Should i buy the striker extreme

[kevinali]

Given that it is the 17th of Sept and the X38 motherboards are due out soon????? and the nvidia 700 chipsets are due out in Dec...is it a good idea to invest 319.00 CDN to get a striker extreme...i do not overclock and i am looking to add a Q6600 with 4 GB (4 x 1GB DIMMS, DDR-2 667) to this motherboard

I want Quality and a motherboard that will allow me to go a few years without any major headaches...I will put a 45nm Intel Proc once they ship in quantity

Thanks

Kevin

 

[Maziar]

If u even want SLI ,go for something cheaper like P5N32-E SLI or P5N32-E SLU PLUS , which are alot cheaper , STRIKER EXTREME has many extra features but they wont become handy

 

[chookman]

Agree with Maziar...

The Striker comes at a premium for nothing much extra... go with a P5N

 

[aevm]

I would wait two weeks. At that point you'll be able to buy an X38 mobo or at least read reviews about them and decide. If you're in a hurry then yeah, P5N32-E SLI is a smarter choice than the Striker.

Edit: with Asus 680i motherboards, I hear it's safer to get 2x2GB RAM. It's smarter anyway because at some point you'll be able to upgrade to 8 GB if you get 2 GB sticks.

 

[chookman]

I would wait two weeks. At that point you'll be able to buy an X38 mobo or at least read reviews about them and decide. If you're in a hurry then yeah, P5N32-E SLI is a smarter choice than the Striker.

Edit: with Asus 680i motherboards, I hear it's safer to get 2x2GB RAM. It's smarter anyway because at some point you'll be able to upgrade to 8 GB if you get 2 GB sticks.

What reason for the 2x2 aevm? i havent heard of issues?

Keep in mind that the X38 will still not do SLI dispite what some might think (that is if you are looking at SLI)

 

[aevm]

I wanted a Striker myself a few months ago when I was preparing for my own upgrade but then I got scared. Lots of messages in various forums. It looks like the systems crashed a lot if all 4 memory slots were in use. It's all hearsay, can't guarantee it's for real. Maybe they fixed it with BIOS updates since then, I don't know. I ended up with a GA-P35C-DS3R, just to play it safe.

Anyway, the 2 GB sticks will allow upgrading to 8 GB and, the way things are going, even 8 GB won't be enough for the O/S after Vista

True, X38 won't do SLI (unless some manufacturers tweak drivers a bit).
There was an article about FoxConn planning to do that, for example. If the OP wants SLI then 680i is the best choice, of course.

 

[kevinali]

Thanks for the replies

My reasoning is that the Striker was a 400+ motherboard and now it can be had for 319 canadian. It has a lot of high end features (cooling, POST LCD, on board switches) and i am really interested in the stability of the BIOS that ASUS has released since the board has been release. I assume that the X38 boards will also go through the growing pains of BIOS releases that are not set for prime time, so this issue has me leaning to the Striker. I do like the PCIExpress 2.0 the X38 brings to the table and the seamless support for 1333 FSB and 45nm processor support

What to Do???

I am not a gamer, but I do buy quality hardware if i can

Kevin

 

[aevm]

Why don't you start by taking a good look at SLI advantages and disadvantages. Lots of threads about that, just search a bit.
Decide if you want SLI or not.

If yes, your choice is easier because it will be only from the 680i chipset (e.g. Striker, P5N32-E SLI, eVGA 680i A1). If not, your best bet will be a P35 or X38 motherboard. Right now the most popular P35 options are GA-P35-DS3R, aBit IP35Pro, Asus P5K. I assume each of these will have an X38 equivalent soon. If X38 boards absolutely require DDR3 I'd avoid them all and stick with P35.

Edit: I need to sleep more, my brain isn't working. If you're not a gamer YOU DON'T NEED SLI. It's that simple. Watching movies and surfing works fine even on a single $50 card. I think you should look at P35.

 

[Maziar]

X38 PLATINUM has DDR2 and DDR3 support :

http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/2007/09/14/msi_x38_diamond_preview/1

also note that:

1_P35 Supports PCIE-2
2_P35 Supports 45nm CPUs
3_P35 Supports 1333MHZ CPU

the main difference between P35 and X38 is that X38 supports 1600mhz CPU (i dont know , maybe P35 will do , but there isnt any info about it , all of the sites say 800/1066/1333 ) also X38 fully supports PCI-E 2 , well i think u have to wait for 1600mhz cpu alot to come out , because when 45nm cpus come out they are compatible with P35 ,also it takes time for PCIE-2 too, so if u want CrossFire in full 16x mode , then wait for X38 if not , go for 680i/P35