Introduction and Technical Specifications
The Z97 Classified motherboard is the premier board in EVGA’s Z97 chipset line up, featuring enhancements geared to get you the most from your LGA1150-based processor…
Introduction
Courtesy of EVGA
The Z97 Classified motherboard is among EVGA's newest offerings in their Intel Z97 line of products. EVGA improved upon their previous revision Classified boards, adding in support for 5th generation Intel Core processors through integration with the Intel Z97 chipset. Most flagship motherboard command a premium price with the Z97 Classified being no exception. It's $379.99 MSRP may price it out of reach for many enthusiasts, but its integrated components and overclocking-friendly features more than justify the price.
Courtesy of EVGA
EVGA designed the Z97 Classified board with an 8-phase digital power delivery system for the CPU, ensuring a stable system under any operational conditions. The Z97 Classified has the following integrated features: eight SATA 3 ports; an mSATA/mPCI-E port; dual Intel GigE NIC ports; five PCI-Express x16 slots; a PCI-Express x1 slot; 2-digit diagnostic LED display; on-board power, reset, and dual CMOS clear buttons; triple BIOS switche; PCIe disable switch jumper block; integrated EZ Voltage measurement points; and USB 2.0 and 3.0 port support.
Courtesy of EVGA
Technical Specifications (taken from the EVGA website and documentation)
CPU Support | Supported CPUs – Intel 4th and 5th Generation Socket 1150 Processors Socket Type – LGA1150 PCH – Intel Z9 |
Memory | 4 x 240-pin DIMM sockets Maximum of 32GB of DDR3 (2666MHz+ in dual channel configuration) |
Storage I/O | 8 x Serial ATA 600MB/sec (8 Internal) with support for RAID 0 and RAID1 6 / Z97 PCH 2 / Marvell 9220 |
USB | USB 2.0 Ports/Controller – 6 / Intel Z97 PCH USB 3.0 Ports/Controller – 6 / Intel Z97 PCH |
LAN | Network Speed – 10/100/1000 Network Ports/Controller – 2 / Intel i217/i210 |
Integrated Peripherals | Audio – 6 Channel Audio Controller – Creative Sound Core3D Quad-Core Audio Processor + Optical PCI-E Slot Arrangement – 1×16,2×16,3×8,4×8 PCI-E Mechanical Slots – 5 PCI-E x1 Slots – 1 mPCI-E/mSATA – 1 |
BIOS | BIOS Type – AMI / UEFI |
Form Factor | EATX Form Factor Length: 12in – 304.8mm Width: 10.375in – 263.5mm |
Operating System Support | Windows 8 32/64bit Windows 7 32/64bit Windows Vista 32/64bit Windows XP 32/64bit |
Can you please talk about
Can you please talk about motherboard support for DDR4?
Reports are that DDR4 is available in Japan now.
http://www.tweaktown.com/news/38609/ddr4-ram-hits-japan-retail-shelves-16gb-and-32gb-modules-available/index.html
I pretty much refuse to upgrade my mobo without DDR4 support.
DDR4 will require a new
DDR4 will require a new processor architecture and new chipset. That will not be occuring with the Z97 platform.
When will we see DDR4 on
When will we see DDR4 on mainstream boards.
Whenever Skylake comes out,
Whenever Skylake comes out, sometime in 2015 if the leaked roadmap holds up.
Haswell-E (X99 Chipset) will
Haswell-E (X99 Chipset) will have quad-channel DDR4 support. It is scheduled for release Q3 2014.
It seems that EVGA still has
It seems that EVGA still has a ways to go with its motherboards before it’s on Asus’ level.
Aesthetically-speaking, it is
Aesthetically-speaking, it is a nice looking board though. And it performs well once its dialed in…
Quite a few connectors
Quite a few connectors oriented 90 degrees to face the edge of the motherboard. This has to be one of the first implementations of 24pin ATX in this way.
The 90 Degree ATX came about
The 90 Degree ATX came about during a phone call between myself and Jacob while I was working at OCZ in their development labs. I had all sorts of motherboard ideas that OCZ would never get around to doing after we decided NOT to get into the motherboard-marketing game. I am glad Jacob ran with the 90 Degree ATX.
And the sideways connectors
And the sideways connectors has been around since their Z68 series of stuff. Z68 FTW was first with it.
“would have detrimental
“would have detrimental effects on the board’s long term health or use.”
Is that supposed to be (would not have) ?
Thanks for pointing that out,
Thanks for pointing that out, its been corrected…
You missed one strong point
You missed one strong point on this one.
There is only few boards that can do triple SLI with one space between cards; or triple SLI with three slot cards.
I have ASRock 3-Way-SLI 2S2S bridge.
So can this board do SLI with 1-3-6 PCI-e slots?
Next, Dolby Digital Live / DTS Connect.
I think that not all Core3D boards support this.
Manufacturers must pay for this option.
So can this board do Dolby Digital Live / DTS Connect?
Cheers
I don’t believe it can. I
I don’t believe it can. I have a board with a similar layout. Morry can correct me if I’m wrong, but on my board (a z77 board), the third PCI-e does not use the PLX chip, where as the 2,4,and 6 slots do. Once i put anything in those slots, the third slot is deactivated. This board may behave the same way.
Concerning the PCIe X16
Concerning the PCIe X16 ports, any of the five ports can be used with the following bandwidth constraints (per the product manual):
PCI-E Lane Distribution
PE1 – x16 (x8 if PE2 is used)
PE2 – x16 (x8 if PE3 is used)
PE3 – x8
PE4 – x16 (x8 if PE6 is used)
PE5 – x1
PE6 – x8
Thanks…
Just heard back from our
Just heard back from our corporate rep on this – the board does not support Dolby Digital Live / DTS unfortunately…
Hello,
By chance would you
Hello,
By chance would you still have around the ASRock 3-Way-SLI 2S2S bridge without using it? I have been looking for it for a while without success.
Thanks a lot in advance for your kind help.
Earlier in the thread it was
Earlier in the thread it was stated this board does Quad SLI but you really mean 4 way SLI correct? I was checking the spec sheet and there is no mention of Quad SLI ie two dual gpu cards in SLI only using two slots. I have two Asus Mars 760 dual gpu cards and want to use them on this board as you have a better layout for my needs with the 8 sata ports and msata port available. So my first question is QuadSLI supported?
Second question: Can the marvell se9220 controller be used for a bootable array? I need to run all 8 ports, 2 for os, 6 for a massive storage array/scratch disk, and the msata for temporary download storage. I currently only have 5 and need more space/throughput and will probably use at least one other expansion slot for an extra video card to run my television for the wife and kids, I don’t have cable so I stream and download everything. lol 🙂
Thank you!