Discussion What do you look for in a motherboard?

[punkncat]

Just curious really.

For the longest time my biggest concern with a motherboard was price. There were many years that I just selected the least expensive model in the FF I was looking for and just about the only other feature I cared about was 4x RAM slots when selecting forms that offer it. Prior to this time I was never concerned about what everything looked like. This was well before every case came with a glass window, and most of what was available was a plain Jane green PCB anyway.

The first PC I purpose built specific to a theme or look was when Ryzen 1xxx came out. I picked a red motherboard (AB350 ITX Fatal1ty IIRC), red and black RAM, and actually just prior to this had started practicing better habits with cable management. That actually came out of a need due to poor airflow inside an ITX cube I built in from Lian Li (Q series). This also coincided with my first purchase of a PC case based on look/feature rather than cost as well, a Phanteks P400. That first gen Ryzen went along many variations as I changed CPU and such until one time I came across a nice deal on a X370 Taichi. This was the first board I ever purchased myself that had a BIOS code display as well as just looking really nice in the build. It was also the first motherboard I had purchased with really good power delivery. The VRM on that board were well overkill for most folks, but I liked that aspect and it went on to power (from a 1200) a 1700 and then a 2700X. Funny enough, all my upgrading on that system led to me having the exact parts I built it with originally who I sold to a friend cheap and he still uses it....but I am getting off track.

So, this BIOS screen turned out to be something that I value a great deal. Way better than trying to listen for beeps or figure out what an LED was trying to indicate other than the very general trouble. When given a choice and have budget available I try to look for the following things (in no particular order):

1) Looks. The aesthetic and how it will go with the general theme envisioned for the build.

2) Power Delivery. Robust VRM that are capable of powering any of the processor options available as well as possible future upgrades in that socket

3) BIOS LED screen

4) Thick PCB with armored PCIe slots

5) External CMOS 'button' to make reset easy

6) Particularly with AMD and the long socket support, the ability to flash BIOS updates w/o CPU/RAM onboard. This is clutch.

7) Good wireless capability, where needed, and especially when purchasing M-ITX since there is only one PCI slot available

8) 4x RAM slots for future upgradability

I do not typically care if the board has lighting connections and also don't particularly care for the motherboard itself to have lighting at all. This aspect can be difficult given the demand for unicorn puke spewing systems that are so common. This tends to push you towards a very small selection of motherboards and a part of why I have been using the Unify line of mobo.
I had expected that I might like and actually use Thunderbolt. Both of the last two motherboards I have purchased have it onboard and I have yet to spend the monies required for entry to that world. The use case that I envisioned for that high speed format just never came to fruition.

It isn't to say that I still don't have a place for inexpensive motherboards with the required connections for the use case in some builds, but the above items are the high points of what I look for in a mobo that will be my personal rig. What about you?

 

[kanewolf]

NO REQUIRED LED lighting... In one case, an RS232 port.

 

[punkncat]

NO REQUIRED LED lighting... In one case, an RS232 port.

My only experience with that comm port was for a gate and door access controller. What are you using it for, if you don't mind my asking?

 

[JeffreyP55]

Just curious really.

For the longest time my biggest concern with a motherboard was price. There were many years that I just selected the least expensive model in the FF I was looking for and just about the only other feature I cared about was 4x RAM slots when selecting forms that offer it. Prior to this time I was never concerned about what everything looked like. This was well before every case came with a glass window, and most of what was available was a plain Jane green PCB anyway.

The first PC I purpose built specific to a theme or look was when Ryzen 1xxx came out. I picked a red motherboard (AB350 ITX Fatal1ty IIRC), red and black RAM, and actually just prior to this had started practicing better habits with cable management. That actually came out of a need due to poor airflow inside an ITX cube I built in from Lian Li (Q series). This also coincided with my first purchase of a PC case based on look/feature rather than cost as well, a Phanteks P400. That first gen Ryzen went along many variations as I changed CPU and such until one time I came across a nice deal on a X370 Taichi. This was the first board I ever purchased myself that had a BIOS code display as well as just looking really nice in the build. It was also the first motherboard I had purchased with really good power delivery. The VRM on that board were well overkill for most folks, but I liked that aspect and it went on to power (from a 1200) a 1700 and then a 2700X. Funny enough, all my upgrading on that system led to me having the exact parts I built it with originally who I sold to a friend cheap and he still uses it....but I am getting off track.

So, this BIOS screen turned out to be something that I value a great deal. Way better than trying to listen for beeps or figure out what an LED was trying to indicate other than the very general trouble. When given a choice and have budget available I try to look for the following things (in no particular order):

1) Looks. The aesthetic and how it will go with the general theme envisioned for the build.

2) Power Delivery. Robust VRM that are capable of powering any of the processor options available as well as possible future upgrades in that socket

3) BIOS LED screen

4) Thick PCB with armored PCIe slots

5) External CMOS 'button' to make reset easy

6) Particularly with AMD and the long socket support, the ability to flash BIOS updates w/o CPU/RAM onboard. This is clutch.

7) Good wireless capability, where needed, and especially when purchasing M-ITX since there is only one PCI slot available

8) 4x RAM slots for future upgradability

I do not typically care if the board has lighting connections and also don't particularly care for the motherboard itself to have lighting at all. This aspect can be difficult given the demand for unicorn puke spewing systems that are so common. This tends to push you towards a very small selection of motherboards and a part of why I have been using the Unify line of mobo.
I had expected that I might like and actually use Thunderbolt. Both of the last two motherboards I have purchased have it onboard and I have yet to spend the monies required for entry to that world. The use case that I envisioned for that high speed format just never came to fruition.

It isn't to say that I still don't have a place for inexpensive motherboards with the required connections for the use case in some builds, but the above items are the high points of what I look for in a mobo that will be my personal rig. What about you?

Best bang for the buck, WiFi with good reviews. I am not a gamer. Ancient games? sure..

 

[punkncat]

Best bang for the buck

What items create that situation in your opinion? What do you look for?

 

[kanewolf]

My only experience with that comm port was for a gate and door access controller. What are you using it for, if you don't mind my asking?

My weather station. Davis Vantage 2 console. I could use USB to RS232, but there can be issues. So I just made sure that an RS232 port was available (AM4 B450 motherboard with a 2600X CPU) . Then it was a simple matter to buy the motherboard to DB9 back panel adapter.

 

[JeffreyP55]

What items create that situation in your opinion? What do you look for?

PCIE4, USB 3.2x2. Well thought out motherboard component placement. Mostly I concentrate on good power delivery. Peripherals to be installed when building a new rig.

 

[punkncat]

USB to RS232, but there can be issues

I understand that. For the longest time fire panels and access control continued using serial ports. The USB adapters for those is buggy at best. I had, until a couple of years ago, an old laptop that still had that port and actually keep an old Optiplex PC put up that has it. Several of our customers still use hub systems on it. Luckily, they also have old PC towers that can be used with for adding or deleting cards, changing parameters of the program for open/close times and so forth. I figure that one day this Optiplex will be in one of those locations if the controller continues to work as desired.

 

[Math Geek]

i look for what i need for the system.

how many/what kind usb ports,

m.2 slots,

pcie slots,

lane allotments,

built in bt/wifi

sata ports

and so on

all depends on what the system is for to what you need. a simple htpc can use the cheapest thing out there, while my main system with top of the line cpu, dual gpu's, ton's of hdd/ssd's and multiple peripherals needed a bit more expensive board.

once i have a list of models that meets my needs for the build, then i start sorting by price and any extra bells and whistles it may have. a lot of people get hung up on price first and set too low of a budget for what they actually need. this only leads to heartache down the road when they realize it won't do all they need it to do.

or as we see a lot here, many want the performance of a $2500 system on a $750 budget. that's why all those fakes and used broken crap has a market. simply from people trying to get more than they can afford. will always be someone out there willing to scam such a person with too good to be true offers.

 

[Order 66]

Pcie slots, M.2 slots, built in WiFi and BT. I don’t really care for sata ports, as most motherboards will have enough anyway. I don’t really care for PCIE gen 5 even being a gamer, there is no real noticeable difference between gen 4 and gen 5 NVME drives outside of benchmarks. Plenty of usb ports. Ideally a couple type c ports as well.

 

[pikeman666]

Just curious really.

For the longest time my biggest concern with a motherboard was price. There were many years that I just selected the least expensive model in the FF I was looking for and just about the only other feature I cared about was 4x RAM slots when selecting forms that offer it. Prior to this time I was never concerned about what everything looked like. This was well before every case came with a glass window, and most of what was available was a plain Jane green PCB anyway.

The first PC I purpose built specific to a theme or look was when Ryzen 1xxx came out. I picked a red motherboard (AB350 ITX Fatal1ty IIRC), red and black RAM, and actually just prior to this had started practicing better habits with cable management. That actually came out of a need due to poor airflow inside an ITX cube I built in from Lian Li (Q series). This also coincided with my first purchase of a PC case based on look/feature rather than cost as well, a Phanteks P400. That first gen Ryzen went along many variations as I changed CPU and such until one time I came across a nice deal on a X370 Taichi. This was the first board I ever purchased myself that had a BIOS code display as well as just looking really nice in the build. It was also the first motherboard I had purchased with really good power delivery. The VRM on that board were well overkill for most folks, but I liked that aspect and it went on to power (from a 1200) a 1700 and then a 2700X. Funny enough, all my upgrading on that system led to me having the exact parts I built it with originally who I sold to a friend cheap and he still uses it....but I am getting off track.

So, this BIOS screen turned out to be something that I value a great deal. Way better than trying to listen for beeps or figure out what an LED was trying to indicate other than the very general trouble. When given a choice and have budget available I try to look for the following things (in no particular order):

1) Looks. The aesthetic and how it will go with the general theme envisioned for the build.

2) Power Delivery. Robust VRM that are capable of powering any of the processor options available as well as possible future upgrades in that socket

3) BIOS LED screen

4) Thick PCB with armored PCIe slots

5) External CMOS 'button' to make reset easy

6) Particularly with AMD and the long socket support, the ability to flash BIOS updates w/o CPU/RAM onboard. This is clutch.

7) Good wireless capability, where needed, and especially when purchasing M-ITX since there is only one PCI slot available

8) 4x RAM slots for future upgradability

I do not typically care if the board has lighting connections and also don't particularly care for the motherboard itself to have lighting at all. This aspect can be difficult given the demand for unicorn puke spewing systems that are so common. This tends to push you towards a very small selection of motherboards and a part of why I have been using the Unify line of mobo.
I had expected that I might like and actually use Thunderbolt. Both of the last two motherboards I have purchased have it onboard and I have yet to spend the monies required for entry to that world. The use case that I envisioned for that high speed format just never came to fruition.

It isn't to say that I still don't have a place for inexpensive motherboards with the required connections for the use case in some builds, but the above items are the high points of what I look for in a mobo that will be my personal rig. What about you?

Those are very good criteria.
My interest is to get as much use as possible before my creation becomes obsolete. I buy high end ATX boards with robust power designs, a very recent CPU, DDR5, a chip set that supports PCIE4, and plenty of ports. Discrete graphics is another requirement. I also overkill on cooling.
It’s not cheap, but has to be something that will last. Id rather have one good computer that will give me 7-8 years of use than having to replace cheap junk every two or three. I’m not into using my computer for decoration, but this current MB is well lit and once the setup is complete, playing with this feature will probably be fun.

 

[Unolocogringo]

I look for what I need.
1 good power delivery system with heatsinks.
2 no RGB if possible.
3 Mid range pricing or less.
4 Most boards have enough USB ports.
5 Mid to upper range BIOS options.
My last 3 boards have been Asus Prime ATX boards. 1 Intel and 2 AMD.
I am also usually a year or so behind the update cycle. Let everyone else sort out the bugs and when everything is somewhat stable I update.
Uptime and 100% stability are major factors for me.

 

[palladin9479]

Manufacturers reputation along with whatever required components for that build at a reasonable cost. Asus and Asrock are my two go-to lately. I used to be a big Asus ROG buyer but they've have gotten out of hand with adding irrelevant stuff so now I just go with TUF.

 

[punkncat]

A feature that I sort of overlooked was the on-board power button. TBH, this is a feature I thought I would use much more often. After initial setup and getting the mobo in the case, I haven't used it a single time. The feature was put there for folks using this as a test bench for OC and such things. In my own use case, I wouldn't be disappointed not to have that feature in lieu of a screwdriver.

 

[thestryker]

It really varies by system, but the universally important features to me are power delivery and the ability to flash the BIOS with no display. I've never particularly cared about price aside from using it as the final factor in board decision.

My 24/7 server systems have both been Asus workstation boards. In the case of picking them this most recent time (last year) it came down to them offering features nobody else was and the fact that they were also cheaper was icing on the cake. In fact if they had proper overclocking support I'd probably be looking at one as an option for my primary machine due to the price vs features: https://www.asus.com/us/motherboards-components/motherboards/workstation/pro-ws-w680-ace/techspec/

 

[Zerk2012]

1. Adequate power delivery/ cooling.
2. Nothing made by Asus.
That's it. Most other things that are needed are on most boards.

 

[Unolocogringo]

I have had mostly mid range Asus boards since my first Super Socket 7 board. My first non OEM board/computer. Pentium MMX 200@252mhz for DOS flight sims and windows gaming.
Then I started folding in 2004 (CPU only then) and that required at least mid range motherboards with good power delivery and cooling.
My reasons for my choices.

 

[Flayed]

I've always had budget motherboards up until my current one which I got used for a reasonable price. I need optical audio out so I can connect to my stereo and you don't tend to get that on budget boards.
I think boards are getting expensive now because they support at least multiple generations of processors for AMD. Probably to keep the manufacturers happy.