Gen3 question

[Bo0ja]

Probably been answered a thousand times already but I've been reading all day and I just want a clear answer. Thanks.

Are all z68 boards, regardless of whether or not they're Gen3 boards with a PCIe 3.0 slot built in, able to upgrade to PCIe 3.0 with the required Ivy Bridge CPU?

Thanks again.

 

[cuecuemore]

No, they must be PCIe 3.0 ready and able to accept IB to be able to take advantage of it. The Gen3 designation is nomenclature used by ASUS and ASRock and has nothing to do with PCIe 3.0-- there are many "Gen3" boards that do not have PCIe 3.0 capability, and, conversly, many boards that are not "Gen3" that do.

 

[k1114]

Pcie 3.0 x8 is the same speed as 2.0 x16 which really only a 580 or higher needs. IB should just need a bios update to be compatible with p67 or z68 but it is just a rumor until more info is released. Even SBE was supposed to be 2.0 but was released with 3.0 with everyone just finding out on launch day. But it is still unsure if it really is 3.0 without any 3.0 capable hardware.

Since you're going with a 2500k, there is no reason to get IB, it won't be much of an improvement. The 2500k is still plenty powerful for any gpu config and most likely future cards.

 

[Bo0ja]

Okay, so no one really knows then? Because I'm trying to decide on which mobo to go with and all this PCIe 3.0/IB compatibility is holding me up. ASUS makes a couple of boards I like in my price range but only one is available at Microcenter where they have a deal going and it's lacking PCIe 3.0. It's $20 cheaper and I'd prefer to go with it, but I want this build to be as future proof as I can make it.

However, the more I think about it the more I don't think it's a big deal, because by the time I really do need to upgrade from the 2500k/gtx 570, there will probably be a new line of processors out and I'd likely have to get a new board that supports them anyway, right?

Here's the boards I'm considering:

ASUS P8Z68-V/Gen3:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131792

ASUS P8Z68-V:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131729

 

[cuecuemore]

To answer you original question quite directly, no, not all Z68's are PCIe 3.0 capable. I would agree that it's probably not a big deal. If you want a real steal, grab the board I just bought:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157271
It's the best value anywhere. I got my 2500k to 5.0GHz Prime stable within a day of getting it. And overclocked + undertimed my RAM.

 

[Bo0ja]

To answer you original question quite directly, no, not all Z68's are PCIe 3.0 capable. I would agree that it's probably not a big deal. If you want a real steal, grab the board I just bought:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157271
It's the best value anywhere. I got my 2500k to 5.0GHz Prime stable within a day of getting it. And overclocked + undertimed my RAM.

That's the board I was originally going to get but unfortunately Microcenter doesn't carry it 🙁 . The deal there is $60 off any z68 board when bought with the 2500k, so I figure I might as well get a pricier board just to take advantage of it.

Actually, I just came across another board that I'm now really considering:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138320

It's $100 at microcenter so with the deal it comes out to a ridiculously cheap 40 dollars. It only has 4 USB 2.0/3.0 ports on the back, 6 channel audio, and its shorter than standard ATX boards, but from the reviews it overclocks pretty well and nobody is having any serious problems with it. I'll probably stick with the ASUS as this is my first ever build but that savings is hard to ignore.

Thanks for answering my question.

 

[Bo0ja]

Best answer selected by Bo0ja.