Help with Z97 MoBo

[sWedx]

Hi everybody 😀 (TL;DR at bottom)

I'm looking for a MoBo, and I don't want something high-end, but decent.
I will stick with an i7 4790k, and I researched about everything I "need". Well, I intend to O.C., but nothing very high. I'm looking for a good quality MoBo with good building, VRMs, PCB, etc...
I also intend to do a 2way SLI or CFX in a future.
My best experiences with MoBos and VGAs were with Gigabyte and Asus.

I almost bought the MSI Z97-G45. Indeed, I never trusted MSI, and I saw a lot of people claiming that its VRMs overheat more than other brands when O.C..

Then I saw the GA-Z97X-Gaming 3/Gaming 5. And another surprise: a LOT of people RMA'd because could not enter the BIOS [!?].

So I listed some of "non-problematic" MoBos that I can buy.
TL;DR: Which one of those Z97 are better? And which have known issues?
>ASUS Z97-PRO Gamer
>Gigabyte GA-Z97X-UD3H-BK
>ASUS Sabertooth Z97 Mark 2
>ASUS Z97-PRO
(I'm also open for new ideias)

P.s.: I don't have a Haswell for upgrade the bios to use a Haswell Refresh, so all those BIOS should accept the 4th new gen without updating?

 

[KKAW]

Hi everybody 😀 (TL;DR at bottom)

I'm looking for a MoBo, and I don't want something high-end, but decent.
I will stick with an i7 4790k, and I researched about everything I "need". Well, I intend to O.C., but nothing very high. I'm looking for a good quality MoBo with good building, VRMs, PCB, etc...
I also intend to do a 2way SLI or CFX in a future.
My best experiences with MoBos and VGAs were with Gigabyte and Asus.

I almost bought the MSI Z97-G45. Indeed, I never trusted MSI, and I saw a lot of people claiming that its VRMs overheat more than other brands when O.C..

Then I saw the GA-Z97X-Gaming 3/Gaming 5. And another surprise: a LOT of people RMA'd because could not enter the BIOS [!?].

So I listed some of "non-problematic" MoBos that I can buy.
TL;DR: Which one of those Z97 are better? And which have known issues?
>ASUS Z97-PRO Gamer
>Gigabyte GA-Z97X-UD3H-BK
>ASUS Sabertooth Z97 Mark 2
>ASUS Z97-PRO
(I'm also open for new ideias)

P.s.: I don't have a Haswell for upgrade the bios to use a Haswell Refresh, so all those BIOS should accept the 4th new gen without updating?

Excellent Options:
MSI Z97S SLI Krait Edition
ASRock Fatal1ty Z97 Killer
MSI Z97A SLI Krait Edition

Also updating your motherboard should be a thing you automatically do after you build your PC.

There is nothing wrong with MSI motherboards and the ones i stated above are great quality for it's price. You can not judge a brand by one product or by a group of people that specifically have had bad experience with them. It's just all bias, there are plenty of people who say Asrock is bad, Asus is bad, Gigabyte is bad, etc.

MSI, Asrock, Gigabyte and EVGA are the better motherboard manufacturers.

 

[Dan425811923]

Maximus VI is nice but I think you need a BIOS update for it.

 

[sWedx]

Excellent Options:
MSI Z97S SLI Krait Edition
ASRock Fatal1ty Z97 Killer
MSI Z97A SLI Krait Edition

Also updating your motherboard should be a thing you automatically do after you build your PC.

There is nothing wrong with MSI motherboards and the ones i stated above are great quality for it's price. You can not judge a brand by one product or by a group of people that specifically have had bad experience with them. It's just all bias, there are plenty of people who say Asrock is bad, Asus is bad, Gigabyte is bad, etc.

MSI, Asrock, Gigabyte and EVGA are the better motherboard manufacturers.

I'll update, but it needs to recognize my CPU for that, and some MoBo doesn't recognize (Haswell Refresh) until we upgrade first.

Well, I never experienced AsRock, but, yeah, I heard a lot about it being a not-so-good brand. About MSI, I have 3 friends that had troubles using Ivy Bridges. ASUS can be mainstream and overpriced, but it's more difficult see someone complaining about it, than other brands. I always had excellent experiences with Gigabyte because of their excellent VRMs and MOSFETs. But a very common issue that doesn't allow me to enter the bios? Well, this scares-me a bit, since RMA in my country is something slow and bureaucratic.

But I know, you are right: " You can not judge a brand by one product or by a group of people that specifically have had bad experience with them". And that's why I'm open for new ideas for ppl that had more experiences than me. Well, the Fatal1ty Z97 Killer is at a very very good price, but the second PCI x16 is 2.0 and x4. The MSI Z97S SLI Krait Edition also is at a good price, good mobo, and seems to support haswell refresh without an update first. So, MSI Z97S SLI Krait Edition would be better (or equal) than all options I listed?

 

[sWedx]

Maximus VI is nice but I think you need a BIOS update for it.

Yeah, seems like it does need, and all Maximus are a bit overpriced at my country. 🙁

 

[KKAW]

Excellent Options:
MSI Z97S SLI Krait Edition
ASRock Fatal1ty Z97 Killer
MSI Z97A SLI Krait Edition

Also updating your motherboard should be a thing you automatically do after you build your PC.

There is nothing wrong with MSI motherboards and the ones i stated above are great quality for it's price. You can not judge a brand by one product or by a group of people that specifically have had bad experience with them. It's just all bias, there are plenty of people who say Asrock is bad, Asus is bad, Gigabyte is bad, etc.

MSI, Asrock, Gigabyte and EVGA are the better motherboard manufacturers.

I'll update, but it needs to recognize my CPU for that, and some MoBo doesn't recognize (Haswell Refresh) until we upgrade first.

Well, I never experienced AsRock, but, yeah, I heard a lot about it being a not-so-good brand. About MSI, I have 3 friends that had troubles using Ivy Bridges. ASUS can be mainstream and overpriced, but it's more difficult see someone complaining about it, than other brands. I always had excellent experiences with Gigabyte because of their excellent VRMs and MOSFETs. But a very common issue that doesn't allow me to enter the bios? Well, this scares-me a bit, since RMA in my country is something slow and bureaucratic.

But I know, you are right: " You can not judge a brand by one product or by a group of people that specifically have had bad experience with them". And that's why I'm open for new ideas for ppl that had more experiences than me. Well, the Fatal1ty Z97 Killer is at a very very good price, but the second PCI x16 is 2.0 and x4. The MSI Z97S SLI Krait Edition also is at a good price, good mobo, and seems to support haswell refresh without an update first. So, MSI Z97S SLI Krait Edition would be better (or equal) than all options I listed?

I've built with Asrock, MSI and GIGABYTE before and know a few people who have built with those and ASUS and BioStar.

I've personally always used Asrock and has never been let down. I personally think that motherboards should not be judged by the brand instead by the model. For example if someone had a Asrock Z97 Anniversary and they tried to overclock their i7 4790K it would be a terrible idea. On the other hand if they got an Asrock Z97 Fatality Killer they would have a great experience overclocking.

Since all the builds i've made uses decent motherboard i've had no issues with any of the brands i've worked with.

What my opinions are and from what i have read for the past few years:
Asrock: Solid options all around the price range. Popular for entry level ~ mid level for it's promising performance for a cheap price.
MSI: Popular in the mid ranged motherboards.
ASUS: Great quality in mid to high ranged.
GIGABYTE: Solid options for entry level ~ mid level.

All in all, ALL brands do fine in all price ranged, it's just that it's more popular in one price range or another or recommended in one price range or another.

Your MOSFET and VRAM statement is slightly invalid since for the same price range the quality of those components are almost equal in all of the popular brands.

The 3 motherboards are excellent quality for the price and it will do you great, simply buy the cheapest out of those 3 and you will have a pleasant experience with mild ~ high overclocking and SLI support.

 

[sWedx]

I almost went for AsRock Extreme. But I took a look at its issues, and it seems almost perfect, but with one exception: if power is suddenly lost, it does not boots until you do an clear CMOS, and it is not an random problem, seems that everybody with some Extreme has that issue. Than I looked at MSI and found that their products are as good as other brands, but the problem is their QC. Thats why is common see some pepople extremely happy, and others with serius problems. Which left-me Asus and Gigabyte. Their mid-high end mobos where at a very very close price range, but I found a promotion of an ASUS Z97-Pro Gamer with an very afordable price. If I have any issues, I'll post it. Thank you for your time.
Stay in peace.

 

[UnderAttack]

well, if you google it, you will fine out all the brand have the issue
so I will never say which is good or bad, at least, I get msi motherboard, and never have any problem.

for your need, maybe try msi z97 gaming 5, I got one at home, work well for me
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130770&cm_re=z97_gaming_5_msi-_-13-130-770-_-Product

 

[KKAW]

well, if you google it, you will fine out all the brand have the issue
so I will never say which is good or bad, at least, I get msi motherboard, and never have any problem.

for your need, maybe try msi z97 gaming 5, I got one at home, work well for me
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130770&cm_re=z97_gaming_5_msi-_-13-130-770-_-Product

Exactly, you will not find a perfect motherboard unless you get the enterprise level ones in the $200+ range.