MSI vs. ASRock Gaming Motherboards: Which is best?

[Jack Wheeler]

I've been looking for a black/red motherboard between 100 and 200 dollars with a LGA 1150 socket and so far I have found 2 good ones, one MSI and one ASRock. I'm trying to decide between them, and I need some help deciding which one I should buy. I'll be using it primarily for gaming, with an i5-4690K processor and a GTX 970 video card.
Here are the ones I selected:
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[thor220]

Feature wise, the ASRock has more USB 3.0 ports and 1 low latency mouse port. Otherwise they are both the same chipset so you should expect similar features from both.

In my opinion, ASRock is better. I've had some MSI boards arrive dead when I got them while I've never has a bad ASRock. Of course, I'm sure others can chip in their own experiences.

 

[PandaButtonFTW]

Feature wise, the ASRock has more USB 3.0 ports and 1 low latency mouse port. Otherwise they are both the same chipset so you should expect similar features from both.

In my opinion, ASRock is better. I've had some MSI boards arrive dead when I got them while I've never has a bad ASRock. Of course, I'm sure others can chip in their own experiences.

I know of 2 dodgy ASrock boards, a friend had a z77 OC formula and the audio chip died, another had an asrock 990fx fatality that died randomly.

isn't their a lower end ROG board you can use? like the maximus VII ranger? or z97 PRO GAMER?

 

[thor220]

Lol, not a surprise. Every company has DOAs and someone has to get them.

 

[Jack Wheeler]

Feature wise, the ASRock has more USB 3.0 ports and 1 low latency mouse port. Otherwise they are both the same chipset so you should expect similar features from both.

In my opinion, ASRock is better. I've had some MSI boards arrive dead when I got them while I've never has a bad ASRock. Of course, I'm sure others can chip in their own experiences.

I know of 2 dodgy ASrock boards, a friend had a z77 OC formula and the audio chip died, another had an asrock 990fx fatality that died randomly.

isn't their a lower end ROG board you can use? like the maximus VII ranger? or z97 PRO GAMER?

The ranger is almost $300, I'm looking for between 100 and 200.

 

[PandaButtonFTW]

wow 300 for the ranger?! here it is just over 200.... and I thought Australia had bad prices......

 

[Jack Wheeler]

wow 300 for the ranger?! here it is just over 200.... and I thought Australia had bad prices......

Technically it's $287, but still too much. Do you have any other cheaper suggestions?

 

[PandaButtonFTW]

z97 pro gamer? I havn't seen that board around for a while... but it was pretty cheap if I remember, and red+black

 

[JackNaylorPE]

The GD65 is an extraordinary motherboard whose closest competition comes from the $210 Asus Hero.... same feature set but the MSI has equal and in some cases betetr componentry On the downside, the GD-65 was 4139 last weeks, $30 cheaper than today. It can be had $20 cheaper elsewhere.

http://pcpartpicker.com/part/msi-motherboard-z97gd65gaming

The MSI has 2 more SATA ports, better LAN ... Asrock has more USB .... I prefer MSI's BIOS, overclocking and fan control.

Prior to Z77 I wouldn't have given MSI a 2nd look having used Asus almost exclusively for 10 years.... but after some bad experiences of my own and observing the large increase in negative reviews on newegg, I started looking at the competition. I have had great luck with GD65 builds and the reviews on the GD65 have been glowing. These were for the Z87 version.... Z97 is basically same board with updated Intel chipset.

http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/msi_z87_gd65_gaming/12.htm

MSI has been using components that meet or exceed MIL-STD-810G for some time as part of its Military Class build philosophy. Parts such as Super Ferrite Chokes that run at up to 35 degree Celsius lower temperatures, have a 30% higher current handling capacity, and a 20% improvement in power efficiency; Tantalum filled Hi-C Caps that are are up to 93% efficient; and "Dark Capacitors" that feature Lower ESR and a ten-year lifespan all tied into a PCB with improved temperature and humidity protections as part of the "Military Essentials" package......In the end MSI's Z87-GD65 is a board that comes with an expansive feature set that includes all your basics and the extras that set them apart such as the V-Check points, upper end audio, Dual BIOS ROMs, KIller Network package, Military Class IV package, and a three-year warranty. Couple that with good looks that carry the dragon theme through the board, and you have a winning combination at $189.

http://www.overclock3d.net/reviews/cpu_mainboard/msi_z87_gd65_gaming_review/15

Now and again a motherboard appears that is so obviously brilliant, and so affordable, that we wonder if anything will be able to top it. For a while that crown was held by the ASUS Sabertooth, both in X58 and then P67 variants. Then MSI stole the crown with the Z77 MPower. Looking at the Z87 GD65 Gaming we think it's going to take something extraordinary to top it, such is the perfect storm of price, performance, features and looks.

The switch to Military Class 4 has given us an extremely ready overclocker too. You're always thermally limited when overclocking and the i7-4770K is one of the most demanding around. Considering the amount of cooling we're using we think that although the GD65 is capable of bringing 5GHz from our i7-4770K you'd need a proper water loop to make the most of it.

Performance is outstanding. The stock results were a particular highlight. We know a lot of people still just like to put their CPU in and go, without overclocking it first. Despite how easy it is these days we know that the fear factor still exists. So you'll be glad to know that the MSI Z87 GD65 Gaming really rocks hard even at stock settings. Naturally the overclocking is blistering too, with some OC3D records broken.

MSI have laid the gauntlet down to all the other manufacturers. Gorgeous to look at, blistering performance and all at a very affordable price, the MSI Z87 GD65 Gaming is not only the new benchmark for Z87 motherboards, but probably for all motherboards.

The most recent return rates are pretty close

Gigabyte 2,02% / 1,43% ~ 1.73 % av
- ASROCK 2,27% / 2,09% ~ 2.18 % average
- ASUS 2,31% / 1,86% ~ 2.09 average
- MSI 2,60% / 1,83% ~ 2.21% average

but that's really not as important as how individual boards do. These were the worst 5 for the last period which data is available.

- 9,65% ASUS Rampage IV Extreme
- 6,96% ASRock 970 Pro3 R2.0
- 5,03% ASRock Z77 Pro3
- 4,95% ASUS SABERTOOTH Z77
- 4,44% ASRock H87M

 

[Jack Wheeler]

The GD65 is an extraordinary motherboard whose closest competition comes from the $210 Asus Hero.... same feature set but the MSI has equal and in some cases betetr componentry On the downside, the GD-65 was 4139 last weeks, $30 cheaper than today. It can be had $20 cheaper elsewhere.

http://pcpartpicker.com/part/msi-motherboard-z97gd65gaming

The MSI has 2 more SATA ports, better LAN ... Asrock has more USB .... I prefer MSI's BIOS, overclocking and fan control.

Prior to Z77 I wouldn't have given MSI a 2nd look having used Asus almost exclusively for 10 years.... but after some bad experiences of my own and observing the large increase in negative reviews on newegg, I started looking at the competition. I have had great luck with GD65 builds and the reviews on the GD65 have been glowing. These were for the Z87 version.... Z97 is basically same board with updated Intel chipset.

http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/msi_z87_gd65_gaming/12.htm

MSI has been using components that meet or exceed MIL-STD-810G for some time as part of its Military Class build philosophy. Parts such as Super Ferrite Chokes that run at up to 35 degree Celsius lower temperatures, have a 30% higher current handling capacity, and a 20% improvement in power efficiency; Tantalum filled Hi-C Caps that are are up to 93% efficient; and "Dark Capacitors" that feature Lower ESR and a ten-year lifespan all tied into a PCB with improved temperature and humidity protections as part of the "Military Essentials" package......In the end MSI's Z87-GD65 is a board that comes with an expansive feature set that includes all your basics and the extras that set them apart such as the V-Check points, upper end audio, Dual BIOS ROMs, KIller Network package, Military Class IV package, and a three-year warranty. Couple that with good looks that carry the dragon theme through the board, and you have a winning combination at $189.

http://www.overclock3d.net/reviews/cpu_mainboard/msi_z87_gd65_gaming_review/15

Now and again a motherboard appears that is so obviously brilliant, and so affordable, that we wonder if anything will be able to top it. For a while that crown was held by the ASUS Sabertooth, both in X58 and then P67 variants. Then MSI stole the crown with the Z77 MPower. Looking at the Z87 GD65 Gaming we think it's going to take something extraordinary to top it, such is the perfect storm of price, performance, features and looks.

The switch to Military Class 4 has given us an extremely ready overclocker too. You're always thermally limited when overclocking and the i7-4770K is one of the most demanding around. Considering the amount of cooling we're using we think that although the GD65 is capable of bringing 5GHz from our i7-4770K you'd need a proper water loop to make the most of it.

Performance is outstanding. The stock results were a particular highlight. We know a lot of people still just like to put their CPU in and go, without overclocking it first. Despite how easy it is these days we know that the fear factor still exists. So you'll be glad to know that the MSI Z87 GD65 Gaming really rocks hard even at stock settings. Naturally the overclocking is blistering too, with some OC3D records broken.

MSI have laid the gauntlet down to all the other manufacturers. Gorgeous to look at, blistering performance and all at a very affordable price, the MSI Z87 GD65 Gaming is not only the new benchmark for Z87 motherboards, but probably for all motherboards.

Interesting. How much individual experience do you have with MSI and ASRock? Would you recommend MSI in all categories or just the ones you mentioned? The ASRock is cheaper, but I like the look of the MSI board more.

 

[JackNaylorPE]

There's something odd going on with Asus, Pegatron and Asrock. Originally Asrock was created by Asus to go after the low budget / builder market w/o impugning the Asus name. After years of short warrantees, thin PCB's which warped, leaking capacitors and other problems, Asrock really started coming on when they split off completely from Asus and started competing with them. Their warrantees moved up to 3 years IIRC w/ Z77 and quality has made a marked improvement ever since. Asrock as you are probably aware is currently owned by Pegatron.

The "odd" I was referring to is when I RMA'd by Asus Workstation board, I was receiving e-mails and correspondence from Pegatron. This was quite a trying experience for a board I RMA'd before halloween, I did not receive a working unit until well after the new year ..... and this was with a MoBo that comes with premium RMA service ..... you receive the replacement before you mail back the defective one. The replacement arrived, i put the old one in the box and mailed it same day. Next day I went to install the replacement and it looked like a banana .... bad warping reminded me of older Asrock boards but this was the worst I had ever seen ... I/O panel missed the opening by 3/4". So question I have is, why was an Asus board RMA process being handled by AsRock's parent company ?

I have to admit that i was reluctant to jump in with Asrock after the capacitor, warping / cracked boards from the ole days and just as I was about to put my toes in the water again, I had that Asus / Pegatron experience and I'm a little gun shy still. Tho I have users bring in boxes all the time with Asrock boards and they like them. At this point I am not 'down" on Asrock, I'm personally just more comfortable elsewhere. Their RMA rates are comparable with the other major players in the industry, but if i get one and have to go thru a 3 month RMA process again, I'll be kickin myself for a year .

You will oft find that peeps do very thorough investigations into reliability / performance and such for their 1st build and one of two things happens.

1. Things go well and they are married to that brand for life
2. Things go bad and they swear off that brand for life

I tend to be a bit of a "hardware whore", no loyalties . The reality is that everybody puts out a bad board now and then and sometime everybody does (remember Z77 B1 stepping ?). The Asus GTX 670 TOP stands out as one of the best GFX cards ever made but Asus has not come anywhere near putting out a comparable card since. With Z77 you began to sense a change in the air.... MSI made a strong push into the middle price market and put out some really nice designs which one had to wonder, were they sacrificing margins for market share given the price/ quality-performance ratios. Reviews, as you saw above were glowing. I'd still like to see some BIOS improvements but they are catching up to Asus which still leads the market here.

The other things is MSI has had the best GFX cards on the market for the last two generations in most categories. Like the MoBos, if you read the "tear down" articles, you can why one card performs better than the other. With the 9xx series, it appears Gigabyte is going toe to toe with MSi and Asus and EVGA were left behind. EVGA went abck to the drawing board and released the SSC in an effort to do battle here....waiting to see how / if Asus responds.

When you call tech support with a problem and the GFX guy wants to blame the MoBo guy and visa versa.... they can't do that when both come from the same guy. So right now my thoughts lean to either Gigabyte or MSI MoBo / GFX Card combos

But to answer your question, no i don't recommend MSI boards across the board....the Gamer series is a bit too new for me to have any level of confidence in as it hasn't established a track record. The GD65 and G45 have been solid boards as has the MPower series. Gigabyte had some great Z87 boards but again they have changed up their whole product line, taking away some of that secure feeling ya get froma consistent back to back track record. Asrock has reshuffled their line a bit too making it hard to gauge for a specific board. The Asus Hero, Formula and Rampage remain attractive but I hesitate to recommend the last 2 because of the high number of unfavorable newegg reviews. The Hero, aside form the BIOS clock freeze bug, is a very good board, just heavily overpriced.

And while I have not as yet had any issues with MSI tech support, it has to be said I haven't had any difficult issues to deal with either. It's when things don't get solved easily that TS gets sticky and unpleasant.

The one thing I will say about MSI, they have the best installation videos..... I haven't done a build since before Thanksgiving but I can still find a reason to watch this video every now and then

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GvNnv7nh2Es

 

[SliceT]

There's something odd going on with Asus, Pegatron and Asrock. Originally Asrock was created by Asus to go after the low budget / builder market w/o impugning the Asus name. After years of short warrantees, thin PCB's which warped, leaking capacitors and other problems, Asrock really started coming on when they split off completely from Asus and started competing with them. Their warrantees moved up to 3 years IIRC w/ Z77 and quality has made a marked improvement ever since. Asrock as you are probably aware is currently owned by Pegatron.

The "odd" I was referring to is when I RMA'd by Asus Workstation board, I was receiving e-mails and correspondence from Pegatron. This was quite a trying experience for a board I RMA'd before halloween, I did not receive a working unit until well after the new year ..... and this was with a MoBo that comes with premium RMA service ..... you receive the replacement before you mail back the defective one. The replacement arrived, i put the old one in the box and mailed it same day. Next day I went to install the replacement and it looked like a banana .... bad warping reminded me of older Asrock boards but this was the worst I had ever seen ... I/O panel missed the opening by 3/4". So question I have is, why was an Asus board RMA process being handled by AsRock's parent company ?

I have to admit that i was reluctant to jump in with Asrock after the capacitor, warping / cracked boards from the ole days and just as I was about to put my toes in the water again, I had that Asus / Pegatron experience and I'm a little gun shy still. Tho I have users bring in boxes all the time with Asrock boards and they like them. At this point I am not 'down" on Asrock, I'm personally just more comfortable elsewhere. Their RMA rates are comparable with the other major players in the industry, but if i get one and have to go thru a 3 month RMA process again, I'll be kickin myself for a year .

You will oft find that peeps do very thorough investigations into reliability / performance and such for their 1st build and one of two things happens.

1. Things go well and they are married to that brand for life
2. Things go bad and they swear off that brand for life

I tend to be a bit of a "hardware whore", no loyalties . The reality is that everybody puts out a bad board now and then and sometime everybody does (remember Z77 B1 stepping ?). The Asus GTX 670 TOP stands out as one of the best GFX cards ever made but Asus has not come anywhere near putting out a comparable card since. With Z77 you began to sense a change in the air.... MSI made a strong push into the middle price market and put out some really nice designs which one had to wonder, were they sacrificing margins for market share given the price/ quality-performance ratios. Reviews, as you saw above were glowing. I'd still like to see some BIOS improvements but they are catching up to Asus which still leads the market here.

The other things is MSI has had the best GFX cards on the market for the last two generations in most categories. Like the MoBos, if you read the "tear down" articles, you can why one card performs better than the other. With the 9xx series, it appears Gigabyte is going toe to toe with MSi and Asus and EVGA were left behind. EVGA went abck to the drawing board and released the SSC in an effort to do battle here....waiting to see how / if Asus responds.

When you call tech support with a problem and the GFX guy wants to blame the MoBo guy and visa versa.... they can't do that when both come from the same guy. So right now my thoughts lean to either Gigabyte or MSI MoBo / GFX Card combos

But to answer your question, no i don't recommend MSI boards across the board....the Gamer series is a bit too new for me to have any level of confidence in as it hasn't established a track record. The GD65 and G45 have been solid boards as has the MPower series. Gigabyte had some great Z87 boards but again they have changed up their whole product line, taking away some of that secure feeling ya get froma consistent back to back track record. Asrock has reshuffled their line a bit too making it hard to gauge for a specific board. The Asus Hero, Formula and Rampage remain attractive but I hesitate to recommend the last 2 because of the high number of unfavorable newegg reviews. The Hero, aside form the BIOS clock freeze bug, is a very good board, just heavily overpriced.

And while I have not as yet had any issues with MSI tech support, it has to be said I haven't had any difficult issues to deal with either. It's when things don't get solved easily that TS gets sticky and unpleasant.

The one thing I will say about MSI, they have the best installation videos..... I haven't done a build since before Thanksgiving but I can still find a reason to watch this video every now and then

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GvNnv7nh2Es

Exactly, ASrock was a spin off from ASUS long time ago where they would imagine AR would build only low price range products and wouldnt be a major competitor, or a direct competitor.

Guess what, they were wrong. ASrock to my believe did the right steps to build up a enthusiast level brand. They hire the best overclockers at that time to help them to select the best in class components, fine tune their bios to run as any true overclocker would want , seeking for every piece of extra performance.

They are not big marketing spenders which means they can still be fighting for the best value, even with same quality of top tier brands..

My hat goes to them...

 

[ssamhouu]

Guys, the question was which board to get. Both MSI and Asrock are good brands, but I'd suggest Asrock z97 exterme6. Good price performance ratio, lots of sata ports, 2 LANs, ultra m.2, nice bios, etc.

 

[thor220]

Lol, yeah the thread has become sidetracked. Brings me back to my first board, a biostar. Man was that a cheap, flimsy board.