790i or x48/38

oK so Im slowly amassing the parts for my new computer since I havent upgraded in like 6 years. I'm still debating the motherboard. I want a system that will last quite some time so Im willing to fork up some good money. I dont need SLI so the Intel x48/38 boards are a consideration, but I have read pro's and con's related to the new 790i boards which would give me an option to go SLI in the future. Also I do want a board that will support DDR3 even though I know it doesnt make a big difference currently.

So Tribalwar, between a 790i and an x48 board which would you choose?

I've never been one to notice a huge difference in performance between boards. The 790i like you said would give you the option for SLI in the future. Other than that, it boils down to the features more than anything. Does one offer eSATA and the other doesn't, number of USB ports, etc. I'd look at which boards are most future ready over performance.

Thanks Chimera. Yeah the SLI option on the 790i does offer the ability to update in the future. I was just a bit concerned about the Nvidia chipset because I've read that people have had problems with the 780i and that the X38/48 is pretty rock solid (but no SLI). 790i is looking more tempting.

Neither. The major advantages to both boards are the ability to get pci-e 2.0 x16 on all slots. Everything else does 16x/4x or 8x/8x. Everything else is pretty minor.. and you're better off going with a mature board anyways, since itl have the bugs worked out of the bios by now.

If you just want a sole video card, you're probably good to go with a p35 variant. Go with abit, asus, gigabyte, dfi.. $120 and you're all set. I know you want ddr3 to futureproof yourself, but its not worth it. DDR2 isn't going anywhere, at least not when ddr3 costs 3x as much.

That said - the nvidia boards seem to have some sort of corruption problem that pops up. I'd go with the x48. But only if you want crossfire.. otherwise p35

The only real difference between a "mature" board and a brand new one is the number of BIOS revisions.

There's no reason not to get a new board with a new chipset now, and *IF* you have problems, update the BIOS later, assuming you want the features of the latest chipset vs older sets.

essentially, yea. but the only new revisions to the x38/x48 over the p35 is basically ddr3, 1600fsb, and full-on crossfire support, neither of which he needs. So why not build cheaper? The P35s overclock just as well.. and a decent bios is out now, not 3 months from now.

I'm not saying theres anything wrong with getting an x48, im grabbing one myself, but I need it for crossfire. You'll be pleased either way, but your wallet might be a bit lighter..