Best 1366 micro atx mobo?

[RaptureMe]

So I sold my spare ud5 mobo I was going to use for a lan rig this fall and decided that all that crap is way to heavy to be lugging around in a full tower.
Now I am in the market to get a nice Matx mobo and have narrowed it down to these two.

EVGA X58 SLI Micro

ASUS Rampage II GENE

Both seem to match my needs and both are also very beautiful to look at.
But before I decide for sure what to get what do you guys think is the better buy??
It will only be used for Gaming and Blu-Ray..

 

[Gillbot]

I've read good things about the MSI x58M but reputation of the initial MSI 1366 boards has me nervous.

 

[Zap]

Originally posted by: Gillbot
I've read good things about the MSI x58M but reputation of the initial MSI 1366 boards has me nervous.

Heh, I bought that board because it was cheap at $170 with free shipping from Buy.com (I forgot to do Bing cashback ).

MSI boards may be a bit finicky about RAM and they sometimes don't overclock the best, but other than that they seem okay.

Of course I'm going to push this little board as hard as I can.

Anandtech review

Gary really liked it.

The X58M is perfectly happy operating as the foundation for a high-end SOHO SFF media system or a high performance SFF gaming system.
...
It is has proven to be a very stable motherboard with excellent performance. Do you want to boot your latest 920 D0 at 21x230? No problem, the board handles it without breaking a sweat.
...
The price is right, the quality is great, performance is terrific, and the feature set (CrossFire/SLI) matches that of boards costing up to a hundred dollars more. We have no problem recommending the MSI X58M at this point and look forward to seeing it again in our roundup.

I'll be pairing mine with my 920 D0 from Micro Center.

 

[WaitingForNehalem]

MSI FTW!

 

[RaptureMe]

But guys its between these two -V- not the msi.. Matter of fact I hate MSI not to mention that motherboard is fricking Fugly as hell!!


EVGA X58 SLI Micro

ASUS Rampage II GENE

 

[Gillbot]

Originally posted by: RaptureMe
But guys its between these two -V- not the msi.. Matter of fact I hate MSI not to mention that motherboard is fricking Fugly as hell!!


EVGA X58 SLI Micro

ASUS Rampage II GENE

hmm,

Topic Title: Best 1366 micro atx mobo?

Maybe a better title would eliminate confusion. Maybe something along the lines of "Best 1366 micro atx mobo between these two choices i've already made?"

 

[RaptureMe]

Well guys it is Fugly you have to admit that but it is quite the good price.
Maybe I should pickup one of these for a backup incase my other mobo takes a digger.

 

[Zap]

Originally posted by: RaptureMe
Maybe I should pickup one of these for a backup incase my other mobo takes a digger.

You like to keep spares too?

 

[RaptureMe]

Originally posted by: Zap

Originally posted by: RaptureMe
Maybe I should pickup one of these for a backup incase my other mobo takes a digger.

You like to keep spares too?

Yeah I normally buy two of the same mobo's and two of the same cpu's but lately with the economy the way it is I have only been able to buy 1 cpu and 2 mobo's this gen.
I sold my spare UD5 to get something else which turned out to be the Asus gene II.
I just didnt have the heart to open the other UD5 and have it turn out like the previous one.
As it is I am really heart broken seeing how I really really wanted those ud5's and was completely in love with the look of the boards and seeing how I spent around $700 for two mobo's and one of them didnt even work and I sold the other for major loss in price you can see how one would be quite upset.
I am so praying to the mobo gods that my Asus gene II arrives in working condition.
I just dont want to go through this RMA Crap again.
Same thing happened to me with the 2 amd 940BE's and the 2 DFI JR. mobos I had a couple months back so I am starting to get uneasy about buying computer stuff from newegg.

 

[WaitingForNehalem]

Originally posted by: RaptureMe
But guys its between these two -V- not the msi.. Matter of fact I hate MSI not to mention that motherboard is fricking Fugly as hell!!


EVGA X58 SLI Micro

ASUS Rampage II GENE

I hate GIGABYTE boards along with their ugly color scheme. I don't care what my motherboard looks like as I won't stare at it though.

 

[Zap]

Originally posted by: RaptureMe
As it is I am really heart broken seeing how I really really wanted those ud5's and was completely in love with the look of the boards and seeing how I spent around $700 for two mobo's and one of them didnt even work and I sold the other for major loss in price you can see how one would be quite upset.
I am so praying to the mobo gods that my Asus gene II arrives in working condition.
I just dont want to go through this RMA Crap again.
Same thing happened to me with the 2 amd 940BE's and the 2 DFI JR. mobos I had a couple months back so I am starting to get uneasy about buying computer stuff from newegg.

You keep getting bad mobos? If multiple motherboards are DOA/failed, have you checked your RAM or PSU? It may be as simple as an incompatibility (which strangely enough is common with RAM/mobos).

 

[RaptureMe]

Originally posted by: WaitingForNehalem

Originally posted by: RaptureMe
But guys its between these two -V- not the msi.. Matter of fact I hate MSI not to mention that motherboard is fricking Fugly as hell!!


EVGA X58 SLI Micro

ASUS Rampage II GENE

I hate GIGABYTE boards along with their ugly color scheme. I don't care what my motherboard looks like as I won't stare at it though.

Really??I think they have very nice color schemes.
I dont hate gigabyte at all they have been a very good brand for me up till now.
I just dont want to go through a repeat of this bs non posting crap again.
Now MSI on the other hand... well every single board I have ever had from them has been the biggest POS ever.
They have boards that fail shortly and not to mention they have nasty color schemes

 

[WaitingForNehalem]

When you have a brand that advertises how their boards are "ULTRA-DURABLE" and then makes high-pitched squeals and buzzes, it makes me never want to buy a product from that company again. Look at the first review for your motherboard: http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16813128374

 

[RaptureMe]

Oh I am not argueing with you in the least actually I totally agree with you.
Gigabyte used to be a good company but has gone down hill the last year or so.
And seeing all the problems people are having and then experiencing them myself leads me to believe its time to jump ship and get another brand.
As for MSI, that crap that happened to me was years ago so who knows maybe they finally got there shit together and then again maybe not as I have seen alot of complaints on newegg for there mobo's as well.
I guess for now Asus Gene II will have to do and maybe I will even pick me up either the EVGA or the msi as a back up but I know one thing for sure it wont be a damn gigabyte mobo again.
I would of really liked to have a Abit x58 mobo but didnt they go under??

 

[Skott]

Originally posted by: RaptureMe
So I sold my spare ud5 mobo I was going to use for a lan rig this fall and decided that all that crap is way to heavy to be lugging around in a full tower.
Now I am in the market to get a nice Matx mobo and have narrowed it down to these two.

EVGA X58 SLI Micro

ASUS Rampage II GENE

Both seem to match my needs and both are also very beautiful to look at.
But before I decide for sure what to get what do you guys think is the better buy??
It will only be used for Gaming and Blu-Ray..

They are both considered good mobos. The Gene has more info about it from what I have seen but I think thats because it released first. I've only seen one prefessional review of the eVGA mobo (I havent bothered to really look for any) and they gave it good ratings. I have yet to see any review directly comparing the two mobos head to head.

Other than pricing I'd say look closely at what each mobo offers in layout and features and then choose the one that fits your needs best. Both are good mobos. Which is the better? I dont know. That is something you'll have to determine for yourself.


Edit: This is the only eVGA X58 SLI mATX review I have seen(I havent bothered to look for others). This the same one you were looking at? They gave it their Gold Award

http://gilgameshreviews.com/in...motherboards&Itemid=61