MSI Z87 MPower

titleThis weekend the first motherboard we took a look at was the MSI Z87-G45 Gaming, MSI’s lower priced gaming model. Along with the gaming product line they also have a line they are calling MPower that is focused more on the overclocking community and general enthusiasts. There are two models the Z87 M Power and the Z87 MPower Max, today I am going to dive in and take a look at the Z87 M Power. I’m excited to see what sets it apart from MSI’s gaming boards.

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Asus Z87 Pro and Asus Z87 Plus

titleWhen trying to think of a name for our look at Asus’s new Z87 mainstream motherboard options I went through countless bad jokes and Bond Goldmember comments. I came to the conclusion that much like Asus I would let the boards speak for themselves. Today we are going to take a look at the Asus Z87 Pro and Z87 Plus, both what they call Channel boards. In other words this is Asus’s standard lineup. In the past I have been extremely impressed with what Asus had to offer in their standard lineup; hopefully they can keep that up. Let’s see what they have to offer.

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MSI Z87-G45 Gaming

titleOur first look at a non-Intel Z87 motherboard today is the Z87-G45 Gaming from the folks over at MSI. With a gaming focus I am really excited to see what the board is all about. At a quick glance at both the packaging and the board itself it’s clear that MSI is going with the dragon theme that we saw on a few of their notebooks this year at CES. I’m curious if the MSI Z87-G45 Gaming will be on fire, or just fizzle out. Let’s take a closer look and find out!

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Asus Maximus V Formula

titleLet’s be honest, Asus has a whole product line full of good motherboards. So much that it really takes a special motherboard to stand out from the crowd. There has been one specific board that has stuck with me for the past year and a half though, back from when I took a visit to the Asus office and they pulled it out to show me. That motherboard would be the Maximus V Formula. I’m sure you are wondering what made it stand out, especially considering all of the motherboards we have in the office, including boards like the Rampage IV. Well I only have a limited amount of space in the opening; you will have to peek inside our review to find out.

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Asus Z77 Roundup

titleWhen doing all of our Ivy Bridge launch prep we spent a LOT of time benchmarking and testing a whole collection of boards. You guys have seen our reviews of the Intel and Gigabyte boards. When it came time to write about the four different Asus Z77 boards I realized that most of you are not going to want to read through a lot of information that we would cover over and over on each review. We decided to roundup all four of the boards and cover them together. This way we can get to the point a little quicker, saving you time, as well as giving us a chance to talk more about the differences between the variety of boards that we tested.

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ASUS P8 Z68-V/GEN3

titlePerhaps one of the most daunting tasks after making the decision that you do not wish to purchase an off-the-shelf computer is attempting to figure out which components go in the machine.  There are fun aspects, like the graphics card and processor, and then there are the not-so-fun aspects, like the motherboard (at least in my opinion).  Why do I think it is a whole lot of not fun?  There are so many out there to choose from, with all sorts of features.  When shopping you will likely come across the ASUS board that I am going to review today.  Arguably, it is one of the better all-around boards out there, with features like good integrated graphics and killer sound.  But to a gamer that generally does not mean squat.  Does the ASUS P8 Z68-V/GEN3 board have what it takes to function as a serious gaming component?  Read on to find out!

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Motherboard Sizing

titleWhen we got in a few oddly sized dual CPU motherboards from EVGA and Asus I posted up a few pictures on our forums and on Facebook. The problem was that even though they looked large there wasn’t any perspective. So we tossed in a couple other boards to give everyone a little perspective. This lead us to digging out even more motherboards to put together all of the standard motherboard sizes all together for everyone to be able to see the differences. Along with the picture we also have a breakdown on the dimensions of each size standard; I hope this helps everyone as some point. Sometimes it can be hard to understand all of the different motherboard sizes and how they all relate.

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Gigabyte Z77X-UD3H

titleZ77 boards come in all shapes, sizes, colors, and prices. Just about every manufacture has a whole lineup of boards covering the whole range to make sure you can find what you are looking for. Gigabyte is no different; they have a whole selection of boards that will fit your needs. Today we are taking a look at their Z77X-UD3H, one of their budget boards. It may not be a high end board but it is still packed with features. I am curious how it will perform now that the cat is out of the bag with Ivy Bridge. Let’s jump in and see what it’s all about.

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Intel DZ77GA-70K

titleNow that Intel has opened up the flood gates with Ivy Bridge we can finally take a full look at their latest chipset including testing with the i7-3770. When combining the two we get the latest CPU with the latest chipset and a load of new features. You can now take advantage of PCIe 3.0 along with USB 3.0 integrated into the chipset. We were very impressed with the DZ77GA-70K when we first took a look at it, let’s finally see how it performs!

 

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Asus Maximus Gene V Preview

titleNext in line for our Z77 previews is the Asus Republic of Gamers Maximus V Gene. The Maximus V Gene is the first of four boards Asus has announced for the Z77 chipset, and as you may have guessed from the Republic of Gamers association, it is engineered with the gaming enthusiast in mind. How will the changes Z77 has brought to the table complement those Asus has developed for the PC gamer? Read on!

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Gigabyte Z77ZX-UD3H Preview

titleThe second in a long list of Z77 previews we have for everyone is a board from our friends over at Gigabyte. Today we are taking a sneak peak at their Gigabyte z77x-ud3h, their entry level Z77 board. With similar features to the Intel board while keeping the price as low as possible there is a good chance this could be a great value for someone looking for good features at a great price.

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Biostar TPower X79

titleI entered the world of computer gaming with a well-justified custom laptop my freshman year of college. The urge to build my own PC inevitably began to grow as I traveled to LAN parties and saw the creation of others. My first board was a hand-me-down Biostar with a lot of life yet to give. Five years later, it’s fitting that my first build with Sandy Bridge-E is from that company‘s first socket 2011 board, the TPower X79. The TPower X79 is one of Biostars first attempts to branch out beyond the budget boards they are known for. I am excited to see what direction they will do and how it will perform. 

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Intel DZ77GA-70K & Panther Point Chipset Preview

titleIntel has officially announced their newest chipset for socket 1155, the Z77. With H61, H67, P67, and Z68 chipsets still on the market, it may seem bewildering that Intel would introduce yet another beast to the field. In addition, Z77 is one of six new chipsets introduced in Intel's new 7 series chipset, Panther Point. What does the Panther have to offer that its predecessors did not? Though Intel may have just announced Z77, we've had our hands on sample boards for the past several weeks, putting them to the LanOC test, and we can finally share what we've found. We'll start with Intel's own Z77 board, the DZ77GA-70K as well as coverage of the Panther Point chipsets.

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Gigabyte Assassin 2

titleIt seems almost like it was yesterday when I took a close look at Gigabytes Assassin, flagship motherboard on the X58 chipset. Here we are less than a year later with a new chipset and socket available. That means it’s time once again to take a look at Gigabyte’s flagship gaming motherboard, the Assassin 2 X79. With a lower price point, smaller form factor, and all of the features of the original we loved the Assassin 2 should be a great board. Of course we won’t know that for sure until we dig in a little farther, so let’s jump in!

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Asus Rampage IV Extreme

titleFor X79 we have taken a look in detail at both the reference design and Asus’s professional solution. What about a model made specifically for gaming? The X79 platform is called an enthusiast platform; there are finally no limitations on bandwidth to video card, something that was an issue on 1155 motherboards.  Today we are going to take a look at Asus’s Rampage IV, their flagship motherboard designed specifically for someone who only wants the best. Will this be the end all be all motherboard? Let’s find out!

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Asus P9X79PRO

titleIn all of our LGA 1155 testing one of best experiences we had was with our Asus P8P67 EVO. Not only was the board of the best quality and feature packed, but for once we were very happy with the included software. Because of that we were very excited to see what Asus would have to offer with the launch of X79. Today we will be taking a look at their P9X79 PRO. With a full feature set I am expecting this to be a killer board, but there is only one way to find out for sure! Let’s take a look.

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Intel i7-3960X and Intel DX79SI

titleThe PC world is always moving, innovating, and reinventing itself. Every day, every month, and every year we see new products introduced from every aspect of the industry. You will almost never will you see any of those new products cause more than just a small hiccup in the overall scheme. There is one company that is a little different. When we come across a main Intel launch everyone in the industry stops what they are doing to make sure they are aligned with what Intel is doing. Today I can finally talk to you about Intel’s newest launch, a new socket, chipset, and CPU. Today we are taking a look at the new i7-3960X CPU and the x79 chipset that is introduced along with it.

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Gigabyte E350N-USB3

titleWhen it comes to putting together a small functional PC for your parents or an HTPC for your living room there is a lot more to take into account than normal. In these situations noise, power usage, video performance, and cost also need to be considered. That’s what AMD had in mind when introducing their E350 with AMD Fusion Technology earlier this year. There are multiple manufactures that make and sell versions of this motherboard, but many of them don’t have Gigabytes features. Today we are going to take a closer look at the Gigabyte E350N-USB3 and hopefully show that it is capable of doing quite a lot.

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Gigabyte Z68X-UD3H-B3

titleIf you are looking to build a Sandy Bridge rig there is no question you have heard of Intel’s newest chipset, the Z68. Taking their P67 chipset, they've added everything that was missing, including the ability to take advantage of the GPU built in to your Sandy Bridge CPU. We are a little late to the party though; after the original Sandy Bridge launch I ran into a few health problems, but I am back and better than ever. It’s finally time to take a look at a Z68 chipset and this time around it’s a Z68X-UD3H-B3 from Gigabyte. Let’s find out if you should be looking at Z68’s or P67’s.

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Sapphire Pure Platinum A75 & AMD A8-3800

frontIt has only been a few weeks since AMD introduced their Llano APU and things are finally starting to come together. Today Sapphire is joining the mix with an addition from their Pure line, the Pure Platinum A75. Sapphire has had a big push to become a name to be reckoned with in the motherboard market and their Pure line has thus far done a good job. Paired up with an AMD A8-3800, today we will be taking a look at both Sapphires new board and the A-Series platform as a whole.

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