Help me decide!

[Wrigleyvillain]

Ok, first of all, money for toys is kind of tight and I presently have a DFI DK X48 T2RSB+ which is a great board and overclocks easily (for a DFI board anyway) and very well. Still sells for $169 at The Egg which is $10 more than I paid on sale in April. However, now that prices have dropped well below $200 on their highest end UT X48 boards I find my eye on them. Mainly because I like having different hardware to play with and also because I kind of hate the UV orange on my board as opposed to the green on the UTs. Also, the custom Thermalright cooling on the board is really nice, both from a looks and performance standpoint.

But now I cannot decide between the UT T2R or the T3R (DDR2 vs DDR3). If I didn't already own a set of DDR3 then it would be a no brainer, but I do from when I had a Black Ops and havent resold as yet. But the T3R would cost me $50 more. And I'm also not in love with the layout as slots 1 + 3 are the 16x (but this is not a "show stopper" as they include a long crossfire bridge and I only have a single card at present anyway which probably won't change anytime soon). Lastly, I am primarily a gamer and don't do a ton of memory bandwidth-intensive tasks.

Based on all that it seems I should just go the cheaper and probably easier route and get the DDR2 board but also moving to DDR3 generally seems more worth all this effort of a new mobo. Otherwise it seems like I am swapping primarily due to aesthetics which doesn't quite sit right, you know?

 

[JrRacinFan]

IMO, don't bother, save your cash for an AM3/1366/1156 board.

 

[Wrigleyvillain]

Was just about to update saying don't want/need to upgrade to a different socket right now as I realize many responses will suggest that. I have my reasons starting with money. Can't resell my present wolfdale as it's an ES and it goes on from there.

 

[radeon747]

What a u upgrading to a P55 chipset.

 

[JrRacinFan]

Was just about to update saying don't want/need to upgrade to a different socket right now as I realize many responses will suggest that. I have my reasons starting with money. Can't resell my present wolfdale as it's an ES and it goes on from there.

I myself just don't see the point, you have pretty much one of the top high end boards on the market for s775. If all your wanting is green then by all means. My question is this as I am just being curious, what are you trying to accomplish by switching out the board?

 

[3870x2]

It wouldn't be worthwhile, I would concentrate your time elsewhere.

 

[erocker]

I agree with the others. Absolutely no need to "upgrade" or switch out your current parts for any other parts.

 

[Wrigleyvillain]

Well, effort aside (though that is part of the fun), it is worthwhile to me seeing as how I can resell my present board for not much less than the T2R ($139) which when both were latest tech was considerably more expensive. But of course I realize from a performance standpoint there is no "point". Thus I has my eyes on the DDR3 board but I realize full well that's not a major performance boost either especially for my uses. But it is an "upgrade" and also allows memory upgrades (speed and/or capacity) in the future should I choose. But is it worth the extra money now? That's the real question I guess I had and the answer seems to be no which I pretty much already figured.

 

[erocker]

I get tired of my hardware too and want to upgrade all the time. I'm just waiting for the Hydra 200 chip and 32nm Intel chips before I upgrade.

 

[Wrigleyvillain]

Yeah...though frankly I don't even need all the horsepower I already have. Even if I could afford it I'm not sure I'd go i7. Find myself playing older games lately too.

 

[JrRacinFan]

Ahhhh ... ok...

Not at this point in time, a motherboard switch for ddr3 isn't worthwhile with the current costs of ddr2 being a moot point. Wait a little bit longer for ddr3 prices to come down a tad.

 

[Wrigleyvillain]

Though that's the thing. I already have a nice 4GB kit of OCZ Platinum 1600s that based on my (limited) testing with my old Black Ops will do at least 1850. Paid $80 for them in June and they are now listed at the Egg for $95 which is with a $10 savings. Though my 4GB kit of 1066 Dominators (w/fan) that I paid $79 for earlier this year are now listed for $95 after a $20 MIR. So module cost (nor resale value) isn't a consideration in my case and prices on both types are still apparently rising after the slump of '08.

 

[JrRacinFan]

Hmmmm ...

How are you paying for the new board? Out of pocket or from cash from selling your DFI? Because if you can sell your X38 + e8400 and use the cash you had set aside for your new board you could easily get into an i5.

 

[Wrigleyvillain]

Trust me I thought of all that but don't need the upgrade, firstly. My 8400 is also an ES that I am not supposed to sell and promised I wouldn't. It will go into an HTPC or a machine for my GF some day I suppose.

Yes I would pay for the new board out of pocket and wouldn't be seriously considering this at all if the nice looking T2R which was originally over $300 wasn't now $139 (and my old board is worth around $120 used). The DDR3 board is $50 more and I think we all agree it's not worth the added expense even though I don't have to buy RAM and can sell my DDR2 not so much less than my DDR3 would fetch based on recent price fluctuations.

 

[JrRacinFan]

Yeah, it's tough at this point in time. What happenned to the BlackOps board?

 

[Wrigleyvillain]

Sold for $80 about a month ago. It was troublesome at higher FSB (even with a dual) and oddly enough would blue screen at boot on a 64 bit OS with any overclock at all. Bought cause I was curious when it hit $160 and then soon thereafter they dropped to $120. A kinda costly mistake.

Yeah it may sound stupid to some here and be kind of 2002 but I put spent time and money installing UV lights in my case for the first time after I got my present mobo and I like it, I just don't like the orange so much. I'm not some bling-happy fool but looks do matter. The T2R for only $20 or so more out of pocket when all is said and done seems worth it...

DDR3 for sale!