Another what Z87 MB question...

[printerandgamer]

I am building a new computer since my very old build is not cutting it as my 3d printing workhorse. My current build with an X4 955 will do great for the printing work, so now I am entering a world of building for my main computer that is not quite what I am used to. After reading all the Tom's article I have dropped any idea of continuing on with another AMD processor.

I went ahead and got a i5-4670K on order and now I begin the MB decision. The part that is confusing me is there are 50 different Z87 MBs. I am going for a more budget friendly gaming machine here with whatever performance boost I can get with OC. So if I only plan on 1 graphics card (definitely for now) and I am not going to have any RAID controllers, is there any reason not to get a cheaper one? If I am not using these features is there any point in a 200$ MB over a 120$ one? If there are other performance reasons, then I would be interested.

All my previous builds have been Asus and Gigabyte, so my preference would be to stick with one of those two. My current one is Asus and I have really liked the software. One of the most important things to me is ease of use with the bios and OC with those two have always been good with that. If one provides better software around their product that seems worth the extra 15-20. So, I'm not super picky over the price point, but if there is no reason to buy the premium models then I don't want to.

 

[Tradesman1]

I'd look to the Asus Gryphon, or my own choice the Asus Hero, did 20 or so builds on Haswell before deciding on the Hero for it's OC ability, and how it handles DRAM and GPUs, great gaming or all round mobo, well worth it

 

[printerandgamer]

Wow 20 builds is a lot. What does the Hero gain in OC ability versus the Plus? This is where I am very confused ASUS has a ton of different models. The only real specifications difference I see between the two is the Hero has the better audio. The Hero looks neater with the red sockets on the black solder mask of course.

 

[Tradesman1]

As you go up through the models (generally pricewise), you will see things like added ports or PCI-E slots, improved components to help control heat and enhance OC ability...also less noticible things like the enhanced audio chipset here, improved BIOS controls, improved mamory handling,etc

 

[printerandgamer]

Ok, I think I understand. The price difference isn't that much more for the hero versus the plus, its just a little confusing why there are so many option in the first place. The marketing pitch for the hero brings up the power delivery and brings up the capacitors and the MOSFETs. The "black metal capacitor" part made me laugh, hows that supposed to tell me their caps are superior. At least they used TIs brand name NexFET for the MOSFETs, so that actually does sound good.

So I think I understand now, if I really plan on pushing it the superior voltage controller in the Hero would be worthwhile. Now I got to decide how interested I am in pushing it. If I really want to push it I'll need a higher end cooler, which ads more cost all around.

Thanks for the help.

 

[Tradesman1]

Could look at the Hyper 212 EVO, ($35) that's what I used till the CM GTS V8 was finally released ($100), in between the Phantek models are what I normally recommend (another nice feature in the Hero is the audio, which is equal to a good sound card if that is of any interest

 

[printerandgamer]

I was worried the 212 EVO might not cut it for Haswell, but that's a relatively cheap item I could put on the older machine if it doesn't work out.

One last question, is the 15$ discount on newegg a "sale" or it that part of the normal prices coming down. I was planning on waiting a little longer since the other items like SSDs and graphics cards get good deals for black friday/cyber Monday.

 

[Tradesman1]

I think the 212 is good to running about 4.4 on my 4770K, I run it higher and run it 24/7 so decided to move up a couple notches, I'd go with it and see how it goes

 

[printerandgamer]

Ok, now that I am looking at Asus QVL for memory, it seems a little odd. There are a bunch of part numbers listed that don't actually exist. This Team memory seems to strike a really great price point and performance and is really close to one of the parts on their list.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820313322

Do you think that would work? Any reasons why it would be terrible? I know that the SDs card they sell under the Team brands are awful, but memory tends to be fine once it works for a week.