# Best brand motherboard nowadays?



## The VCR King (Dec 22, 2016)

Im planning to use any Christmas cash I get to start acquiring parts for a new rig to replace the Beast since she's wearing out. In y'alls opinions, what motherboard brand is the best in terms of durability and performance? My last 2 PCs have been MSI so I'm obviously kinda biased toward their products but looking around online I've taken a liking to some of the mobos by ASRock and Biostar and EVGA. What brand makes the best "bang for the buck" board?

Thank you


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## Intel_man (Dec 22, 2016)

I own an EVGA mobo. They're not the cheapest out there, but I find that their boards are designed for enthusiasts without the fancy RGB LED stuff that you see now populating every other "gamer" branded boards. They just work and their current stuff looks very low key. Their support is quick, and there's also a huge community forum too if you want to talk about your EVGA products. 

I'm not too sure about Biostar, but most ASRock boards are fine. Honestly, I've used MSI boards, Gigabyte boards, and EVGA boards. They're all fine. Just don't cheap out on the bottom of the barrel stuff with the minimum power phases and vregs on it. 

If I were you, I would not start acquiring parts now. Either buy it all or most in one purchase, or don't buy it at all. Things change way too fast in the tech world to start buying parts by parts until you can build a computer.


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## The VCR King (Dec 22, 2016)

Intel_man said:


> I own an EVGA mobo. They're not the cheapest out there, but I find that their boards are designed for enthusiasts without the fancy RGB LED stuff that you see now populating every other "gamer" branded boards. They just work and their current stuff looks very low key. Their support is quick, and there's also a huge community forum too if you want to talk about your EVGA products.
> 
> I'm not too sure about Biostar, but most ASRock boards are fine. Honestly, I've used MSI boards, Gigabyte boards, and EVGA boards. They're all fine. Just don't cheap out on the bottom of the barrel stuff with the minimum power phases and vregs on it.
> 
> If I were you, I would not start acquiring parts now. Either buy it all or most in one purchase, or don't buy it at all. Things change way too fast in the tech world to start buying parts by parts until you can build a computer.


I do NOT any of that RGB stuff. All the blue LEDs I have now annoy me enough as they are, I don't need them to change colors now. For my next PC, I am planning to go with a red color scheme, and I just want a basic mobo with red trim like this one - this is the Biostar TA970, I kinda like it:


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## Darren (Dec 22, 2016)

It's less about brand and more about the actual product, as is frequently the case in computer components. My previous MSI board was honestly pretty meh and downright crap for any serious overclocking. It wasn't even fully stable at stock clocks on my 8320. Now with a different but similarly priced Gigabyte board I can push 4.5GHz comfortably. That said there is definitely something to be said for different brands and generally it's best to stick to the top 3. I'd recommend in somewhat preference based order, Gigabyte, Asus, MSI and then after that probably AsRock. I generally avoid BioStar and Foxconn as they're cheaper usually. EVGA probably makes good boards but they're not as big a maker as other brands and you frequently won't even have them in the running as they don't have a whole lot of models last I checked.

Edit: Mobo selection based primarily on color is asinine. Sure color can factor in but I'd find the right board/chipset first then look into what color options you have.


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## johnb35 (Dec 22, 2016)

Can't go wrong with Gigabyte, in fact the only brand I can recommend right now.  I have never used MSI, Asrock or Biostar boards but have heard many problems with them.  I know I seem biased, maybe I am.  But I've been building pc's for quite a few years now and up till about 10 years ago only used Asus boards. I've only had to rma 1 gigabyte board due to onboard video having issues losing output to the monitor.  Pretty good record I think.  I just feel gigabyte makes the better board at a decent price. 



Intel_man said:


> If I were you, I would not start acquiring parts now. Either buy it all or most in one purchase, or don't buy it at all.


Agree.


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## The VCR King (Dec 22, 2016)

johnb35 said:


> Can't go wrong with Gigabyte, in fact the only brand I can recommend right now.  I have never used MSI, Asrock or Biostar boards but have heard many problems with them.  I know I seem biased, maybe I am.  But I've been building pc's for quite a few years now and up till about 10 years ago only used Asus boards. I've only had to rma 1 gigabyte board due to onboard video having issues losing output to the monitor.  Pretty good record I think.  I just feel gigabyte makes the better board at a decent price.
> 
> 
> Agree.


I don't think you're biased. The "PC-Master-Race" nerd-culture at my school is pretty strong, and a lot of guys and gals I know are running Gigabyte boards. 

Also I am holding off on acquiring parts until I get a definite parts list for sure. Not gonna do it "one piece at a time" I'm doing it all at once. This one here's just something I thought up, IDK if I'll build it though:
https://pcpartpicker.com/user/CrazyCalvinWilliams/saved/xcHGXL


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## Darren (Dec 22, 2016)

The VCR King said:


> I don't think you're biased. The "PC-Master-Race" nerd-culture at my school is pretty strong, and a lot of guys and gals I know are running Gigabyte boards.
> 
> Also I am holding off on acquiring parts until I get a definite parts list for sure. Not gonna do it "one piece at a time" I'm doing it all at once. This one here's just something I thought up, IDK if I'll build it though:
> https://pcpartpicker.com/user/CrazyCalvinWilliams/saved/xcHGXL


How many times do we have to club you over the head before you get that any AMD config right now is pointless. Also why 390? 480 is comparable and less power and cheaper.


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## The VCR King (Dec 22, 2016)

Darren said:


> How many times do we have to club you over the head before you get that any AMD config right now is pointless. Also why 390? 480 is comparable and less power and cheaper.


As I said it's theoretical and will most likely not happen. And I'm really just not an Intel fan. I've always owned and liked AMD.


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## Darren (Dec 22, 2016)

The VCR King said:


> As I said it's theoretical and will most likely not happen. And I'm really just not an Intel fan. I've always owned and liked AMD.


Look who you're talking to, I like AMD probably more than you do lol.

I understand wanting to theorize builds but at the very least do something that's up to date? You've got a build spec'd out for nearly 2 grand that will perform marginally worse than my build (lack of overclock) that I'm already wanting to upgrade and cost me about half that. Come on.


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## The VCR King (Dec 22, 2016)

Darren said:


> Look who you're talking to, I like AMD probably more than you do lol.
> 
> I understand wanting to theorize builds but at the very least do something that's up to date? You've got a build spec'd out for nearly 2 grand that will perform marginally worse than my build that I'm already wanting to upgrade and cost me about half that. Come on.


As nice as it would be to have one, I don't need a super coked-out crazy-insane build. The performance of my 2010-built rig is more than enough to run most things I throw at it, and I'm just looking to build a PC to replace it (with some minor performance upgrades) since my rig's slowly dying. Believe me, I'd love to have a 3000-watt 8-core PC with 3-way-SLI'd whatevers, but I wouldn't ever use it to it's full potential.


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## voyagerfan99 (Dec 22, 2016)

I jumped off the AMD bandwagon years ago.



The VCR King said:


> As nice as it would be to have one, I don't need a super coked-out crazy-insane build. The performance of my 2010-built rig is more than enough to run most things I throw at it, and I'm just looking to build a PC to replace it (with some minor performance upgrades) since my rig's slowly dying. Believe me, I'd love to have a 3000-watt 8-core PC with 3-way-SLI'd whatevers, but I wouldn't ever use it to it's full potential.


Anything you buy today will be 2x better than what you have now. So it will wind up being "coked-out" anyway.

I also exclusively run Gigabyte boards. The exception was my first custom build, which ran a Machspeed board (MSI counterpart).


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## The VCR King (Dec 22, 2016)

voyagerfan99 said:


> Anything you buy today will be 2x better than what you have now. So it will wind up being "coked-out" anyway.


True. But still I'm fine with the "medium end" of the performance level. I don't need the Ferrari of PC's, and I don't want the Geo Metro of PCs either. Right now I have the Corvette of PCs, and I'm just looking to trade up a few model years.


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## Darren (Dec 22, 2016)

The VCR King said:


> As nice as it would be to have one, I don't need a super coked-out crazy-insane build. The performance of my 2010-built rig is more than enough to run most things I throw at it, and I'm just looking to build a PC to replace it (with some minor performance upgrades) since my rig's slowly dying. Believe me, I'd love to have a 3000-watt 8-core PC with 3-way-SLI'd whatevers, but I wouldn't ever use it to it's full potential.


That's not my point at all. My point is you've configured a build that's 1.8K and performs similarly to my machine that I built for half that. If you've got 1.8K to spend your build list is a huge waste of that money.



voyagerfan99 said:


> I jumped off the AMD bandwagon years ago.
> Anything you buy today will be 2x better than what you have now. So it will wind up being "coked-out" anyway.



Not if he buys an 8320, lol. Those gains are only going to be tangible in clock speeds and the few instances of extra cores. Pretty sure the IPC jump from Phenom to Piledriver was marginal at best. I think even some Phenom II's had better IPC than Bulldozer IIRC.


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## The VCR King (Dec 22, 2016)

Darren said:


> That's not my point at all. My point is you've configured a build that's 1.8K and performs similarly to my machine that I built for half that. If you've got 1.8K to spend your build list is a huge waste of that money.


My list has more parts too, like a large SSD, more RAM, Windows Ultimate, wifi card. That's probably where the extra $$$ is coming from


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## voyagerfan99 (Dec 22, 2016)

The VCR King said:


> I have the Corvette of PCs


Yeah....no you don't. I don't consider Corvette's garbage.



Darren said:


> If you've got 1.8K to spend your build list is a huge waste of that money.


No shit. I just looked at that build.

1. Why the hell would you waste money on a platinum certified fully modular power supply? Let alone an 860 watt PSU? You can live with a 600W.
2. Why the hell would you buy Windows 7 Ultimate for $218? [holy shit Batman!]
3. Why the hell do YOU need 32GB of RAM?


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## The VCR King (Dec 22, 2016)

voyagerfan99 said:


> Yeah....no you don't. I don't consider Corvette's garbage.
> 
> 
> No shit. I just looked at that build.
> ...


Okay okay so my Corvette-PC has 300,000 miles and has been in a few accidents.
and to answer 3. for video editing

And to answer 1, IDK, I'll change that part, and 2, I heard Ultimate is better, and I didn't know that $218 was a lot for Windows

I like this supply:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?item=N82E16817341053


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## voyagerfan99 (Dec 22, 2016)

The VCR King said:


> Okay okay so my Corvette-PC h


It's not a Corvette. It's a riced up Honda or a Mazda. Not a Corvette.



The VCR King said:


> I heard Ultimate is better


You obviously don't know what the actual differences between a copy of pro and ultimate are. Let me tell you. Language Packs and Bitlocker, neither of which you'd use. Find a copy of 8.1 Pro or 10 Pro for $100 instead of wasting your money.



The VCR King said:


> I like this supply:
> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?item=N82E16817341053


Why do you think you need a 1000W PSU?


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## The VCR King (Dec 22, 2016)

voyagerfan99 said:


> It's not a Corvette. It's a riced up Honda or a Mazda. Not a Corvette.
> 
> 
> You obviously don't know what the actual differences between a copy of pro and ultimate are. Let me tell you. Language Packs and Bitlocker, neither of which you'd use. Find a copy of 8.1 Pro or 10 Pro for $100 instead of wasting your money.
> ...


Hell thats it? Ill just use home premium then. Thank you so much for the explanation! 

and for the 1000W PSU, it's so I have overhead in case of future expansion


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## voyagerfan99 (Dec 22, 2016)

The VCR King said:


> and for the 1000W PSU, it's so I have overhead in case of future expansion


Even if you expanded, you wouldn't need a 1000W PSU. 600/650W will be fine for you.


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## The VCR King (Dec 22, 2016)

voyagerfan99 said:


> Even if you expanded, you wouldn't need a 1000W PSU. 600/650W will be fine for you.


Okay, fair enough  I'll put in a 650w one. Thank you for helping me, seriously!


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## The VCR King (Dec 22, 2016)

Revised:
http://pcpartpicker.com/user/CrazyCalvinWilliams/saved/xcHGXL


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## The VCR King (Dec 22, 2016)

Regarding the power supply thing, I was thinking about potentially swapping over my Thermaltake 650W but in a new build I figured I should go full-modular


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## Intel_man (Dec 22, 2016)

Darren said:


> EVGA probably makes good boards but they're not as big a maker as other brands and you frequently won't even have them in the running as they don't have a whole lot of models last I checked.


EVGA doesn't really make entry-level boards. If you look at their cheapest stuff, they come with quality parts. They also have a near-cult following on their forums. It's rather strange.


Darren said:


> Edit: Mobo selection based primarily on color is asinine. Sure color can factor in but I'd find the right board/chipset first then look into what color options you have.


This. ALL OF MY THIS.


voyagerfan99 said:


> Yeah....no you don't. I don't consider Corvette's garbage.


LOL


The VCR King said:


> Revised:
> http://pcpartpicker.com/user/CrazyCalvinWilliams/saved/xcHGXL


I honestly can't take you seriously. Your 1.8k build has a 8350. WTF.


EDIT: Also, this https://pcpartpicker.com/list/MBYkHN will smash your list.


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## Darren (Dec 22, 2016)

Intel_man said:


> EDIT: Also, this https://pcpartpicker.com/list/MBYkHN will smash your list.


It's downright hilarious how much better this is, while still being cheaper.


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## Intel_man (Dec 22, 2016)

Darren said:


> It's downright hilarious how much better this is, while still being cheaper.


It's not like I chose cheap parts too. Some of the stuff on that list can be shaved down to something a bit cheaper. 

I really don't understand how @The VCR King managed to build a parts list with a 8350 that costs 1.8k.


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## johnb35 (Dec 22, 2016)

You also picked out a case that has front usb 3 ports but the motherboard doesn't have a usb 3 header.  Yeah, you picked an addin card to give you that functionality but what the hell?  Get a board that already supports it and save that money for something else.

Spending $100 in 4 fans?  Come on!!!
$63 for a wifi adapter?  Get cheaper
Don't need a liquid cooler
SSD - get the samsung 850 evo 500gb and save 50 bucks. 
4x4gb memory???  spending $300  What a waste.  Only $107 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231589  DDR4 16gb $100 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231878

You really need to learn how to pick parts.  

We all know this will never turn into fruition.  This  thread at this point in time is unnecessary since you aren't even close to be ready to build.  If you are set on AMD then you need to get an AM4 build when it comes out. 

No more threads until you are really ready to buy parts.


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## voyagerfan99 (Dec 22, 2016)

Intel_man said:


> EVGA doesn't really make entry-level boards. If you look at their cheapest stuff, they come with quality parts. They also have a near-cult following on their forums. It's rather strange.


I've built two or three machines with EVGA boards .They are quite nice and very high end.


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## beers (Dec 22, 2016)

The VCR King said:


> My last 2 PCs have been MSI so I'm obviously kinda biased toward their products


It sounds like you've had nothing but problems, so why would you stay with that brand? 

Per others a new build on AM3+ isn't the best option, especially at the price point you set the build.


The VCR King said:


> And I'm really just not an Intel fan.


Why not?  They're just computer parts, you might as well buy the platform that offers you the highest performance for your dollar.


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## voyagerfan99 (Dec 22, 2016)

The VCR King said:


> And I'm really just not an Intel fan.


Yet you're an AMD fan with the shitty CPU's they've had over the last few years? LOL

Probably the only reason you don't like Intel is the price. Believe me, they perform a hell of a lot better than AMD at the moment.


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## The VCR King (Dec 22, 2016)

voyagerfan99 said:


> Probably the only reason you don't like Intel is the price.


Yes, that's the main reason I don't like them.




However, in my "Theory box" I threw together a decent LGA2011-3 based build, and its around $1500.
http://pcpartpicker.com/user/CrazyCalvinWilliams/saved/dHPFTW


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## voyagerfan99 (Dec 22, 2016)

The VCR King said:


> Yes, that's the main reason I don't like them.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


You don't need an i7. A decent i5 will be fine. Hell, even if you just got an i7-4790K that would be cheaper than the 6-core you have in that list.


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## The VCR King (Dec 22, 2016)

voyagerfan99 said:


> You don't need an i7. A decent i5 will be fine. Hell, even if you just got an i7-4790K that would be cheaper than the 6-core you have in that list.


How much of a performance loss would there be though?

Also the 4790 isn't an option on PCPartPicker



I'll go with the cheapest option, the 5820K on the list.

Also I can't edit all my posts into one for some reason so sorry bout the spam of replies

i5 isnt on the list either, its either an i7, i7 exterme, or a xeon

I really like this EVGA-Corsair LGA2011-3 build I've got going on...

Here's the first Intel build:
https://pcpartpicker.com/user/CrazyCalvinWilliams/saved/dHPFTW

And "rev 2" with more Corsair pieces:
https://pcpartpicker.com/user/CrazyCalvinWilliams/saved/QfXkLk


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## beers (Dec 22, 2016)

2011-3 is only i7, the 1151 CPUs would fit your needs at a lower price point while offering similar performance except maybe for video encoding.


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## The VCR King (Dec 22, 2016)

beers said:


> 2011-3 is only i7, the 1151 CPUs would fit your needs at a lower price point while offering similar performance except maybe for video encoding.


I need the video encoding for gaming videos and school projects, and EVGA doesn't have a 1151 board on the part picker


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## voyagerfan99 (Dec 22, 2016)

Don't spend money on an EVGA board. Just get a Gigabyte board.


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## The VCR King (Dec 22, 2016)

voyagerfan99 said:


> Don't spend money on an EVGA board. Just get a Gigabyte board.


I'll think about it. I really like the look of the EVGA board, it's really sharp!


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## beers (Dec 22, 2016)

This might be better to revisit when you actually have the money to drop.  By then we'll have 3 or 4 socket revisions


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## johnb35 (Dec 22, 2016)

So your going to spend that much money on a microatx board?  Thats all black anyway?


beers said:


> By then we'll have 3 or 4 socket revisions


Most likely. 

By the way he posted another thread like this back in April.

http://www.computerforum.com/threads/building-a-new-pc.238718/

Told him then to not pick parts until he actually had the money and ready to build.  We are wasting our time here now.  About ready to close this thread.


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## The VCR King (Dec 22, 2016)

Go ahead and close it, I've gotten all the advice I need


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## Intel_man (Dec 22, 2016)

Jesus christ... You could literally just buy parts from my list and be done with it and had a smashing computer.


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## Darren (Dec 22, 2016)

The VCR King said:


> Go ahead and close it, I've gotten all the advice I need


Ask and you shall receive.


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