What motherboard would go well with a Phenom II x3 720

[mrfun1981]

As per title,

Looking for a good board that well help me get the most out of a Phenom II x3 720 when it comes to overclocking. I am on a budget here so i don't really want to be spending much more than £70-£80. An im planning to stick with DDR2 at the moment

I wont be running crossfire or sli so there board dont need to have them features.It dont have to have onboard graphics as il be using my 9800GT for that.

So any input would be great full


Chees

 

[95thrifles]

Id look at the asus M4A78, its £90 and out of stock atm, but being AM3 is more likely to support an upgrade in the future than a AM2 board, just wait til it comes back in
link

 

[deshepherd]

As per title,

Looking for a good board that well help me get the most out of a Phenom II x3 720 when it comes to overclocking. I am on a budget here so i don't really want to be spending much more than £70-£80. An im planning to stick with DDR2 at the moment

I wont be running crossfire or sli so there board dont need to have them features.It dont have to have onboard graphics as il be using my 9800GT for that.

I'm in similar situation.

On the AM2+/DDR2 route is there any significant difference between 770, 780 and 790 chipsets if you're not using the builtin gfx or expecting to use crossfire. I think 790 has the SB750 with the ACC option which, I suppose, gives you the chance to play the "is the 4th core usable" lottery!

Also, on a "budget" taking the £165 7750X2 bundle as a baseline is it worth spending an extra to step up to 720X3 or using the equivalent to get a "better" mboard?

 

[deshepherd]

Id look at the asus M4A78, its £90 and out of stock atm, but being AM3 is more likely to support an upgrade in the future than a AM2 board, just wait til it comes back in
link

Just looked at that but its only DDR2 ... so is it really AM3 or actually an AM2+ board which will accept AM3 due to AMD's compatibility route. So what's different from their AM2+ boards?

 

[mrfun1981]

Id look at the asus M4A78, its £90 and out of stock atm, but being AM3 is more likely to support an upgrade in the future than a AM2 board, just wait til it comes back in
link

Just looked at that but its only DDR2 ... so is it really AM3 or actually an AM2+ board which will accept AM3 due to AMD's compatibility route. So what's different from their AM2+ boards?

I have looked at it to, & it is only a AM2+ board that will take AM3.

I did look at this board Gigabyte GA-MA78GM-S2H 780G, can any one tell me if its any good please? It can be got for around £66

 

[deshepherd]

Also, on a "budget" taking the £165 7750X2 bundle as a baseline is it worth spending an extra to step up to 720X3 or using the equivalent to get a "better" mboard?

Hmm, 720X3 just gone up £10-15 in price here so maybe I'm heading back towards the X2 bundle and saving the cash for something else. Or, am I being too cynical in thinking that the X3 has just bumped back up to the £138 level so that it become a TWO on Wednesday!

 

[mrfun1981]

Hmm, 720X3 just gone up £10-15 in price here so maybe I'm heading back towards the X2 bundle and saving the cash for something else. Or, am I being too cynical in thinking that the X3 has just bumped back up to the £138 level so that it become a TWO on Wednesday!

I would still go for the x3 720, you will get better performance with it, if you have a little look around online you can still get the x3 720 for £119 inc delivery

 

[deshepherd]

I would still go for the x3 720, you will get better performance with it, if you have a little look around online you can still get the x3 720 for £119 inc delivery

I'll bear that in mind

Anyone got any opinions over

Gigabyte GA-MA770-UD3 AMD 770
vs
Asus M3A78 AMD 770X

I've read a comment somewhere about the mosfets on the gigabyte getting too hot if overclocking.

+ is Biostar TSeries TA790GX worth considering - I don't need crossfire or onboard gfx but does 790 gain anything over 770?

 

[mrfun1981]

I'll bear that in mind

Anyone got any opinions over

Gigabyte GA-MA770-UD3 AMD 770
vs
Asus M3A78 AMD 770X

I've read a comment somewhere about the mosfets on the gigabyte getting too hot if overclocking.

+ is Biostar TSeries TA790GX worth considering - I don't need crossfire or onboard gfx but does 790 gain anything over 770?

I did read somewhere that 790gx is good at over clocking compared to the 770.

Im actually considering the Biostar TSeries TA790GX becasue

1, its good at OC acording to some reviews iv seen today
2, its got crossfire if i feel the need in the future but i dout at the mo il use it but nice to have it there ready.
3. Its in my price range

Like yourself, i would like to hear what other people think is a good budget board

 

[dagwoood]

I can't comment on how well the Biostar TSeries TA790GX 128M board overclocks, but I have one and a X3 720. I haven't tried clocking it yet as I'm just making sure all my software is installed and my system's stable after the fresh install of Vista before I start clocking it.

I can confirm though that my board would boot (with all the correct settings) with the 720 in, even though the motherboard hadn't shipped with the latest BIOS, but one dated last year. This meant I could get into the BIOS and flash to the latest version without resorting to getting an older AM2 processor just to flash the BIOS.

There are lots of options in the BIOS for overclocking/tweaking. I'd done my homework prior to purchasing one and knew it was a decent overclocking board, but even so, I was surprised by the amount of settings that can be adjusted.

Here are some screenies, they may be helpful to you:

 

[deshepherd]

I did read somewhere that 790gx is good at over clocking compared to the 770.

Im actually considering the Biostar TSeries TA790GX becasue

1, its good at OC acording to some reviews iv seen today
2, its got crossfire if i feel the need in the future but i dout at the mo il use it but nice to have it there ready.
3. Its in my price range

Like yourself, i would like to hear what other people think is a good budget board

Plus you forgot

4. Its got SB750 so has ACC so you may be able to play the "do I actually have a 4th core on my X3" game.

 

[deshepherd]

I can't comment on how well the Biostar TSeries TA790GX 128M board overclocks, but I have one and a X3 720. I haven't tried clocking it yet as I'm just making sure all my software is installed and my system's stable after the fresh install of Vista before I start clocking it.

I can confirm though that my board would boot (with all the correct settings) with the 720 in, even though the motherboard hadn't shipped with the latest BIOS, but one dated last year. This meant I could get into the BIOS and flash to the latest version without resorting to getting an older AM2 processor just to flash the BIOS.

Thanks for info ... fact that it boots with old BIOS is very useful news as things I'm seeing about ASUS boards not recoghnising the PhenomII's withotu latest BIOS is getting me worried ... I'm moving from a 939 processor so I don't have an old CPU to use to flash with!

 

[dagwoood]

Plus you forgot

4. Its got SB750 so has ACC so you may be able to play the "do I actually have a 4th core on my X3" game.

Doh! I meant to mention that but forgot

Thanks for info ... fact that it boots with old BIOS is very useful news as things I'm seeing about ASUS boards not recoghnising the PhenomII's withotu latest BIOS is getting me worried ... I'm moving from a 939 processor so I don't have an old CPU to use to flash with!

I was in a similar situation in that I went from a s775 system to AM3. I couldn't find out whether it would work out of the box or it would need a BIOS flash with an AM2 CPU installed, so in the end I just thought I'd suck it 'n' see

Glad I could help

 

[mrfun1981]

Plus you forgot

4. Its got SB750 so has ACC so you may be able to play the "do I actually have a 4th core on my X3" game.

I must off forgot about that, doh!!

Im not sure if il check if it has the 4th core or not, as i dont need it & some of the 4th cores are not stable. i guess il have a go at it if ifind that some of the programmes start to struggle with 3 cores

@dagwoood

Thanks for the info & the pictures

 

[deshepherd]

I must off forgot about that, doh!!

Im not sure if il check if it has the 4th core or not, as i dont need it & some of the 4th cores are not stable. i guess il have a go at it if ifind that some of the programmes start to struggle with 3 cores

I'd probably have a look if only for interest sake ... in the past I had a 6800LE gfx card which was able to have all but one of its disabled vector/pixel processors unlocked.

That said, having a core in the processor that may be sub-marginal and likely to fail unexpectedly is more likely to cause problems than a gfx card where you may just get some image degradation!

 

[mrfun1981]

Well iv taken the plunge & ordered my Phenom II 720 (£119) + the Biostar TSeries TA790GX (£74) motherboard, prices inc P&P.

Just hope iv made the right choice on the cpu + board. Iv also ordered my new PSU "Coolermaster RealPower 520W Modular PSU - SLI Ready" next on my list is to get some memory but im borrowing some of a mate until i get my own.

As for the rest of the system il be using my older parts & slowly upgrade the case hard drive etc one at a time

 

[deshepherd]

Well iv taken the plunge & ordered my Phenom II 720 (£119) + the Biostar TSeries TA790GX (£74) motherboard, prices inc P&P.

Just hope iv made the right choice on the cpu + board. Iv also ordered my new PSU "Coolermaster RealPower 520W Modular PSU - SLI Ready" next on my list is to get some memory but im borrowing some of a mate until i get my own.

As for the rest of the system il be using my older parts & slowly upgrade the case hard drive etc one at a time

I think I'm about to do the same ... will probably wait till tomorrow just to see if anything crops up as a TWO to sway my mind! Given that pound has headed down against dollar again prices are if anything going to be heading upwards a bit soon I fear.

 

[mrfun1981]

I think I'm about to do the same ... will probably wait till tomorrow just to see if anything crops up as a TWO to sway my mind! Given that pound has headed down against dollar again prices are if anything going to be heading upwards a bit soon I fear.

Well if i was you i would just go a head & order them now, iv been holding off for a few weeks now as to what i should order & when to order it. An every few days i seam to change my mind.

iv gone from a quad to a dual, back to a quad then tri to quad again & now finaly gone & ordered the tri. It just there are so many good CPU's out there its just a matter of trying to find the one you believe will suit your needs & at the right price for your budget.

The place i got my m/board from have already dispatched even with using free delivery service so im hoping il have all my parts by friday (plus by using a site called quidco iv got another £2.24 off not much i know but when i use the site to order lots of things on line the cash back i get from there mounts up nicely)

 

[deshepherd]

Hmm, 720X3 just gone up £10-15 in price here so maybe I'm heading back towards the X2 bundle and saving the cash for something else. Or, am I being too cynical in thinking that the X3 has just bumped back up to the £138 level so that it become a TWO on Wednesday!

Just looked at TWO and my cynicism is justified At least OcUK will get all my order now!

 

[deshepherd]

Well if i was you i would just go a head & order them now, iv been holding off for a few weeks now as to what i should order & when to order it. An every few days i seam to change my mind.

Yes, the deed is done. Went for the 720X3 + Biostar board and 4GB Corsair PC8500.

While deciding whether to go X3 or save money with an X2 I remembered that years ago I'd spent something around £300 on a 486DX33 mboard + 1MB RAM ... and later spent £320 on 16MB of 2nd hand RAM!