Which Motherboard for E8400 ?

[Ibn Saeed]

Hello

I have finally decided to go with E8400 processor. I would like to know which motherboard would be good for E8400. Also, if should be able to support Quad Core, if i need to upgrade in the future.

I have one in line :
Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3R
or
Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3L
or
Gigabyte GA-EP35

Which one should I go with or should I go with any other brand.

[screwballl]

I would suggest the GA-EP35-DS3R

heres a run down on the lettering:

middle 3 or 4 digits:
E = energy efficient
P35 = chipset
C = combo (the P35C boards can use DDR2 or DDR3 which is generally discouraged due to lower performance of both types of memory)


last 3 or 4 digits:
DS = Durable and Stable (gimmicky terminology)
3 = series 3 of their boards
4 = series 4 of their boards
Q = quad core compatible (rarely used anymore since all P35 chipsets should handle quad cores natively)
L = basic model or "Low end"
R = RAID onboard
P = Pair of PCIe slots for ATI Crossfire options (plus onboard RAID)

[Tech Geek Deluxe]

I have the following boards and am very pleased with them. Q6600 X2 and an E3110

The first two are the Highest rated Motherboards on Newegg within the best overall value and stability chipset choices. The IP35 Pro has numerous other awards ... more than any other board I have seen. The bloodiron is a nice board ... but considerably anemic compared to the Abit IP 35 Pro as far as features. The third board is a great board and is my server board .... solid and cool running with a E3110 / E8400

ABIT IP35 Pro LGA 775 Intel P35
DFI BloodIron P35-T2RL LGA 775 Intel P35
GIGABYTE GA-EP35-DS4 LGA 775 Intel P35

[There are newer chipsets that work with DDR3 that are great boards ... while the performance increase is a little better their costs together are considerably higher .... so the chipset choices above are the P35 with ICH9R]


ABIT vs Bloodiron: [Abit has these and bloodiron doesn't]

The Abit has all of the features of the Bloodiron, plus:

• better cooling
• thicker and more solid PCB
• higher end board components
• A far more sophisticated bios for overclocking and customizations
• overclocks can be saved in bios
• has an external bios reset button
• has fan control onboard thru bios
• has 2 external E-sata ports

I custom built them both ... and love them both. If they are the same price ... it would be ridiculous to buy the bloodiron. If they are within $40-$50 ... I would go with the Abit ... but that is a close call ... E-Sata is a fantastic feature ... and often can be added and included withg an external hard drive purchase for very little.

[Ibn Saeed]

ill go with GA-EP35-DS3R if i can find it locally

[drew and not u]

I'll also throw a vote in for the Asus P5K-E. There are many good choices for motherboards right now, and this is another great option. It's essentially a rebadged P5K Deluxe, without the bundle. It's a killer overclocker, has a great feature set, and is rock solid. Plus you get all the Asus niceties like the crash-free-bios, Q-connectors, etc...

I have the E8400 on this board and couldn't be happier. High-end board for a mid-range price.

[Tech Geek Deluxe]

Yeah ... Asus makes some of the best Motherboards in the Market ...

Me <--- Asus fanbouy

I only have one Asus board running now ... gave away the last two as gifts.

[Ibn Saeed]

Originally Posted by drew and not u

I'll also throw a vote in for the Asus P5K-E. There are many good choices for motherboards right now, and this is another great option. It's essentially a rebadged P5K Deluxe, without the bundle. It's a killer overclocker, has a great feature set, and is rock solid. Plus you get all the Asus niceties like the crash-free-bios, Q-connectors, etc...

I have the E8400 on this board and couldn't be happier. High-end board for a mid-range price.

Ill check my stores and see if they have Asus P5K-E

How does it compare to Gigabyte ? Is it better or on the same wave

[One4yu2c]

Both are great boards (Gigabyte and Asus) and you could flip a coin and not be worse off for it. But barring a coin toss, I really like that Asus throws the onboard WiFi into the mix, and I prefer Asus' BIOS to that of Gigabyte's. Throw in a $30 savings (comparing shipped prices on Newegg - pricing disparity may or may not apply from where you're buying) and the P5K-E would get my recommendation.

[Ibn Saeed]

Originally Posted by One4yu2c

Both are great boards (Gigabyte and Asus) and you could flip a coin and not be worse off for it. But barring a coin toss, I really like that Asus throws the onboard WiFi into the mix, and I prefer Asus' BIOS to that of Gigabyte's. Throw in a $30 savings (comparing shipped prices on Newegg - pricing disparity may or may not apply from where you're buying) and the P5K-E would get my recommendation.

Ill look into Asus as well