Game PC motherboard blown... What to do?

[MarJay]

I have a game PC based on an old AM2+ Asus M2NE motherboard with a Quad core AMD CPU (not sure exactly which model). I Have a Geforce GTX 260 graphics card, 250gb SSD and a 4tb HD. I have 8gb of DDR2 RAM.

Sadly, the motherboard has expired (which is why I can't find out what the CPU is). A component near the chipset heatsink looks charred and burned, it has a little metal shield and looks like a coil with some sort of core in it.

So I'm thinking, being I have a decent PSU, case, DVD-RAM drive and memory card reader, as well as the SSD and HD I should just replace the motherboard. This means a new CPU I guess, as well as RAM. I don't want to spend loads, and ideally I want to re-use the graphics card for the time being (for reasons of budget). Being that I have a PC based on old technology I'm not very au-fait with the latest hardware.

I'm guessing all new motherboards will need DDR3 RAM so I'll have to buy all new RAM?

Can anyone fathom what the latest AMD CPU's are? Are they worth it? Would I be better going for what appears to be as it has always been the more expensive Intel?

I assume PCI-Express is still the graphics bus of choice?

I'm guessing I can't use my AM2+ liquid cooling setup?

My monitors use DVI connections, and are quite new and shiny so I don't really want to upgrade them. I don't have display port, so there's another reason to stick with the old card for the time being.

Anyone got any ideas what I should be looking for? Do I need to worry about the tech specs of the current motherboard?

Here's the current mobo spec:

https://www.asus.com/Motherboards/M2NE/specifications/

I have a nominal budget of around (edit) £200, but if spending a few extra quid means I get a significantly more capable PC I'd be happy with that.

Any hints or ideas welcome?
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British beauty: Triumph Street Triple R; Loony stroker: KR1S; Track fun: GSXR750 L1; Commuter Missile: GSX-S1000F; Cheap project: CBR900RR FireBlade
Remember kids, bikes aren't like lego. You can't easily take a part from one bike and then fit it to another.

[Pjay]

Protip:
Go Intel inside.

[andym]

[dydey90]

I have this CPU. Haven't been able to touch it with anything gaming wise, it's a lot cheaper than any intel worth having and has plenty of grunt.
https://m.cclonline.com/product/93469/FD8350FRHKBOX/CPU-Processors/AMD-FX-8350-Eight-Core-Black-Edition-CPU/CPU0153/

Can't remember what motherboard I have but you're looking at £50-100 for a socket AM3+ and with 4 RAM slots you can fit 32GB which is overkill right now.

Also, if you go for an AM3+ then your existing water cooling system should fit just fine.

Prices new, I'd guess at £250-300
Used, may be able to get as low as £100
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This post is probably not serious and shouldn't be taken literally.
Past: CBR125,ER6f NINJA 650, ZZR600 Current: VFR750

[MarJay]

[CaNsA]

[Ste]

[Pjay]

I can qualify my reason for suggesting Intel.

If you had spent more on the Intel in the first place, you'd not be spending it now.

I have had only problems with AMD in the past, each time I try to dip my feet in. Intel on the other hand, are bullet proof.

Yes you will get people saying that their AMD is the more reliable PC ever, but it's not. They just want to feel good about buying a cheaper clone and will tell whoever will listen how great they are.

in 25 years I've owned maybe 4 AMD and 10-15 Intel based computers.

All the AMD died, none of the Intel did. Some are still going strong now. My Niece even has an old P4 I gave her 8 years ago, that's used daily.

I just don't trust AMD and never will.

[MarJay]

I bought the motherboard in 2006, and it's been through CPU swaps, BIOS updates and so many hardware configuration changes, and running with no case fans for about three years. I'd happily go with another Asus/AMD combination.

If the board failed for any reason it's probably my misuse of it. It's outlived three PSUs, and up until last week was running a CPU that was designed after the board was made. I can't really stress enough how good it has been in all honesty.
____________________
British beauty: Triumph Street Triple R; Loony stroker: KR1S; Track fun: GSXR750 L1; Commuter Missile: GSX-S1000F; Cheap project: CBR900RR FireBlade
Remember kids, bikes aren't like lego. You can't easily take a part from one bike and then fit it to another.

[M.C]

Ran both AMD and Intel cpu's for years and never had either fail. Are you overclocking?

Consider a second hand mobo if you don't want to buy new stuff.

[CaNsA]

[MarJay]

[Jayy]

WHat to do... buy all new shit

[bladerunner]

intel vs AMD....intel are more efficient, no doubt about it. more £££ as well and I'm an AMD fan lol but its what fits in budget and AMD may win that one in the mid range market. Good things are new faster ram and probably faster access to your SSD etc. I updated my 2007 q6600 last year for an i7 and the whole thing is improved USB3 etc etc so even with a tight budget if you get a stable system it'll run better with the newer OS as well
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Current bikes...cbr929, KDX200's, Rd125lc mk2, RGV250's

[MarJay]

Cost is a major issue and really the equivalent Intel setup is roughly twice the cost of AMD. Also, I've been coping with a 10 year old motherboard, with a six year old CPU and an eight year old graphics card, running things like Deus Ex Human Revolution in 1080p full detail with no issue. So I doubt that having the latest intel i7 is going to be essential. I also know that the graphics card is more important to gaming performance than the CPU generally, so until I can afford a new graphics card, I'm going to have to cope anyway.

I think I'll be going AMD. Not the very top end, but something that will last me for a while.

Currently thinking this with 8gb of RAM:

https://www.awd-it.co.uk/amd-fx-8350-gigabyte-990x-gaming-sli-motherboard-ddr3-bundle.html
____________________
British beauty: Triumph Street Triple R; Loony stroker: KR1S; Track fun: GSXR750 L1; Commuter Missile: GSX-S1000F; Cheap project: CBR900RR FireBlade
Remember kids, bikes aren't like lego. You can't easily take a part from one bike and then fit it to another.

[colink98]

If cost is a big issue then i have a stink load of 4GB DDR3 sticks.
with these spec's

https://i.imgur.com/zdoBJlz.jpg

Would be happy to send 4 to fill the board and save you £40
____________________
PCX125 (stolen) - CBF600 (current)
Ride it like you stole it.
ride sensible and not like an idiot and you wont get 6 points in one week.

[Pjay]

[MarJay]

[M.C]

[Shinigami]

not sure why all the AMD hate, I'm not a fanboy for either side but i've been running AMD CPU for the last 4 years without a hitch (FX8350, was running an Intel q6600 before that)

Reason of choice was it was about half the price than an equivalent intel, it's not yet bottlenecked anything at 1080p (all i can game at as I can't afford/want a 4k display)

Using evo-212 cooler which i've had in there for years also
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Current: Honda City Fly CLR125 2003 Honda CB600F Hornet 2008 Yamaha FZ6 S2 + 1991 Kawasaki GPZ500
"Once you realize what a joke everything is, being the Comedian is the only thing that makes sense.

[MarJay]

A new issue has arisen. It seems my version of Windows 10 comes from an OEM Windows 7 installation that I bought from eBay... Turns out that OEM licenses are associated with the motherboard, and cannot be transferred. FML!
____________________
British beauty: Triumph Street Triple R; Loony stroker: KR1S; Track fun: GSXR750 L1; Commuter Missile: GSX-S1000F; Cheap project: CBR900RR FireBlade
Remember kids, bikes aren't like lego. You can't easily take a part from one bike and then fit it to another.

[M.C]

[Jayy]

It comes down to preference and cost. Intel is a lot more expensive and if you're on a budget then AMD is the way forward, nothing wrong with AMD.

[Shinigami]

[MarJay]

I've been looking at some CPU benchmarks, and I think the AMD FX-8350 is the one to go for. It's the best combination of power vs price at the budget I'm looking at. I'm certainly not going to spend £600 on an intel setup which doesn't gain me all that much, especially when i've been working with a Phenom II X4 960 for the last couple of years. That'll get transplanted into my internet PC as that's running an Athlon 64 x2 5000+. The FX8350 benchmarks better than the 8370 according to https://www.cpubenchmark.net/.

Benchmarks for reference:

FX8350 - 8,940
Phenom II X4 960 - 3,840
Athlon 64 x2 5000+ - 1,316.

I think I'll cope without the latest Intel rig!!

Then further down the line I'll upgrade graphics card to something more modern so I can play stuff like GTAV (on offer this week on Steam folks!) Asetto Corsa and Deus Ex Mankind Divided. Win.

Shame about having to re-install windows and lose all my settings... Still, there is a glimmer of hope that I might not have to do that.
____________________
British beauty: Triumph Street Triple R; Loony stroker: KR1S; Track fun: GSXR750 L1; Commuter Missile: GSX-S1000F; Cheap project: CBR900RR FireBlade
Remember kids, bikes aren't like lego. You can't easily take a part from one bike and then fit it to another.