i7-4790k on MSI Z87-G45 Motherboard

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thepieintheface

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Feb 24, 2016
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I bought the motherboard over a year ago (so i cannot return it) but never used it. I want to upgrade my AMD 8350 CPU to an i7-4790k, but I am not sure if it is compatible. Will the i7-4790k work with the Z87-G45? or should I just get the 4770k or an entirely new MOBO and CPU?
 
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The 4790k is a haswell refresh CPU. This means the motherboard has to be at least version 1.8 to run this CPU.

If you bought the motherboard a year ago, it should have a compatible bios version on it.

You could buy a used 1150 cpu and flash the bios yourself if it won't boot with the 4790k.

As long as the motherboard will be flashed in bios itself with the implemented m-flash, there is as good as no risk flashing it. Don't flash in Windows, use an USB 2.0 port.

flashing/updating without a CPU on this board isn't possible

Between Z97 and z87 is no performance difference
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synphul

synphul

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Mar 11, 2011
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It shows support on msi's website but it's not real clear which bios version is required. You may need to update the bios (most likely) to support it and I'm not sure if the motherboard can do so via usb or if it requires an older gen processor to do the flash process. Unless someone here is more familiar with it you may want to try calling msi to ask how to do so, if the bios update fails midway through the process it could kill the bios and essentially 'brick' it, making the board unusable. I don't think that motherboard has a backup bios if the first one fails.
 
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synphul

synphul

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Mar 11, 2011
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The issue is the 4790k is a devil's canyon cpu, after the haswell refresh and wasn't released until after z87 boards. Older boards of the same socket can often support newer cpu's, but with a bios update. They don't automatically work together simply because they're the same socket. z97 boards are also socket 1150 but they're newer and were the updated chipsets with newer bios versions for the newer cpu's.
 
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thepieintheface

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Feb 24, 2016
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Would it work as well as a z97 after the bios update? or Would there be a significant performance issue?

 
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helpstar

helpstar

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Dec 25, 2012
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The 4790k is a haswell refresh CPU. This means the motherboard has to be at least version 1.8 to run this CPU.

If you bought the motherboard a year ago, it should have a compatible bios version on it.

You could buy a used 1150 cpu and flash the bios yourself if it won't boot with the 4790k.

As long as the motherboard will be flashed in bios itself with the implemented m-flash, there is as good as no risk flashing it. Don't flash in Windows, use an USB 2.0 port.

flashing/updating without a CPU on this board isn't possible

Between Z97 and z87 is no performance difference
 
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