• Welcome to Overclockers Forums! Join us to reply in threads, receive reduced ads, and to customize your site experience!

which z97 motherboard?

Overclockers is supported by our readers. When you click a link to make a purchase, we may earn a commission. Learn More.

madmeatballs

Member
Joined
Aug 26, 2012
Location
NCR, Philippines
So I am new to intel. Came from a 1090t and an FX-8350 had a happy experience with it. Also enjoyed overclocking it and learned a bunch of stuff.
Now, I want to give intel a try. From now on I will stay away from asrock boards since their 990FX extreme4 degraded(5yrs) on me and I don't want that to happen again.

Here are some motherboards on my mind for me to pair with either an i5 4690k/i7 4790k.
Asus Z97-A 183$
Asus Z97-Pro Gamer 180$
MSI Gaming 5 180$

Or do you guys suggest something else? I will be using an h240-x as my CPU cooler. I'll probably get the i5 though unless I get a good deal with the i7.
 
Last edited:
If AsRock is off the table I would buy the Asus z97 Pro board if it were me.

great BIOS and power , software and features are decent too
 
I still say the Z97 Extreme6 is the best motherboard on the market, I wouldn't count it out if I were you.

Have you looked at any Gigabyte boards?
 
Unfortunately, the extreme6 isn't available here. Well, there are two Gigabyte z97 boards I see here its the GA-G1.Sniper 5 and costs around 370$ and the Gaming 7 which has the same price as the Sabertooth Mk2.
 
I have the Maximus VII gene....... nice board and stable. The Hero should do you just fine.
 
cough for the price cough

For anything involving daily usage or ambient benchmarking.

Unfortunately, the extreme6 isn't available here. Well, there are two Gigabyte z97 boards I see here its the GA-G1.Sniper 5 and costs around 370$ and the Gaming 7 which has the same price as the Sabertooth Mk2.

What about the Extreme4? It's very similar to the Extreme6.
The Gaming7 would be a very nice motherboard. I'd probably take it over the others you listed originally.
 
I'm on the Sabertooth and it works really really well. Very stable, Bios is great...can't go wrong. Most of the regular peeps on here are Asrock fans and Asrock really has come a long way from making just budget boards to some really nice quality boards...especially on Intel's platform. Their AMD boards were meh, but you'd have much better luck on their Intel selection. I vote for Asus since that's what I use and always have with nothing but quality & reliability ;)
 
I wouldn't get the boards listed except the Gaming 5. You don't 'need' the other boards. The ROG boards are made for extreme overclocking really, while the Sabertooth is just kinf of gimicky to me with its 'armor'. You are buying features you wont use in those three.

ASRock and Intel is a completely different ball game. I wouldn't hold anything against ASRock for Intel... grab an Extreme 6 or an Extreme 4 for well balanced (any ambient overclocking and gaming) uses.
 
well, I could grab the Extreme4 for 165$ but is it reliable? I mean I had a 990fx extreme4 for my amd system before and it degraded.

Comparing an AMD board to an Intel board is apples and oranges.
The Extreme4 is built on the same platform as the Extreme6, but it doesn't have quite as many bells and whistles. It's definitely a strong board.
 
I'm on the Sabertooth and it works really really well. Very stable, Bios is great...can't go wrong. Most of the regular peeps on here are Asrock fans and Asrock really has come a long way from making just budget boards to some really nice quality boards...especially on Intel's platform. Their AMD boards were meh, but you'd have much better luck on their Intel selection. I vote for Asus since that's what I use and always have with nothing but quality & reliability ;)

Oh nice you have the Mark S, I was thinking about the Mark 2 though.


I also plan to push the processor to its limits with water cooling if I can(will need to expand the h240-x though). LOL
 
Last edited:
Oh nice you have the Mark S, I was thinking about the Mark 2 though. I also plan to push the processor to its limits with water cooling if I can(will need to expand the h240-x though). LOL

The H240-X is more than enough to push any 1150 CPU to the limits.
 
Oh nice you have the Mark S, I was thinking about the Mark 2 though.


I also plan to push the processor to its limits with water cooling if I can(will need to expand the h240-x though). LOL

Yup...looks awesome in my (almost) all white build. The Mark S is identical to the Mark 1 except color of course. I'd go with the Mark 1 since it's actually the newer style board and has a few extra features. In the link you can see the comparison:

http://www.asus.com/us/site/motherboards/Z97/comparison/
 
well, I could grab the Extreme4 for 165$ but is it reliable? I mean I had a 990fx extreme4 for my amd system before and it degraded.
When did you get that board? In the not too distant past, there were issues with bad capacitors that failed and leaked. I had to replace the caps on one of my boards 9 years ago. Still works fine today running 24/7. Iwill DH800. Board's gotta be at least 10 years old now.
 
When did you get that board? In the not too distant past, there were issues with bad capacitors that failed and leaked. I had to replace the caps on one of my boards 9 years ago. Still works fine today running 24/7. Iwill DH800. Board's gotta be at least 10 years old now.

I got it late 2010. Lasted for 4 years.


Anyhow, I am also now considering on lower cost boards since I realised intel keeps on switching sockets. Though that hero deal is good enough.
 
Hero is overkill... a great board, but overkill.. You can save more money going with the Ex6/Ex4.
 
Back