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Motherboard Information
The choice of motherboard can be one of the most difficult decisions when building a custom computer, but because of the effect it has on the rest of the build process we present it first. There has always been a debate over whether Intel or AMD is the best CPU choice in different applications, and the selection of a motherboard determines which processors will be available to pick from; choices over memory type and other related things add to the confusion. Puget Custom Computers has many hardware articles that can help you get up to speed, and by taking the time to give them a look you can make a much more informed decision. In the event that you are uncertain, don't hesitate to contact us.

When configuring your computer, you might notice that there is no option to include a LAN card. This is because all of our motherboards have built in LAN support! In many cases these motherboards also have other features including USB, Firewire, and RAID controllers. Each of the motherboards listed below has full audio support, and in some cases even 6-channel or 8-channel sound! Make sure to become familiar with what features your motherboard has so you don't waste any money adding PCI cards for features you already have!



Asus M4A88TD-M/USB3 (AMD 880G MicroATX) DDR3

 Puget Preferred Part!		This microATX motherboard supports modern AMD® Socket AM3 multi-core processors and delivers a rich feature set including integrated ATI Radeon 4250 graphics and both analog and digital audio output, alongside new technologies like SATA 3 (6Gb/s) and USB 3.0. Being a smaller motherboard it is somewhat limited on expansion slots, but in trade is more affordable and can fit in cases with a smaller footprint.
Asus P7H55D-M EVO (Intel H55 MicroATX) DDR3

 Puget Preferred Part!		The P7H55D-M EVO is the next generation in microATX motherboards from Asus. It utilizes the latest Core i3 and i5 processors from Intel to provide good general-usage performance with the option for integrated graphics. Alongside those capabilities are a full suite of connectivity options built right in - including a pair of USB 3.0 ports for the latest peripherals.

Puget Professional Advice:
Jon Bach (President) Says:
This is one of my favorite boards we carry. Its highly reliable, compact, and has a great number of ports, including DVI, VGA, HDMI, firewire, 2 USB 3.0 ports, and 10 USB 2.0 ports! This is the motherboard I personally recommend to friends and family.

William George (Customer Service) Says:
In the latest generation of Intel's processors they have moved graphics onto the CPU itself, rather than the chipset - but only on their lower-end models. This motherboard has the required video outputs to take advantage of that on-chip graphics capability, which is great for budget-oriented systems and folks who don't need a lot of 3D horsepower. Note, though, that other CPUs fitting the same socket (1156) can be used even if they don't have built-in graphics; in doing so you would also need to add a dedicated video card.

Asus M4A88TD-V EVO/USB3 (AMD 880G ATX) DDR3

This ATX motherboard supports modern AMD® Socket AM3 multi-core processors and delivers a rich feature set including integrated ATI Radeon 4250 graphics, eSATA, and both analog and digital audio output, alongside new technologies like SATA 3 (6Gb/s) and USB 3.0.
Zotac H55ITX-A-E (Intel H55 MiniITX) DDR3

This motherboard from Zotac fits a lot of power and features in a very small form factor. Utilizing the latest Intel Core i3 and i5 processors, it provides a lot of processing speed when needed while keeping power usage and heat output to a minimum. Those CPUs also provide built-in graphics which are an improvement over previous generations of Intel video capabilities, though the board also has a PCI-Express x16 slot in case you have more demanding 3D needs.

In addition to built-in graphics, this motherboard also has wired and wireless networking, eSATA, analog and digital audio, and a myriad of USB ports. What more could you ask for in such a small package?
Asus Maximus III Gene (Intel P55 MicroATX) DDR3

The Maximus III Gene is a small, MicroATX motherboard in Asus' Republic of Gamers line. This top-of-the-line motherboard provides features like SLI and Crossfire support, as well as great overclocking options, without requiring a full-size ATX chassis. If you are looking for a compact gaming computer or workstation this is a great platform to choose.
Zotac ION-F-E (nVidia MCP7A-ION MiniITX) DDR2

Experience fluid and vivid high-definition video playback with the ultra-compact ZOTAC® ION platform. The mini-ITX form factor ZOTAC® ION combines a high-performance NVIDIA® ION graphics processor with a power-efficient Intel® Atom processor for the ultimate eco-friendly platform that has no troubles handling regular web browsing, e-mail, & productivity and HD video playback tasks.

NVIDIA® PureVideo HD technology harnesses the power of the ION's 16 high-speed stream processors for high-definition Blu-ray playback capabilities. PureVideo HD technology decodes HD video formats and enhances standard-definition videos with the ION GPU for flawless HD and superior SD video playback.
Asus P7P55D-E Pro (Intel P55 ATX) DDR3

 Puget Preferred Part!		The Asus P7P55D-E PRO - designed for enthusiasts. Created for the new Intel® Core™ i7 and Core i5 processors in the LGA1156 socket. The revolutionary two-chip layout enables lower power consumption and more advanced performance tuning for a smoother, more realistic experience.

Puget Professional Advice:
William George (Customer Service) Says:
It is worth noting that the USB 3.0 support is only on two of the ports on the back of the motherboard - the rest are all still USB 2.0; similarly the SATA 3 (6Gbps) support is only on two of the internal SATA connectors.

Asus M4A89TD Pro/USB3 (AMD 890FX ATX) DDR3

Among the first boards based on AMD's new 890FX chipset, the Asus M4A89TD Pro is an enthusiast motherboard with all the latest features. The 890FX chipset has native SATA 6Gb/s support, and traditional technologies like Crossfire, DDR3, and PCI-Express 2.0 are also supported, making this a great performance platform.

This USB3 version also sports an add-on chip, powering two of the fast, new USB 3.0 connections. Those are ideal for high-speed external devices like drives, so if you are looking for future-proofing this board would be a great choice.
Asus P6X58D Premium (Intel X58 ATX) DDR3

 Puget Preferred Part!		The P6X58D Premium supports a wide range of technology. It is the first Asus Core i7 board with both USB 3.0 and SATA 6Gbps support, and it can handle up to 24GB of fast DDR3 memory (1333MHz). If you are looking for a new workstation or gaming rig based on the Core i7 then this is an excellent choice.

Puget Professional Advice:
Jon Bach (President) Says:
Intel Core i7 has become very popular here (with good reason). If you're using a socket 1366 Core i7 CPU, this motherboard choice is a no-brainer.

William George (Customer Service) Says:
This seems like a solid upgrade the P6 series of motherboards, but it is worth noting a few things. The USB 3.0 support is only on two of the ports on the back of the motherboard - the rest are all still USB 2.0; similarly the SATA 3 (6Gbps) support is only on two of the internal SATA connectors. In the process of adding those Asus has entirely removed support for IDE (there is no JMicron controller any longer, which used to provide that). Future-proofing comes at the cost of backwards-compatibility, it would seem.

Puget V525i 15.4 inch Notebook

This laptop offers a great budget approach to mobile computing - while making use of the latest technologies available. The Core i3 / i5 processors from Intel offer performance ideal for a wide range of uses, and in this latest generation Intel has integrated graphics into the CPU itself. That built-in video chip drives a spacious 15" screen that is LED back-lit, though the resolution of the display is lower than our other 15" models (to help keep the price down). All in all this is a great laptop for business and home usage, though if you need to play games or do more intensive 3D work then one of our larger models might be a better choice.

Puget Professional Advice:
Wilson Chau (Customer Service) Says:
This is a good laptop if you don't need it for gaming and still want a bigger screen than our Puget M225i with more power.

Asus KGPE-D16 (AMD SR5690 EATX) DDR3 REG ECC

This board supports two of the new eight- or twelve-core Opteron 6100-series processors: thats up to 24 total cores in a single computer! It is mainly geared toward servers, as shown by it's rear-panel port configuration (integrated graphics, only 2 USB ports, PS/2, and serial) - but with its excellent expansion slot layout it can be used for a workstation just as easily.

Note: Includes an Asus MIO sound card.
Asus P6T7 WS Supercomputer (Intel X58 ATX) DDR3

The P6T7 WS focuses on offering a massive number of PCI-Express lanes for connecting high-performance expansion cards. Depending on the case it is used with this motherboard can accomodate three or even four video cards, allowing for extreme gaming through SLI / Crossfire or GPGPU computing through technologies like CUDA. In trade this motherboard has virtually no legacy connections: no traditional PCI slots, serial or parallel ports, or internal IDE / floppy headers.
Intel S5520SC (Intel 5520 EATX) DDR3

 Puget Preferred Part!		The Intel S5520SCR, dubbed the Shady Cove platform, is a powerful workstation / server board incorporating world-class performance and reliability for graphic-intensive applications. Whether you are into video rendering, 3D modeling, CAD, CAM, industrial design, or other compute-intensive applications, this Intel board offers a massive memory capacity, two powerful PCI Express 2.0 x16 slots, flexible SATA/SAS storage options, and USB 2.0 / IEEE1394a ports for sustained, high-throughput connectivity to external storage devices, cameras, or other high definition audio/visual peripherals.


Note: The chipset on this motherboard runs hot, and needs a case side fan (as found on the Antec P193), and active front fan, or liquid cooling. If you are not using an Antec P193 chassis, please work with your Puget rep to ensure adequate cooling.

Standby/Sleep functionality is not guaranteed on this motherboard. Additionally, this board does not support the "Hibernation" feature built into Windows.

Puget Professional Advice:
Jon Bach (President) Says:
This motherboard is the cornerstone of our Genesis II post-production workstation. It is rock solid, and a great performer. The chipset does get pretty hot (see the large silver heatsink in the bottom left), so it is a good idea to cool it well. A chassis with a nearby front fan, or with a side panel fan, will do the trick. We can also liquid cool the chipset, if you are building a liquid cooled system.

Jeff Stubbers (Customer Service) Says:
This Intel S5520SC motherboard supports both Intel Xeon Processor 5600 Series (Westmere), and Intel Xeon Processor 5500 Series (Nehalem-EP) CPUs. Do to cooling considerations, I highly recommend using the Antec P193 case for adequate cooling with this motherboard. It's also important to note that you will need to choose at least a 1000W power supply to have the proper power connections needed for this motherboard.

Puget M225i 12.1 inch Notebook

Residing somewhere between the realm of netbooks and traditional laptops, the M225i has plenty of speed for most tasks and yet is housed in a small, portable package. This is accomplished in part by removing the optical drive - though an external DVD-RW is available as an accessory and can be powered entirely by USB in case you need to use it on the go. If you are looking for an easy to use and light-weight computing platform then the M225i is a great contender.

Puget Professional Advice:
Jon Bach (President) Says:
This laptop doesn't have as much horsepower as our higher end units, but the screen resolution is great for a 12 inch notebook. Even more important (to men) is the fact that is has a full size keyboard. The cramped keyboards in most small laptops drives me crazy. It is so small that it doesn't have room for an internal optical drive, so you'll need an external USB one.

Puget M730i 17 inch Notebook ETA 9/21

The Puget M730i offers Intel's new dual-core mobile processors paired with a mid-range Radeon HD 5730 video chip from ATI. Together those technologies provide a powerful computing solution but within a more affordable price range compared to previous 17" notebooks we've offered.
EVGA Classified SR-2 (Intel 5520 SSI) DDR3

 Puget Preferred Part!		EVGA's first foray into dual-CPU motherboards, the SR-2 is a powerful and flexible platform enabling using of not only multiple CPUs but also several graphics cards (or other types of expansion cards). Offering support for dual Intel Xeon processors, up to 48GB of RAM, and quad-SLI this is a behemoth of a motherboard - both in terms of features and physical size.

Please note that because it is larger than the EATX standard only one case we offer will fit it: the Cooler Master HAF-X.
Puget M525i 15.4 inch Notebook

The Puget M525i is offers the latest mobile technologies in a mid-sized laptop chassis. The Core i7 processor is excellent for any intensive computing needs: gaming, media editing, you name it. Likewise, nVidia's GeForce GTS 250M provides a solid graphics backbone. Note that this model comes with a 6-cell battery; a larger 9-cell battery can also be purchased as an accessory for this system.

Puget Professional Advice:
William George (Customer Service) Says:
Our new 15" and 17" notebooks are the first in our lineup to use the new Core i7 processors. These are the mobile versions, so the clock speeds are lower than their desktop counterparts, but they still offer amazing performance for a laptop. These units also feature fairly high-end video cards, making them excellent for everything from media editing to gaming on-the-go.

Supermicro H8QGi-F (AMD SR5690 SWTX) DDR3 REG ECC

This board can support up to four of the new Opteron 6100-series processors - for up to 48 total cores in a single computer! It is mainly geared toward servers, and that shows in it's rear-panel port configuration (integrated graphics, only 2 USB ports, PS/2, and serial) and inclusion of an IPMI module for remote management.


Puget Professional Advice:
Daniel Brown (Customer Support - Lead Technician) Says:
AMD's new G34 socket (used on this board) is pretty exciting. Twelve-core processors are available now. That means you can run a single machine on this board with 48 processor cores. That's not hyperthreaded 'logical cores', but 48 real processor cores. Don't expect it to be quiet though.

William George (Customer Service) Says:
It is worth noting that Windows operating systems are often limited to a specific number of physical processors that they can use. Windows 7 is limited to one (Home Premium) or two (Pro / Ultimate) CPUs - so if you want to use this motherboard then none of the normal versions of Windows will suffice. Instead you need a Windows Server edition or Linux.

Sager NP8850 17.3 inch Notebook



Puget Professional Advice:
William George (Customer Service) Says:
This is truly one beast of a laptop, but at least this monster sticks with a laptop-class video card and CPU. In the past we've carried some designs which had desktop-level hardware - and while they perform great they tended to overheat and/or fail prematurely. We've stopped offering those kinds of notebooks, but there are still customers that demand the best possible performance in a portable system; for them, this is a perfect choice.

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