X58 and P67 board options for new build

[stadeli]

I am getting ready to do a new build and am running into a little dillema on what board to choose. I'm still deciding on whether to go with the X58 or P67 chipset. I know there is a lot of controversy between the two so right now I'm just looking on the best options of boards for each. For the X58 I want to build around the i7 960 and P67 the i7-2600K Sandy Bridge. The video cards will most likely be a single GTX560 or possibly 2 in SLI or a single 570.

Anyone have any suggestions on some boards to go with for each platform; maybe a top 3 or so? Any other suggestion are welcome too.

 

[n-ster]

Welcome to TPU! What would be your price range and where do you live?

My personal favorites for cheaper X58 mobos are the Gigabytes, notably the UD3R. I take it you will Overclock?

 

[stadeli]

I'm looking to go up to around $300 on a board. I do plan on overclocking but I'm not a hardcore clocker looking to get every mhz that I can get. I'm upgrading from an LG 775 Q6600 on an ultra 790i board so anything will pretty much be a nice upgrade but I am going for an upper middle to high end system and need options for both platforms.

 

[Lazzer408]

I have a DX58 smackover/i7 960 combo forsale. I'd consider the Q6600 as partial trade. Where are you located?

I just built a SB rig and to be honest my 960 ran smoother. Maybe it has to do with the 960 having 4mb more cache or being on a better board.

The SB has some impressive overclocks though.

 

[stadeli]

Thanks for the offer but I'm not really looking into a trade. Yeah I've read that they get some nice clocks but the pci-e thing is the only thing holding me back from P67. Not quite sure how much it matters, which is why I'm undecided and still researching between the two.

 

[Lazzer408]

Thanks for the offer but I'm not really looking into a trade. Yeah I've read that they get some nice clocks but the pci-e thing is the only thing holding me back from P67. Not quite sure how much it matters, which is why I'm undecided and still researching between the two.

You can always buy it.

 

[entropy13]

Yeah I've read that they get some nice clocks but the pci-e thing is the only thing holding me back from P67. Not quite sure how much it matters, which is why I'm undecided and still researching between the two.

What PCI-E thing?

 

[Lazzer408]

8x/8x vs. 16x/16x plus more lanes with x58

WiKi x58
36 PCI-E 2.0 at 5 Gb/s (IOH);
6 PCI-E 1.1 (ICH)

WiKi p67
8 PCI-E 2.0[25]

whatever any of that means

 

[entropy13]

8x/8x vs. 16x/16x plus more lanes with x58

WiKi
The X58 has 40 PCIe lanes that are arranged in two ×16 links, DMI link and "spare"-based link. When used with the ICH10 I/O Controller Hub with ×4 DMI connection the "spare" supports a separate ×4 PCIe connection. Future southbridge chips DMI may support a wider DMI

Which I still don't get.

GPU-wise he has 3 options stated:
1x GTX 560 (not Ti?)
2x GTX 560 (not Ti?)
1x GTX 570

Therefore the "PCI-E thing" on the P67 (why not Z68?) only becomes a "problem" (although is it really a problem? 4% performance difference at most isn't really a problem) in one of the 3 options.

Then of course there would actually be more "problems" going multi-GPU. I'd rather recommend him going with a single GTX 570/580 instead of 2x GTX 560 (not Ti?).

And there are actually IMPROVEMENTS in multi-GPU performance in a Sandy Bridge setup compared to Nehalem.

 

[LAN_deRf_HA]

Really? The 8x thing? The raw performance of Sandybridge more than makes up for that. You will absolutely get better gaming performance on 1155 regardless of the card configuration. People say 1366 is dead for good reason.

 

[WhiteNoise]

P67 + Sandy.

/end thread

 

[Lazzer408]

z68 ftw!

 

[n-ster]

I only chose to keep X58 now because of 6 RAM slots and the X58 experience when you overclock (YOU OC LIKE A MAN!!!)... Another positive thing about the X58 would be the PCI-E thing, but on 2* 6870 the difference isn't much.

If I were you, I'd wait for Ivy Bridge lga 1155 or SandyBridge-E lga 2011

 

[LordJummy]

Go X58, and get a cheap ass board. Why in the world do you need a $300 board if you're not going serious multi GPU? Get a 6970 lightning and a cheap asus/gig board.

 

[Lazzer408]

Buy mine?

 

[LAN_deRf_HA]

I only chose to keep X58 now because of 6 RAM slots and the X58 experience when you overclock (YOU OC LIKE A MAN!!!)... Another positive thing about the X58 would be the PCI-E thing, but on 2* 6870 the difference isn't much.

If I were you, I'd wait for Ivy Bridge lga 1155 or SandyBridge-E lga 2011

No, you keep X58 cause you don't want to buy new shit and then you latch on to the moronic notion that it's easier to overclock 1155 to help you feel better about it. It's not easier overclocking 1155, it just has a higher overclock potential. As in it's easier to hit higher speeds than X58, but it's just as hard to hit the max potential of the chips. Not that the challenge would ever be a justification for accepting less performance anyways. Maybe for dicking around with it for fun, but not as a primary rig.

 

[Lazzer408]

No, you keep X58 cause you don't want to buy new shit and then you latch on to the moronic notion that it's easier to overclock 1155 to help you feel better about it. It's not easier overclocking 1155, it just has a higher overclock potential. As in it's easier to hit higher speeds than X58, but it's just as hard to hit the max potential of the chips. Not that the challenge would ever be a justification for accepting less performance anyways. Maybe for dicking around with it for fun, but not as a primary rig.

Having owned both, it's alot easier to overclock the K sandybridge chips. They're unlocked. Raise the multi and wa-la. 4~4.2ghz. Raise the core voltage and wa-la 4.2~4.5ghz. Dabble with PLL, IO, and other voltages and you can get it even higher.

 

[stadeli]

I've been taking in all this information from the great X58 vs P67 debate and I think at this moment in time with the current technology excluding whats due to come out next month I think I am leaning more towards P67 mainly for the fact that I am liking the 2600K Sandy Bridge and its overclockability. Im not super hardcore so I don't thing the PCI-E bandwidth issue with P67 will make a big difference for me. I'm only using 1 or displays and plan on going with a single GTX570 Superclocked with the possiblity of going SLI later.

With that being said I have narrowed my choices of P67 boards down to 4:

ASUS P8P67 PRO (REV 3.0) LGA 1155 Intel P67 SATA 6...

ASUS P8P67 EVO (REV 3.0) LGA 1155 Intel P67 SATA 6...

ASUS P8P67 DELUXE (REV 3.0) LGA 1155 Intel P67 SAT...

ASUS P8P67 WS REVOLUTION LGA 1155 Intel P67 / NVID...

They all look pretty good to me with the only real difference is the Evolution doesn't support Intel Boost technology and has the NF200 chip to help with the bandwidth shortcomings. Does that make a huge difference?

Can you all provide some feedback on those choices on whether or not they will support my configuration and the best option to go with?

 

[entropy13]

Why not Z68?
ASUS P8Z68-V PRO LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/...
ASUS P8Z68 Deluxe LGA 1155 Intel Z68 SATA 6Gb/s US...
MSI Z68A-GD80 (B3) LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6G...
MSI Z68A-GD65 (B3) LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6G...
ASRock Z68 EXTREME4 GEN3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI S...
ASRock Z68 PROFESSIONAL GEN3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HD...
ASRock Z68 Extreme4 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6...
GIGABYTE GA-Z68XP-UD4 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA...
GIGABYTE GA-Z68X-UD5-B3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 SATA 6G...

 

[stadeli]

Honestly haven't researched too much on Z68 so I don't know much about them. What are their benefits over P67?

 

[eidairaman1]

Check this line of boards out

Computer Hardware, Motherboards, Intel Motherboar...

im assuming LGA 1156 is a dying socket?

Computer Hardware, Motherboards, Intel Motherboar...

1155 is the newest socket right?

Computer Hardware, Motherboards, Intel Motherboar...

 

[entropy13]

Honestly haven't researched too much on Z68 so I don't know much about them. What are their benefits over P67?

- Smart Response Technology (SSD caching)
- option to use CPU's IGP (in case your GPU goes borked)
- Lucid Virtu technology (use of IGP while in idle/2D, use of GPU in 3D - power saving mostly)

It's basically H67+P67, plus Lucid Virtu.

 

[HammerON]

If I was to switch (and I won't at this time) to the 1155 socket I would go with the Z68 as it is a better revision of the P67 motherboards. To those that say 1366 is a "dead" socket I beg to differ. Yes you will see increase in certain applications and can overclock higher with the 1155. But in my case I will stick with my i7 970's until Ivy Bridge (socket 2011).

 

[entropy13]

If I was to switch (and I won't at this time) to the 1155 socket I would go with the Z68 as it is a better revision of the P67 motherboards. To those that say 1366 is a "dead" socket I beg to differ. Yes you will see increase in certain applications and can overclock higher with the 1155. But in my case I will stick with my i7 970's until Ivy Bridge (socket 2011).

The only LGA 1366 CPUs that can thoroughly beat the 2600K are the expensive 6-cores, specifically the 990X and 980X. Your 970 only leads when dealing with programs really needing more cores, yet barely matches the 4-core/8-thread 2600K in others. The 970 v. 2600K "battle" would be similar to the Phenom II X6 1100T v. i5 2500K "battle" in that sense.

 

[HammerON]

My computers are running WCG 24/7 and this is my priority. My main rig is also used to play games and occasionaly run some benchmarks. The only time that a SB would be an advantage in my needs is in gaming.
In neither the 3DMark Vantage nor the 3DMark 11 do you see SB taking the top scores. And as far as WCG, I admire the points that the SB CPU's can offer however it still does not match my 6 cores (12 threads).

EDIT: After thinking about it. I would go with the 2600k or the 2500k. For the price you get amazing power! I guess I am just stuborn