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Started by notneps | | 5 answers
Motherboard question (and general build review)
Hi, I'm building this, but I want to run the build with the amazing minds here at Tom's Hardware before I actually dip into my wallet.

Intel Core i5-4670K
Cooler Master V8 GTS cpu cooler
ASUS Z97-A Motherboard
Gskill Ripjaws 8GB (2x4GB)
EVGA GTX 750 TI 2GB GDDR5 128bit
Cooler Master GX650W 80+BRONZE power supply
Corsair Carbide 300R windowed case
120GB Kingston SSD
Several 2.5" used laptop hard drives

While I'm pretty decided on most of the components, I'm REALLY open to suggestions on the motherboard. I chose ASUS basically because I owned an ASUS laptop for a period of time that impressed me, and they seem to have pretty nice reviews. But I was also considering the following options:

MSI H97M-G43 - cheaper, but as a buyer I possess this flaw where I eye anything cheap with suspicion

MSI Z97 GAMING 3 - looks cool, and the black and red totally goes with the other parts. But unless it's better than the ASUS I probably don't want to sacrifice quality for looks

GIGABYTE GA-Z97X-GAMING 3 - Unfamiliar with Gigabyte, so wasn't very enthusiastic about it, priced insigificantly higher than the MSI Z97 Gaming 3

MSI Z97 GAMING 7 - pretty expensive and laden with features I won't be using, so probably not unless I learn of a very good reason to go with it

I'll be using the machine for work, browsing and movies mostly. Some "mild" gaming, probably be playing some old Source games like HL2, Left4Dead, some Civ V, SC2, but nothing intense, hence the GTX 750 Ti. If I did my research right the 750 Ti should be enough to power dual-1080p. As for overclocking, I plan on overclocking some, but nothing that would require liquid cooling to keep stable.

So, TL;DR version:

Is the ASUS motherboard a good choice or are any of the four I mentioned better?

Is my build optimal for mild overclocking?

Is the general build all right?
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a b V Motherboard
September 11, 2014 3:09:49 AM

How does this look? The Extreme4 is a great quality motherboard that will suit your needs. The PSU is made by Super Flower which are one of the best PSU makers. The MX100 is a great budget SSD, I assume you'll be using the laptop drives for storage. The EVO should be enough for your overclocking needs, and if you decide you really want to push the CPU later you can always upgrade. The 280x is the AMD equivalent to the GTX 770. Save a lot of money by just purchasing the GPU once.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($209.99 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($28.66 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock Z97 EXTREME4 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($128.79 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial MX100 128GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($73.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 280X 3GB Tri-X Video Card ($261.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair 300R ATX Mid Tower Case ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Rosewill Capstone 650W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-14 DVD/CD Writer ($12.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($87.98 @ OutletPC)
Total: $1004.35
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-09-11 06:06 EDT-0400
September 11, 2014 3:01:13 AM

byza said:
I'll put something together for you, just have a few more questions. Does the budget include OS, monitors, KB or mouse?


Nope, $1000 not including peripherals.
a b V Motherboard
September 11, 2014 2:56:01 AM

I'll put something together for you, just have a few more questions. Does the budget include OS, monitors, KB or mouse?
September 11, 2014 2:53:39 AM

byza said:
What is your budget? If this is for gaming it could use a few improvements. What other uses will it be used for? Browsing, email, editing?


I plan to upgrade to a GTX 770 (or two) eventually. But for now, it'll be used for mostly browsing, Photoshop, movies, office stuff, etc. No video encoding, 3D model rendering, nothing too taxing. As for gaming, yes, I guess yeah, a few games that that 750 Ti should be handle.

As for budget, I'm trying to keep the entire system under $1000. Any suggestions on how I can improve it?
a b V Motherboard
September 11, 2014 12:48:16 AM

What is your budget? If this is for gaming it could use a few improvements. What other uses will it be used for? Browsing, email, editing?

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