Updated and moved, only available on the Trackr site for now, sorry.
Last edited by haffeysucks (2008-06-12 19:37:37)
"people in ny have a general idea of how to drive. one of the pedals goes forward the other one prevents you from dying"
I'd do it, if I knew how.
How do I make it so it shows all the indents and stuff?
How do I make it so it shows all the indents and stuff?
Choosing a Motherboard
There are many things you need to know before choosing a motherboard – whether it be for a cheap web-surfing desktop for your grandmother, a quiet, small media-center PC, or an all-expenses-aside monster gaming rig. In this guide, I will discuss the most important aspects of choosing the right motherboard.
Form Factor – You basically have two choices, ATX or MicroATX. There was also a BTX, but it died out in September 2006.
a. ATX – The most common form factor. ATX is generally your best bet, and fits in both mid-tower and full-tower cases. They also commonly have a good amount of extra PCI slots. A lot of the time, ATX motherboards will have SLI/Crossfire support.
b. Micro ATX – The 2nd most common form factor. MicroATX will fit in practically anything, including mid-tower and full-tower cases. However, they are well known in “shuttle” PC builds and media center PCs (due to space constraints, media center PCs often have to be as small as possible, and MicroATX fits the bill). MicroATX will most likely not offer SLI/Crossfire support, as there is usually not enough space for a 2nd PCI-E slot. They also have limited extra PCI slots (usually around 2 or 3).
CPU Socket Type – This will depend: a) on the brand of CPU you are purchasing, and b) on the date your respective CPU was designed/released. I won’t really go into detail here.
c. AMD
i. Socket 754
ii. Socket 939
iii. Socket AM2
iv. Socket AM2+
d. Intel
i. Socket 478
ii. Socket 775 (also known as LGA 775/Socket T)
Chipset – Think of this as the CPU of your motherboard. The motherboard chipset controls the data, power, and the like that your motherboard reroutes. Also, certain chipsets will only support nVidia SLI, and others will only support AMD/ATi Crossfire. If you are planning to run only one video card of either brand, then the chipset will not matter in terms of dual- or triple-card setups. (However, always think of the future!)
e. nVidia SLI Compatible Chipsets
i. 680i – The 680i chipset is two generations old, however, it is still a great chipset in terms of stability during overclocking and board features. However, it often requires a BIOS flash to support newer 45nm processors.
ii. 650i SLI/Ultra – A cut-down, cheaper version of the 680i. A decent overclocking candidate with less features. Don’t expect to reach sky-high FSB speeds with the 650i though.
iii. 780i – The 780i chipset is one generation old. It is an extremely stable and feature-rich chipset. It supports DDR2 RAM. One thing to note about the 780i is that all reference models of the motherboard have a fan (to cool the NB) which blows on the back of the video card in the first PCI-E slot. So if you’re going to use a motherboard built off this chipset, make sure you have some air movement perpendicular to the chipset fan exhaust (to prevent the graphics card from getting too hot).
iv. 750i – Again, a cut-down version of its big brother, the 780i.
v. 790i – The 790i is the latest motherboard chipset by nVidia. Practically the only thing it has over the 780i is DDR3 support. Given that DDR3 modules are still fairly expensive for little performance gain over DDR2, I recommend that prospective buyers thinking of purchasing a 790i motherboard buy a 780i motherboard instead.
f. ATi Crossfire Compatible Chipsets
i. X38 –The X38 chipset is comparable to the 780i in terms of overclocking capability, options, and performance. It has 45nm processor support. DDR2 is supported. PCI-E 2.0 slots.
ii. X48 – An updated version of the X38. 45nm processor support is included; either DDR2 or DDR3 is supported, depending on the motherboard manufacturer. PCI-E 2.0 slots.
iii. P35 – Not quite as great as the X38 and X48 (its PCI-E slots are not 2.0), but still supports 45nm. Beware! – the P35 supports two PCI-E slots, but one runs at x16 and the other runs at x4.
iv. P45 – A next generation version of the P35. Supports 45nm. Not released yet.
Supported FSB Speeds
g. All the nVidia motherboard chipsets above support FSB speeds of 800/1066/1333 MHz, except for the following:
i. 750i SLI – does not support a FSB speed of 800 MHz
ii. 790i SLI – only supports a FSB speed of 1066/1333 MHz
h. All the Intel motherboard chipsets above support FSB speeds of 800/1066/1333 MHz, except for the following:
i. X48 – only supports a FSB speed of 1066/1333/1600 MHz
RAM Type/Supported Speed – You’re going to want a motherboard that supports the type of memory you want to use.
i. DDR – Stands for Double Data Rate.
i. 266 MHz (PC 2100)
ii. 400 MHz (PC 2700)
iii. 533 MHz (PC 3200)
j. DDR2 (dirt cheap, well performing)
i. 533 MHz (PC2 4200)
ii. 667 MHz (PC2 5300)
iii. 800 MHz (PC2 6400)
iv. 1066 MHz (PC2 8500)
k. DDR3 (expensive, not a good buy yet!)
i. 1066 MHz (PC3 8500)
ii. 1333 MHz (PC3 10600/PC3 10666)
iii. 1600 MHz (PC3 12800)
iv. 1800 MHz (PC3 14400)
v. 2000 MHz (PC3 16000)
SLI/Crossfire – Decide before whether you want to go with a nVidia SLI or ATi Crossfire setup. Maybe a single card solution will be powerful enough for you (such as the 3870X2 or 9800GX2). Check to see if both PCI-E slots are built on the 16x interface. For example, the 780i, with 3 SLI slots (for tri-SLI), has two slots that are x16 (being PCI-E 2.0). However, the third slot is only x8 (being PCI-E 1.0).
Number of PCI Slots/Type – There are 2 types of PCI slots you want to be aware of.
l. PCI – These are white. Normally, they are occupied by sound cards, USB/Firewire cards, Ethernet cards, TV to PC decoder cards, etc.
m. PCI-E – These come in several different flavors. The full length one is x16 – these are for your graphics cards. There is also x8 (used for graphics cards as well), x4, and x1. A x1 slot is practically just a larger slot, cut down. So x1 cards can be placed in x1, x4, x8, and x16 slots.
I/O Connectors - Input/Output connectors
n. Ethernet
i. There are two basic speeds at which motherboard Ethernet run at: 100 Mbps (Fast Ethernet) and 1000 Mbps (Gigabit Ethernet). If you have
a Gigabit port, it will be compatible with all common Ethernet media types: CAT5 and CAT5e (with a maximum speed of 100Mbps), and CAT6
(with a maximum speed of 1000 Mbps). However, a Gigabit port will only reach its full potential with CAT6, due to the fact that only CAT6 can run at Gigabit speeds. Finally, all this is moot if your router does not have Gigabit ports, so check first before you go buying some CAT6 for no reason.
ii. Also, some enthusiast and high-end motherboards have dual Ethernet ports. One possible use for these is to connect your computer to the Internet with one, and connect to a private LAN network separated from the Internet with the other.
o. Parallel ports – A long, long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, printers used gigantic connectors called parallel connectors. Most newer motherboards do not have parallel connectors (like my Asus P5E; I should have checked ), but if need be, you can always buy a parallel to USB cable or converter.
p. Serial ports – The only thing I’ve ever used serial ports for was: 1) connecting to a router in my Cisco class, and 2) connect a century-old joystick to play an old Star Wars game when I was a kid. These ports have pretty much died out just like parallel ports; they sell converters for these as well.
q. USB ports – Take into consideration the number of USB ports you plan to use. Personally, I have found that the four I had on my old motherboard was enough for my mouse, joystick, iPod charging cable, and joystick. If needed, there are a couple solutions for extra USB ports – USB hubs and PCI USB cards.
Integrated Sound
r. Decide whether you want to use integrated sound or a separate PCI sound card. Most motherboards will have integrated sound anyway. If you choose to use integrated sound and later decide to use a sound card, you can disable integrated sound in the BIOS to avoid conflicts.
Integrated Graphics
s. The big question is: Do you want to play games or decode high definition video? If the answer was yes, then you’re not going to use integrated graphics, and should disable it in the BIOS. If the answer was no, you’re probably going to be fine with integrated graphics.
SATA ports
t. Personally, this has never been a problem for me. I only have one SATA hard drive and one DVD+RW drive, using a total of 2 SATA ports. However, I have seen a bunch of reviews about my own motherboard (the ASUS P5E), noting that it only has 6 connectors. Revieweres suggested 8. Either is more than enough for me, but not for someone like max who downloads everything on Giganews . So if you have a lot of SATA hard drives, CD/DVD drives, or both, you might want to consider the amount of SATA ports your motherboard has.
u. eSATA – Honestly, I had no idea what it was until today, although I had seen it mentioned before. It stands for external SATA. Basically, eSATA is a newer, faster technology for transferring information between internal hard drives and external hard drives (the commonly used connections until now were USB 2.0 and Firewire).
*Special things you might want to consider*
Northbridge/Southbridge Heatsink Size and Height – If you are going to install an aftermarket CPU cooler like the humongous Thermalright Ultra 120, or the Thermaltake DuOrb, make sure it will fit! Oftentimes, NB heatsinks are just too tall for aftermarket coolers to fit. Check professional reviews first!
Energy Efficiency – If you are purchasing a media-center motherboard, or just want to save a few bucks, be sure to look for special energy efficient versions of popular motherboards.
Crappy copypasta for those who don't care to download.
There are many things you need to know before choosing a motherboard – whether it be for a cheap web-surfing desktop for your grandmother, a quiet, small media-center PC, or an all-expenses-aside monster gaming rig. In this guide, I will discuss the most important aspects of choosing the right motherboard.
Form Factor – You basically have two choices, ATX or MicroATX. There was also a BTX, but it died out in September 2006.
a. ATX – The most common form factor. ATX is generally your best bet, and fits in both mid-tower and full-tower cases. They also commonly have a good amount of extra PCI slots. A lot of the time, ATX motherboards will have SLI/Crossfire support.
b. Micro ATX – The 2nd most common form factor. MicroATX will fit in practically anything, including mid-tower and full-tower cases. However, they are well known in “shuttle” PC builds and media center PCs (due to space constraints, media center PCs often have to be as small as possible, and MicroATX fits the bill). MicroATX will most likely not offer SLI/Crossfire support, as there is usually not enough space for a 2nd PCI-E slot. They also have limited extra PCI slots (usually around 2 or 3).
CPU Socket Type – This will depend: a) on the brand of CPU you are purchasing, and b) on the date your respective CPU was designed/released. I won’t really go into detail here.
c. AMD
i. Socket 754
ii. Socket 939
iii. Socket AM2
iv. Socket AM2+
d. Intel
i. Socket 478
ii. Socket 775 (also known as LGA 775/Socket T)
Chipset – Think of this as the CPU of your motherboard. The motherboard chipset controls the data, power, and the like that your motherboard reroutes. Also, certain chipsets will only support nVidia SLI, and others will only support AMD/ATi Crossfire. If you are planning to run only one video card of either brand, then the chipset will not matter in terms of dual- or triple-card setups. (However, always think of the future!)
e. nVidia SLI Compatible Chipsets
i. 680i – The 680i chipset is two generations old, however, it is still a great chipset in terms of stability during overclocking and board features. However, it often requires a BIOS flash to support newer 45nm processors.
ii. 650i SLI/Ultra – A cut-down, cheaper version of the 680i. A decent overclocking candidate with less features. Don’t expect to reach sky-high FSB speeds with the 650i though.
iii. 780i – The 780i chipset is one generation old. It is an extremely stable and feature-rich chipset. It supports DDR2 RAM. One thing to note about the 780i is that all reference models of the motherboard have a fan (to cool the NB) which blows on the back of the video card in the first PCI-E slot. So if you’re going to use a motherboard built off this chipset, make sure you have some air movement perpendicular to the chipset fan exhaust (to prevent the graphics card from getting too hot).
iv. 750i – Again, a cut-down version of its big brother, the 780i.
v. 790i – The 790i is the latest motherboard chipset by nVidia. Practically the only thing it has over the 780i is DDR3 support. Given that DDR3 modules are still fairly expensive for little performance gain over DDR2, I recommend that prospective buyers thinking of purchasing a 790i motherboard buy a 780i motherboard instead.
f. ATi Crossfire Compatible Chipsets
i. X38 –The X38 chipset is comparable to the 780i in terms of overclocking capability, options, and performance. It has 45nm processor support. DDR2 is supported. PCI-E 2.0 slots.
ii. X48 – An updated version of the X38. 45nm processor support is included; either DDR2 or DDR3 is supported, depending on the motherboard manufacturer. PCI-E 2.0 slots.
iii. P35 – Not quite as great as the X38 and X48 (its PCI-E slots are not 2.0), but still supports 45nm. Beware! – the P35 supports two PCI-E slots, but one runs at x16 and the other runs at x4.
iv. P45 – A next generation version of the P35. Supports 45nm. Not released yet.
Supported FSB Speeds
g. All the nVidia motherboard chipsets above support FSB speeds of 800/1066/1333 MHz, except for the following:
i. 750i SLI – does not support a FSB speed of 800 MHz
ii. 790i SLI – only supports a FSB speed of 1066/1333 MHz
h. All the Intel motherboard chipsets above support FSB speeds of 800/1066/1333 MHz, except for the following:
i. X48 – only supports a FSB speed of 1066/1333/1600 MHz
RAM Type/Supported Speed – You’re going to want a motherboard that supports the type of memory you want to use.
i. DDR – Stands for Double Data Rate.
i. 266 MHz (PC 2100)
ii. 400 MHz (PC 2700)
iii. 533 MHz (PC 3200)
j. DDR2 (dirt cheap, well performing)
i. 533 MHz (PC2 4200)
ii. 667 MHz (PC2 5300)
iii. 800 MHz (PC2 6400)
iv. 1066 MHz (PC2 8500)
k. DDR3 (expensive, not a good buy yet!)
i. 1066 MHz (PC3 8500)
ii. 1333 MHz (PC3 10600/PC3 10666)
iii. 1600 MHz (PC3 12800)
iv. 1800 MHz (PC3 14400)
v. 2000 MHz (PC3 16000)
SLI/Crossfire – Decide before whether you want to go with a nVidia SLI or ATi Crossfire setup. Maybe a single card solution will be powerful enough for you (such as the 3870X2 or 9800GX2). Check to see if both PCI-E slots are built on the 16x interface. For example, the 780i, with 3 SLI slots (for tri-SLI), has two slots that are x16 (being PCI-E 2.0). However, the third slot is only x8 (being PCI-E 1.0).
Number of PCI Slots/Type – There are 2 types of PCI slots you want to be aware of.
l. PCI – These are white. Normally, they are occupied by sound cards, USB/Firewire cards, Ethernet cards, TV to PC decoder cards, etc.
m. PCI-E – These come in several different flavors. The full length one is x16 – these are for your graphics cards. There is also x8 (used for graphics cards as well), x4, and x1. A x1 slot is practically just a larger slot, cut down. So x1 cards can be placed in x1, x4, x8, and x16 slots.
I/O Connectors - Input/Output connectors
n. Ethernet
i. There are two basic speeds at which motherboard Ethernet run at: 100 Mbps (Fast Ethernet) and 1000 Mbps (Gigabit Ethernet). If you have
a Gigabit port, it will be compatible with all common Ethernet media types: CAT5 and CAT5e (with a maximum speed of 100Mbps), and CAT6
(with a maximum speed of 1000 Mbps). However, a Gigabit port will only reach its full potential with CAT6, due to the fact that only CAT6 can run at Gigabit speeds. Finally, all this is moot if your router does not have Gigabit ports, so check first before you go buying some CAT6 for no reason.
ii. Also, some enthusiast and high-end motherboards have dual Ethernet ports. One possible use for these is to connect your computer to the Internet with one, and connect to a private LAN network separated from the Internet with the other.
o. Parallel ports – A long, long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, printers used gigantic connectors called parallel connectors. Most newer motherboards do not have parallel connectors (like my Asus P5E; I should have checked ), but if need be, you can always buy a parallel to USB cable or converter.
p. Serial ports – The only thing I’ve ever used serial ports for was: 1) connecting to a router in my Cisco class, and 2) connect a century-old joystick to play an old Star Wars game when I was a kid. These ports have pretty much died out just like parallel ports; they sell converters for these as well.
q. USB ports – Take into consideration the number of USB ports you plan to use. Personally, I have found that the four I had on my old motherboard was enough for my mouse, joystick, iPod charging cable, and joystick. If needed, there are a couple solutions for extra USB ports – USB hubs and PCI USB cards.
Integrated Sound
r. Decide whether you want to use integrated sound or a separate PCI sound card. Most motherboards will have integrated sound anyway. If you choose to use integrated sound and later decide to use a sound card, you can disable integrated sound in the BIOS to avoid conflicts.
Integrated Graphics
s. The big question is: Do you want to play games or decode high definition video? If the answer was yes, then you’re not going to use integrated graphics, and should disable it in the BIOS. If the answer was no, you’re probably going to be fine with integrated graphics.
SATA ports
t. Personally, this has never been a problem for me. I only have one SATA hard drive and one DVD+RW drive, using a total of 2 SATA ports. However, I have seen a bunch of reviews about my own motherboard (the ASUS P5E), noting that it only has 6 connectors. Revieweres suggested 8. Either is more than enough for me, but not for someone like max who downloads everything on Giganews . So if you have a lot of SATA hard drives, CD/DVD drives, or both, you might want to consider the amount of SATA ports your motherboard has.
u. eSATA – Honestly, I had no idea what it was until today, although I had seen it mentioned before. It stands for external SATA. Basically, eSATA is a newer, faster technology for transferring information between internal hard drives and external hard drives (the commonly used connections until now were USB 2.0 and Firewire).
*Special things you might want to consider*
Northbridge/Southbridge Heatsink Size and Height – If you are going to install an aftermarket CPU cooler like the humongous Thermalright Ultra 120, or the Thermaltake DuOrb, make sure it will fit! Oftentimes, NB heatsinks are just too tall for aftermarket coolers to fit. Check professional reviews first!
Energy Efficiency – If you are purchasing a media-center motherboard, or just want to save a few bucks, be sure to look for special energy efficient versions of popular motherboards.
Crappy copypasta for those who don't care to download.
Last edited by Freezer7Pro (2008-06-10 16:36:02)
The idea of any hi-fi system is to reproduce the source material as faithfully as possible, and to deliberately add distortion to everything you hear (due to amplifier deficiencies) because it sounds 'nice' is simply not high fidelity. If that is what you want to hear then there is no problem with that, but by adding so much additional material (by way of harmonics and intermodulation) you have a tailored sound system, not a hi-fi. - Rod Elliot, ESP
If you didn't know most of that, you probably shouldn't be building a computer in the first place.
There are some DDR/2 speeds missing.
I did and it runs fineghettoperson wrote:
If you didn't know most of that, you probably shouldn't be building a computer in the first place.
650i isn't too bad tbh. Haven't overclocked yet but I may try it soon.
Only because no one uses them. I cba'ed listing all of them, that's what Wiki is for..Sup wrote:
There are some DDR/2 speeds missing.
"people in ny have a general idea of how to drive. one of the pedals goes forward the other one prevents you from dying"
I wubble my P5N-E sli, hasn't caused me any problems as of yet.Stimey wrote:
I did and it runs fineghettoperson wrote:
If you didn't know most of that, you probably shouldn't be building a computer in the first place.
650i isn't too bad tbh. Haven't overclocked yet but I may try it soon.
main battle tank karthus medikopter 117 megamegapowershot gg
I didn't say it sucked, but it's not the best.DeathUnlimited wrote:
I wubble my P5N-E sli, hasn't caused me any problems as of yet.Stimey wrote:
I did and it runs fineghettoperson wrote:
If you didn't know most of that, you probably shouldn't be building a computer in the first place.
650i isn't too bad tbh. Haven't overclocked yet but I may try it soon.
"people in ny have a general idea of how to drive. one of the pedals goes forward the other one prevents you from dying"
Of course not for that price rangehaffeysucks wrote:
I didn't say it sucked, but it's not the best.DeathUnlimited wrote:
I wubble my P5N-E sli, hasn't caused me any problems as of yet.Stimey wrote:
I did and it runs fine
650i isn't too bad tbh. Haven't overclocked yet but I may try it soon.
P5N-E sli can handle up to 500FSB depending on the individual. Which is huge. Really huge, especially for such a cheap mobo.ii. 650i SLI/Ultra – A cut-down, cheaper version of the 680i. A decent overclocking candidate with less features. Don’t expect to reach sky-high FSB speeds with the 650i though.
main battle tank karthus medikopter 117 megamegapowershot gg
Okay, the only difference is features then. Maybe voltage fluctuation as well. Happy?
Last edited by haffeysucks (2008-06-11 09:38:28)
"people in ny have a general idea of how to drive. one of the pedals goes forward the other one prevents you from dying"
Good guide, cheers for that
Incorrect. 780i supports 3 PCI-E 2.0 Slots x16 speed. 680i has 2 x16 slots, the third running at x8.Haffeysucks wrote:
...
SLI/Crossfire – Decide before whether you want to go with a nVidia SLI or ATi Crossfire setup. Maybe a single card solution will be powerful enough for you (such as the 3870X2 or 9800GX2). Check to see if both PCI-E slots are built on the 16x interface. For example, the 780i, with 3 SLI slots (for tri-SLI), has two slots that are x16 (being PCI-E 2.0). However, the third slot is only x8 (being PCI-E 1.0).
...
PCI-E 1.1 =/= x8 speed. PCI-E 1.1 slots run at x16 standard.
I was about to buy 1200MHz RAMs but they were out of stock then. If you're making a complete guide then it should be "complete".haffeysucks wrote:
Only because no one uses them. I cba'ed listing all of them, that's what Wiki is for..Sup wrote:
There are some DDR/2 speeds missing.
1200MHz is non-jedec aka not happening with standard volts..Sup wrote:
I was about to buy 1200MHz RAMs but they were out of stock then. If you're making a complete guide then it should be "complete".haffeysucks wrote:
Only because no one uses them. I cba'ed listing all of them, that's what Wiki is for..Sup wrote:
There are some DDR/2 speeds missing.
main battle tank karthus medikopter 117 megamegapowershot gg
780i supports 2 PCI-E 2.0 slots at x16. The third is simply PCI-E x16.The_Sniper_NM wrote:
Incorrect. 780i supports 3 PCI-E 2.0 Slots x16 speed. 680i has 2 x16 slots, the third running at x8.Haffeysucks wrote:
...
SLI/Crossfire – Decide before whether you want to go with a nVidia SLI or ATi Crossfire setup. Maybe a single card solution will be powerful enough for you (such as the 3870X2 or 9800GX2). Check to see if both PCI-E slots are built on the 16x interface. For example, the 780i, with 3 SLI slots (for tri-SLI), has two slots that are x16 (being PCI-E 2.0). However, the third slot is only x8 (being PCI-E 1.0).
...
PCI-E 1.1 =/= x8 speed. PCI-E 1.1 slots run at x16 standard.
The PCI-E 1.1 being equal to x8 speed was a mistake, thanks, gotta fix that.
never said it was complete, did i? and yeah, DU brings up a good point. 1200 is only going to happen with EPP 1.0..Sup wrote:
I was about to buy 1200MHz RAMs but they were out of stock then. If you're making a complete guide then it should be "complete".haffeysucks wrote:
Only because no one uses them. I cba'ed listing all of them, that's what Wiki is for..Sup wrote:
There are some DDR/2 speeds missing.
edit: ooh, never mind, apparently not! http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductLi … rchInDesc=
Last edited by haffeysucks (2008-06-11 12:11:00)
"people in ny have a general idea of how to drive. one of the pedals goes forward the other one prevents you from dying"
I'm not exactly sure what your point is but yes the 1200MHz RAM's need a bit more voltage (makes sense doesn't it? Higher speeds-higher voltages).DeathUnlimited wrote:
1200MHz is non-jedec aka not happening with standard volts..Sup wrote:
I was about to buy 1200MHz RAMs but they were out of stock then. If you're making a complete guide then it should be "complete".haffeysucks wrote:
Only because no one uses them. I cba'ed listing all of them, that's what Wiki is for.
And some wrong..Sup wrote:
There are some DDR/2 speeds missing.
That should be 333 and 400.ii. 400 MHz (PC 2700)
iii. 533 MHz (PC 3200)
Last edited by Bertster7 (2008-06-11 12:29:15)
Yep, sorry, will be fixed with the next update...Bertster7 wrote:
And some wrong..Sup wrote:
There are some DDR/2 speeds missing.That should be 333 and 400.ii. 400 MHz (PC 2700)
iii. 533 MHz (PC 3200)
"people in ny have a general idea of how to drive. one of the pedals goes forward the other one prevents you from dying"