Gigabyte EP45-DS3L vs Asus P5QL-E

[Banzai042]

My motherboard just died and I am trying to figure out what motherboard to replace it with. I will be running an e7200, and will probably not be doing much overclocking. At the moment I'm looking primarily at the Gigabyte EP45-DS3L and the Asus P5QL-E. Overall I've heard more positive info about the gigabyte and I'm not crazy about the Asus board layout, but the Asus has Firewire, which I would really like to have. I am trying to figure out if it would be better for me to get the Asus and have firewire built in, or get the gigabyte and buy a pci firewire card, or would it be better for me to get something like the EP45-DS3R or the P5Q Pro.
As I mentioned before I am not looking for an overclocking board, and I will probably be replacing this motherboard/CPU set sometime next summer when nehalem has been out for a bit.

EDIT: Forgot to ask, do any of the boards I'm considering have any known issues with heatsink clearance, specifically the Scythe Ninja (I'm planning on using as much of my existing equipment as possible).

 

[littleprince]

I went with the P5QL-E based on price.
The ATX power is my only gripe. It has been stable for me.

I have an Infinity Scythe with 2 fans mounted facing front and back.

 

[Nafets]

The Gigabyte GA-EP45-DS3L works perfectly with a Scythe Ninja...

 

[z1ggy]

Originally posted by: Nafets
The Gigabyte GA-EP45-DS3L works perfectly with a Scythe Ninja...

I second that and you shoudl have no problems.. I love the gigabyte boards. And why do you need the firewire for.. just curious. I feel like I don't run into many things that are firewire capable that aren't usable capable as well.

Also with the x48 you are going to need DDR3 memory which is going to be an unnecessary cost. DDR2 is still the best price/performance ratio.

 

[Gobbly]

Originally posted by: littleprince
I went with the P5QL-E based on price.
The ATX power is my only gripe. It has been stable for me.

I have an Infinity Scythe with 2 fans mounted facing front and back.

Sorry, but just how did you do that? I'm trying to fix a Scythe Infinity on a P5QL-E motherboard too, but it seems to be impossible because there are some condensators and stuff in the way, I can't push the cooler completely down because of that.

Any help here would be greatly appreciated, maybe if you could show some pictures?