Which motherboard for i5-8400

[Walt]

Hi everyone,

Which motherboard should I pick with an i5-8400? It's for a budget build. I saw that there are 3 different sorts of motherboards to pick: H310, B360, H370 and Z370. The i5-8400 is no overclock-capable chip so which do I need to choose?

Thanks!

[Skiiwee29]

Since its not an overclockable chip, a B310 chipset board should be just fine. Find the one with the extra features you want/need such as m.2 support, USB 3.1, Type C etc and get that board. 

[Walt]

1 minute ago, Skiiwee29 said:

Since its not an overclockable chip, a B310 chipset board should be just fine. Find the one with the extra features you want/need such as m.2 support, USB 3.1, Type C etc and get that board. 

Thanks! I made a mistake it's H310 instead of B310 right?

If I can get a b360 instead of a h310 what are the main differences?

[Skiiwee29]

Just now, Walt said:

Thanks! I made a mistake it's H310 instead of B310 right?

If I can get a b360 instead of a h310 what are the main differences?

Usually as you go higher in the stack, the boards will have small feature changes such as higher memory support, more fan headers, RGB support etc.. small quality of life things. 

[Nocte]

Since it's a locked chip go with the cheapest you can find with all the features you need.

[michaelbelgium]

The best H310 or B360 mobo u can find, the other chipsets would be useless as they are for overclocking and not exactly for budget builds

[epsilon84]

I would strongly consider paying an extra $5 or $10 for a B360 rather than a H310 board, the B360s have a much better feature set for a slightly higher price.

[Spiny]

I Just built a system on i5-8400. The factors you'll need to consider in order IMHO are:

1. Price - you can go cheap or pay more than double for a B360/H370 board
2. Quality - Cooling/ VRMs
3. Features - This will dictate the specific chipset you go for probably (eg B360 vs H370). 
4. Layout - Some boards are better builds than others

Personally based on that I went for a H370 Asus ROG board. Even though I wasn't overclocking, I wanted:

• A board with better quality components, including a better on-board audio chip
• BIOS recovery/ flashback (discounted an MSI board)
• Loved the non-stacked SATA connectors. I don't even have any SATA cable showing in the case, just the end clip

If price is your main concern the MSI boards have reviewed very well (Around £80 iirc). Your final decision will probably come down to number of available USB ports etc. B360 seems the sweet spot in that case. Watch out for m.2 slots stealing PCI lanes in non Z370 boards if you have lots of drives. PC Part picker will spot this if you put your build in.

 

 

[i_got_laid_by_a_dragoness]

6 hours ago, Walt said:

Hi everyone,

Which motherboard should I pick with an i5-8400? It's for a budget build. I saw that there are 3 different sorts of motherboards to pick: H310, B360, H370 and Z370. The i5-8400 is no overclock-capable chip so which do I need to choose?

Thanks!

Personally I'd get a Z370 Pro4. Very nice motherboard, not TOO expensive, and I have one sitting on my window sill while I'm waiting for DDR4 prices to drop.