42 replies to this topic

[defroad]

I am building a new machine, i7-2600k which will be used for both work and play. I will be putting at least 16gb ram, 64gb SSD in. I am looking at maybe overclocking the unit. I am not a hardcore gamer, but do enjoy playing games. I would rather spend more on the motherboard then video card. My last 2 machines I have used ASUS with great success. My current machine has lasted 5+ years and is now not able to keep up with my demands.

I am stuck which motherboard to get I have about a $200 budget for it. I know all of these are close and I have looked at them side by side...

ASUS P8Z68-V/GEN3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 - $179 http://www.newegg.co...N82E16813131792
ASUS Maximus IV Gene-Z/GEN3 LGA 1155 - $179 http://www.newegg.co...N82E16813131806
ASUS P8P67 DELUXE (REV 3.0) LGA 1155 - $209 http://www.newegg.co...N82E16813131701 (this board has a huge following)
ASUS P8Z68-V PRO/GEN3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 - $209 http://www.newegg.co...N82E16813131790


I would love some advice
Defroad...

[El_Capitan]

ASUS P8Z68-V Pro. The non-Gen3 will save you more money.

[vandreadstriker]

The P8Z68-V and P8Z68-V Pro are Virtually identical, aesthetic and performance. The difference is the P8Z68-V Pro has 2 more SATA ports, Dual LAN interconnect, internal IEEE 1394 port and DTS audio layer.
IMO Get the P8Z68-V/GEN3 for $30 less

[d6bmg]

Will you use sound card & less than 6 HDD/SSDs?
If yes, then buy ASUS P8Z68-V/GEN3, otherwise buy ASUS P8Z68-V PRO/GEN3.

[defroad]

Will you use sound card & less than 6 HDD/SSDs?
If yes, then buy ASUS P8Z68-V/GEN3, otherwise buy ASUS P8Z68-V PRO/GEN3.

I will be using a sound card, however I will be using 16+gb of ram with plans to put a full 32gb of ram into the machine. Why would the amount of ram matter on these boards? Both can support up to 32gb.

Edited by defroad, 05 April 2012 - 08:45 AM.

[vandreadstriker]

I will be using a sound card, however I will be using 16+gb of ram with plans to put a full 32gb of ram into the machine. Why would the amount of ram matter on these boards? Both can support up to 32gb.

I'm not understanding your question.
If you're planning on populating all the RAM slots of the board, It would put a heavy stress on the memory controller which would be a bad thing since you won't be able to run your RAMs at it's specified settings = waste of money. AFAIK there aren't 16GB RAM now, only 8GB. If you're planning on sticking with SB, I suggest you get 2x8GB and leave it as is. If you want to get 32GB of RAM, I think you should've considered the Sandy Bridge-E/X79 platform.

[defroad]

I'm not understanding your question.
If you're planning on populating all the RAM slots of the board, It would put a heavy stress on the memory controller which would be a bad thing since you won't be able to run your RAMs at it's specified settings = waste of money. AFAIK there aren't 16GB RAM now, only 8GB. If you're planning on sticking with SB, I suggest you get 2x8GB and leave it as is. If you want to get 32GB of RAM, I think you should've considered the Sandy Bridge-E/X79 platform.

Thank you, that makes alot of sense now. I would love to get a X79 motherboard, however they are out of the price range. Which of the two boards would you go with still, i am going to put 16gb of ram on the board right from the start. They seem almost identical. I have a sound card, however I will test out the onboard option.

ASUS P8Z68-V/GEN3, or ASUS P8Z68-V PRO/GEN3

[d6bmg]

To maximize overclocking potential of the SB/IB boards, do not use more than 2 DIMMs. Using 4 modules results in more power consumption, and thus resulting in relatively low overclocking.

[Stonerboy779]

RAM is not magic you have not mentioned what you are doing and to be honest I think you could be perfectly alright with 8GB (2x 4GB) of RAM.
I will also ask are you sure you need a sooundcard? What speakers/headphones do you have?

[defroad]

RAM is not magic you have not mentioned what you are doing and to be honest I think you could be perfectly alright with 8GB (2x 4GB) of RAM.
I will also ask are you sure you need a sooundcard? What speakers/headphones do you have?

I have a mid range sound blaster, I will test and see which gives better performance. I will be doing some light VM work and I am trying future proof the machine a bit. I am sure 16GB (2x 8GB) will be plenty.

[vandreadstriker]

I say get the P8Z68-V. Their performance are virtually identical to the V Pro variant.
Also, the DTS audio layer makes little difference to the audio quality and it's a software based layer so you could find a way to install it on the P8Z68-V.
Since you have a soundcard, why bother paying extra when you know you aren't going to use the extra features (I don't think you'd need the internal firewire, do you?)
In your case, I think the deal breaker would be the extra two SATA III ports. If you don't need them, save $30 and get the P8Z68-V

[d6bmg]

And those 2 extra SATA III ports are from Marvel controller which sucks btw and can't be paired with any SATA III good SSD IMHO..

Edited by d6bmg, 05 April 2012 - 10:43 PM.