i5 Board for the non clocker?

schnipps · 2 Nov 2009 at 11:07

As title, there seems to be a group of them ranging from 70 to 200.

MSI-Guru · 2 Nov 2009 at 11:11

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-122-MS does what it says on the tin.

schnipps · 2 Nov 2009 at 11:32

Do the cheaper Gigabyte boards deserver a look? or are they pants

linktoinsanity · 2 Nov 2009 at 11:46

coalfield said:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-122-MS does what it says on the tin.

Errr...can I just ask what the point is in supporting sli and Cossfire with only 1 pci-e x16 slot?

"- Expasion slots: 1x PCIe 2.0 x16 Slots, 3x PCIe x1 Slots & 3x PCI Slots (Supports ATI CrossFireX & NVIDIA SLI Technology)"

Legion · 2 Nov 2009 at 15:13

schnipps said:
Do the cheaper Gigabyte boards deserver a look? or are they pants

Just pick a cheap board with the features you require if you dont intend to overclock,they all perform the same as they all use the same chipset.
Personally I'd pick up a Gigabyte or an Asus,MSI have made some real stinkers of motherboards in the past and for me that sticks and is to be avoided.

Pocket the savings or spend it elsewhere cant lose either way

addylad · 2 Nov 2009 at 20:05

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-207-GI&groupid=701&catid=5&subcat=1495

How far would you recommend overclocking an i5 with this motherboard? Similar issue to the OP but I'd like to overclock a tiny bit (new to OCing).

Cheers.

Legion · 2 Nov 2009 at 22:21

Even the cheapest of boards from Giagabyte and Asus are capable of clocking i5's to 3.8-4ghz providing you have ram that will run at 1600 and a chip that doesnt need crazy voltage.
Needless to say cooling is also paramount,the heatdump at 4ghz and beyond can get really toasty with all cores under load.

fonetech · 3 Nov 2009 at 10:34

Vote for MSI here I love my P55-GD65

Omega · 3 Nov 2009 at 10:48

fonetech said:
Vote for MSI here I love my P55-GD65

Same here, my P55-GD65 hasnt given me a single problem yet.

MSI-Guru · 3 Nov 2009 at 14:44

LinktoInsanity said:
Errr...can I just ask what the point is in supporting sli and Cossfire with only 1 pci-e x16 slot?

"- Expasion slots: 1x PCIe 2.0 x16 Slots, 3x PCIe x1 Slots & 3x PCI Slots (Supports ATI CrossFireX & NVIDIA SLI Technology)"

lol... spec typo it appears

Legion said:
Just pick a cheap board with the features you require if you dont intend to overclock,they all perform the same as they all use the same chipset.
Personally I'd pick up a Gigabyte or an Asus,MSI have made some real stinkers of motherboards in the past and for me that sticks and is to be avoided.

Pocket the savings or spend it elsewhere cant lose either way

Everyone has bad experiences with boards in the past. You never know if you don't try...

SMAndy · 3 Nov 2009 at 15:32

coalfield said:
lol... spec typo it appears

Could also be that the P55 chipset supports SLi/Crossfire by default, and is left on the mobo spec, regardless of the actual number of slots?

Still, I'd like to see it removed since its going to confuse some of the less... technologicaly inclined peoples.

Legion · 3 Nov 2009 at 17:14

SMAndy said:
Could also be that the P55 chipset supports SLi/Crossfire by default, and is left on the mobo spec, regardless of the actual number of slots?

Still, I'd like to see it removed since its going to confuse some of the less... technologicaly inclined peoples.

While this is true,the cheaper boards have physical x16 second slots that only run at 4x electrical,this is why you pay a premium for the boards that state SLI/XFIRE on the specifications as they will run 8x/8x instead of a cheaper board that's 8x/4x when running 2 gfx cards.

I agree it can be confusing for people new to the platform,just make sure you know what you are getting before you hit the buy button.