best budget am3 motherboard

[MuTTy_Hc]

what about asus m4a87td evo?

Can be had here for about £70

Other options,

MSI 880gma-e45 £73 ish

gigabyte 880gma-ud2h - £72

Biostar TA890GXB-HD £74 (no esata, no usb3)

biostar 880g+ £50 (no esata, no usb3, sata2)

is sata3 and usb3 worth the additional price tag? I'm thinking it would be good to be future proof.

The asus board at the top has all of what I want (6xsata3, esata, 2xusb3) for the best price. All of the others require compromise (5xsata3 mainly)

[ed^chigliak]

m4a87td evo looks like a safe / sensible choice based on newegg reviews. Sata3 & usb3 are worth extra because add in cards at a later date will cost you even more with potential compatabilty issues.

[nibbler]

Best budget board? Got to be this.

[scaryjim]

Best budget board? Got to be this.

that's defintely the best in terms of price, but given the cost of adding sata 3 and usb 3 later it might well be worth paying the extra £20 now if you really think you'll use them. USB 3 I can see a good argument for in terms of future peripherals; the extra bandwidth makes a big difference for external storage. SATA 3 I'm far from convinced about though, as it's only really useful for high end SSDs - are you really going to need it? If not, a cheaper mobo now + USB3 add in card when you need it might be a better option.

[cigbunt]

just found this 1 which has usb3

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/msi-8...-sata-raid-atx

[maverick77_uk]

Hi,

Depends if its got to be "true" AM3 or not. For instance, I've just built a setup based on this:

http://www.tekheads.co.uk/product/AS...ard_34253.html

It's an AM3 socket with DDR3 RAM, but using the ancient 630a chipset and HT1, but works great for what I use it for......and get a load of that price!

Cheers!

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

I know someone who uses the Asus M4A87TD EVO and it is a nice motherboard. Scan have it for around £74:

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/asus-...-sata-raid-atx

However,there is also the MSI 870A-G54 which has USB3.0 and SATA3.0 for under £70:

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/msi-8...-sata-raid-atx

The MSI 870-C45 is a decent budget motherboard. However Scan had it for under £50:

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/msi-8...-sata-raid-atx

There is also the Gigabyte GA-790XT-USB3 which does symmetrical Crossfire and has USB3.0 too for around £74:

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/gigab...3gb-s-raid-atx

This motherboard does SLI and is around £73:

http://www.aria.co.uk/Products/Compo...roductId=40620

This mATX 890GX based motherboard has USB3.0 and SATA3.0 and is under £80:

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/219206

[Pob255]

UBS3, good for external storage however it's only slightly faster than E-sata and at these speeds it makes no difference as they are both far faster than hard drives, you'd have to use a top end SSD to saturate the connection.

SATA 6gbs, Currently only a couple of top end SSD's can actually work fast enough to make use of the extra bandwidth, if you're not planning to use high speed SSD it's pointless.

USB3 is very easily added via a x1 pci-e card
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/205582
Sata 6gbs is not so easily added

[MuTTy_Hc]

thanks for all the replies.

How important are mosfet heatsinks? I keep reading that they are rather important when overclocking?

i found the board gigabyte 870 ud3 and it has 6xsata3, 2xsata2, 2xusb3 core unlock etc. seems perfect for about £70. But doesnt have mosfet heatsinks...

the asrock 870 extreme3 does, but is about 75.

I really only wanted to spend £60... I'd be happy for just usb3x2 and maybe esata really with really 6xsata...

thoughts?

[Pob255]

Dumb question, but it should of been asked, are you planning on using onboard graphics or not?

[MuTTy_Hc]

no I'm not.

[Pob255]

Ahh then without a doubt the MSI 870A-G54
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/msi-8...-sata-raid-atx
Note: Scan's spec page is wrong, it is 6x sata3 6gbs
http://eu.msi.com/index.php?func=pro...=&prod_no=2057

[Behemoth]

I've just built an AM3 system using the above MSI board. I have to say I was very imressed with it myself and will be seriously considering getting one when it's time for me to upgrade my PC. Though that it doesn't seem to be struggling with what I use it for so I may save the money and not bother.

[MuTTy_Hc]

thanks for all the replies,

bought a gigabyte 880ga ud3h (or udh3) on ebay for £59 del (£75 board)

6xsata3, 2xusb3, esata etc.

Anyone had any experience of these? Seems like a good mobo really?

[MuTTy_Hc]

just a quick final q - i bought it as a refurb board (hence cheaper price) and i thought it came with 1year warranty, but its only 2 months. With this in mind have I done the wrong thing, or should it be OK?

CHeers.

[Domestic_Ginger]

imo its going to work or it isn't so 2 or 12 months is not going to be a huge difference.

If you don't like it you could probably send it back under distance sellers regs? This may not work on auctions...