ASRock X99M Extreme4 And Fatal1ty X99M Killer Review
ASRock is ready to take on EVGA in the battle for enthusiast-oriented microATX motherboards. Can the company best known for value conquer its gaming-centric competitor in overclocking and features, or will this be a pure pricing play?
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Does ASRock Have Better Value?
When we compare added features between ASRock’s $231 X99M Extreme4 and EVGA’s $249 X99 Micro, we come up with a virtual wash. ASRock adds a second network controller while EVGA adds USB 3.0, and the X99M Extreme4 is cheaper.
We can only recommend EVGA's X99 Micro to those who really want to run DDR4-3000, because everyone else will find better value in ASRock's X99M Extreme4. But what about the company's sibling product, the Fatal1ty X99M Killer?
At $250, the Fatal1ty X99M Killer outperforms the X99 Micro barely enough to overcome its $1 price penalty. That’s insignificant. It also adds a Killer E2200 PCIe network controller in the secondary position, beating the specs of other products in the above comparison (though this is probably significant to only a small portion of buyers). It also includes three months of premium XSplit service, which itself only matters to gamers already interested in the service. At a minimum, the features and services that some buyers want are worth more than its price difference.
Either of ASRock’s X99M series is capable of standing up to, and even dethroning EVGA’s X99 Micro in value. Because the X99M Extreme4 has the most value for most users, I’m even giving it our value award!
Because the Fatal1ty X99M Killer’s enhanced network controller and temporary software license will appeal only to a select few builders, I’m labeling it with our stamp of approval.
ASRock X99M Extreme4
ASRock Fatal1ty X99M Killer
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Crashman 14730663 said:Just a quick error,
Chipset for all X99 boards is listed as Z97
Fixed, thanks. In case you're wondering, that type of error occurs from continuously recycling tables. -
HideOut To bad the killer model seems to suffer a high markup at amazon according to the green link.Reply -
Lutfij Nice work Thomas! Guess you were sitting on this board in your lab for some time now huh ? :D :)Reply
Anyways, good writeup and keep em coming. Now to find someone crazy enough to shell out on a X99 platform inside an N200 ... hmmm. -
Crashman 14733470 said:Nice work Thomas! Guess you were sitting on this board in your lab for some time now huh ? :D :)
Anyways, good writeup and keep em coming. Now to find someone crazy enough to shell out on a X99 platform inside an N200 ... hmmm.
It takes a couple weeks to get stuff published, unless there's an NDA and everyone puts everything else to the side. These would be among the stuff put to the side though :(
At least you knew it was coming :) -
Mac266 14730952 said:
Fixed, thanks. In case you're wondering, that type of error occurs from continuously recycling tables.
Onya Crash. Nice review as well. -
m32 The ASRock Fatal1ty X99M Killer LGA 2011-v3 is selling for $250 ($230 AMIR) on Newegg. Amazon currently isn't selling it on Amazon, and 3rd parties are known to over mark products.Reply -
RedJaron Tom, what would it take to get ASRock to start putting more 4-pin fan headers on their boards? I love their products, been using a Z68 Ex4 Gen3 for three years and just built a friend's machine on an H97M Pro4. But I love quiet PCs. Having PWM signalling for all the chassis fans, and not just the CPU coolers, means it runs as quiet as possible during web surfing and other downtime.Reply