GA-X58A-UD3R or P6X58D-E...or something else ?

[supaidaaman]

Im building a couple rigs soon...one for myself and one for a friend.

I think im torn between the Asus P6X58D-E and the Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R.

Anyone have thoughts on the matter? A better motherboard option?

-Both PC's will make use of 12gb RAM (Adobe Production + 3D)
-Neither PC will use SLI.
-Mine needs to support two drives in raid 0 (sata II) an Intel SSD and a 150gb Raptor
-My PC will have a bit of OC...(i7 930 up to 3.6 or so) His will not have any OC.

I can spend a bit extra on my build, so I could buy the P6X58D premium if you guys think that its worth it for extra secret sauce potential.

 

[Henry Chinaski]

The Asus P6X58D-E has a better quality. I would go for It. Anyway, if you are thinking about not to do SLI, the Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R has a very good price/performance ratio.
Here you have an interesting article about this matter:

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/x58-usb-3.0-sata-6-gbps,2614.html

 

[AstroGuardian]

The Asus P6X58D-E has a better quality. I would go for It. Anyway, if you are thinking about not to do SLI, the Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R has a very good price/performance ratio.
Here you have an interesting article about this matter:

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/x58-usb-3.0-sata-6-gbps,2614.html

Based on which facts you say that the Asus board has better quality? When the birds and the bees know that the Gigabyte board has better quality components, cooling, layers of copper etc....

To Sup! I would say you go for the cheaper mobo cause both of them will offer the identical performance. They are compatible with everything you stated except for the 12Gb ram where there is a possibility of incompatibility. Be prepared you might have to try different sticks. Don't forget to boot with 4Gb first, then 8Gb and at last 12Gb if stable.
Overall both boards are good. Asus can give you 0,5% better performance but the Gigabyte will offer better stability and higher build quality.

 

[Henry Chinaski]

For the birds, bees and avatars is possible that Gigabyte offers better stability and higher build quality...
You are really funny...

 

[supaidaaman]

Ive got an older pc thats going on about 9 years running a gigabyte board, and my current Asus rig is still going strong!

So, I have no brand loyalty right now

 

[Henry Chinaski]

Ive got an older pc thats going on about 9 years running a gigabyte board, and my current Asus rig is still going strong!

So, I have no brand loyalty right now

That's the point. It depends on the model. Sometimes is better to go for an Asus mobo and sometimes it's better to chosee the Gigabyte one.
As you can see in my signature, I have also bought mobos from both.

 

[lopri]

Aren't they like $100 apart? (Edit: Oh I confused the P6X58D-E with P6X58D-Premium) Anyhow, I recently found this thread where our fellow forum member (n7) tested the Gigabyte board to impressive results.

http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2061919&highlight=

 

[Triggaaar]

Hi all
I'm struggling with the choice between these 2 boards (GA-X58A-UD3R or P6X58D-E)

I'm getting 6gb of ram (Corsair) but may well want to upgrade to 12 in a few years - are both working fine with 12gb, or is there a reason to choose one over the other?

I'm planning on using an i7 930 - I'm not an overclocker, but may well take it to 3.8 or 4GHz in the future.

I would get the Asus, but I have a problem with the lack of USB ports - 6 on the back is a real pain for me. So I was thinking Asus + a PCI USB card, but I also want to use my PCI sound card, and filling both PCI slots would limit my choice of GFX.

Can anyone offer some advice please

 

[Triggaaar]

Also...
Can you use PCIe x 1 cards in the PCIe x 16 slots on either the GA-X58A-UD3R or P6X58D-E?

I know that it can work, but I understand it's motherboard dependant (eg, some SLi boards limit the PCIe x 16 slots to GC only)

 

[Rifter]

Also...
Can you use PCIe x 1 cards in the PCIe x 16 slots on either the GA-X58A-UD3R or P6X58D-E?

I know that it can work, but I understand it's motherboard dependant (eg, some SLi boards limit the PCIe x 16 slots to GC only)

It works fine on the P6X58D-E, i have tested my Xonax STX in both the 16x sized slots other than the main one and it works fine. I did this to test and have it running in the top 1x slot but wanted to know if a 1x raid card would work in the other slots.

 

[Rifter]

Hi all
I'm struggling with the choice between these 2 boards (GA-X58A-UD3R or P6X58D-E)

I'm getting 6gb of ram (Corsair) but may well want to upgrade to 12 in a few years - are both working fine with 12gb, or is there a reason to choose one over the other?

I'm planning on using an i7 930 - I'm not an overclocker, but may well take it to 3.8 or 4GHz in the future.

I would get the Asus, but I have a problem with the lack of USB ports - 6 on the back is a real pain for me. So I was thinking Asus + a PCI USB card, but I also want to use my PCI sound card, and filling both PCI slots would limit my choice of GFX.

Can anyone offer some advice please

Why does number USB ports even matter? just get a hub. Thats what i do and have everything plugged into it on my desk, no need to screw around on the back of the mobo to plug or unplug anything. I got some cheap no name 7 port powered USB hub for $5 onsale and it works great.

 

[Triggaaar]

Thank you for the help

Why does number USB ports even matter? just get a hub.

I have a hub (Hama USB2) on the machine I'm about to replace and it doesn't work too well - sometimes I get a notice that a device would be quicker if connected to a USB 2 port (don't get the warning if connected straight to PC). Sometimes my USB connection just goes - I have to replug the hub. And lastly, so devices are a bit funny about what port they use - eg, my webcam and TrackIR (video devices). They do not like changing USB ports, and I wouldn't risk them on a hub.

I thought perhaps hubs had got better, and would be my answer, so I googled and found the odd review - when I looked up the most recommended on amazon, user reviews still pointed to problems. Do you know of any hubs that work just as well (for lots of devices) as if you had connected to the PC?

 

[Triggaaar]

It works fine on the P6X58D-E

Good news, thanks.

Anyone know if the Gigabyte PCIe slots work in the same way?

I do like the extra slots of the Gigabyte, I just get the feeling the Asus is a better board (16 phase, MemOK, board switches and less concern over 1600MHz compatability).