The Personal System/2 is abbreviated at PS/2, not P/S 2. That's where the port (and VGA) came from back in 1987. They were amazing machines, of which I still have several (some new) if you ever want pictures. It's a nitpick, but as a technical site should be accurate.

Also, this isn't a nitpick, it's a fairly important omission. I recommend putting the socket type in your chart. It may seem obvious to you, but consider who would be reading this article to get information. It might not be to them, and it's important to know.

 

[Cryio]

I have a 970A chipset for my FX 6300. I desperately need a better mobo

 

[Sakkura]

The only FM2+ boards you recommend are above $100. That's completely useless, they are way too expensive to make sense for an APU/Athlon build. Doesn't necessarily have to be as cheap as the AM1 boards, but there should AT LEAST be one model below $100.

You also don't have a single Intel board under $150.

Seriously, this article has nothing to do with "best for the money" when it's all high-end boards that are overkill for most people - including overclockers.

 

[bygbyron3]

ASRock has really cornered the value motherboard market and I wasn't surprised to see their motherboards listed as the best for the money.

 

[JackNaylorPE]

I'm always crinkle my face when I see "for the money" articles. Basically says "It prolly isn't really what ya want, but it's a good buy for the money". Kinda like that PSU you bought with the chinese caps cause if ya got what ya wanted it was a budget buster.

Not sure why two X99's were selected just $6 apart .... or why all the Z97's just $60 apart ? Nothing for the gal / guy w/ $130 to spend or > $225 to spend

Would much rather see:

$100 - $125
$125 - $150
......
$275 - $300

And so on .... but not if the price categories move each month like on the GFX card reviews. When the categories move it reads as if the categories are picked to fit a pre-selected winner.

 

[bak0n]

Would be improved if it was separated into form factor categories as well.

 

[Amdlova]

maximum i will pay on motherboard is $150 more than that blow my pocket away

 

[lunyone]

I would like to see:
Intel/AMD:
* <$60 OC'ing/Office/HTPC Motherboard
* $60-$99 OC'ing/Office/HTPC Motherboard and possibly entry level enthusiast/gaming
* $100-150 same as above
* >$150 Enthusiast/Gaming Motherboard

I don't see any affordable Motherboards for budget builds on the recommendations, so this is why I suggested something like the list above. Obviously x99 is in a different price range, but most people know this going into that platform.

 

[vampelle]

this is great but can you also please provide the best budget board for series 8 and series 9. a compare of buying series 8 over 9 or vice versa.
looking in intel. is it worth having hdmi in the board or gpu and which gpu is compatible with which board.

 

[AndrewJacksonZA]

Thanks for the article Crash. However I would like to see the best value-for-money board that can overclock a G3258 please.

 

[Goldengoose]

Teething problems with the article. I think the other posters are right, you need categories, example best AMD/Intel board for 0-50, 51-100 etc etc. Or maybe have a chart which sorts them by features. standard boards 0-100, OC boards 0-100 etc.

 

[logainofhades]

The 970a-ud3p belongs on this list for AM3+. Gigabyte H97-gaming 3 and the H97 pro4 should be too. There are absolutely no budget boards on this list at all. This list is fine for those looking to spend a good chunk of change on a system, but for many, it is offers no help at all, as these boards are out of reach for the budget builds. It is a good start, but needs more depth, like the CPU and GPU best of's have.

 

[oxiide]

All concerns about the layout aside, extending this article series to motherboards is an absolutely awesome idea. Thanks, Tom's.

 

[Flying-Q]

As the start of a new 'Best X for the money' series this is great. Please, for future iterations, include the requested modifications regarding price banding, sockets, compatible CPUs and target audience for each board. Also, have a separate section for SFF like mITX and uATX (most of my customers are asking for small cases nowadays)

 

[c kretzman]

Nice list. Maybe I like it because I own a board on this list

Speaking of "Where is the...": Where is the "Best Server Board" list?

 

[gallovfc]

Awesome article !!! But my personal needs are for the best bang-for-the-buck Mini-ITX boards, i'll be using a Core i5 4430 and a GTX 970.

 

[Tzn]

at those prices you buy a i5 and a cheap mobo and be a winner, overcloking is for maniacs.

 

[WyomingKnott]

I know that you can figure out the socket from the chipset, but it would be nice to add the socket to the specs.