Can someone recommend me a motherboard? Detailed needs, can't find one!!

[SaddamInsane29]

Hi all, newbie here.

For the people who want short and sweet - I need a good, fast motherboard that will accommodate a QX6850 processor (LGA 775 I believe), has room for 4GB or RAM, preferably DDR3, supports video card SLI, has at least 4 USB ports, a firewire port, an ethernet port, and all of the other trimmings. Something that is good for 3D special effects and video editing. I don't need built in video or audio, I have cards for each, but I would really like to have some PCI slots open for other cards as well.

If all of that is impossible, the processor and DDR3 RAM together are my core needs.

After paying for a high end custom PC for 3D special effects using Aftereffects and Maya (soon) and getting something really actually mediocre, I decided to start building my own computers. I have been successful, building two low end machines so far, but I am having trouble finding a suitable motherboard for my personal computer, which is in desperate need of an upgrade from its GA-73PVM-S2H Version 2 motherboard.

Can someone point me in the right direction??

Thanks,
-Brandon

 

[Atomic Rooster]

How about an ASUS P5N-T Deluxe LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 780i SLI.

I can't seem to find any DDR3 SLI boards.

 

[Jesusfrk611]

Seems as of right now you should either give up DDR3 or SLI. Can't have both atm. I would go with DDR2 still, it's a whole lot cheaper to buy DDR2 RAM.

 

[lhuser]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131218

P5E3. I know they support Crossfire, but Honestly don't see why SLI wouldn't work. But don't think I'm right either.

 

[esa193]

get the the 780i board for sli (evga brand)
or the intel x38 board for ddr3 (intel brand)

 

[lhuser]

He needs both, but if he can't do SLI on a X38, he can still do Crossfire, which would help as well.

 

[SaddamInsane29]

I would give up the DDR3 first. I need SLI more than I need awesome and expensive RAM.

Just to note in case it matters, right now I am running a GeForce 7600GT, which is incredibly insufficient when it comes to what I am doing. I am planning to jump right for a GeForce 9800 when it comes out, hopefully in the next three weeks or so. That first, than the motherboard. The final components I am going for are:

Intel QX6850 3.0GHz Processor
(motherboard that I don't know yet)
3.5GB of DDR2 (I'm running 32-bit vista)
2 hard drives, one 500gb that I already have filled, and one Hitachi 1TB which should last me a while longer
GeForce 9800
My sound card, I don't know what it is but its great
My Hauppage TV tuner card

Any good mobo that can mount all of that with PCI slots to spare and plentiful usb/ethernet/firewire ports??

 

[worshipme]

DDR2 1200 is faster than almost all of the DDR3 memory currently available. I can find the link if you want. It's on Xbit.

 

[SaddamInsane29]

DDR2 1200 is faster than almost all of the DDR3 memory currently available. I can find the link if you want. It's on Xbit.

DDR2 it is than. Thanks, I didn't know that.

 

[Atomic Rooster]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131218

P5E3. I know they support Crossfire, but Honestly don't see why SLI wouldn't work. But don't think I'm right either.

You cannot run Nvidia cards in SLI on a motherboard that supports only Crossfire. Conversely, you can't run two ATI cards in Crossfire on a SLI motherboard. They are two different technologies and they are not compatible with each other.