Is the MSI Z87-G43 any good?

[carterdarter]

I am going to be building this: http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/p/gkPLbv
and I need a decent motherboard under £60 and I saw this one. Is it any good? I will only be overclocking CPU to 4.4ghz (when I buy a CPU Cooler) and the GPU to around 1500mhz.

 

[Suztera]

You will need an aftermarket cpu cooler like Cooler Master 212 EVO to overclock 4.4Ghz with decent temps. The motherboard may reach that or not depending on your cpu.
GPU overclocking is dependent on the GPU chip you received, not the motherboard. There is no guarantee your GPU could maintain 1500mhz boost speed.

 

[mnineseven]

That is an awesome build you got there. On-topic : The MSI G43 Z87 is a mid-end overclocker's board, and it will be very good for your build, but I suggest considering options from Asus and Gigabyte in that price range. Also, if you are going to be OC'ing, you should get a gaming grade motherboard. This will do, but that will make the OC'ing experience more safe.

Cheers!

 

[carterdarter]

I knew someone wouldn't read it. I said when I get a CPU Cooler.

And thanks! I dispise the Asus ports and bios and gigabyte only supports 1333mhz ram and 1600mhz ram so MSI seems best.

 

[carterdarter]

Oh and if anyone has any better alternatives for no more than £65, please feel free to link me.

 

[Suztera]

I knew someone wouldn't read it. I said when I get a CPU Cooler.

And thanks! I dispise the Asus ports and bios and gigabyte only supports 1333mhz ram and 1600mhz ram so MSI seems best.

😀 I tend to skim read so I sometimes ignore text inside brackets

All the Z97/87 will support higher ram speed than 1600Mhz. It is just consider memory overclocking when using ram over 1600Mhz for Haswell.

For under £65, the MSI Z87-G43 seems to be decent.

 

[carterdarter]

Are z87s good then?

 

[Suztera]

Are z87s good then?

Yes they are fine to use but you lose the upgrade path to Broadwell CPUs as Z97 motherboard are compatible with Broadwell CPUs.

 

[Suztera]

Are z87s good then?

Yes they are fine to use but you lose the upgrade path to Broadwell CPUs as Z97 motherboard are compatible with Broadwell CPUs.

 

[carterdarter]

So no better motherboard for £65?

 

[Suztera]

So no better motherboard for £65?

No. Other alternative are simply the same offerings.
This would be a step up with a 6 power phase design from 4 power phase but it cost £20 extra.
http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/part/asrock-motherboard-z87pro4

 

[carterdarter]

So no better motherboard for £65?

No. Other alternative are simply the same offerings.
This would be a step up with a 6 power phase design from 4 power phase but it cost £20 extra.
http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/part/asrock-motherboard-z87pro4

Huh? I'm still a bit of a newbie.

 

[Suztera]

So no better motherboard for £65?

No. Other alternative are simply the same offerings.
This would be a step up with a 6 power phase design from 4 power phase but it cost £20 extra.
http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/part/asrock-motherboard-z87pro4

Huh? I'm still a bit of a newbie.

Power phases helps to distribute power to the CPU and memory and hyperthreading.
The more power phases, the more stable current the CPU is receiving as it is distributing to more "workers".

Quote from a thread:
So what exactly does having more CPU phases benefit over less? Well, let's use an anology. You have a 4-lane highway with 200 cars passing through it. That's going to be quite a bit of traffic isn't it? The small highway is more susceptable to cause a crash accident. Now take the same 200 cars and pass them through an 8-lane highway. There's more room for cars to pass through and as a direct result, less prone to an accident.

This anology operates in a similar way CPU phases work. 8 phases will provide the CPU with more stable electricity going through them as opposed to the 4 phase design.

Source: http://www.overclock.net/t/891696/a-short-power-phase-design-explanation

There more detail in the link if you interested.

 

[carterdarter]

So does that mean higher performance or better overclocking capabilities or what?

 

[Suztera]

So does that mean higher performance or better overclocking capabilities or what?

It will depend on the cpu you received. If you get a CPU that requires more voltage than an average i5-4670K, you may find the 6 power phase may help to achieve a higher/ stable overclock than a 4 power phase design.
The MSI Z87-G43 does uses some cheaper mosfets so it may affect overclocking. The ASRock Z87 Pro4 does use better quality components on the motherboard.