I'm mainly worried about longevity and reliability. So i figured ASUS is still a very trusted maker of boards. Could've saved $30 by going with the Gigabyte Z170-HD3. And i was contemplating using the Asus z170-K or z170-M. Couldn't make us my mind.
I remember ASRock used to say whether or not they used Solid caps. Are solid caps a thing of the past now, or has it become standardized for all motherboards? I want something that's built to last. Who makes the best motherboards, generally speaking. I'm clearly not overclocking. Got a locked CPU.
I haven't tried Z170 boards but stay away from ASUS X99 board until they get their act together. I had 3 bad Sabertooth X99 boards in a row. 2 from Amazon and 1 from ASUS RMA, and the RMA was a new board not a refirb.
Intel might unlock multipliers on all skylake CPUs now that some figured out how to get around that. Intel doesn't want a backlash for locking CPUs so they might unlock it for everyone with a microcode update.
Something wrong with asus boards now? been running a sabertooth for a good while now and it seems like a good board. The only people that I know have issues with X99 is EVGA.
You wont be able to sli with that mobo. So if you use the 960 you'll box yourself out of a multi card config. If you already own the 960 try to find something Equivalent to the motherboard you currently have Selected that allows SLI.
I gave up trying to predict how long a motherboard will last. I have never had a cpu die. Now I kinda look at the MB as just something I have to have like a cup holder. When it breaks decide whether get a new one or a new combo. My 30 year old 286 has capacitors, no idea if they are solid or not. Inside a capacitor used to be just a small roll of insulated aluminum foil to take advantage of what is called capacitance. Thing of electricity as pressurized water going through a pipe. Capacitor is like a ballon that is filled up to even out the pulses from the pump. Boards that failed were because: network port failed, switched to usb wifi and board died 6 moths later, second one bios checksum error, replaced bios. Still got the checksum error and got another board, Hope this helps.
I'm really, REALLY going to try and get a 970. But should i go with a Z170 just in case Intel allow OCing on non-K CPUs by some miracle? The ASRock Pro4 lists their good old solid caps. ASUS doesn't do that. Neither does Gigabyte for their Ultra Durable stuff. I just want a good board, i'll be retiring this thing to the family once i'm done with it, probably around the time Kaby Lake/single digit die sizes come along, as well as PCI 4.0. Then i'll likely get an extreme edition CPU.
I want longevity and reliability, ultimately. I hear Gigabyte and ASUS go neck and neck.
@KuramaKitsune as for the OS, i went with 10, because it's likely what i - along with everyone else - will end up with, simply because we're gamers.
for sure, but you can get win 10 as long as you have win 7-8 and you can get those waaay cheaper then nearly $170
step 1, obtain win 7-8 keycode(50-70bucks, off an old laptop ect free), and install that, step 2, update and upgrade for free to win 10 step 3, ??? step 4, PROFIT!!
You don't really need a Z170 board for a locked CPU, so I would grab an H170. Also you can do much better than the 960, such as an AMD R9 390. I left a build below, if you have an questions and/or concerns feel free to ask. Also if you really want Windows 10 Pro for a little bit cheaper check out software swap on reddit.
We've already established on another thread that the free upgrade is tied to the motherboard you're using. I'm not getting Windows 7, then claiming my free upgrade, and after i format the thing and build a new system, my free upgrade's gone to shit. And don't you get more extras with the Windows 10 retail copy?
@LinuxForYou Is it safe to assume Z series board = more reliability/longevity, because it has higher tolerances for overclocking? I find it amazing how the ASRock board is the same price, yet lists solid caps with 12,000Hour life vs ASUS 5,000 hour life caps. That's a huge difference...
Which logically makes no sense. Only defective motherboards last a year. The POS PEGATRON motherboard in my Bestbuy-purchased POS HP Pavilion has been on usually longer than 12 hours a day for the past 7 years, and it's fine. I don't understand motherboard lifespan ratings.
Do the H series really skimp out on features? Because i'm not noticing any real price difference between the two. Almost all sub-$200 Z170s have NO SLI! LOL!
The ASUS H170 PRO GAMING is the perfect example of what makes me get hit by the wall of confusion like a ton of bricks. It's over $170, and has support for only 2133Mhz DDR4. And no SLI.
most people can get by with a $130 board so unless if there are specific features in that price bracket only i'd back it down a hair. hell i'm using a $120 board in a $2500 build
We're mainly talking longevity/quality here. My issue is, i'll be retiring this system to my family once i'm done with it. And i'd hate to have it die on them soon after giving it to them once i build an entirely new beast. But that won't happen any time soon. Still, though. Something to note.
And i'm in no way going a cent past $200. I'm also talking Canadian dollars. Not american. So about $120-130 US is my max.