Asus z170-a vs z97-a mobo?

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geofelt

geofelt

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Oct 9, 2006
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Z170 is for a Skylake cpu build.
Z97 is for a haswell build.

With Skylake now available, there is absolutely no question in my mind that a new build should be Skylake.
1. Prices for cpu, z170 motherboard and ddr4 ram are almost precisely the same.
2. 6600K has an estimated 5-10% performance improvement per clock over haswell.
3. 14nm runs cooler, you get a decent overclock without the need for exotic cooling.
4. The Z170 chipset permits the use of much faster ssd devices on the horizon. Samsung 950 pro for example:
http://www.samsung.com/global/business/semiconductor/minisite/SSD/global/html/ssd950pro/overview.html
 
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Tweed

Tweed

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Aug 14, 2014
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The cpu i plan to have is Intel i5 4960. So I'm guessing it's not compatible with the z170 mobos? Also z97 a or z97 pro gamer asus mobo?
 
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geofelt

geofelt

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Correct.
And... there is little reason with a 4960 not to use a cheaper H97 based motherboard anyway.

At the $200+ price point for a 4960, I really would look at Skylake
 
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Tweed

Tweed

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Ok Thanks geofelt. I'll have to do more research. You wouldn't mind if I private message you in the near future if I have any questions? SO, I don't plan to overclock, and I'm trying to go on a budget on my PC build, you recommend I go for Skylake cpu?
 
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geofelt

geofelt

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I do not monitor private messages.
Post a prospective build where everybody can post their opinions.

What is the main purpose of this pc?
What is your budget?
We can go from there.
 
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Tweed

Tweed

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Budget is $800-850. Purpose is to do some light gaming, animations, a lot with photoshop, video editing. For now thats all I see myself doing with a pc. I will definitely branch into console games that are on PC like battlefront III or COD III once they are out.
 
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Tweed

Tweed

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I just looked into the skylake family cpu and the asus z170-a. Motherboard is great, but having to change the cpu to skylake for compatibility reasons, adds to my budget. Too expensive for me. I think I should be fine with Haswell and the i5 4690 cpu with the z97-a asus mobo. Thoughts?
 
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DonkeyOatie

DonkeyOatie

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Sep 16, 2014
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If you mean 4690, and not 4690K, then a good H97 motherboard will do. If you plan some sort of future overclocking, SLI, or serious memory overclocking, then a Z97 is appropriate. At US pricing, I would get something other than an ASUS Z97-A. I would want a board with better power phases for overclocking, and a cheaper board for SLI or memory work.

The Z97 Pro Gamer is a better board, but also costs more. Are you buying in the USA?
 
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geofelt

geofelt

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If your main purpose is editing/rendering which can be nicely multithreaded, then the hyperthreads of a i7-4790K will be useful.
Moreover, the higher stock clock 4.0/4.4 will be all you need for gaming.
Because you do not need to overclock the 4790K, you can use a less expensive H97 motherboard. I think the extra $100 or so for a I7 would be worth it for you.

Photoshop benefits from lots of ram so it does not need to use workfiles.
Consider a 32gb kit.

Can you do it on a $850 budget, I don't know.
Post a prospective build and let's see if any parts can usefully shave costs.

One place to save would be to plan on using the integrated graphics. It should be sufficient for your purposes, and you can add a discrete graphics card later if you ever got into fast action gaming.
 
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