Motherboard tier list: Z97 chipset

[SMario]

Great list Meteors.

I want to get a Mobo myself and for quite a long time was thinking about getting the MSI Gaming 7, but after a while came to a conclusion that this board has nothing more than just a few extra SATA and USB 3.0 ports when comparing to the MSI Gaming 5.

Still I read somewhere that the MSI Gaming 5 doesn't feature SATA Express (but, I'm just a newbie on this stuff and don't know if this is that much of a big deal).

I just wanted a reliable board that can last for quite some time, I don't care that much about OC, but I still want a Z97.

My other components are/will be:

Intel Core i5 4690
Asus GTX 770 2GB
WD Caviar Blue 1TB
TOSHIBA 128GB SSD
G.Skill Ripjaws X 8GB (2x4GB) 1866MHz cas9
PSU - Still don't know

And the list of mobos in which I'm interested are:

-MSI Gaming 5
-MSI Gaming 7
-Gigabyte Z97x-Gaming 5
-Gigabyte Z97x-Gaming 7
-Asus Z97-Pro Gamer

Also is Killer LAN that much bad? If so, should I consider the Asus over all the others?

 

[zeyuanfu]

I would suggest the i5-4460 or the cheapest as the 4690 offers nothing (that anyone would care about except for a higher clock speed) over them. I would personally get the Pro Gamer as it has Intel LAN and SupremeFX audio.

Killer LAN is pretty bad IMO because it is heavily software-based. If it crashes, you're kinda screwed. It also uses much more of the CPU (6-8% vs Intel's 2-5%).

 

[SMario]

There's not much I can do about the processor right now, as it's part of the things I've already bought :/

But, really Killer Lan is that bad? That's bad news, since most mobos have it!

 

[Neon_Knight_]

I've gone with a Gaming 5. Thanks for the help!

 

[zeyuanfu]

Killer LAN isn't bad, per se, but as I mentioned, it uses a lot of the CPU and relies heavily on its software while the packet prioritization on Intel LAN is more on the hardware side. As I said, I would go for the Z97 Pro Gamer.

 

[MeteorsRaining]

Hello SMario, thanks for going through the list!

Yep, Gaming 7 quite doesn't have any significant benefits over Gaming 7, especially when you're going for extreme OC. Gaming 5 doesn't have SATAe, which's basically a standard for SATA and PCIe devices combined. M.2 however is currently a more widely used port for small SSDs. So SATAe shouldn't bother you much.

Also, Killer LAN is indeed OS dependent, and it can get screwed up, but I won't say it's VERY bad. Even if the drivers are not correctly installed (Killer NIC drivers), it will still work as a basic NIC port quite fine. So I'd say it's not a compulsion to avoid it.

From the given choices of MoBos, I'd simply go with the cheapest board, as all of them fall in the same Tier.

 

[JackNaylorPE]

Where's the data ? I see nothing here to support the rankings .... component listings would go a long way here.

 

[MeteorsRaining]

Where's the data ? I see nothing here to support the rankings .... component listings would go a long way here.

The VRM Info of many Z97 boards can be found HERE. That is a major factor and pretty much decides how good the MoBo will be for OCing. Besides that, the gaming and storage features (like SLI ability and SATA/ M.2/ etc) can be taken from the official websites. I've combined those info (along with board reviews to see how well they actually OC) to come up with the present tiers.

 

[tiny voices]

Killer LAN gets a WAY worse rep than it deserves. It is definitely not a reason to not use a board. I have it and actually quite like it.

 

[SMario]

Thanks guys, think I'll stick with the Gigabyte Z97X-Gaming 5, as it's the cheapest board from those I listed.

I'll just hope my build will run well on that mobo.

But really, MSI Gaming 5 or Gigabyte Gaming 5? Which would you pick?

 

[MeteorsRaining]

I'd go with GB, it has 8 true phases vs MSI's 4. Not in the sense that MSI is bad, GB is just better in regards to VRM. And don't worry, your build shall run flawlessly

 

[SMario]

Is it a problem that the GB Gaming 5 is 12.0" x 8.9" board?

What do you think about the Z97X-UD3H-BK and the MSI Z97-GD65?

 

[MeteorsRaining]

Nope, the board will fit in a standard ATX capable case with ease.

UD3H-BK is a VERY reliable board, as Black Edition boards are tested for 1 week under severe server like conditions. If it's cheaper than Gaming 5, I'd go with it, since you're not really losing anything, but if it's costlier, there's no reason to particularly go for it over Gaming 5 either.

GD65 is a great board as well, has registered good OCing benchmarks in reviews in the likes of MSI Gaming 5. Again, I'd go with it only if it's cheaper than GB's Gaming 5.

 

[Dizzydream]

Another missing board, the Asus Maximus VII Impact. Good job on these lists.

Added, thanks for informing.

Where would this be? MSI Z97-G43 GAMING

 

[SMario]

Sorry for bothering you this much, but I don't want to mess up picking the wrong mobo.

In that list you gave, the ud3h bk has 4 phases. Does it mean that I should go with a ga z97x gaming 5 (8 phases)?

 

[zeyuanfu]

I would prefer the UD3H-BK as it also has 8 power phases and uses Intel LAN. Plus, as mentioned above, it gets tested for 168 hours under server-like conditions.

 

[MeteorsRaining]

The Z97 G43 along with the mATX version resides in Tier 3.

SMario, UD3H-BK has 4 true phases vs Gaming's 8, but it is an amazing board for OCing, very tough and durable, so if you can get it for less than Gaming 5's price, it'd be totally worth it.

 

[SMario]

Yep, they are the same price.

I'll stick with the ud3h bk as suggested.

Now, do you know anything about the Haswell Refresh processors overheating on this particular board? Will my i5 4690 have problems with this board?

 

[MeteorsRaining]

Nope, Intel CPUs rarely heat due to Motherboard, and this is definately not one of those. No CPU will overheat on this board.

 

[SMario]

Thanks bro. You have been really helpful, if there was a way of giving users a medal on this forum or something, I would give one to you.

Time to start choosing the PSU now!

 

[MeteorsRaining]

No worries, glad to help

PS: THIS list might help you in choosing the right PSU!

 

[zeyuanfu]

The Gigabyte Z97X-UD7 TH is missing from the list. IMO, it should NOT be placed lower than Tier 1 B.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128703&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&cm_sp=&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID=

 

[JackNaylorPE]

Where's the data ? I see nothing here to support the rankings .... component listings would go a long way here.

The VRM Info of many Z97 boards can be found HERE. That is a major factor and pretty much decides how good the MoBo will be for OCing. Besides that, the gaming and storage features (like SLI ability and SATA/ M.2/ etc) can be taken from the official websites. I've combined those info (along with board reviews to see how well they actually OC) to come up with the present tiers.

I usually look here:

http://sinhardware.com/index.php/vrm-list

But most of it would appear to give to much credibility to a feature list w/o really getting into how well those feature are implemented and what components are used. For example the Hero and Sabertooth are in same tier but have significant component differences (MOFSETS)

The other thing..... Z97, especially Asus (I have done prolly 8 times the amount of Asus builds than all other builds combined) , but of late they have not fared well with newegg customers.... yes we all know that these review must be taken with a grain of salt .... but the differences in negative reviews (1 or 2 eggs) between Z87 and Z97 are pretty drastic.

Z87 Asus Hero - 17%
Z97 Asus Hero - 23%

Z87 Asus Formula - 24%
Z97 Asus Formula - 44%

X79 Deluxe - 31%
X99 Deluxe - 38%

X79 Rampage IV - 24%
X99 Rampage V - 36%

X79 WS - 23%
X99 WS - 41%

With the Formula for example almost doubling in negative reviews, shud it be in the same tier ?
http://www.tomshardware.com/answers/id-2458770/whatz-happenin-mobo-quality-late.html

Granted the VRM tells us a lot but chokes caps, on board components, audio and LAN chipsets affect the overall quality of the board.

 

[zeyuanfu]

People on Newegg might not be as tech-savvy...
When something doesn't work, they probably don't do anything to remedy to that.

 

[MeteorsRaining]

Jack, that pic was actually taken from a page which used Sin's list as a reference in addition to his own list, HERE. I will try to clear up some doubts over existence of different (purpose) boards in one tier (like Hero and Sabertooth).

Granted Sabertooth uses different MOFSETs than Hero, and both are aimed (atleast by Asus) at two different categories of people, but it should be appreciated that in most general scenarios (like OCing reviews, features, etc), both perform similarly. They do have their own specialities, like Hero has ROG features and Sabertooth has TUF, but the principle criteria that this list is based on (build quality, OCing ability, features, value/money) are fulfilled by both boards. If you want a high quality OCing board which can SLI, both will be competing against each other.

Then, features like Armor protection or exclusive gaming features will come into play. What I mean here is the primary features in both boards are similar, secondary may be different and buyers may decide with those in mind, but I can't put one over other because of one such feature. For eg if Sabertooth uses excellent quality caps (better than Hero, say), I can't put Hero below it as it doesn't necessarily make Hero worse or Sabertooth better, because Hero uses very high quality caps as well. And then in some cases Hero might be better than Sabertooth, but not so much as to have the need to create a new Tier/ Class.

What are your opinions about this?