A motherboard is the central printed circuit board in personal computers. They are the spine of the computer, all components are plugged and work cohesively into the motherboard.

Basic Build Up

This is a basic Build up of most common motherboards of today.

What one should i get?

When looking for a motherboard keep a few things in mind. It is, in my opinion, a good idea to invest on a quality motherboard; by doing this you can pick up a motherboard with a good onboard sound card, eliminating the need for a separate sound card, and the giving yourself more options in the future for upgrade, increasing the amount of usage you can extend from your built pc.

Motherboard Checklist

1. Invest on motherboard with further expansions

2. Check to make sure Cpu slot is compatible with cpu you are looking on purchasing.

3. Make sure motherboard has onboard sound before purchase, if you are planning on not purchasing an onboard sound card.

4. Check to see if motherboard type/size is able to fit in desired computer case.

5. SATA connections are the new standard for most motherboards, make sure if you are planning on using a IDE (Ribbon Cable) connection such as an older CD drive or Hard drive that your motherboard has one, and make sure you have enough SATA headers for all your devices.

6. Make sure that the motherboard you are purchasing has the right slot for the planned video card you are purchasing. There are three main types to look for AGP, PCI, PCI Express. Its also good to get a motherboard with SLI or Crossfire capabilities to further the life of your built PC.