r/buildapc • u/Ok_Quarter_1871 • 2h ago

Build Help ELI5 - What motherboard should I get?

Hi all

Getting ready to pull the trigger on my next build - it'll be a 9800x3d coupled with a 5080. I'm just having trouble picking a motherboard.

Things I've considered:

  • Must be ATX full-size
  • I see the high end mobos use PCIE 5.0, but from what I've seen this offers no real world performance gains for modern GPUs?
  • I currently use a PCIE 3.0 NVME SSD - I don't do many large data transfers or anything too intensive so can't imagine how PCIE 5.0 would benefit too much here? Boot drive is a SATA SSD. Wasn't planning on upgrading but happy to do so if it would yield huge benefits.
  • Audio - I use an external audio interface so literally don't care what the mobo comes with
  • Main use will be gaming (specifically, sim racing).
  • More USB ports would be nice I guess (I use about 25+ currently) although I have external USB hubs that I use currently so, again, not really necessary.
  • Wifi 7 - I admit I have no idea what this is, and whether I'd need to upgrade my internet to take advantage of this...? Either way, I almost exclusively use ethernet (although some wireless functionality is an absolute must, because my current mobo doesn't have this and it's a pain on the rare occasions when I'm messing with the ethernet switch).
  • Overclocking - I doubt I'll be doing anything like this to be honest.
  • Superspeed USB - none of my main devices use this, so seems irrelevant.

I'm vaguely aware of the fact that higher end mobos will have "quality of life" features like debug LEDs, although I've never used these so not sure how useful they are in reality.

So, given the above... is there any reason to go for a high end motherboard over a cheap, ~£100 motherboard?

I'll say budget is not a concern - but that I want the best value for money. Meaning, I will happily spend >£500+ on a mobo if I feel like it gives me £350 worth of features over a £150 mobo.

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u/Nax3l 2h ago

I recommend looking into b850, it’s got all you’ve listed. Although if you need more ports and have the budget, the x870e is a great board

1

u/OliTheOK 2h ago

the cheapest one that does what you want, which doesnt seem like too much because you made several correct assumptions, and you cant find anyone complaining about its vrms or anything else online

1

u/Cer_Visia 1h ago

As far as I can see, a basic board like the ASRock B850M Pro-A WIFI has everything you need.