What is the Equivalent of MSI H97 Gaming 3 for Asus and Gigabyte?

nVidea · Sep 2, 2014

Which motherboard is better on performance, gaming and dual graphics card?

1. MSI H97 GAMING 3 Motherboard ~ 151 USD

2. LGA1150 msi z97 g55 Sli (Question here: is this motherboard only for GTX videocards? Because I'm planning to buy R9 270x Vapor X and would like to use second Graphics card for Crossfire. ~ 162 USD

3. Gigabyte GA-H97-Gaming 3 ~ 126 USD

4. What is the equivalent of Asus motherboard here?

Future PSU: XFX xxx edition 850 Watts
Future processor:
Intel i3 4150

i7Baby · Sep 2, 2014

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/mainstream-gaming-z97-motherboard,3824.html - Asus Z97-A or ASRock Z97 Extreme 4

nVidea · Sep 2, 2014

Is this the Z97a you're talking about? Because it's expensive (http://www.olx.ph/index.php/view+classifieds/id/52297072/Asus+Z97-A+Motherboard%2C+lga1150?referralKeywords=asus+z97+a&event=Search+Ranking,Position,1-1,1) ~ 196 USD

Asrock Z97 Extreme 4 (http://dynaquestpc.com/product/asrock-z97-extreme4/) ~ 179 USD

Is it just me or this is the first time that MSI isn't the most expensive in the group? Asus and Asrock's equivalent is more expensive.

i7Baby · Sep 2, 2014

Asus Z97-A - $140 at Newegg

ASRock Z97 Extreme 4 - $144 at Newegg

Also look on Amazon

nVidea · Sep 2, 2014

Oh that's why they're so expensive. It's because they're Z97 series. How about their respective H97 series mobos?

i7Baby · Sep 2, 2014

They are low to mid price.

You mention both Z97 and H97 in your opening post. What CPU have you got?

nVidea · Sep 2, 2014

Currently I have AMD Athlon II x 3, but I will upgrade to i3 4150, I'm yet to decide my mobo, but MSI is quite cool-looking. I'm looking for Mid-end motherboard. Capable of crossfire, and stable. I am not planning to overclock either CPU or the GPU.

What's better Gigabyte H97 or MSI H97 gaming 3?

imadirtybirdy · Sep 2, 2014

MSI has Quality Control Issues.. Even if the board is better on paper, id never recommend them.

i7Baby · Sep 2, 2014

If you want xfire/sli, you'll need a Z87 or 97 mobo. They cost more than H87 or 97 mobos which only have 1 pciex16 slot.
The i3 will use either.
I'd recommend ASRock Z97 Extreme 4 or Asus Z97-A per http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/mainstream-gaming-z97-motherboard,3824.html

nVidea · Sep 2, 2014

i7Baby :

MSI H97 Gaming 3 has crossfire "Multi-GPU: AMD CrossFire Support". Also, under Specs tab of H97, there are two PCIE Ex16 and one PCie gen 3. If I am to crossfire, do I need to have two pcie gen 3?

nVidea · Sep 2, 2014

imadirtybirdy :

Why? What's the issue? Have you encountered them? (But it looks cool) And it also have Killer Ethernet which kills the lag on online gaming.

i7Baby · Sep 2, 2014

Look at reviews.

The MSI H97 Gaming 3 - http://au.msi.com/product/mb/H97_GAMING_3.html#hero-specification - doesn't support 2 graphics cards. The first slot does. But the second slot only runs at x 4.

If you really want to use 2 graphics cards, you need to use Z97 as I said above.

nVidea · Sep 3, 2014

But if I'm to use only 1 card and let go of the thought of having two cards? But I think it's better to invest more on motherboards, right? Is there a cheaper Z97? Gigabyte or Asrock? Asrock's Z97 Extreme4 is SLI, just for NVIDIA cards?

i7Baby · Sep 3, 2014

If you only want to use one card then get a H87 or 97 mobo for the i5 4130

Dark Lord of Tech · Sep 3, 2014

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H97-GAMING 3 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($103.66 @ Newegg)
Total: $103.66
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-09-03 00:38 EDT-0400

i7Baby · Sep 3, 2014

Or for my money - ASRock Fatal1ty H97 Performance $75 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157510

MartinNixon0422 · Sep 3, 2014

if you are only doing with one card not sli or cf
I will suggest the msi h97 gaming 3

but if you looking for sli/cf
how about msi z97 gaming 3?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130772&cm_re=gaming_3_msi_z97-_-13-130-772-_-Product

nVidea · Sep 3, 2014

Can the MSI Z97 handle two graphics cards? Is it stable? And I'm not planning on OC'ing the gpu and cpu..
Both Asrock Fatal1ty Performance and MSI H97 look good too. But which is better?

Which is better... H97: Asrock or MSI? Not planning to OC

nVidea · Sep 3, 2014

More questions:
What are their unique features? Do all of them have killer ethernet (Kill the lag), or just the MSI?
What feature the Gigabyte has, that the MSI and Asrock don't have? Vice versa...

What is the Equivalent of MSI H97 Gaming 3 for Asus and Gigabyte?

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