Cant decide between MSI Z97 Gaming5, Gigabyte GA-Z97X-UD3H or Asus Z97-A

[phc2009]

So I am building a new rig and am torn apart between these z97 models. I already ordered a MSI Z97 Gaming5 from NCIX (I am in Canada) but since they will not process it until Monday I guess I still may make changes to it.

I have done a lot of research already, MSI seems to have pretty high return rates:

http://linustechtips.com/main/topic/255466-huge-list-of-failure-rates-for-all-pc-components/

Motherboards:

- 5,56% ASRock FM2A75 Pro4+
- 5,21% ASUS H87M-E C2
- 4,96% ASUS Maximus VI Formula C2
- 4,76% MSI Z97 PC Mate
- 4,50% MSI Z87-G41 PC Mate
- 4,38% ASRock Z77 Extreme4
- 4,38% ASUS Z87-PLUS
- 4,31% ASUS Z87I-PRO
- 4,25% MSI Z97 GAMING 5
- 4,19% MSI Z97 GAMING 3
- 4,17% ASUS H97M-E

As a bonus, here are the failure rates so far for Z97 Motherboards:

- 4,76% MSI Z97 PC Mate
- 4,25% MSI Z97 GAMING 5
- 4,19% MSI Z97 GAMING 3
- 2,38% MSI Z97-G45 GAMING
- 2,24% ASUS MAXIMUS VII HERO
- 2,10% Gigabyte GA-Z97-D3H
- 1,54% ASUS Z97-A
- 1,37% ASUS MAXIMUS VII RANGER
- 1,37% Gigabyte GA-Z97X-Gaming 3
- 1,17% ASUS Z97-K
- 0,88% ASUS Z97I-PLUS
- 0,00% MSI Z97 GAMING 7

But based on users reviews from newegg, a lot of users RMA'd their Asus Z97-A too, feedback from Amazon is not too good either. So I began looking at Gigabyte GA-Z97X-UD3H(rev 1.2), it seems to be a solid board, but I also found problem reports like 'boot loop':

http://www.tomshardware.com/answers/id-2401797/gigabyte-z97x-ud3h-random-boot-loop.html
http://forum.giga-byte.co.uk/index.php?topic=15363.0

The other stuff I am ordering is:
CPU: I3-4170
Ram: Kingsting HyperX 2x8G HX318C10FBK2/16
SSD: SAMSUNG 850 EVO 2.5" 250GB SATA III MZ-75E250B/AM
Hard Drive: WD5003AZEX
Video Card: not decided yet, perhaps a EVGA 950

I will be running at factory clock, probably no overclocking. I want to get a really reliable board since this will be my first desktop (was always using laptop) I wont have spare parts to troubleshoot and I dont want to go through the painful RMA process. So which of the three do you recommend, or some other z97 board within this price range? Thank you in advance!

 

[phc2009]

oh and by the way, what's the difference between GA-Z97X-UD3H and GA-Z97X-UD3H-BK?

 

[Tradesman1]

I'd go the Z97-A, I've done 13 builds with that mobo using a variety of components, no problems with anything and all the clients love them 😉

 

[phc2009]

I'd go the Z97-A, I've done 13 builds with that mobo using a variety of components, no problems with anything and all the clients love them 😉

Thank you for reply, Tradesman1! So the Asus Z97-A has two models, USB 3.0 and 3.1, any difference?

 

[Tradesman1]

The newer, 3.1 supports the new USB (3.1) specs, I don't think that will be mainstream for awhile yet, if priced close grab the 3.1 else stick with the original 3

 

[Meatballz]

So I am building a new rig and am torn apart between these z97 models. I already ordered a MSI Z97 Gaming5 from NCIX (I am in Canada) but since they will not process it until Monday I guess I still may make changes to it.

I have done a lot of research already, MSI seems to have pretty high return rates:

http://linustechtips.com/main/topic/255466-huge-list-of-failure-rates-for-all-pc-components/

Motherboards:

- 5,56% ASRock FM2A75 Pro4+
- 5,21% ASUS H87M-E C2
- 4,96% ASUS Maximus VI Formula C2
- 4,76% MSI Z97 PC Mate
- 4,50% MSI Z87-G41 PC Mate
- 4,38% ASRock Z77 Extreme4
- 4,38% ASUS Z87-PLUS
- 4,31% ASUS Z87I-PRO
- 4,25% MSI Z97 GAMING 5
- 4,19% MSI Z97 GAMING 3
- 4,17% ASUS H97M-E

As a bonus, here are the failure rates so far for Z97 Motherboards:

- 4,76% MSI Z97 PC Mate
- 4,25% MSI Z97 GAMING 5
- 4,19% MSI Z97 GAMING 3
- 2,38% MSI Z97-G45 GAMING
- 2,24% ASUS MAXIMUS VII HERO
- 2,10% Gigabyte GA-Z97-D3H
- 1,54% ASUS Z97-A
- 1,37% ASUS MAXIMUS VII RANGER
- 1,37% Gigabyte GA-Z97X-Gaming 3
- 1,17% ASUS Z97-K
- 0,88% ASUS Z97I-PLUS
- 0,00% MSI Z97 GAMING 7

But based on users reviews from newegg, a lot of users RMA'd their Asus Z97-A too, feedback from Amazon is not too good either. So I began looking at Gigabyte GA-Z97X-UD3H(rev 1.2), it seems to be a solid board, but I also found problem reports like 'boot loop':

http://www.tomshardware.com/answers/id-2401797/gigabyte-z97x-ud3h-random-boot-loop.html
http://forum.giga-byte.co.uk/index.php?topic=15363.0

The other stuff I am ordering is:
CPU: I3-4170
Ram: Kingsting HyperX 2x8G HX318C10FBK2/16
SSD: SAMSUNG 850 EVO 2.5" 250GB SATA III MZ-75E250B/AM
Hard Drive: WD5003AZEX
Video Card: not decided yet, perhaps a EVGA 950

I will be running at factory clock, probably no overclocking. I want to get a really reliable board since this will be my first desktop (was always using laptop) I wont have spare parts to troubleshoot and I dont want to go through the painful RMA process. So which of the three do you recommend, or some other z97 board within this price range? Thank you in advance!

 

[Meatballz]

I have the GA-Z97X-UD3H and never have had a problem with it. It is rock solid and nothing ever stops working. There may other boards that test out better, but it is hard to beat one that never has problems and has most all of the current features that folks would want. I also like the dual bios which is a great thing to have if you ever get one corrupted you have a spare. I will always go with stability and reliability over having the highest performance which often brings more problems.

I have had Asus, Biostar, and Asrock boards all fail on me but never a Gigabyte. I know some of that is luck, but it does say something. Maybe I was just unlucky with those other boards and if any one of them had lasted than I probably would be singing their praises.