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Cheap Z77: Biostar vs Gigbyte?

C

cadred

Member
I'm looking to get a basic Z77 mobo for a new rig. My last setup had a gigabyte mobo and I was very happy with that so I'm looking at the GIGABYTE GA-Z77-D3H but for the price point I wanted the BIOSTAR TZ77XE3 seems to be slightly more popular.

Is there any compelling reason to go with one of the other, or is it simply brand preference at this level?
 
I just installed a TZ77XE4 and I am shocked by the quality of this board. The PCB is thicker than the Asrock Z77 Extreme 4 and doesn't bend on the slightest touch. The board booted right up without a hitch. It seems that many are having stability issues with the Gigabyte right now. (UEFI bios issues since they are new at it) I would recommend the Biostar.
 
I've recently completed a build with the Gigabyte Z77-D3H paired with an overclocked i5-2400. It has been rock solid and is a very nice board.
 
cadred said:
I read that the biostar has some issues with aftermarket coolers and fitting ram in slot 1?
Click to expand...



They all interfere on the ram slots. Just don't buy memory that has tall heatspreaders and you are good.
 
I have a cheapo Gigabyte mobo and have experienced zero problems with it with my i5-3570K. Given a choice though I would have given a similarly priced Biostar a chance. Unfortunately they were out of stock at the time, and I was impatient to build my rig.
 
DO NOT get a cheap z77,,, More the more cpu phases the lower you can set the cpu voltage for a stable overclock. '

So with cheap boards, that have less phases, given that ivy already has trouble with heat, you'd want more phases to obtain the lowest voltage necessary to sustain a high overclock.
 
borisvodofsky said:
DO NOT get a cheap z77,,, More the more cpu phases the lower you can set the cpu voltage for a stable overclock. '

So with cheap boards, that have less phases, given that ivy already has trouble with heat, you'd want more phases to obtain the lowest voltage necessary to sustain a high overclock.
Click to expand...

Maximus V has 8 power phase's is the best overclocking board on the market
 
borisvodofsky said:
DO NOT get a cheap z77,,, More the more cpu phases the lower you can set the cpu voltage for a stable overclock. '

So with cheap boards, that have less phases, given that ivy already has trouble with heat, you'd want more phases to obtain the lowest voltage necessary to sustain a high overclock.
Click to expand...

Yeah but it's good enough for stock and mild oc's. I could have spent $40 more to get a mobo with a little better oc'ability, but instead, I'm saving that $40 to put towards a future upgrade. For similar reasons I got a relatively inexpensive CPU cooler. By the time I actually need the performance granted by a heavy oc (which does not come for free; it increases electrical costs and I pay relatively high rates), I might as well just upgrade to another, more efficient socket/chipset altogether and tap into the money I had previously saved due to getting cheaper 1155 components. There are precious few CPU-limited games right now that will force a 3570K below 60fps at 1080p.

Of course if you really do need that speed (probably for non-game applications, or if you simply like to tinker with computer hardware), then expensive, stronger mobos and coolers could be a better bargain.
 
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borisvodofsky said:
DO NOT get a cheap z77,,, More the more cpu phases the lower you can set the cpu voltage for a stable overclock. '

So with cheap boards, that have less phases, given that ivy already has trouble with heat, you'd want more phases to obtain the lowest voltage necessary to sustain a high overclock.
Click to expand...

Ivys consume less power even while overclocking compared to Sandys so the Ivy heat issue is not due to vrm's heating up, people are complaining about the high core temps. ATM the culprit seems to be the new 'thermal technology' that Intel uses that is paste vs solder.
 
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borisvodofsky said:
DO NOT get a cheap z77,,, More the more cpu phases the lower you can set the cpu voltage for a stable overclock. '

So with cheap boards, that have less phases, given that ivy already has trouble with heat, you'd want more phases to obtain the lowest voltage necessary to sustain a high overclock.
Click to expand...
you dont know what youre talking about
 
Bman123 said:
It's the same damn company, just a spin off that sells for less due to the name
Click to expand...

They haven't been the same company since 2007. They split up when Asus downsized. A lot of the build quality is an influence from Asus, yes but they are no longer the same company anymore.
 
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I just installed a Biostar TZ77XE4. Not the best layout but can't really complain, considering the price and features. What I am complaining about, however, is the lack of any digital audio outputs. 🙁
 
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