Mini ITX Z170 Motherboard - i7 6700K

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Kabigon

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I'm building a mini ITX gaming machine that will also be used for mostly gaming but also things like school, work, movies and TV shows, etc.

I have normally always stuck with Asus Rog motherboards and was planning to use a Maximus VIII Impact and still may do so. However, that particular board costs about $100 more then all of the other z170 mini ITX offerings.

I've tried comparing them all on web sites like Newegg, watching videos, and reading reviews but they all seem to be extremely similar. Can you guys please help me to differentiate between the impact, gigabyte gaming board, MSI gaming board, and the other Asus Pro board.

By the way, business build will be done in an NZXT Manta. It is the red and black ones so I'd like to follow a red and black color scheme for all components. Thank you for your help.
 
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The Gigabyte has 2 things Extra...
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basroil

basroil

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Don't bother with spending more than $150 on a motherboard unless you have a bottomless budget. Gigabyte tends to make very reliable boards, but their color scheme is usually blue (black on higher end ones, including all their z170 mITX), and I generally recommend them for smaller builds (asus tends to build in what is normally an exclusion zone in ATX boards, so a lot of coolers won't fit properly)

http://pcpartpicker.com/product/4RkwrH/gigabyte-motherboard-gaz170ngaming5 should be a perfect, though you can get http://pcpartpicker.com/product/MWbkcf/gigabyte-motherboard-gaz170nwifi if you want to save money or need WiFi
 
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Samer1970

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1- The ASUS ROG Maximus VIII Impact , is the only one among them with U2 NVME slot (x4PCIE3.0) , and the only one with DTS connect , plus it has 8 CPU Phases . and it has external Bios flasback button , external Qcode LED , and start / reset button ... is the best hands down but for a price. it Misses M2 slot (you can use U2 SSD or get U2 to M2 adapter) ...

2- Asus Z170Ipro gaming , Gigabyte Gaming are both good Gigabyte has Killer Lan ...



 
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Kabigon

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I set aside around $2,000 just for the system itself not including the monitors and other peripherals. I have the money to spend on the motherboard but of course I don't want to waste money especially if the extra money isn't actually getting me anything. There is a very small selection of z170 mini ITX boards and When comparing stats side by side they appear very similar. However I know things such as UEFI Kama reliability, warranty and other things of that nature play a significant part that won't be listed on the spec sheet. I'm hoping for input from people who have experience with these boards. Thank you.

Also, I'm quite certain all of the z170 Mini ITX boards have Wi-Fi and Bluetooth so that isn't really a factor.
 
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Kabigon

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@Samer1970, are the things you listed the major and only differences between the impact and the rest of the boards? It seems to be a stellar board No Doubt and would fit my build and color scheme perfectly. If it was in the same price range as the rest it would have been an instant purchase. As for the M2 slot, I believe it actually has one but there is a Bluetooth module Factory inserted into it.

The gigabyte gaming, MSI gaming, and Asus Pro motherboards all look solid. As I said, there aren't many options but the few there are seem to be very good. I'm not even considering the EVGA board because the 2 to 3 I have owned gave me nothing but trouble.

What would your advice be if you were making the purchase?
 
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basroil

basroil

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Think of it this way, even with that budget, the price difference could mean you get a 1TB SSD instead of 500GB one.

The GA-Z170N-Gaming 5 is definitely a great option for your case, black and red scheme and even has built in LED!

The Maximus Impact is actually a poor choice for your case if you plan on putting in an x61 on top, the 8 phase daughter board makes installation tricky at best. You also lose two SATA ports and all sata express, which might be fine for you but you haven't mentioned what it needs. .
 
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Samer1970

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That BT/Wifi M2 slot is not 4 lanes Pcie 3.0 , you cant use it with NVME SSD , also it is Short , the NVME SSD wont fit.

If you want to add intel U.2 SSD drives or any Future U.2 drives , your only option is the Maximus 8 , because other boards locate the M2 slot behind the motherboard and is impossible to add an M2 to U2 adapter (or very hard).

so it is up to you.

If you ask me about the other motherboards , I would choose between the Gigabyte and the Asus .. I dont like MSI motherboards
 
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Kabigon

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That makes sense. To be honest, I'm sure I will use the Bluetooth and Wi-Fi are more than I would the slot itself for any type of storage so that's no big deal.

I have always been an Asus man but I did have a few of those green gigabyte motherboards and they were great. I honestly don't believe I've ever used an MSI board.

I guess it really just comes down to Aesthetics and personal preference. I will try to look up what the UEFI looks like for each one to see if that sways me at all. Otherwise, they all seem to be quite similar so I don't think either of them is going to be significantly different than the others and that price range aside from the Maximus 8 which is in a price range of its own.
 
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Samer1970

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The Gigabyte has 2 things Extra , the Killer Lan and the Intel USB3.1 chip (faster)

http://www.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=5529#ov

 
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