Select Board & Product Code

[rob1]

I am in the market for a MB but have difficulties figuring out which boards meet my requirements and there are simply too many. I know how to limit it to Z68 boards but that is about it. Is there a way to decipher features from the product name?

I need a board with headers for USB3, audio and esata6. 4 dimms is enough. I need support for SLI and a couple of epic 1x and easy over clocking (preferably something from the OS as I might change this frequently to either optimize for speed or silence, depending on the work.)

I will have a OCZ Agility 240GB HD. I heard rumors of some compatibility problems (also reported by MaximimPC magazine) with SSDs so this is a concern. The whole system goes into a Fractal R3 case with an i7-2600k. Any advice is appreciated.

[Dark Mantis]

Hi and welcome.

Actually most of the features that you are asking for will appear on most motherboards now. All the Z68 lineup are new so they all support the new features.

I would suggest that you make a list of your minimum requirements and then look at your budget (realistically) and see what is available for the money. Most of us would like the top end boards because of their feature list but are obviously restrained by the cost.

If you have any specific questions please post them and we will do our best to answer them for you.

[rob1]

Thanks for the response. Several boards actually don't seem to have internal headers for USB3 (P-DS3, A-D3H-B2, AP-D3) or they don't have eSATA. The Z68X-UD3H-B3 seems to fit the bill (though on the overlocking it is supposedly not that strong). At $160 it is at my limit but doable. The biggest issue I see with this board is reports of BSOD, occasional reboots, etc with certain USB3 devices connected. Is there a workaround for this?

[Dark Mantis]

As far as I am aware there are no particular issues with this motherboard. Sure there are probably instances of the faults you are detailing but that would be the same with any board.  All these board/processors (as long as the K version) will overclock quiite easilly. If you want to go extreme then that is a different matter and won't be something you can accomplish from within the OS as you said you wanted to. You have already crossed some boards off your list, now you just need to go a bit further.

[Gloup_Gloup]

Hi rob1, 

I give to you (surprise  ) a list of motherboard with eSATA and USB3. (I choose GA-Z68, only...)

GA-Z68XP-UD5, GA-Z68XP-UD4, GA-Z68X-UD3H-B3, GA-Z68MX-UD2H-B3, GA-Z68X-UD7-B3, GA-Z68X-UD5-B3, GA-Z68X-UD4-B3.

Gloup_Gloup