What motherboard fits my needs

[chub11]

I'm looking for a lga 1155 motherboard to use with a i3 2100 and 8 gb (2x4) of 1600 ram. I'll be using this computer for mostly gaming, and since I'm on a budget, I only want to spend around $70. Something from Newegg would be preferred. Thanks for the help.

 

[a4mula]

I'm assuming you're going with just 1x discrete gpu at this point.

MSI H61M-P21 $59.99

Keep in mind that all the H61/H67 boards only support 1333 memory and with limited overclocking options (none) will be difficult to ramp up to 1600.

The only other option would be to find a P67/Z68 board, but now you get into the 110+ range and the overclocking options that these boards tout over their H counterparts are wasted on the 2100.

edit: Something else to keep in mind, H61 doesn't support SATA 6Gb/s, which isn't a big deal if you're only going to be using a HDD. If you are planning on using a newest generation SSD however you'd probably want to look towards H67.

 

[rog02]

You can also go for Asus P8H61-M LE.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/ASUS-P8H61-M-LE-CSM-REV3-Intel-6-Series-Board-/230698403540?pt=Motherboards&hash=item35b6b246d4

As a4mula already said, these H61 motherboards does not support 1600MHz memory.
Above motherboard can support upto 1333MHz memory.

 

[chub11]

I'll only be using 1 gpu, but do I want a better board for when I eventually upgrade my CPU?

 

[a4mula]

If you plan on upgrading to an unlocked 'K' sku, like the 2500K then look towards P67 (no igp support) or Z68 (adds quick sync and SRT). Again, the downside to this is these boards start at about $110 and go north fast.