Preferred motherboard brand

[Chris]

I'd like to know which brand of motherboard is your preference when selecting one for a system. If your preferred brand is not listed in the poll, indicate it in a reply.

[Xenocrates]

The Soyo boards ROCK. Have you seen the Dragon models of late?

These babies are packing 6 PCI slots+AGP 8x, support DDR RAM and are now featuring RAID support for those who want to build mini servers. Some of the higher end models are now coming standard with 6 USB outlets and PCI2 support. Don't even think about software compatibility - they feature perhaps the most complete ROM interface for hardware recognition and support.

Perhaps the only other board that I would rate as valid competition are the Biostar and MSI boards. It probably wouldn't even make sense to mention the others. I've built quite a few systems with Soyo and I've yet to be disappointed. These boards can take a lot of load and withstand quite a bit of punishment.

Even though anti static braces are good practice, these boards don't flip out with the mildest of ASD - like other boards tend to do from time to time - especially in an air conditioned room.

The only thing I'd change about the Soyo boards in the BIOS interface. I mean, everybody else is going GUI, it wouldn't hurt. ;D Then again, I'm nitpicking.

[odsamuels]

My last motherboard was a SOYO, it seems like it fried or something, because one of the chips on it somehow just became loose.

[sicholas]

ASUS for high end, MSI for midrange and pcchips for the best inexspensive motherboards. never buy an INTEL motherboard cuz U cant overclock on them, and they are just plain crap.

[Xenocrates]

Well said sic. INTEL boards aren't worth their weight in dried sticks. >:( I've never used a board that sucked harder than an INTEL board. Sometimes I wonder why they even bother making them in the first place.

[jamrock]

Well said sic. INTEL boards aren't worth their weight in dried sticks.

Hmmm... All the servers I have opened up have Intel boards. How do you explain this?

[Xenocrates]

Simple. All the server's YOU've opened up. ;)

[sicholas]

well Mr. Jamrock perhaps all the servers U've open arent TRUE high end servers! intel make good peripherals, good enough proceessors but not good MOBOs. ASUS is king. so if ur purchasing high end servers and U got intel mobo rather than ABIT or asus, well "Yu get f*%k." I dont dont think intel make any MOBOs dat support dual processors either. and remeber U cant overclock on intel mobos!

[jamrock]

There is really no need to be offensive. A simple statement of your reasons would have been sufficient.

Most of us at techjamaica.com ask questions so that we can learn something new.

[jamrock]

I am curious. Does anyone else have an opinion on Intel boards? What kinds of boards do you guys have in your servers?

[Chris]

I'm not surprised that some server manufacturers use Intel mobos. Overclocking isn't the highest priority (it may not even be a priority) when considering the features of a server's architecture. Servers should be reliable and compatible and I suspect that's what Intel mobos can offer. They may be more expensive, non-overclockable, etc., but these are features that we tend to look for in mobos for desktop usage.

Btw - remember that overclocking voids warranties and isn't suitable for corporate use.

[Xenocrates]

Perhaps sicholas would need to over clock. But I wasn't referring to that when I said that Intel boards aren't good. Here are my reasons:

1) They ship with a large number of BIOS errors. Do you realise how many EEPROM/FLASHROM fixes you need to download for one of these things? Check their site for tech support on any of their boards and you will see the large number of fixes available for them.

2) Some of these boards aren't even XP compatible. Not by choice on Intel's part, but because of manufacturing flaws. This I found out the HARD way.

3) Busline faults. Lots of them. Intel boards are made by an unknown developer in Singapore and Taiwan. They are heavily mass produced in environments that are not ESD protected (electro static discharge) - which is against FCC regulations. In other words, they are not all made in clean rooms. Hence there are times when you will buy a new Intel board and a PCI slot or two will not work properly or at all. Also, their motherboards are hypersensitive to dust (because of the same manufacturing faults). Entire devices will fail for no good reason unless you keep that machine in an air conditioned room for lengthy periods of operation time. This will not happen ALL the time - but it happens disturbingly frequently. Intel gets away with the FCC breach because the manufacturer is unnamed and the boards usually ship with already built PCs.

4) For the rediculously high cost that you pay for these boards, they lack a LOT of features. Do you remember how you can go into your ASUS, MSI or Soyo board's BIOS and change many tiny little features to improve your performance? (enabling/disabling devices, adding/removing hardware components etc.) You can't do that with an Intel board. The bios is dumbed down for the masses. Even getting into the BIOS is a tricky task (you have to be quick on the trigger using a multi-key entry with a 2 second window!!). To make matters worse, on the boards that I have used you have to turn off the machine, change a jumper setting, turn it back on and THEN use a lightning fast key combo in the 2 second window to get into the bios!!!!! I mean - HEEELLLL NOO!!!

5) As if number 4 wasn't bad enough, the warranty you get on these boards is TERRIBLY SHORT!!! Don't believe me? Check that place on Red Hills road. (if they still have intel boards) They will tell you that THEY will only cover it's warranty for 7 DAYS!!!! SEVEN DAYS GUYS!!!!! Don't you think that atests to the fact that Intel KNOWS that their boards are fragile and that they can't last long in a desktop environment? Hmm?

Here are 5 good reasons why I say that Intel boards aren't worth their weight in dried sticks. I've actually done some research and found out that Intel will not cover warranty on their boards for extended periods unless it was already placed in a complete server or desktop machine (primarily servers though) by licensed dealers. And when I say licensed, I don't mean FCC licensed, I mean INTEL licensed.

Translation: Resellers like that place on Red Hills road will not be extended that warranty as they get their goods from another reseller (and sometimes direct from factories - but not the case with Intel boards which are manufactured in the East). Furthermore, if you are a reseller yourself and you want to give your customers a good cover period for the machines you build and sell to them - STAY AWAY FROM INTEL BOARDS

We live in a rather hot climate. You don't want your customers coming back to you complaining that you jinxed them or that you gave them a six for a nine or that you are a bandooloo because you sold them an expensive machine that died a few weeks later. You will permanently taint your name and your business if the quality of the goods you sell are substandard. The customer doesn't care about what's under the hood. He couldn't care less if there were a thousand china men inside their system sweating to death trying to get their machine to work. He just wants the machine to work.

If it breaks down (because of manufacturing faults which results in it's increased susceptibility to heat and electrostatic discharge from dust and formaldehyde emitted from aerosols in your home) - YOU will be the one who looses. Why? Because in replacing the device at the RMA, they will tell you that they don't have extended warranty on Intel Boards. So you will have to buy a new board for that customer out of your pocket with no charge to the customer (if you want to save face with them).

Listen man, do yourself a favour. STAY AWAY FROM INTEL BOARDS. The next time you walk into that place on Red Hills, ask any of the customers who've built machines with Intel boards. They will tell you the exact same thing.

I rest my case.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
P.S. - I must say sicholas, you have to be careful how you use language in this environment. Remember that a large number of people will be reading these posts. Cool? Let's be opinionated without the unnecessary excitement. Place the facts. We're all here to learn. We'll leave the language and excitement for boards which bhuttoos control. Zeen? ;D

[Chris]

Xenocrates: thanks for your insights and sharing your experiences.


As if number 4 wasn't bad enough, the warranty you get on these boards is TERRIBLY SHORT!!! Don't believe me? Check that place on Red Hills road. (if they still have intel boards) They will tell you that THEY will only cover it's warranty for 7 DAYS!!!! SEVEN DAYS GUYS!!!!!

As a point of correction, if that place on Red Hills road is the same one that I have in mind, their warranty on Intel mobos is actually 1 year which I verified with them. I suspect that the 7 day warranty you mentioned may be on refurbished mobos.

[Xenocrates]

I stand corrected. However, the Intel boards I mentioned were not refurbished. They have since changed their Intel Board supplier (I checked) - hence the new 1 year warranty. It's about time. Enough customers have complained to them already.

[Chris]

They have since changed their Intel Board supplier (I checked) - hence the new 1 year warranty.
If their previous supplier was only giving them 7 days, it begs one to wonder what quality mobos were being supplied. I mean, is it possible that the Red Hills road place was unknowingly supplied with refurbished or rejected mobos hence the high instance of problems with them?

[Xenocrates]

It's very possible Chris, now that you've mentioned it. In that case, I believe that place on Red Hills road might've reported their previous supplier to Intel. They should be sued by Intel as they would have significantly given Intel a very bad name as far as mobo's are concerned (I'm going off the premise that all of my associates disgust the brand for the same reasons outlined earlier - so this in itself is rather limited. I cannot speak on behalf of the entire populous of Intel mobo customers in the corporate area.)

However, I still wouldn't spend cash on an Intel Board - even if those manufacturing faults were remedied, the board's capabilities are still rather limited - not for that kinda money. I don't like being limited by my hardware. Nobody does. And I still don't believe I should spend 9 grand odd (or in that vicinity if prices have dropped) for an Intel board which cannot do half as well as a Soyo model at half that price which can do twice as much. Can you see what I'm getting at?

[Chris]

Can you see what I'm getting at?

Yeah man, most definitely. That's why I never considered an Intel mobo for a desktop build before ;)

[jamrock]

Chris,

That makes a lot of sense. I spoke to the tech. support at a local Compaq reseller. All the Compaq servers he has opened up have Intel boards.

I accept that Intel boards are expensive and that cheaper/better boards exist, but I don't accept that they are junk.

[jamrock]

Sicholas and Xenocrates,

In the next few months I will be building a low end server to be used for training/software demos.

Which boards would you recommend? I want a board that will comfortably handle requests from more than one workstation at a time.

I will be using a 2U rackmountable box so the board must fit in one of those cases.

[Cultus]

Well I tend to agree with you all, when it comes to Mobo's, that intel mainboards aren't really recommended. My pick however was Soyo. I would rate them king of mainboards. I am sporting a Soyo Fire Dragon, and the board solid as a rock. oh but guess what guys, one thing you all have to admit.......the intel chipset is the best chipset outthere. my i845 gives my performance. Combine the intel chipset with, intel's application acclerator, and Intel Chipset Utility....and you have a monster machine. Now thats where Soyo gets my rating. Because they seem to give preference to the intel chipset. Asus and Abit, also makes good mainboards. I have been building systems for over 8 years now and I never had a problem with a Soyo/Asus mainboard. All the others like BioStar, MSI, PCCHips, Soltek, they are just crap as far as I am concerned. They are cheap boards....so I guess you get what you pay for.

[Chris]

oh but guess what guys, one thing you all have to admit.......the intel chipset is the best chipset out there.

You're right Cultus, it looks like we totally forgot about mentioning the chipset! (at least I have :-[) One of, if not THE, most important component of a mobo is the chipset! I always look out for Intel chipsets on mobos becasue like Cultus, I believe it to be one of the best chipsets available.

[shampionnaux]

I have a MSI board and it’s not bad at all. I got a nice extension to the board called a D-bracket, which consist two USB ports, and 4 diagnostic Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs) that lights up in different order to indicate different faults in the system. I mounted this free accessory in the second available “3.5” floppy bay. Higher end boards have a bluethooh extension that is only available through MSI. The board is also overclockable, and I went with a AMD Socket.

I heard that Soyo boards are the best now. Concerning Intel boards that’s new info to me, I haven’t really heard folk complaining about them. But if they are not overclockable I think most folks will stay away from them.

Sicholas no one here uses offensive language, are you nutts!!

Keep the Peace,
Kacey.

[Skillachi]

Bwoyyy mi nuh understand how unno lef out Giga-byte motherboards. If u neva try a giga-byte motherboard, you have never seen performance. Giga-byte motherboards are ultra hype man trust me.

[Chris]

Bwoyyy mi nuh understand how unno lef out Giga-byte motherboards. If u neva try a giga-byte motherboard, you have never seen performance. Giga-byte motherboards are ultra hype man trust me.
Sorry dude, limited number of options in the poll and I guess I just went with the more "popular" brands (in my limited experience) :-[ Anyway, that's why there's an "other" option as well as you have the opportunity to "big up" the mobo of your choice in a post even if it's not listed ;D

[Gillion]

You're right Cultus, it looks like we totally forgot about mentioning the chipset! (at least I have :-[) One of, if not THE, most important component of a mobo is the chipset! I always look out for Intel chipsets on mobos becasue like Cultus, I believe it to be one of the best chipsets available.


Assuming you are using an Intel CPU.
Last time I checked intel wasn't into the habit of making AMD chipsets ;). As for the performance of intel chipset based mother-boards... its obvious... an intel c-set on any mobo would give unprecedented edge over competeting c-sets for a given intel cpu. The AMD 760 chipset is also far superior to any competeing chipset for the Athlon -XP/MP platforms (when considering ONLY cpu performance).
I would venture to say... its obvious that sibling chipsets for a given cpu would be the best at raw cpu levels.

Many moons ago, I had a glorious Intel 486 DX4 66MHZ.... it came with an intel board..... intel chipset, intel crap... it sucked harder than starving vampires. Months later, I "acquired" a Asus main board with the SAME intel chipset... that ran BEAUTIFULLY. It has been my experience that ASUS is consistent in making excelent main boards.... Soyo has been good, but NOT consistent.

Electrically the capacitors on ASUS main boards tend to be military grade with highg temperature stability.... These boards are also usually made from 6 level fiber layers, giving reliably electronic stability (stray capacitance). Then we get down to the coper alloy traces that make up the buses of the board.... Asus has better trace cutting techniques and the have a habit of using thicker traces.... thinker traces (per millimeter) means better electron flow. To demonstrate, I never heard an Asus board with on-board sound, hissing or poping when the mouse is moved or keys on the keyboard are pressed.... most other brands do.... PC-Chips is notorious for this. Put it this way.... the secret of sucess for ASUS is the general immunity to noise that these mobos exhibit. Given that scenario they will always be number one.

By the way PC-Chips main boards usually come in a million different names (PC-Tel, American, Tek something) but they usually are clones of Intel and ECS main boards which explains they suckitivity.

--regards
Gillion

P.S. To really test a mainboards performance.... compile your linux kernel to fit your particular model mobo and cpu .... and watch the blur :D

[Nastrodamus]

HHHHMMMM,

So how come there isn't any mention of ABIT motherboards????

[jamrock]

I am confused. Most of you seem to agree that Asus and Soyo are the best.

I spoke to two techies from a leading Dell reseller and they say what the techie from the Compaq reseller said.

They only see Intel motherboards in the servers.

Why is this so? Can someone enlighten my darkness? I am lost!!! Why are the leading computer manufacturers using expensive, crappy motherboards? Is it some kind of conspiracy? (Almost thought I heard the theme from the X Files. Must be my imagination...)

Hmmm... Not too sure what the Dell and Compaq desktops use though.

[Chris]

Ok Skillachi and Nastrodamus, look at the poll again and see if you see something you like ;D

[Xenocrates]

Sorry for the absence guys. I'm surprised at how much as been said since I was last here. Work catching up with me. Ok, where do I begin...

jamrock - While I'm a major lover of Soyo boards, I have to be rational and think of the kind of work that you will be putting that machine up to. In such a case, I would personally recommend the ASUS boards. They make a BEAST of a server mobo with versatility that can very rarely be beat. Failing which, the Soyo Fire Dragon is a very good next bet. I cannot recall the exact model name and number for the ASUS board that I would recommend for the 2u rackmountable specification. I don't want to tell you something that's incorrect.

The Soyo Fire Dragon has some nice server related features as well, such as support for disk multiplexing and RAID level 5 support. ASUS boards are almost always built for server versatility first. The only reason I would prefer a Soyo over an ASUS is the money. ASUS is like the platinum of mobos - if you can afford it. I prolly wouldn't purchase an Asus as I may be spending cash for features I may never use.

I do not mean to discredit other boards such as Abit and Biostar (which are not bad at all) but I cannot speak for a brand for which I've had little experience. There simply just isn't enough info for me to go on.

As for the 2U rackmountable specification, you will have to search the ASUS site for the specific model number/name. They do make them, and I understand they are pretty expensive. Many rackmountable boards use fibreoptic technology (similar to those in the boards of laptops) to allow for added thinness. Again, I do not want to elaborate too much on it as I don't readily have specifications on hand. Search the site. You could start here: http://usa.asus.com/products/mb/mbindex.htm#servermb. I don't believe these are rackmountable, but they are pretty powerful boards none the less.

Cultus - Excellent point! How could we all rant and rave on about mobos when the chipsets are really what counts? BTW Cultus, you're a man after my own heart. For the money, the Soyo brand is VERY hard to beat!

Kacey - Really? I didn't know that MSI was building this diagnostic tool onto their boards now!! WAY COOL! :o I've used those tools before, but it existed in the form of an addon card. If this is a new specification for mobos, many of us would be glad for that. Too often there are cases where mobos come with faulty chipsets or pci slots (particularly PCI slots).

Gillion - Thanks for that rather extensive clarification on the ASUS brand's manufacturing process. This is exactly why I recommended the ASUS brand to jamrock for server functionality. What you didn't mention though Gillion, was that this extra step that ASUS takes to ensure the high quality of their products tends to push manufacturing costs up a bit. That cost is almost always passed on to the customer. ASUS boards aren't prohibitively expensive, but for what I can spend and get in a Soyo board, I think I'll pass. ;D

But I think I'm going to copy/paste your post for re-reading later. I just love it when people get into the nitty gritty details of WHY a board is good or better without just settling for a "trust me". I'm almost certain most of us here who've built machines before has done at least one electronics course in the past (big up engine/computing ppl from UTECH!)

Again, Jamrock - Intel boards were originally fabricated for SERVERS and BUSINESS END PCS. They were not really intended for the consumer market for the average Joe to walk into a store and buy one like how you'd go and buy a patty and a box juice.

THEREFORE, the Intel boards are not made with many MODIFIABLE features. They were intended for machines that when you turn them on for the first time, you don't turn them off again unless the network is down, or there is some hardware failure etc... In layman's terms, if you want a PC for leisure and home use, INTEL boards are NOT the way to go.

If you want to purchase a mobo that you can tweak it's features, turn it on/off every day, disable a device or two, change BIOS settings at will, overclock the CPU etc. etc.....all on the fly, in such a case, (depending on what you want it for), Choose a Soyo (you get a helluva lotta bang for your buck) or if you want perpetual durability and versatility and you are willing to shell out the extra coins for it, ASUS high end boards are what you want.

Now while ASUS, Soyo and MSI are most ppl's favourite, there are other brands you could consider (as Skillachi brought to our attention). The only drawback is that most ppl who build PCs know their way around ASUS, Soyo and MSI boards more than any other because their interfaces are so intuitive and easy to learn/use. So if you venture off the beaten track, don't expect to get tech support readily. Just about every Tom Dick and Harry knows how to pull down and reassemble a PC using an ASUS, Soyo or MSI board. They can do it blindfolded... buy not every Tom, Dick and Harry knows their way around a Gigabyte, a Biostar or any of those other brands.

I hope I've made your choice a little easier.

- Xenocrates.

[Cultus]

Well said Xenocrates....Well said......this is really an informative thread. Hey JamRock you planning on building a server or somethin'?....

[jamrock]

Cultus,

Here's the deal.

We set up/maintain networks for companies as well as some other stuff.

Some of our smaller customers, (5 - 15 workstations) are not always able to find the USD 3,000.00 to set up Windows NT/2000. This is USD 1,000.00 for the software and USD 2,000.00 for a low end server.

We have recently been using Linux for these customers. We are now looking at ways to provide more affordable servers for them. Linux requires less resources than Windows so we do not need the full power of a Dell or Compaq server.

We want to build some low end servers and run Linux on them. This can provide the same performance as a Dell Server running on Windows 2000 but at a fraction of the cost.

We use an old Dell 486SE server running Linux in our office. I got it from someone who was throwing it away. It used to take forever to boot up in NT 4.0. We now use it as our domain controller/file server. It runs real fast on Linux.

[jamrock]

Actually, it is a Dell 433 SE. It is kind of cool though. It has 8 hard drive bays and can handle a maximum of 128MB of memory.

It was really shocking out in its day. ;D

[Cultus]

Cultus,

Here's the deal.

We set up/maintain networks for companies as well as some other stuff.

Some of our smaller customers, (5 - 15 workstations) are not always able to find the USD 3,000.00 to set up Windows NT/2000. This is USD 1,000.00 for the software and USD 2,000.00 for a low end server.

We have recently been using Linux for these customers. We are now looking at ways to provide more affordable servers for them. Linux requires less resources than Windows so we do not need the full power of a Dell or Compaq server.

We want to build some low end servers and run Linux on them. This can provide the same performance as a Dell Server running on Windows 2000 but at a fraction of the cost.

We use an old Dell 486SE server running Linux in our office. I got it from someone who was throwing it away. It used to take forever to boot up in NT 4.0. We now use it as our domain controller/file server. It runs real fast on Linux.
Way to go with linux man.....which distribution are using for these customers. Oh and fo sure Linux will compile and run on basically any pc config., and it will give you the full potential of your hardware, unlike windows.

[jamrock]

We use Red Hat. I want to learn Mandrake when time permits.

I will let you know which board we use in our Linux server and what the performance is like.

[wheelman]

Soyo All the way

[yogi_hm]

My fav is Asus, they work great. Haven't had any problems with any so far. I had high prazie for Abit as well bout since puting Xp on my KT7A raid feature. I have a Abit KT7A-Raid board with a 1 gig processor.Ever since upgrading to XP, my pc will no longer shout down correctly. Rebuilt pc with Asus board and no peoblems. I have seen soyo boards that give hell to get workin.

[Skillachi]

Arite i finally see u added a gigabyte thing to the poll but i already voted other :P oh well. so it go. Gigabyte isnt a very popular brand but it does have wonderful quality in all things it does and they make motherboards for everything. Trust me check anybody who has ever tried a gigabyte motherboard and they will tell u it is wonderful. Yoshi's System uses a gigabyte motherboard ;D

[matronyx]

I love Soyo mbs!!!

I got a kt333 (black) and no probs whatever.

[seanbee20]

EPOX - mi nu like how di man dem no rate the EPOX motherboard dem enn now :(

I am EPOX all the way, all of my three PC's have epox and i absolutely love them, the EPOX 8RDA+ is currently the overclocking king according to the PROS.

PEACE

[finni03]

sure if u open up a Dell or Compaq server you will see Intel boards in the same way you would expect to see M$ Windows running on it. But try opening up an AIX, Vax, Sun, IBM and HP box that run realy High end stuff it's possible u may not see Intel inside.

For PCs I personally prefer SOYO KT400 Dragon Ultra. How do you all find the onboard sound?

[deakie]

;D abit rocks. I prefer the fact that they delay a lil in order to test the new technologies and then produce a board that just lasts forever (in computer years) compared to the rest.
they have rock solid setups and offer the most flexibility in bios and features which really is only matched by asus boards.

dell, compaq.....are you kidding? their propriety stance on their equipment means you are buying something that really isnt all that upgradable, except with dells bits... too monopolising for me. and their upgrade items are way expensive.

msi's new NV2 chipset boards rock. they offer the most onboard features and the peripheral pci count is seriously reduced. sound, video, lan, modem etc etc.

the intel chipset is not bad with respect to multimedia, but other than that, im not impressed.

i prefer via's and the new NV2 looks good. I'd only want an amd chipset if im gonna run a dual board and I would prolly be lookin at a tyan for that.....though they can have hiccups.

but for support the 'named brands' are pretty good but abit and asus boards for individuals like me who build their own is a must. I look for support of a product long after it ceases to be mentioned.....cant beat abit, asus and nvidia and via for that kind of thinking. i have support for old boards from abit which currently runs 'XP', where newer boards cant cope....

motherboards are pushed by gamers, not corporate servers, and thats where you have to look for the innovations.
if a board kicks *** in the gaming arena, its quite likley that its going to be very stable at normal 'server' like running.

updating bios etc etc....i wont go there....we just luv it dont we.... ;D

just my measley 2 pence....... :P

[Ropy]

I could swear that I had made a post in this forum...

I have a SOYO Dragon SKT-400 Utlra Platimum and performing well so far. I had a MSI before, but too much problems so mi tek drop them..

[deakie]

true the older msi and biostar boards were indeed c*ap.

[v620]

i like the gigabyte or msi mother boards they tend to produce good boards

[[I.R.A]_FBi]

godamned necromancer

[SgtMac2]

Gigabyte, works for me.

[ShadowWolfe Hellscream]

seriously, necroing a thread dead 5 years. posting priveliges should be taken away for a month...

[madcats99]

seriously, necroing a thread dead 5 years. posting priveliges should be taken away for a month...

rofl, i agree this was probly a TJ inception thread

But wth, i prefer BioStar, has never failed me yet

[Bl@ze]

rofl, i agree this was probly a TJ inception thread

But wth, i prefer BioStar, has never failed me yet

i know that biostars are generally solid(tforce series) mobos (well dem common) but iv'e never really rated em.
I have a brand new(tf7025-m2 rev 5.1) that i should have posted for sale, but i considering keeping it ( back-up pc two).

how unu rate it (rev 5.1 i never see anyother mobo wid so much revisions, and it earlier revision had bios - incorrect temperature issues) and the geForce 7025 chipset ?

[jazzwadd]

asus for me....kinda expensive but good....guess u paying for what u get

[danthony]

_FBi;477981']godamned necromancer

give him a chance with this one. its not too bad,

ASUS for me

[khat17]

MB brands. I like:

EVGA
Good brand. Will RMA regardless of where you are - had a suspect DOA board and they said send it in. Fast customer service reply, and their "step-up" program is nice, which allows you to upgrade your hardware purchased to something better withing a specified time-frame. Nice overclocking tools.

ASUS
Solid and reliable. Used for some time now by myself with no issues. Nice tools for overclocking and monitoring.

DFI
Makers of the famous LANPARTY series. Themselves and those afore-mentioned use quality parts, and with some models you get solid state capacitors. A bit overpriced in my estimation though.

GIGABYTE
They too offer solid state caps. Boards are solid, but would not by my first choice personally.

SOYO
"Home of the dragon" - they used to be one of my fav. manufacturers, but with all these others out there now, SOYO has gone on my back burner.


That sums it up for me and boards. In that order for preference.

[[I.R.A]_FBi]

Gigabyte and Abit
second tier ... MSI

[DJ_WOW]

abit dead,

long live gigabyte an asus

msi come second

[PhantomSunny]

Biostar and MSI. I haven't really looked at any of the new Soyo but they were a favourite.

[slickrik]

liked soyo and dfi back in the day.....asus and msi my favorite now.

[kafdon]

msi all the way non has ever failed me even after nuff abuse

[pezz]

my mobo pref is ECS... nuh man nuh tell mi nutn

[MaxFactor1]

Gigabyte is number one right now...

Others me rate.... ECS, TYAN... Asus and MSI just lost me

[malco1987]

ASUS, ASRock, EVGA and MSI

BTW: how much posts did chris have when he started this thread

[perry2k6]

EVGA, ASUS Straight they both always go of reference especially asus

[Nestersan]

DUDE, Necrophilia to boost post count is foulness beyond words.....

[v620]

so ahhhm what about gigaybte boards , u know i always thought intel was a good choice of board enuh but i guess ill afto do some more investigation , just curios is asus good for gaming purposes ?

[dresimple]

Can the creater of this tread please fix the poll

[wolfman]

Almost certain thats not how i saw it last time i checked:eusa_thin

[hustlermuzik]

I definitely go with Sicholas choices....thought No matter what people say...Intel boards are good.

[MiniKilla]

Ive own this board and they dont give any trouble at all ASUS, MSI, ASROCK.

[CrowMagnum]

Foxcaaaawwwwwwn... But I want an MSI Eclipse.

[Virus_UTECH]

asus is the best ASUS!! ASUS!! ASUS!! ASUS!!!!

[Arch_Angel]

Can the creater of this tread please fix the pollWhat choices would you like to be in the poll?

Poll was messed up when we upgraded from the previous forum software.

[jamby]

where in mobay can i get a soyo board to buy and whats the average cost

[Jamafia]

ASUS.. di boss of motherboards...

[mobile_fan_2k5]

cheapest that can deliver like the expensive boards. I dont buy just one board i buy anyway that i get my hands on. Ive used MSI,PCCHIPS,ASROCK and asus.

[Anthon]

I've got 2 go wit ASUS Mobo....... The best boardz I've seen are made by ASUS!

[Jiggness2000]

Right now I love EVGA, ASUS, Biostar, Gigabyte & MSI.

ECS can gwaan.

Worst MB ever is ASROCK !!!!

[Arch_Angel]

Poll has been fixed. Hopefully I got the more popular brands listed.

[grim386]

Wheres the multi chose option?!!

I like Asus and eVGA boards still

[Arch_Angel]

Wheres the multi chose option?!!

I like Asus and eVGA boards stilllol the poll question is: Which brand of motherboard tends to be your first preference?

You have 2 or 3 or 4 first preference? :icon_lol:

[Brutos]

Biostar is improving a lot TPowerI45 is a rock solid board..
GIGABYTE and ASUS

[Yung_Hero]

how about xfx...?
mine hasnt done me wrong yet.....
and its been 2 yrs going three now
strong same way

[semitop]

Foxconn FTW. they make parts for most boards too

[Arch_Angel]

Hmm, the results are skewed because the results from the old poll have gone into the first poll option EVGA. I'm going to have to recreate this.

One moment please...work in progress.

EDIT: Poll sucessfully recreated. You guys will have to vote for your choice again.

[PhantomSunny]

Biostar is my first choice.

[grim386]

You have 2 or 3 or 4 first preference? :icon_lol:

You may think this is weird but when i'm shopping for boards and geforce cards I always set the filters by brand. so in reality i have 2 first choices.

[stunna1]

Definately ASUS if u have the cash and if u dont then go MSI

[RZA]

Gigabyte for my money, durable, solid, good performance and cost effective

[CrowMagnum]

Hmm... This is hard... When I'm making my decisions on mobos, cost is usually a factor... If I didn't have to worry about the cost, EVGA I guess.