Would you buy this motherboard?

[Morgan MLGman]

Hey guys, I'd like to hear some opinions. I want to change my motherboard, to squeeze some more out of my FX, I'm completely happy with the performance, but got some cash laying on my hands and looking to upgrade. I do not want to change the CPU, do not suggest that please. I've got everything I want in it.

So now, to the point. I currently have my FX-8350 OC'd to 4,5gHz with nearly stock voltage on my Gigabyte GA-970A-UD3 board that I got off a friend for practically nothing.
I recently ran AIDA64 for 4 hours to check max load temp of it, and with my beefy twin-tower 3x120mm fan aircooler it didn't get above 46 degrees celsius so I obviously can get more, but I didn't want to damage the board I had. I'd like to achieve around 4,8gHz overclock.

I have two options:

- Buy an ASRock 990FX Killer Fatal1ty motherboard. It's higher-end motherboard, BUT there's a catch. I can get it from a store, that sells it as a new, and gives warranty, but there is one thing wrong with her:
Two RAM slots that are closest to the CPU are broken. Now basically I don't need those slots. I have 2x8GB sticks of HyperX Fury White RAM and running them in single channel (that's what's left with only two right slots working) shouldn't impact the performace and I won't need more RAM before I change the CPU. If anything else breaks, I can send it back to the store under warranty, no worries about that.

Price: Around a half of a new one here in Poland, it's going to be roughly 87$.

- Buy an ASRock 970 Performance motherboard. It would be a 100% working one, with warranty. It's a lower end board, 970 chipset, doesn't have the "Killer" ethernet, SLI support and some other features, overclocking should also be worse on it, but nothing would be broken.

Price: Something around 94$.

My question is, should I get the "better" 990FX Killer motherboard that theoreticaly should allow for better overclocking and has far better features for slightly less BUT with two RAM slots not working (No need for more in terms of capacity, already got 16GBs) meaning that I can run my RAM in dual-channel only? Or should I go for a 100% working, but significantly worse motherboard?

Thanks for reading.

[Tmt97]

I'd confirm that nothing else is broken, and then go for it. Its a great deal. Worse case scenerio, you can sell it for a lot more than they are, even with the two ram slots broken.

[PlayStation 2]

Get the 990FX motherboard. Better VRM coolers > RAM slots

[comicsansms]

If you think you will need more than 8gb, ram, get the ASRock 970 Performance. If 8GB is fine, get the ASRock 990FX Killer Fatal1ty

[Morgan MLGman]

If you think you will need more than 8gb, ram, get the ASRock 970 Performance. If 8GB is fine, get the ASRock 990FX Killer Fatal1ty

I already have two 8GB sticks = 16GB, and I won't need any more, I'll change the CPU sooner than I'd ever need more RAM so that's not a concern here, the only flaw is that it's going to be single-channel

[comicsansms]

I already have two 8GB sticks = 16GB, and I won't need any more, I'll change the CPU sooner than I'd ever need more RAM so that's not a concern here, the only flaw is that it's going to be single-channel

that won't matter that much in gaming. But if you are doing more than gaming the ASRock 970 Performance may be a better choice

[Tmt97]

I already have two 8GB sticks = 16GB, and I won't need any more, I'll change the CPU sooner than I'd ever need more RAM so that's not a concern here, the only flaw is that it's going to be single-channel

 

 

that won't matter that much in gaming. But if you are doing more than gaming the ASRock 970 Performance may be a better choice

If he finds himself needing more ram for multitasking or something he can just sell the motherboard and buy a better one. I'm sure he could sell it for more than hes buying it for, even with the two ram slots broken.

[Morgan MLGman]

I'd confirm that nothing else is broken, and then go for it. Its a great deal. Worse case scenerio, you can sell it for a lot more than they are, even with the two ram slots broken.

It's confirmed to be 100% working, I already talked to the guy from the store, he said they got one of the broken slots to work, but after they took the RAM stick out of it stopped working again so they're selling it with theoretically two broken slots, and if anything else breaks I still have warranty at their store and can send it back to them to fix/return/change for another board

[i_build_nanosuits]

both motherboard are 8+2 digital power phase with heatsinks...they should overclock pretty much the same...just push your CPU on your current motherboard no need to spend 100$ for a new one the one you have is plenty strong enough to support even the craziest overclocks i remember pushing my FX-8320 all the way to 1.55v on my 970A-UD3p which is the same board hardware wise...

[QueenDemetria]

I personally dislike buying damaged boards unless if I can get them dirt cheap, but if the store offers it own warranty and they are reliable then its worth taking the chance I guess.

[Morgan MLGman]

both motherboard are 8+2 digital power phase with heatsinks...they should overclock pretty much the same...just push your CPU on your current motherboard no need to spend 100$ for a new one the one you have is plenty strong enough to support even the craziest overclocks i remember pushing my FX-8320 all the way to 1.55v on my 970A-UD3p which is the same board hardware wise...

It's not only the overclocking. Basically, after buying that 990FX Killer I have many, many more features than I do now on my current 970A-UD3, much better audio, lan, crossfire/sli support, fast boot feature which my current board doesn't have, M.2 drive support, and some others.

If I get it, I can sell my current board for over half the price of the 990FX Killer one so I wouldn't end up paying much for it. It's definitely worth it considering what I get in return.

Also, after extended periods of time during stresstesting I could hear my mobo VRMs crying when I pushed the CPU to 4,7/4,8gHz and since it's out of warranty, I wouldn't want to risk it. I'll sell it for more than I bought it for since it was off a friend.

Considering all that, changing the board is worth it, I'm more asking whether it's worth to buy the much better, but a flawed one for a little lower price

Thanks for your input ^^

[i_build_nanosuits]

It's not only the overclocking. Basically, after buying that 990FX Killer I have many, many more features than I do now on my current 970A-UD3, much better audio, lan, crossfire/sli support, fast boot feature which my current board doesn't have, M.2 drive support, and some others.

If I get it, I can sell my current board for over half the price of the 990FX Killer one so I wouldn't end up paying much for it. It's definitely worth it considering what I get in return.

Also, after extended periods of time during stresstesting I could hear my mobo VRMs crying when I pushed the CPU to 4,7/4,8gHz and since it's out of warranty, I wouldn't want to risk it. I'll sell it for more than I bought it for since it was off a friend.

Considering all that, changing the board is worth it, I'm more asking whether it's worth to buy the much better, but a flawed one for a little lower price

Thanks for your input ^^

the only real advantage this board has over yours is support for SLI/CFX and it looks better...everything else will not change anything.

and, the fact that your ram will run in single channel mode will probably hit your performance more than your 200mhz extra will which will go completely un-noticed (it will not change anything even with dual channel BTW).

i wouldnt sink a single more penny on a dead platform if i were you...time to start saving for a skylake upgrade instead.

[Tmt97]

It's confirmed to be 100% working, I already talked to the guy from the store, he said they got one of the broken slots to work, but after they took the RAM stick out of it stopped working again so they're selling it with theoretically two broken slots, and if anything else breaks I still have warranty at their store and can send it back to them to fix/return/change for another board

This sounds like a no lose scenerio. Run and buy it as fast as you can!

[Morgan MLGman]

the only real advantage this board has over yours is support for SLI/CFX and it looks better...everything else will not change anything.

and, the fact that your ram will run in single channel mode will probably hit your performance more than your 200mhz extra will which will go completely un-noticed (it will not change anything even with dual channel BTW).

i wouldnt sink a single more penny on a dead platform if i were you...time to start saving for a skylake upgrade instead.

I mean I don't need any more performance out of the CPU and because of that I'm going to keep it, I want to upgrade the motherboard cause it's the "worst" part of my current PC, I was considering either going a locked haswell i7, but that wouldn't be worth the money it costs here in Poland, or the route of an i5-6400 + Z170 board since I already have a freaking huge cooler for overclocking, but dropped the ideas for now, I'm completely happy with what I've got in terms of performance and by changing the motherboard I wanted to add some features to it as well as overclock a bit higher, I've heard that there's a noticeable improvement in performance on the FX line going from 4,5ghz to 4,8ghz for example, but I'm yet to confirm that.

And as a PC enthusiast yourself you surely understand the will of upgrading "because you can" not because you need to Considering the price of the board (87$) and that I can still sell my used Gigabyte board for 50$, I would be paying 37$ for all of those features. Prices in Poland are ridiculous, I know, but a new board like that with working RAM slots costs almost 160$. So getting it for practically 37$ is a damn good deal

[i_build_nanosuits]

I mean I don't need any more performance out of the CPU and because of that I'm going to keep it, I want to upgrade the motherboard cause it's the "worst" part of my current PC, I was considering either going a locked haswell i7, but that wouldn't be worth the money it costs here in Poland, or the route of an i5-6400 + Z170 board since I already have a freaking huge cooler for overclocking, but dropped the ideas for now, I'm completely happy with what I've got in terms of performance and by changing the motherboard I wanted to add some features to it as well as overclock a bit higher, I've heard that there's a noticeable improvement in performance on the FX line going from 4,5ghz to 4,8ghz for example, but I'm yet to confirm that.

And as a PC enthusiast yourself you surely understand the will of upgrading "because you can" not because you need to Considering the price of the board (87$) and that I can still sell my used Gigabyte board for 50$, I would be paying 37$ for all of those features. Prices in Poland are ridiculous, I know, but a new board like that with working RAM slots costs almost 160$. So getting it for practically 37$ is a damn good deal

for 40$...if you feel like it then why not i guess...

[Morgan MLGman]

for 40$...if you feel like it then why not i guess...

That's the point, I would never buy a motherboard that's basically more expensive than I got my 8350 for

What about the VRMs? Cause although they both have 8+2 Power Phase which is mainly why I took these boards into consideration, it's their cooling that might not be sufficient for very high overclocks, and if I'm getting a better board I might as well choose the one that overclocks better considering that I can cool the chip itself, but I'm unsure about that, here's how they look:

The 990FX looks beefier, and it theoretically should be, but that might only be an impression

 

990FX Killer:

     970 Performance:

[i_build_nanosuits]

That's the point, I would never buy a motherboard that's basically more expensive than I got my 8350 for

What about the VRMs? Cause although they both have 8+2 Power Phase which is mainly why I took these boards into consideration, it's their cooling that might not be sufficient for very high overclocks, and if I'm getting a better board I might as well choose the one that overclocks better considering that I can cool the chip itself, but I'm unsure about that, here's how they look:

The 990FX looks beefier, and it theoretically should be, but that might only be an impression

 

990FX Killer:

     970 Performance:

all i can say is i recommended the 970 performance only one time and here is what happened...not sure if the 990FX is better...8 phase gigabyte though...that is good stuff:

 

 

[Morgan MLGman]

all i can say is i recommended the 970 performance only one time and here is what happened...not sure if the 990FX is better...8 phase gigabyte though...that is good stuff:

Seems like a faulty one, but still, thanks for that, I'll see if I get the dude to lower the price even more, if he agrees, I'll just buy the 990FX one, if not, I'll think about it

[don_svetlio]

Hey guys, I'd like to hear some opinions. I want to change my motherboard, to squeeze some more out of my FX, I'm completely happy with the performance, but got some cash laying on my hands and looking to upgrade. I do not want to change the CPU, do not suggest that please. I've got everything I want in it.

So now, to the point. I currently have my FX-8350 OC'd to 4,5gHz with nearly stock voltage on my Gigabyte GA-970A-UD3 board that I got off a friend for practically nothing.

I recently ran AIDA64 for 4 hours to check max load temp of it, and with my beefy twin-tower 3x120mm fan aircooler it didn't get above 46 degrees celsius so I obviously can get more, but I didn't want to damage the board I had. I'd like to achieve around 4,8gHz overclock.

I have two options:

- Buy an ASRock 990FX Killer Fatal1ty motherboard. It's higher-end motherboard, BUT there's a catch. I can get it from a store, that sells it as a new, and gives warranty, but there is one thing wrong with her:

Two RAM slots that are closest to the CPU are broken. Now basically I don't need those slots. I have 2x8GB sticks of HyperX Fury White RAM and running them in single channel (that's what's left with only two right slots working) shouldn't impact the performace and I won't need more RAM before I change the CPU. If anything else breaks, I can send it back to the store under warranty, no worries about that.

Price: Around a half of a new one here in Poland, it's going to be roughly 87$.

- Buy an ASRock 970 Performance motherboard. It would be a 100% working one, with warranty. It's a lower end board, 970 chipset, doesn't have the "Killer" ethernet, SLI support and some other features, overclocking should also be worse on it, but nothing would be broken.

Price: Something around 94$.

My question is, should I get the "better" 990FX Killer motherboard that theoreticaly should allow for better overclocking and has far better features for slightly less BUT with two RAM slots not working (No need for more in terms of capacity, already got 16GBs) meaning that I can run my RAM in dual-channel only? Or should I go for a 100% working, but significantly worse motherboard?

Thanks for reading. @don_svetlio I'd like to know your take on this, thanks in advance.

@Prysin had played around with FX8 chips and found that after 4.5-4.6GHz you don't really gain anything in terms of performance so I'd say you're already at the edge of what that CPU is capable of. I'd honestly save up for Zen.

[Prysin]

@Morgan MLGman

what you want is this:

http://www.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=5655#ov

 

 

i dunno when it will be in stores. but that board, feature wise, is ballin. also, that is some DAMN GOOD COOLING for the VRM, NB and SB

 

secondary option. get a ASUS 990FX Sabertooth Gen2 or Gen3 R2.0

[Morgan MLGman]

@Morgan MLGman

what you want is this:

http://www.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=5655#ov

 

 

i dunno when it will be in stores. but that board, feature wise, is ballin. also, that is some DAMN GOOD COOLING for the VRM, NB and SB

 

secondary option. get a ASUS 990FX Sabertooth Gen2 or Gen3 R2.0

 Damn I've never seen that board before, it's not in stores anywhere here, the only Gigabyte board that's one of the "better" ones that I can find is the 990FX-UD5 one, but I don't want to spend that much, I just want more features in my board, overclocking is a secondary thing since on both of those achieving 4,5 ghz will be a piece of cake with my 1.36V 4,5gHz chip Sabertooth was my first choice, but a new one costs more than I paid for my 8350 here, not worth it...

 

 

@Prysin had played around with FX8 chips and found that after 4.5-4.6GHz you don't really gain anything in terms of performance so I'd say you're already at the edge of what that CPU is capable of. I'd honestly save up for Zen.

Read what I said here: "And as a PC enthusiast yourself you surely understand the will of upgrading "because you can" not because you need to Considering the price of the board (87$) and that I can still sell my used Gigabyte board for 50$, I would be paying 37$ for all of those features. Prices in Poland are ridiculous, I know, but a new board like that with working RAM slots costs almost 160$. So getting it for practically 37$ is a damn good deal"

I'm not looking to spend much, considering that I'd sell my current board after getting that one, I would be paying like 37$ for all those features that the 990FX Killer board brings, and I would still sell it later when I decide to change my CPU for more than 37$ in a year or two so there's no losing here ^^ I'm asking if it's worth it to get the one with working single-channel RAM slots only

 

[Prysin]

 Damn I've never seen that board before, it's not in stores anywhere here, the only Gigabyte board that's one of the "better" ones that I can find is the 990FX-UD5 one, but I don't want to spend that much, I just want more features in my board, overclocking is a secondary thing since on both of those achieving 4,5 ghz will be a piece of cake with my 1.36V 4,5gHz chip Sabertooth was my first choice, but a new one costs more than I paid for my 8350 here, not worth it...

 

 

Read what I said here: "And as a PC enthusiast yourself you surely understand the will of upgrading "because you can" not because you need to Considering the price of the board (87$) and that I can still sell my used Gigabyte board for 50$, I would be paying 37$ for all of those features. Prices in Poland are ridiculous, I know, but a new board like that with working RAM slots costs almost 160$. So getting it for practically 37$ is a damn good deal"

I'm not looking to spend much, considering that I'd sell my current board after getting that one, I would be paying like 37$ for all those features that the 990FX Killer board brings, and I would still sell it later when I decide to change my CPU for more than 37$ in a year or two so there's no losing here ^^ I'm asking if it's worth it to get the one with working single-channel RAM slots only

 

so basically what you need is a 8+2 phase (preferably), 970 chipset board on the "cheap"

 

 

how about that NEW ASUS 970 board?

or

a ASRock 970 Fata1ity/Performance?

[Morgan MLGman]

so basically what you need is a 8+2 phase (preferably), 970 chipset board on the "cheap"

how about that NEW ASUS 970 board?

or

a ASRock 970 Fata1ity/Performance?

That new Asus 970 board seems damn cool but not available here, remember, middle-eastern europe is retarded in terms of tech, people here earn less, but hardware costs more than in the US

As stated in the topic, there are two boards that I'm considering (they're obviously 8+2 Power Phase just like my current GA-970A-UD3, it just lacks features cause it's old and lower-end):

"I have two options:

- Buy an ASRock 990FX Killer Fatal1ty motherboard. It's a higher-end motherboard, BUT there's a catch. I can get it from a store, that sells it as a new, and gives warranty, but there is one thing wrong with her:

Two RAM slots that are closest to the CPU are broken. Now basically I don't need those slots. I have 2x8GB sticks of HyperX Fury White RAM and running them in single channel (that's what's left with only two right slots working) shouldn't impact the performace and I won't need more RAM before I change the CPU. If anything else breaks, I can send it back to the store under warranty, no worries about that.

Price: Around a half of a new one here in Poland, it's going to be roughly 87$.

- Buy an ASRock 970 Performance motherboard. It would be a 100% working one, with warranty. It's a lower end board, 970 chipset, doesn't have the "Killer" ethernet, SLI support and some other features, overclocking should also be worse on it, but nothing would be broken.

Price: Something around 94$."

The 990FX Killer seems damn cool, those two broken RAM slots hurt though...

 

[Prysin]

That new Asus 970 board seems damn cool but not available here, remember, middle-eastern europe is retarded in terms of tech, people here earn less, but hardware costs more than in the US

As stated in the topic, there are two boards that I'm considering (they're obviously 8+2 Power Phase just like my current GA-970A-UD3, it just lacks features cause it's old and lower-end):

"I have two options:

- Buy an ASRock 990FX Killer Fatal1ty motherboard. It's a higher-end motherboard, BUT there's a catch. I can get it from a store, that sells it as a new, and gives warranty, but there is one thing wrong with her:

Two RAM slots that are closest to the CPU are broken. Now basically I don't need those slots. I have 2x8GB sticks of HyperX Fury White RAM and running them in single channel (that's what's left with only two right slots working) shouldn't impact the performace and I won't need more RAM before I change the CPU. If anything else breaks, I can send it back to the store under warranty, no worries about that.

Price: Around a half of a new one here in Poland, it's going to be roughly 87$.

- Buy an ASRock 970 Performance motherboard. It would be a 100% working one, with warranty. It's a lower end board, 970 chipset, doesn't have the "Killer" ethernet, SLI support and some other features, overclocking should also be worse on it, but nothing would be broken.

Price: Something around 94$."

The 990FX Killer seems damn cool, those two broken RAM slots hurt though...

 

i know poland is shit with tech.

 

i went on a "git wasted" company party trip to Gdansk... the most hardcore tech i found was a tiny tiny Apple store.

 

couldnt even find a place selling dishwashers inside the city D:

 

EDIT: also, dont be an idiot and buy broken stuff.

 

see if you can get something in Germany. If nothing else, you should be able to drive to a few places. If you have "friends" online you trust that live in germany, ship the items to them and pick it up there or have them send it for you

[Morgan MLGman]

i know poland is shit with tech.

 

i went on a "git wasted" company party trip to Gdansk... the most hardcore tech i found was a tiny tiny Apple store.

 

couldnt even find a place selling dishwashers inside the city D:

 

EDIT: also, dont be an idiot and buy broken stuff.

 

see if you can get something in Germany. If nothing else, you should be able to drive to a few places. If you have "friends" online you trust that live in germany, ship the items to them and pick it up there or have them send it for you

AFAIK in Germany tech is also pretty expensive, also more expensive than in the US, the only difference is, Germans earn more than we do so it doesn't hurt them that much...

I looked at Amazon.de, a brand new 990FX Killer costs more there than here in Poland, and I'd have to add shipping to it ;_;

The only thing I lose with those two RAM slots is dual-channel capablitity cause only two right slots work. I still get a warranty at their store for the board cause it's new so if something else breaks there will be no issues, and it's almost half the price of a 100% working one, OR I can just get the ASRock 970 Performance that's 100% working and be done with it, but then I lose some features and I'm not sure what's more worth it