el cheap-o MOBO: For Athlon X2 -> PhenomII??

[B.E.E.F.]

I'm looking for a cheap motherboard that I can use for an Athlon X2 right now, which I will upgrade in the future to a PhenomII or maybe an Athlon X4 whenever that launches.

What should I be looking for? SB700, SB750? And which manufacturers update their BIOSes for this.

This is for a regular PC. No crossfire, little to no OCing.

[informal]

Biostar's 790GX lineup is where I would look ;).Excellent OCing potential for low(ish) price.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138128

Maybe you can go even lower in price with some Jetway 790GX/SB750 motherboard.

[B.E.E.F.]

Biostar's 790GX lineup is where I would look ;).Excellent OCing potential for low(ish) price.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138128

Maybe you can go even lower in price with some Jetway 790GX/SB750 motherboard.

Updated. I'm not looking to OC much if at all. This is just for a regular home PC.

[informal]

Ah I see.Then maybe some 780G/SB700 board?Whatever you choose will work just great.Maybe some users with 780G boards can give you some ideas(you'll want a mobo manufacturer that does update its bios' on regular basis since you want 45nm support).

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157149
ASRock A780FullHD AM2+/AM2 AMD 780G Micro ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail ~57$

IMO this one would work great for you.Asrock builds excellent AM2+ boards.The board is micro ATX,so that's a downside (maybe).

[Smartidiot89]

Little to no OC'ing?

Gigabyte 770-UD3 sounds like a good/cheap motherboard to me. Should be able to OC a little, not a recordbreaker thou

[Throwed]

This is what I use. It's 79 shipped. It has overclock features, has ASUS brand/support, has NB770/SB700, it's quiet/cool, it supports AM2+/AM3 CPU's, has 4 DIMMs, none of that onboard video crap, supports 140W CPU's, and is rock solid stable. Currently have it running my Phenom II 940 at 3.8Ghz 24/7. All the SB750 boards I have seen all have that onboard video crap I hate so I went with this. The only downside to this board is it does not support Crossfire, but a 4850 X2/4870 X2 will fix that. No need in breaking the bank. This will serve you well.....
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131340

[B.E.E.F.]

Better go for IGP if its a cheaper motherboard. I found a Foxconn 740G for $66.

[Throwed]

Better go for IGP if its a cheaper motherboard. I found a Foxconn 740G for $66.

Don't.:shakes:

[B.E.E.F.]

Don't.:shakes:

Because?

Also, how is ECS as a brand?

[Ket]

What about the Asus M3N78? Linky (http://www.asus.com/products.aspx?l1=3&l2=149&l3=643&l4=0&model=2411&modelmenu=1)

[Throwed]

Because?

Also, how is ECS as a brand?

Because I have that exact same mobo in my wife's system and it's not that great. ECS is nice if you go with their Extreme series. To avoid headaches...Go ASUS or some other good name brand like DFI, MSI, or etc, hey it's your dollar.

[roque66]

well, I have a biostar 790gx and very happy...good perfomance at low price...only 90€ ..... suports crossfire and with a bios update, will suport am 3

[B.E.E.F.]

Because I have that exact same mobo in my wife's system and it's not that great. ECS is nice if you go with their Extreme series. To avoid headaches...Go ASUS or some other good name brand like DFI, MSI, or etc, hey it's your dollar.

Yeah. I'll avoid ECS. Did some more research on the 740G/V. It has the Radeon 2xxx series not the 3xxx series like the 780G. That's crud.


I'll look for a 780G based one.


What about the Asus M3N78? Linky (http://www.asus.com/products.aspx?l1=3&l2=149&l3=643&l4=0&model=2411&modelmenu=1)

Thanks but unfortunately the GeForce 8300 is more expensive than the 780G and performs worse. A nvidia chipset just wont cut it.

[Throwed]

well, I have a biostar 790gx and very happy...good perfomance at low price...only 90€ ..... suports crossfire and with a bios update, will suport am 3

Biostar has come a long way. I remember when they sucked azz. Now they are like the "new Abit". They make kick ass boards. Their T-Power/T-Series boards are awesoome and priced just right.


@Beef.....Pick up a 4650. I use them in alot of builds and they are completly amazing for the price. I was seriously shocked by how great they are for the price. All onboard sucks donkey IMO. Play COD 5 with a 39-49 dollar card with good frame rates is awesome.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161262

[B.E.E.F.]

Biostar has come a long way. I remember when they sucked azz. Now they are like the "new Abit". They make kick ass boards. Their T-Power/T-Series boards are awesoome and priced just right.


@Beef.....Pick up a 4650. I use them in alot of builds and they are completly amazing for the price. I was seriously shocked by how great they are for the price. All onboard sucks donkey IMO. Play COD 5 with a 39-49 dollar card with good frame rates is awesome.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161262

This is supposed to be a cheap PC build.

Thanks for the suggestion but an HD4650 is overkill.

I'm now looking at the following config:

1. ASRock 780G motherboard. $71.
2. Athlon 5050e $75 or Athlon 4400+ $53.
3. Kingston 4GB kit DDR2-800. $44.
4. WD 320GB signle platter SE16. $59.
5. FSP (Fortron) PSU. 180-300W for $30.
6. ASUS Case. mATX PSU spec?? Don't know until it comes in.

All prices in Canadian.

[nanohead]

This is supposed to be a cheap PC build.

Thanks for the suggestion but an HD4650 is overkill.

I'm now looking at the following config:

1. ASRock 780G motherboard. $71.
2. Athlon 5050e $75 or Athlon 4400+ $53.
3. Kingston 4GB kit DDR2-800. $44.
4. WD 320GB signle platter SE16. $59.
5. FSP (Fortron) PSU. 180-300W for $30.
6. ASUS Case. mATX PSU spec?? Don't know until it comes in.

All prices in Canadian.

Thats all probably good stuff. I got the "cheap build" part too :rofl: Everyone gets carried away with fancy stuff sometimes (me too!)

You can't go wrong with any of those components..... I agree with avoiding ECS, they are very spotty, even though they are trying hard right now. All the 780G motherboards are pretty decent. I use 5 of them across my families machines (happen to be Gigabyte). The IGP is just fine, runs great. Heck, even the 690G motherboards IGP run great too, and can run Vista Aero just fine. No reason for overkill on any regular desktop.

[B.E.E.F.]

Thats all probably good stuff. I got the "cheap build" part too :rofl: Everyone gets carried away with fancy stuff sometimes (me too!)

Yeah, I know. Selective hearing and reading too.


The IGP is just fine, runs great. Heck, even the 690G motherboards IGP run great too, and can run Vista Aero just fine. No reason for overkill on any regular desktop.

The 690G is kind of pricey here for what it offers. I was looking at the 760G or the 780G. Decided to go for 780G in case UVD ever becomes useful and it only costs like $5 more for extra performance too.


I'm not so settled on the Athlon X2. Either the 5050e for $75 or the 4400+ for $53. Everything else above the 4400+ is $70+. Weird.

[Throwed]

Yeah, I know. Selective hearing and reading too.



The 690G is kind of pricey here for what it offers. I was looking at the 760G or the 780G. Decided to go for 780G in case UVD ever becomes useful and it only costs like $5 more for extra performance too.




It's not so much selective hearing. It's just that this is XS. On top of that, it seems you are building this for yourself. If you plan on putting a PII in this system later while using onboard video then you are wasting your time. If you are looking for a really cheap system then try one of those 2XX.99 dollar systems they have at Wal Mart which have EE dual core already in them. You'll save more money and won'y have to worry about installing the OS too. When you are not specfic about what the system will be used for, you can't expect narrowed advice. Saying "regular pc" doesn't say much. Anyway, good luck with whatever you build.

[daytripper67mi]

why not put a kuma in it
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103300

on sale now 63 w/free shipping

[swaaye]

Gigabyte MA78GM-S2HP? My regular MA78GM-S2H can officially run a PII 940, but the newer HP version has more beefy power regulators.

May want to consider a GeForce 8200 mobo too.

[B.E.E.F.]

When you are not specfic about what the system will be used for, you can't expect narrowed advice. Saying "regular pc" doesn't say much. Anyway, good luck with whatever you build.

I've got a system. Check my sig. This one is for my folks. If I could I would build them a PhenomII with a nice HD4650 but they simply don't want to spend the money on a PC.

Yeah, this is a 'regular PC'. That's it. An average, everyday PC doing everyday tasks. Its good at everything and excels at nothing. It will run Vista or Windows 7. It will run the Adobe CS3 suite too. Everything else will be run of the mill apps like Office and QuickTax. I'm looking at PhenomII compatibility for the future. I'd like to pair it with a capture card in it (maybe an HD3650 based capture device) so they can digitize the family movies. Bang for buck parts are ideal for this system!

Why is a PhenomII a waste with oboard video? Its just a processor, its not tied to a video card.




Gigabyte MA78GM-S2HP? My regular MA78GM-S2H can officially run a PII 940, but the newer HP version has more beefy power regulators.

May want to consider a GeForce 8200 mobo too.up

Thanks man. I was looking at that gigabyte but its out of stock on newegg.ca. Not a bad price either. What's so good about the GeForce 8200?

[Ket]

Yeah. I'll avoid ECS. Did some more research on the 740G/V. It has the Radeon 2xxx series not the 3xxx series like the 780G. That's crud.


I'll look for a 780G based one.



Thanks but unfortunately the GeForce 8300 is more expensive than the 780G and performs worse. A nvidia chipset just wont cut it.

Theres very little between the onboard 82\300 and onboard HD3k series ;) I know this for fact as I looked at how they both performed only around christmas when I was builting a new puter for the parents. Its odd how the M3N78 (not the pro version, waste of money and bad layout) is more expensive where you are though, I picked the board up for about £60, and we get screwed over here for most things PC.

[Bobsama]

My suggestion is to step up to a Seasonic 300W PSU or something.

[B.E.E.F.]

My suggestion is to step up to a Seasonic 300W PSU or something.

I saw a deal for one ~$50 at a local PC store. If I can find something like that sure, otherwise I'm getting FSP.

I'd like a silverstone but it may not be in the budget. I'll probably get a 180W mATX PSU or a 300W ATX PSU from FSP (Fortron). Depends what the case requires.

[Mastakilla]

I'm looking for an el-cheapo 790gx mobo

I was thinking of the Asrock AOD790GX/128M, but didnt know also Biostar and Jetstar made reasonable stuff...

I am planning to overclock a phenom x3 with it...

So which one should I pick (stability and a mature BIOS is more important then the last few extra Mhz of the overclock)

Thanks

[nate39]

I am about to build a mATX system for someone and trying to do so on a budget as well. To me it came down to Gigabyte or Asus. You can get quality boards for under 80 dollars. They have all solid caps whereas the others mostly don't. Definitely want 780 rather than 690. I have had good experience with Gigabyte but will probably go with Asus M3A78-EM this time.

[jlacy76]

I have the EM. solid board but not many bios options for overclocking.

[chris.y2k.r1]

I have an Asus M2N32SLI WFi deluxe that even though it is AM2 does run the new AM3s. It has everything and is a good board for whatever you want it for. I'm sure you could find one cheap or even used. Heck, I'll sell you mine if you'd like. It easily runs 300 FSB or higher and I've had the memory up to DDR1200 speeds easily but could not go further due to crappy DDR2. I really like this board, the only reason I would get rid of it is I really want to see what AMDs running with Micron D9s would do.

[B.E.E.F.]

Went with the JetWay 780G. It has 128mb of sideport memory too!