Flagship vs Cheaper Motherboards.

[Roaf Beast]

Is there any reason for anyone to pick something like , for example , the Gigabyte Z97X-Gaming G1 WIFI-BK over the cheaper yet equally impressive Z97X-Gaming GT assuming they don't pick it for the wow factor? Does the increased price offer equally increased features (in other words is it worth the extra caps)?

I am asking because I'm looking into buying a better board and don't want to start wasting money.

 

[Dark Lord of Tech]

http://www.gigabyte.us/products/list.aspx?s=42&jid=0&p=346&v=23
Compare the features here.

 

[Roaf Beast]

http://www.gigabyte.us/products/list.aspx?s=42&jid=0&p=346&v=23
Compare the features here.

That is not what I am asking to be honest. I know what differences they have between them. I am asking whether flagship boards are worth it in terms of price/features (from the perspective of someone that knows a bit more than I do). Brands are irrelevant.

 

[Dark Lord of Tech]

I don't think they are worth it most of the time when the majority of features are available on lower priced models.

 

[Rookie_MIB]

Generally, if you take some time and plan your build, and you realistically look at what you're going to get to, then sometimes going up to a better board has advantages with more features and such. Those looking to do a relatively 'normal' gaming system though would perfectly well served by a 'normal' (ie: non-Z97) board.

For example, someone just looking to put together a Haswell build, with a single GPU and knows they're not going to go SLI or Crossfire has absolutely no need for a SLI certified 'gaming' motherboard. Likewise if you're going with a non-K CPU, why go Z97 which is the only sanctioned overclocking board?

That being said, sometimes they bundle everything together and they might not offer certain features with each other. For example, I don't know of many B85 boards which offer x8/x8 SLI or Crossfire in spite of the fact that it could be done quite easily. That seems to only be available on a Z97. Likewise, someone going with a -k CPU can only do overclocking (allegedly) on a Z97, although at least they DO offer Z97s that are not SLI boards.

For the most part your average gamer, going with a non-K, single GPU system would be perfectly well serviced by any motherboard (by a decent manufacturer of course) that has a single x16 PCIe slot and physically fits in their case. They can easily put an i5 or i7 in there, put in a nice fat GPU like a GTX980, toss in a SSD and a multi-TB drive for bulk storage, and have a very potent gaming system. For that, you absolutely have no need of a high end board.

It's when you want to get more complicated that the higher end boards are necessary. They'll offer dual-GPU support (or higher) for SLI setups. Those connections and the PLX switches for enabling even higher GPU count SLI systems cost money. Likewise, so does enabling M.2 PCIe based drives. Meanwhile, those boards are actually physically bigger. More materials cost. All of it winds up adding up in the long run which is why they can easily get into the $200-300 range for a high end gaming motherboard.

 

[Tradesman1]

I generally try to tier mobos there's the top of the line, but I seldom see where the minute additional features justify the additional price over upper mid level i.e. an Asus Extreme over a Hero, so the last three go rounds I've gone with the Hero models (Z87, Z97 and now a Z170), after that is what I consider low/mid level mobos like (sticking with Asus the A or Pro Gaming models which are great for most people, I go the Hero as I am always pushing the rigs and go through a lot of other components testing and playing. The there's what I sort of consider the lower end or budget type mobo for entry level builds. With clients I like to have a budget laid out then firt the components to the budget - i.e. many may come in and say they want the Hero, but for most that a spot we can cut back to a Pro Gaming or an A model to add more $$s to a GPU