Cheapest but fastest Mobo for 6950's Xfire

[Mid-highgfx]

Budget is 120 for the mobo since i will be getting later on a quad core proc to OC at 4.2 (i hope on the corsair A50)

Best mobo that can OC a proc to 4.2? like oc genie on my current mobo ocd my triple core from 3.0 to 3.6 with a flick of a switch!

also, which proc it self do i get? budget is 150. i want 4.2 since that probably WONT bottleneck the 6950's in xfire; also, the A50 will handle it right? My pc is always on or below 40'C in normal use like forum browsing...

I went for the 6950's in xfire because i can get them on ebay for 200-220 and xfire for waaay better than 580 GTX performance for LESS price...

My psu i dont think ill need to upgrade...its a corsair 800 gaming series.

Thanks!

oh and have 4gigs of ripjaws ram, should i upgrade? it should only be like 40 bucks more...thanks! they run at 1600

 

[Mid-highgfx]

Also, you can reccomend 150 price tags on the mobo since i can prolly find them cheaper on ebay, thanks! newegg links plz

 

[Mousemonkey]

This topic has been moved from the section Graphics & Displays to section Motherboards & Memory by Mousemonkey

 

[jaquith]

Both the MOBO listed below perform the same, but the Pro offer SLI. I prefer a 12 Phase MOBO for OC'ing and the (2) below are the best for the $ to low vCore.

P8P67 (REV 3.1) - (Crossfire Only) - http://usa.asus.com/Motherboards/Intel_Socket_1155/P8P67_REV_31/#specifications

P8P67 PRO (REV 3.1) - (SLI/CF) - http://usa.asus.com/Motherboards/Intel_Socket_1155/P8P67_PRO_REV_31/#specifications

 

[Mid-highgfx]

Both the MOBO listed below perform the same, but the Pro offer SLI. I prefer a 12 Phase MOBO for OC'ing and the (2) below are the best for the $ to low vCore.

P8P67 (REV 3.1) - (Crossfire Only) - http://usa.asus.com/Motherboards/Intel_Socket_1155/P8P67_REV_31/#specifications

P8P67 PRO (REV 3.1) - (SLI/CF) - http://usa.asus.com/Motherboards/Intel_Socket_1155/P8P67_PRO_REV_31/#specifications

I dont need SLI but whats that 12 phase thing for OCing?

Btw, what do you think about the 980 x4?

Will by triple core 3.0 bottleneck it? Even though i unlocked it to a quad core and its now oc to 3.6?

 

[Mid-highgfx]

Or should i get a new mobo for the i5 2.5k?

 

[Mid-highgfx]

And last but not least, the 965, can i oc it easily to 4.0-4.2 on the A50? Thanks!

 

[jaquith]

I listed BOTH MOBO's for a comparison, I'm not a 'CF' fanboy; it depends upon the Game and factoring-in scaling. I/We have a ton of games; so I don't 'Cherry-Pick' only a few games, I look at the BIG picture.

What do you mean by '980 x4', are you referring to an AMD Phenom II X4 980 Black Edition?! If so then I'm not an AMD fanboy (not even the Zambezi 'FX' aka Bulldozer) either and again it depends upon the Games. Comparing the 'Phenom II X4 980 BE' vs i5-2500K, new then I'd get the i5-2500K with little to no thought.

Assuming 'A50' you mean the Corsair CAFA50 then it's cheap, I'll give it that, but I would look at the Thermaltake Frio, OR add matching Push/Pull fans with high CFM and low dBA.

Nonetheless, you need a good MOBO.

 

[Mid-highgfx]

I listed BOTH MOBO's for a comparison, I'm not a 'CF' fanboy; it depends upon the Game and factoring-in scaling. I/We have a ton of games; so I don't 'Cherry-Pick' only a few games, I look at the BIG picture.

What do you mean by '980 x4', are you referring to an AMD Phenom II X4 980 Black Edition?! If so then I'm not an AMD fanboy (not even the Zambezi 'FX' aka Bulldozer) either and again it depends upon the Games. Comparing the 'Phenom II X4 980 BE' vs i5-2500K, new then I'd get the i5-2500K with little to no thought.

Assuming 'A50' you mean the Corsair CAFA50 then it's cheap, I'll give it that, but I would look at the Thermaltake Frio, OR add matching Push/Pull fans with high CFM and low dBA.

Nonetheless, you need a good MOBO.

Going for the 2.5k; and most people say A50 is more than enough (i can haz beer) but im having issues with 2 things, finding a mobo thats dual 16x slots AND 1600 ram for ~115-150 :/

btw why does cpu-z say my ram is at 667? is there like a low power mode?

 

[Mid-highgfx]

now its says 800 when doing a game....is it supposed to be 800 and then it does 1600 total or 1600 each?

also thinking of getting http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130573

 

[jaquith]

RAM = 667MHz = DDR3-1333 {Double Data Rate}. x8/x8 vs x16/x16 - won't matter there's NO GPU out there that fully saturates the x8 PCIe lanes; see - http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/p67-gaming-3-way-sli-three-card-crossfire,2910.html and saturation; see - http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/NVIDIA/GTX_480_PCI-Express_Scaling/1.html

Phase to OC {note the 2nd spreadsheet}; see - http://www.overclock.net/intel-motherboards/916189-official-intel-p67-z68-motherboard-comparison.html

The ASUS P8P67 (REV 3.1), CF Only, is the cheapest LGA 1155 MOBO that 'I' recommend. 😉

 

[Mid-highgfx]

RAM = 667MHz = DDR3-1333 {Double Data Rate}. x8/x8 vs x16/x16 - won't matter there's NO GPU out there that fully saturates the x8 PCIe lanes; see - http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/p67-gaming-3-way-sli-three-card-crossfire,2910.html and saturation; see - http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/NVIDIA/GTX_480_PCI-Express_Scaling/1.html

Phase to OC {note the 2nd spreadsheet}; see - http://www.overclock.net/intel-motherboards/916189-official-intel-p67-z68-motherboard-comparison.html

The ASUS P8P67 (REV 3.1), CF Only, is the cheapest LGA 1155 MOBO that 'I' recommend. 😉

Did you look at the new page?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131705

now hit feedback

AND HEAR THE QQ!!!!!!!! practically EVERYONE said it didnt work etc etc and 1 egg... :/ im scurred to buy somethign like that

 

[Mid-highgfx]

MSI P67A-GD55

 

[Mid-highgfx]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130573&nm_mc=OTC-Froogle&cm_mmc=OTC-Froogle-_-Motherboards+-+Intel-_-MSI-_-13130573

 

[jaquith]

Yeah, I've read the 'Feedback' and in other posts I've addressed concerns.

Example - "If you NEED 1 that works BUY 4"
The chances of a DOA MOBO, a real one, are about 1 in 50 or less. IF some bozo has 3 or more DOA then the 'builder' is taking an otherwise 'good MOBO' and 'killing it' themselves - 9/10 by shorting or bad PSU. - period!

Example - "Screwd up"
1. Remembering settings - DO NOT USE *ANY* AI Suite (ASUS) or it's equivalent on MSI, Gigabyte, etc. The BIOS reads the 'tweaks' from those Apps and changes the BIOS according to the Apps NOT the manual BIOS settings.
2. SATA - since LGA 1155 the SATA default is AHCI NOT IDE, and often Windows uses Start = 3 = IDE by Default; see - http://support.microsoft.com/kb/922976

Example - "Defective board, nightmarish experience"
1. Metal Backplate HSF - this is typical when there's Metal -> MOBO contact
2. Standoff - many cheaper Cases use 'punch-out' standoff's and/or the Standoff's are misplaced; Metal -> MOBO contact. Some Cases that have pre-installed Standoff's do so with mATX (uATX) positions NOT ATX.
All Examples of Shorts (Grounding, Dead, Cross connecting, etc).

Example - "Fire Hazard, Poor Service"
See above 'Metal' and ditto with a defective PSU; dead short.

Most folks are MORONS and should buy a Pre-Built system!!!

ANY LGA 1155 build: 1. Build it outside the CASE FIRST & TEST, 2. Update the BIOS to the latest version BEFORE installing OS and skip the First 22nm (Ivy Bridge) BIOS release i.e. use the 2nd or 3rd AFTER 22nm or the one PRIOR.

I seriously doubt that if I built the ASUS P8P67 (REV 3.0) I would have ANY issues, I have built several P8P67 PRO (REV 3.1) and with NO ISSUES! See - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131771

Similar comments e.g. "2 in a row" on page 2 - similar BOZOS!

 

[Mid-highgfx]

Yeah, I've read the 'Feedback' and in other posts I've addressed concerns.

Example - "If you NEED 1 that works BUY 4"
The chances of a DOA MOBO, a real one, are about 1 in 50 or less. IF some bozo has 3 or more DOA then the 'builder' is taking an otherwise 'good MOBO' and 'killing it' themselves - 9/10 by shorting or bad PSU. - period!

Example - "Screwd up"
1. Remembering settings - DO NOT USE *ANY* AI Suite (ASUS) or it's equivalent on MSI, Gigabyte, etc. The BIOS reads the 'tweaks' from those Apps and changes the BIOS according to the Apps NOT the manual BIOS settings.
2. SATA - since LGA 1155 the SATA default is AHCI NOT IDE, and often Windows uses Start = 3 = IDE by Default; see - http://support.microsoft.com/kb/922976

Example - "Defective board, nightmarish experience"
1. Metal Backplate HSF - this is typical when there's Metal -> MOBO contact
2. Standoff - many cheaper Cases use 'punch-out' standoff's and/or the Standoff's are misplaced; Metal -> MOBO contact. Some Cases that have pre-installed Standoff's do so with mATX (uATX) positions NOT ATX.
All Examples of Shorts (Grounding, Dead, Cross connecting, etc).

Example - "Fire Hazard, Poor Service"
See above 'Metal' and ditto with a defective PSU; dead short.

Most folks are MORONS and should buy a Pre-Built system!!!

ANY LGA 1155 build: 1. Build it outside the CASE FIRST & TEST, 2. Update the BIOS to the latest version BEFORE installing OS and skip the First 22nm (Ivy Bridge) BIOS release i.e. use the 2nd or 3rd AFTER 22nm or the one PRIOR.

I seriously doubt that if I built the ASUS P8P67 (REV 3.0) I would have ANY issues, I have built several P8P67 PRO (REV 3.1) and with NO ISSUES! See - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131771

Similar comments e.g. "2 in a row" on page 2 - similar BOZOS!

Haha, I never had any issues with my stuff except at start it didnt boot because of ram placement / psu being cheap.

anyways, how would u compare it with http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130573&nm_mc=OTC-Froogle&cm_mmc=OTC-Froogle-_-Motherboards+-+Intel-_-MSI-_-13130573 ?

 

[jaquith]

IF - IF!!! You aren't going to be frustrated later with a prohibitively high vCore keeping you from a 4.50GHz or greater OC then it's your call; kiss goodbye high OC.

I wouldn't...keep in mind those (2) ASUS are the cheap end of my recommended MOBO's; I prefer the Gigabyte UD5, UD7, and ASUS P67 WS. The ASUS Pro above can do on average 5.0GHz <1.40v vCore. Keeping in mind, part of the success is luck getting a good 'K' CPU.

 

[Mid-highgfx]

IF - IF!!! You aren't going to be frustrated later with a prohibitively high vCore keeping you from a 4.50GHz or greater OC then it's your call; kiss goodbye high OC.

I wouldn't...keep in mind those (2) ASUS are the cheap end of my recommended MOBO's; I prefer the Gigabyte UD5, UD7, and ASUS P67 WS. The ASUS Pro above can do on average 5.0GHz <1.40v vCore. Keeping in mind, part of the success is luck getting a good 'K' CPU.

like i said, i wanted 4.4 lol ( my fav number ;D) its good enough for maxxing out guild wars (; and for not bottlenecking my 6950's right 😉? thanks!

 

[jaquith]

Every new and faster CPU will add a few FPS. The CPU is great, an OC'ing only makes it better.