Audio
|
|
Frequency Response |
|
Noise Level |
Dynamic range |
Total harmonic distortion |
Intermodulation distortion |
Stereo crosstalk |
Intermodulation distortion + noise |
Frequency Response |
|
|
MSI Z87-G45 Gaming |
0.11 |
-.1 |
-83.1 |
83.1 |
0.13 |
0.258 |
-82.8 |
0.324 |
0.1 |
-0.1 |
|
Asus Z87 Pro |
0.2 |
-.06 |
-88.3 |
88.5 |
0.132 |
0.067 |
-80.1 |
0.052 |
0.1 |
0 |
|
Asus Z87 Plus |
0.17 |
-.21 |
-90.2 |
90.2 |
0.253 |
0.21 |
-85 |
0.149 |
0.1 |
-0.2 |
|
MSI Z87 MPower |
0.12 |
-2 |
-90.1 |
89.9 |
0.0069 |
0.013 |
-86.6 |
0.02 |
0.1 |
-0.2 |
MSI without a doubt improved on their onboard audio design over the Z87-G45 Gaming when going to the MPower. I think there is still room to go even farther, I would love to see them drop Realtek all together and go with an even higher end solution in some of their motherboards but frankly the MPower is more about overclocking and less about sound quality. Because of that I was surprised they put the effort into it that they did. The performance numbers speak for themselves and my subjective testing was similar, the audio sounded good and the built in headphone amp helped with that. It’s not going to replace a dedicated sound card, but for those of you who just want good audio but aren’t willing to put down the money for the quality this is perfect.
