Good micro-atx z170?

Icaros

Junior Member
Sep 11, 2013
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Hello everyone,

I'm building a skylake system and I want to do it in the micro atx form factor.

I am finding it hard to find good information on micro atx motherboards out there. I need a good, stable board with USB 3.1 and possibly thunderbolt (do I need that though? - I'm mostly wondering if it's something I'd end up regretting not having in teh future).

I'd also like it to be easy to work with, have good space for the CPU cooler (I'm looking at the noctua nh-c14) and good integrated fan control options.

I also want at least one M2 slot.

I'm currently looking at either the:
GA-Z170MX-Gaming 5 - as far as I gather Gigabyte has an exclusive on Alpine Ridge (/Thunderbolt)?
ASUS Z170M-PLUS

I prefer to keep my spend modest (I like the price of the ASUS) but I can be persuaded to spend more if there's a good reason to.

Any input on these options or other boards I should consider?

Thanks in advance?