I'm looking for opinions on a new motherboard for the computer I'm building. I want an ATX motherboard for an i5-2600K with the option to step up to an i7 in a few years if it's worth it. The one I'm considering, I'm open to other suggestions, is the an ASUS P8H67-M Pro. I have no particular reason for choosing this motherboard other then it seems cost effective, easy to work with, dependable, and I've read good reviews of it. I don't really plan to overclock so that isn't a must in a motherboard.

I'm looking for opinions on a new motherboard for the computer I'm building. I want an ATX motherboard for an i5-2600K with the option to step up to an i7 in a few years if it's worth it. The one I'm considering, I'm open to other suggestions, is the an ASUS P8H67-M Pro. I have no particular reason for choosing this motherboard other then it seems cost effective, easy to work with, dependable, and I've read good reviews of it. I don't really plan to overclock so that isn't a must in a motherboard.

I think it's a good choice. I like ASUS. Here's an excellent link to compare with other ASUS boards - http://www.overclock.net/intel-motherboards/910402-asus-p67-series-information-thread-drivers.html . Best regards,Jim

I'm looking for opinions on a new motherboard for the computer I'm building. I want an ATX motherboard for an i5-2600K with the option to step up to an i7 in a few years if it's worth it. The one I'm considering, I'm open to other suggestions, is the an ASUS P8H67-M Pro. I have no particular reason for choosing this motherboard other then it seems cost effective, easy to work with, dependable, and I've read good reviews of it. I don't really plan to overclock so that isn't a must in a motherboard.

I'd go with a Z68 chipset. Most of the better Z68's support PCI-e 3.0 and the new Ivy Bridge processors, allowing you to upgrade the CPU & GPU without having to replace motherboard & (maybe) ram

I think it's a good choice. I like ASUS. Here's an excellent link to compare with other ASUS boards - http://www.overclock...ad-drivers.html . Best regards,Jim

Nice thanks, Jim. Surprisngly the most challenging part of selecting the parts I want has been settling on a CPU fan. Go figure?

Ed, if you really want to go the budget conscious route, check out the ASRock Extreme 3 Gen 3. Don't let the price fool you, this board has tons of features as well as compatibility with future products. If you want to stick with Asus, the Asus P8Z68-V Pro is an excellent choice as well. Regarding CPU fan, I'm particularly biased toward the sealed liquid cooling units. Check out the Corsair H80 and H100. If you want to go the air cooling route, check out the NH-D14, Silver Arrow, or Prolimatech Megahalems. You won't go wrong with any of these coolers, so just choose the one which looks appealing to you and fits within your budget.

. I don't really plan to overclock so that isn't a must in a motherboard.

HelloWhy go for the K series chip if you are not going to overclock?Somewhere down the line you may want to overclock for a performance boost to extend the usable life of the system.In this case I would go for a P67 or Z68 board, either would be a better match than a crippled H67 board.

HelloWhy go for the K series chip if you are not going to overclock?Somewhere down the line you may want to overclock for a performance boost to extend the usable life of the system.In this case I would go for a P67 or Z68 board, either would be a better match than a crippled H67 board.

I didn't say I was never going to. I said I don't plan to overclock... meaning at this moment. Next six months or year or less may change my mind. However, what's wrong with the H67?

H67 doesn't overclock

H67 doesn't overclock

Wow, I wrote down the wrong one. You know how long I've had this written down; months now. Had I not started this thread I probably would never had double checked and gone ahead and ordered it. Now I don't know which one I was looking at it's been so long. It was a P8xxx Pro I'm sure of that. Thanks, Corey, you just saved me from a big mistake.

Ed, if you really want to go the budget conscious route, check out the ASRock Extreme 3 Gen 3. Don't let the price fool you, this board has tons of features as well as compatibility with future products.

I like the features on that one. So inexpensive for all that? What's the catch?

People seem to stay away from Gigabyte but for a Z68 they don't offer the video outputs and you pay less. They are really good solid boards and the UD3P which is the one I have looks good and has a tonne of USB outputs. On my system there is a total of 16USB! I think their classic BIOS is fine and not hard at all.

What's the price difference between the UD3P and the ASRock?

I have the plain P8P67....works like a champ.

What's the price difference between the UD3P and the ASRock?

I don't know but I know which one i'd rather have. I got mine for $210. You get the UD5 equivalent for that money I guess.

I like the features on that one. So inexpensive for all that? What's the catch?

I think the catch is that ASRock doesn't have the reputation that Asus and Gigabyte have. They seem to have really brought their A game with their Sandy Bridge boards, though and all of the reports I've been seeing have been very positive. Also, it only has two USB 3.0 ports and two Sata III 6GB/s ports. I don't know about you, but so far I have zero USB 3.0 devices and I don't think anybody has more than two hard drives requiring Sata III bandwidth (i.e. SSDs rated at 500+ MB/s). In other words, the board has everything you need and nothing more.

Yep, that describes me, Corey. I think I'll get that MB for sure. Besides I still can't remember which MB I originally wanted so yeah this works nicely in the end. Edit: It also supports NVidia SLI. I can't help but wonder what would happen if I put another GTX 580 in there... hmm... nah.