What do gaming versions in the title mean?

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WomboCombo713

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Hi everyone I'm having a hard time choosing a motherboard. What are the differences with the gaming versions and are they worth the extra cost? What is better sata 6gb/s or sata express? Also where do I find other things like how well it can overclock?
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/8jk6wP

Here is the build. I know I don't need that good of case by far but it's by far my favorite and it is full tower so that could help in the future.
 
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Math Geek
looks like a couple more usb ports and different network card but that is all the really stands out to me. i may be missing something but other than the color scheme, they look mostly the same. for the extra $10 you get the nice red/black design :)

i don't really see anything other than the sound and lan being different (though both are solid ) and the color scheme. i'm sure there is some software differences as well. you usually get a bit more for the extra few bucks.
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AmusingUserID

AmusingUserID

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Usually means they have extra plastic on them and red bits

supposed lag reduction features so that network traffic is prioritised to reduce lag, how effective and worth it these features are, maybe someone else can answer
 
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Ragnarous

Ragnarous

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That depends, Every gaming motherboard has a different reason for being manufactured, be it <better overclocking> <ultra durable against humidity> and many other aspects! Read the specifications and reviews about the motherboard you are interested in!
 
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Ragnarous

Ragnarous

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I'm not very good at that, however type your CPU and its socket here so if i make a mistake, the others will fix it :)
 
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WomboCombo713

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That's kind of what I was thinking as many people have seemed to go with that. Is asus basically the best? Also is there any real major differences between that and the hero that I would need. Because otherwise I'll just stick with my cool case and call it a day.
 
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Math Geek

Math Geek

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when your talking about overclocking you are mainly talking about the power supply system of the motherboard. you want the most amount of power phases and parts used on the motherboard. much like a power supply, cheap capacitors and only a few power phases will limit the power the mobo can supply to the cpu and other parts. the cheaper the board, the cheaper the parts and the less likely it will hold a stable overclock of the system. for instance the z170-a, which is always a solid board from asus and well respected, sports these features for overclocking:

ASUS 5X Protection :
- ASUS DIGI+ VRM - 8 Phase digital power design
- ASUS Enhanced DRAM Overcurrent Protection - Short circuit damage prevention
- ASUS ESD Guards - Enhanced ESD protection
- ASUS High-Quality 5K-Hour Solid Capacitors - 2.5x long lifespan with excellent durability
- ASUS Stainless Steel Back I/O - 3x more durable corrosion-resistant coating

notice the 8 phases of power delivery. the really high end pro overclocking boards will have 12 or even more phases but these are the $250+ boards for very high end overclocking. as you look at specs and such this is something you need to look for is how many power phases it has. i's stick with 8 or more to ensure stable power delivery for your nice overclocked parts.

the asus "a" series (z87, z97, z170....) are always very solid choices and will handle a nice overclock well. the asrock fatality series is also a good choice around this budget. the z170 performance is about $150 and sports 10 phase power delivery and a lot of other perks aimed at "gaming" and overclocking.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Motherboard: ASRock Fatal1ty Z170 Gaming K4 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($143.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $143.99
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-10-24 11:55 EDT-0400


as far as gaming goes, often the higher end boards will have more pcie lanes available through a plex chip which will allow for better use of multiple gpu's and the newer pcie ssd's without hobbling the gpu's to less than 16 lanes.
 
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WomboCombo713

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The asrock you posted is a h170 aren't those not able to overclock? Also if I have an Intel 6600k and an msi 970 will I need a more expensive motherboard to overclock. I'm not looking to push it to the limits but get a more stable overclock
 
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Math Geek

Math Geek

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good catch, i just caught it myself and missed getting it edited before you noticed :)

the k4 is the one i was thinking of.

either this one or the asus z170-a would be more than enough to allow for a nice cpu/ram/gpu overclock. as you go above this price range, you get into the boards that to me are either full of gimmicks and nice and shiny to catch people with the budget or are aimed at pro level super high end uses that are probably well above your needs. i tend to stay in the $150 or below range myself even when looking at high budget builds. rarely are the $200 boards worth it for the average user in my opinion.
 
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Math Geek

Math Geek

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looks like a couple more usb ports and different network card but that is all the really stands out to me. i may be missing something but other than the color scheme, they look mostly the same. for the extra $10 you get the nice red/black design :)

i don't really see anything other than the sound and lan being different (though both are solid ) and the color scheme. i'm sure there is some software differences as well. you usually get a bit more for the extra few bucks.
 
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