Which one for an i5-4670? GA-B85M-D3H vs GA-Z87M-D3H

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felipebari

felipebari

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Sep 24, 2014
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Which one of these motherboards is the better choice to go w/ an i5-4670?

The GA-Z87M-D3H is $20 cheaper than the GA-B85M-D3H where I live. Another choice would be the GA-B85M-D3PH, and it's the cheaper of the three.

GA-B85M-D3H (pricier)
GA-Z87M-D3H ($20 less)
GA-B85M-D3PH ($50 less)

Also, does any of them support SLI? I know they officially support Crossfire, so I don't get why they wouldn't support SLI.

I won't overclock the CPU. I just want a cool, stable build.

I currently have an FX-8350 w/ the GA-78LMT-USB3 and the NB overheats, causing the PC to freeze and reboot often. I tried everything to improve cooling, but it remains unstable. Since I don't have a better option for an AMD micro-ATX board, I'm switching to Intel.

So, what board should I go with? Thanks.
 
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felipebari

felipebari

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Sep 24, 2014
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That's great to hear! Does this board come with an SLI bridge? If not, where can I purchase one?

Out of curiosity, is the Z87 a superior chipset than the B85? I wonder why it's cheaper here.

Sorry for the noob questions, I haven't had an Intel or Nvidia build in years.
 
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GhislainG

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Jul 16, 2008
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The GA-Z87M-D3H can't SLI because it doesn't meet the requirements. It has one PCI Express 3.0 x16 and one PCI Express 2.0 x16 running at x4, but SLI requires x8. You should buy the GA-B85M-D3PH (which seems to be sold in Brazil only) if meets your requirements.
 
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felipebari

felipebari

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Sep 24, 2014
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Thanks. What micro-ATX card would support SLI? All these cards support Crossfire, but I have no interest in that since the current AMD cards consume a lot of power. I wanted to go w/ a GTX 970 SLI.


Unfortunately I can't do that since I have a Phenom M case. Also if I were to purchase an ATX board I'd probably keep the FX-8350.

I'm sorry but I feel like I'm getting mixed signals here. If we forget SLI, which of these 3 boards listed is the best performer for their respective price differences?
 
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GhislainG

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With a single GPU they basically perform the same, but select the one that best meets your requirements and features.

Socket 1150 micro-ATX motherboards that support SLI at a reasonable price:
- ASUS GRYPHON Z97
- GIGABYTE GA-Z97MX-Gaming 5
- ASRock Z97M OC Formula
- MSI Z87M GAMING

Look for motherboards that meet SLI requirements (minimum is PCI Express 1 x16 and 1 x8 slots) and then check if SLI is supported.
 
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felipebari

felipebari

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Sep 24, 2014
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Thanks guys. I think I'll go with the Z87 then. Looks like a nice board for a decent price, and within my budget.

Furthermore, can I expect my heating issues to be gone by going w/ Z87 Intel? The only reason I'm switching platforms is because I'm really tired of micro-ATX AMD boards. I had two of them in the past 3 months. The first one would overheat the VRMs, and the current one overheats the NB. It's frustrating.

And one last question if you allow me: I currently have an R9 290. Is the i5-4670 overkill for this single card, or will it be a nice balance? I'm not a fan of overkill if I could save some money instead.


Thanks for all the suggestions! I looked for prices on these boards here and they're a bit too expensive. They go over $350, making the SLI not that sweet of a deal anymore.

I think I'll stick to a single GPU for now and hope for better power efficiency in the next-gen of AMD cards. I wanted to SLI the GTX 970, but CF-only boards are much cheaper.
 
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felipebari

felipebari

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Sep 24, 2014
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That's great to hear, I'm really tired of chipset heating issues.

I've ordered the Z87 board and the i5-4670. It ended up being cheaper than both the B85 and H87 boards, which sounds like a great deal.


Thanks for the input. The Z87 was actually cheaper than inferior models here, so I'm happy with that.
 
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