<$150 OC Z97 motherboard for 4790k

[overCee]

I am in the process of finally upgrading from my Q6600 (OC'd to 3.2 GHz since 2007 or so). I have everything pretty much set except for motherboard choice. There are several options in my price range but the newegg reviews for them are very disturbing in terms of percentage of reviews with DOA or dead within a year boards. Please help me choose a board that will last long-term, but also give some decent OC results (stable 4.4-4.6 GHz for years).

System will have:
4790K
2 x 8GB G. Skill Ripjaws X Series DDR3 1866
Old GTX 460 SE PCIe video card to be upgraded in the future
Samsung EVO 250GB SSD (M.2 or SATA doesn't matter)
Phanteks PH-TC14PE air cooler for the CPU

I have been going back and forth between the Asrock Fatal1ty Z97 (not X), Asrock Extreme 4, MSI Gaming 5. My biggest concerns right now are long-term reliability and I have seen several disturbing comments about the Killer LAN drivers. I don't plan to ever run multiple video cards so SLI/Crossfire are not needed. It seems like the MSI Z97 Guard Pro would be perfect, but it's out of stock most places and too expensive at Amazon. I am trying to get a mobo under $125 after rebates, but I will go up to $150 to get the necessary long-term quality, if needed.

Let me know if there are any notable boards I am not considering. It's been a long time since I've built a system so I'm sure you all can help. Thanks!

 

[lehtv]

Why 4790K now that 6700K is out?

I'd probably go with 6700K + Asus Z170A(R) / Asus Z170 Pro Gaming + 2x8GB DDR4-2400+. If that's too expensive, 6600K would be a good pick and a huge upgrade over Q6600. OC to 4.5-4.6 is pretty easy on 6600K/6700K with your cooling.

 

[overCee]

I can get a 4790K from Microcenter for about $70 less than the 6700K (assuming it could be found in stock). In addition there appear to incremental costs associated with DDR4 and probably the newer chipset motherboards as well. I don't see it being worth it to move up to Skylake for me.

So, what's the best Z97 board out there for long-term reliability and solid overclocks?

 

[lehtv]

Gigabyte Z97X Gaming 5, no contest. True digital 8-phase VRM. Plenty of boards either double 4 phases to 8, or look like 8-phase superficially but have only four drivers which is no better than normal 4 phase, or use analog VRM which is not as accurate as digital. This one falls into none of those traps.

Of the boards you listed -
* Fatal1ty is basic 4-phase, good for a moderate 4690K overclock
* Guard Pro is also weak in that regard, looks like a 4-phase board
* Extreme4 is a decent hybrid/analog 6-phase board, uses a little higher end MOSFET parts than Gaming-5, but not as many, and less expensive capacitors then Gaming-5
* MSI Gaming 5 I'm not 100% sure on, but it can't be any better than Gaming 7 which is just a 6+1 phase board with cheaper parts than Extreme4

By the way if you want to get the most out of your Phanteks cooler and this board, you'll have to delid the 4790K (and replace the thermal paste and put the lid back on). It doesn't have a whole lot of thermal headroom without delidding, and it's advisable not to stress test it at super high temperatures and voltages using Prime95 or similar software - I would recommend this as a guide, use the custom x264 tool as an overnight stability test.

 

[overCee]

Thanks for the suggestion. I started looking at the Gigabyte boards and saw a nice combo deal that will get me the 4790K and the Gigabyte Gaming 7 within my budget, so I think I will go with that.

Regarding de-lidding, I thought that the 4790k was not supposed to have that weakness like the earlier Haswell CPUs.

 

[lehtv]

Thanks for the suggestion. I started looking at the Gigabyte boards and saw a nice combo deal that will get me the 4790K and the Gigabyte Gaming 7 within my budget, so I think I will go with that.

There's barely any difference at all between Gaming 5 and Gaming 7. The VRM is the exact same. Gaming 7 just has a couple more onboard headers which you won't need (like 8 SATA ports instead of 6, 4 fan headers instead of 3). I would only buy the Gaming 7 if it actually cost the same or less than Gaming 5 with the combo discount accounted for

Regarding de-lidding, I thought that the 4790k was not supposed to have that weakness like the earlier Haswell CPUs.

True, Intel did improve the quality of the TIM between the CPU and IHS. But it's still just ordinary thermal paste whose thermal conductivity is nowhere near as good as the solder of a Haswell-E, or indeed that of Coollaboratory Liquid Pro / Ultra which you would use if delidding the CPU.

 

[PhIlLy ChEeSe]

I am in the process of finally upgrading from my Q6600 (OC'd to 3.2 GHz since 2007 or so). I have everything pretty much set except for motherboard choice. There are several options in my price range but the newegg reviews for them are very disturbing in terms of percentage of reviews with DOA or dead within a year boards. Please help me choose a board that will last long-term, but also give some decent OC results (stable 4.4-4.6 GHz for years).

System will have:
4790K
2 x 8GB G. Skill Ripjaws X Series DDR3 1866
Old GTX 460 SE PCIe video card to be upgraded in the future
Samsung EVO 250GB SSD (M.2 or SATA doesn't matter)
Phanteks PH-TC14PE air cooler for the CPU

I have been going back and forth between the Asrock Fatal1ty Z97 (not X), Asrock Extreme 4, MSI Gaming 5. My biggest concerns right now are long-term reliability and I have seen several disturbing comments about the Killer LAN drivers. I don't plan to ever run multiple video cards so SLI/Crossfire are not needed. It seems like the MSI Z97 Guard Pro would be perfect, but it's out of stock most places and too expensive at Amazon. I am trying to get a mobo under $125 after rebates, but I will go up to $150 to get the necessary long-term quality, if needed.

Let me know if there are any notable boards I am not considering. It's been a long time since I've built a system so I'm sure you all can help. Thanks!

The reviews at New Egg are like fighting on the internet, most of them I wouldn't consider accurate at best.

 

[you2]

I've been looking into the same thing (microcenter near here). For the record microcenter does not sell the gigabyte gaming 5 which is probably why the op rejected it). the boards I've been considering are the msi gaming 5 ($25 cheaper than gigabyte gaming 7 and has 4 fan headers but is slow to boot); gigabyte gaming 7; gigabyte udh5 (has intel nic but one of the reviews indicated it had worse audio then the rest due to crosstalk/electrical interference) and asrock fatality (dont' really know how it compares to the gigabyte gaming 7 and msi gaming 5).
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I've been leaning towards the msi gaming 5 due to lower cost; reviews indicate very good audio and 4 4 pin fan headers with the big negatives being the slow boot and killer nic.
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Oh yea and there is the newer msi gaming 6 (is the z97a a revision of the z97 or just a product name ??)

 

[lehtv]

msi gaming 5 ($25 cheaper than gigabyte gaming 7 and has 4 fan headers but is slow to boot)
gigabyte udh5 (has intel nic but one of the reviews indicated it had worse audio then the rest due to crosstalk/electrical interference)
asrock fatality (dont' really know how it compares to the gigabyte gaming 7 and msi gaming 5).
Oh yea and there is the newer msi gaming 6

MSI Gaming 7 is a 6-phase board according to the vrmlist posted earlier, and comparing pictures, Gaming 5 looks like a 4 phase board. Same for Gaming 6. You can see six black boxes on the left side of the Gaming 7 CPU socket, which can be taken as 'shorthand' for 6-phase CPU power. On Gaming 5 and Gaming 6 you only have four black boxes.

UD5H is likewise 6-phase.

Fatal1ty is 4-phase.

So all of these have inferior VRM compared to the 8-phase Gigabyte Gaming 5/7, which may hamper OC potential slightly, but this may or may not matter to you. Depends on your cooling and how far you really want to push it.

(is the z97a a revision of the z97 or just a product name ??)

Not sure, actually - either way compatibility is the same between Z97A and Z97 boards. For MSI, the A seems to indicate USB 3.1 support.

 

[redzo]

I wouldn't get down this road: judging/comparing motherboards by the number of fan headers. It is like comparing two different cars by the number of cup holders.

That sin list provided by lehtv is the holly grail in terms off quality board components/design inventory but it doesn't feature all available market products. At least when you buy something featured there you do not buy blindfolded.

The ga gaming 5 is probably the most balanced MB from that list. It is not cheap, but also not expensive. As usual, there is no warranty in terms of quality: you could end up with a DOA or malfunctioning ga gaming 5 just as you could end up with any other cheaper or more expensive product.

 

[Achilleslastand]

I am in the process of finally upgrading from my Q6600 (OC'd to 3.2 GHz since 2007 or so). I have everything pretty much set except for motherboard choice. There are several options in my price range but the newegg reviews for them are very disturbing in terms of percentage of reviews with DOA or dead within a year boards. Please help me choose a board that will last long-term, but also give some decent OC results (stable 4.4-4.6 GHz for years).

System will have:
4790K
2 x 8GB G. Skill Ripjaws X Series DDR3 1866
Old GTX 460 SE PCIe video card to be upgraded in the future
Samsung EVO 250GB SSD (M.2 or SATA doesn't matter)
Phanteks PH-TC14PE air cooler for the CPU

I have been going back and forth between the Asrock Fatal1ty Z97 (not X), Asrock Extreme 4, MSI Gaming 5. My biggest concerns right now are long-term reliability and I have seen several disturbing comments about the Killer LAN drivers. I don't plan to ever run multiple video cards so SLI/Crossfire are not needed. It seems like the MSI Z97 Guard Pro would be perfect, but it's out of stock most places and too expensive at Amazon. I am trying to get a mobo under $125 after rebates, but I will go up to $150 to get the necessary long-term quality, if needed.

Let me know if there are any notable boards I am not considering. It's been a long time since I've built a system so I'm sure you all can help. Thanks!

Just upgraded to a i7-4790K myself from AMD and got this motherboard which I am quite happy with.
http://www.amazon.com/Gigabyte-GA-Z...8&qid=1442249743&sr=1-1&keywords=gigabyte+z97

 

[lehtv]

Just upgraded to a i7-4790K myself from AMD and got this motherboard which I am quite happy with.
http://www.amazon.com/Gigabyte-GA-Z...8&qid=1442249743&sr=1-1&keywords=gigabyte+z97

Alas, Gaming-5 has twice as many VRM phases for the same cost

 

[redzo]

Just upgraded to a i7-4790K myself from AMD and got this motherboard which I am quite happy with.
http://www.amazon.com/Gigabyte-GA-Z...8&qid=1442249743&sr=1-1&keywords=gigabyte+z97

Enjoy it!
Don't get upset. It is not a bad board but:
Customers need to be aware of this type of practice. I am on a z87x-ud3h(full 8 phase digital, identical to the gaming 5). Gigabyte has reduced the cost of the z97x-ud3h vrm's. You expect the same vrm design considering the name of the product(z87x/z97x-ud3h), but this is not the case.

 

[you2]

The emphasis seems to be on the VRM but number of VRM is not everything. I might be mistaken but associating the number of VRM with quality of the MB or even voltage regulation is not complete accurate. A board with more VRM *might* overclock better but even that is not a given. Btw I'm not the original OP but imho maximal overclocking is less important than solid audio, ethernet and long term stability/reliability.
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So the question remains how does the msi gaming 5, udh5 and fatality stack up against the gigabyte gaming 7 (the 5 is not available at microcenter). The msi board seems to equal or better with the exception to number of vrm while the udh5 has intel nic (which imho is a plus).