Gigabyte G1.Sniper M3 LGA 1155 Micro ATX Motherboard Review
Testing Configuration and Benchmarks Used
For our testing today, I have a couple Z77-based motherboards that will help us evaluate and compare micro ATX and full ATX solutions that utilize this chipset. I wasn't able to acquire an Ivy Bridge processor in time to do these reviews, so I'm using one of my Intel Sandy Bridge i5-2500K processors in its place. Our readers should keep this in mind when they are reviewing our benchmark results. Our standard benchmark suite should give us a good indication about what users can expect from the G1.Sniper M3 motherboard in terms of overall performance, gaming, and basic overclocking.
CPU-Z Screenshots
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Test System Setup |
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CPU |
Intel i5-2500K (running at 3.3GHz, 100x33) |
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Motherboards |
Gigabyte G1.Sniper M3 |
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Memory |
Patriot 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3-2000 Dual Channel (Note: We can only use up to 1600Mhz due to chipset limitations) |
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Solid State Drive |
Western Digital Silicon Edge Blue 128GB SATA 3GB/s SSD |
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Sound Card |
Onboard sound |
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Video Card |
XFX Radeon HD 5770 512MB |
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CPU Cooling |
Zalman CNPS12X |
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Video Drivers |
AMD ATI Catalyst 12.6 |
| Power Supply | PC Power and Cooling Silencer 750w |
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DirectX Version |
DX11/ DX10 / DX9c |
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Operating System |
Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit |
Our 64-bit test bench for the LGA 1155 Sandy Bridge and Ivy Bridge processors includes 8 GBs of dual-channel DDR3-2000 memory, an XFX Radeon HD 5770 512MB graphics card, and a Western Digital Silicon Edge Blue 128GB SATA solid state drive for storage. This configuration is based off a mid-range LGA 1155 system and focuses on evaluating the motherboard's capabilities and less on the rest of the hardware components.
Benchmarks used:
- SiSoft Sandra 2012
- CineBench 11.5 64-bit
- Handbrake DVD compression
- 3DMark Vantage
- 3DMark11 Professional
- Crysis 2
- Dirt 3
- PCMark Vantage
PC Perspective Upcoming Events
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It would be nice if the comparison was against the ASUS Maximus V Gene. That way we can see two gaming z77 micro atx boards going head to head.
We are looking to have the board in very soon!!
Did you notice any issues with the audio drivers? Creative is notorious for having a bad(unstable) drivers.
Great thing that mATX market seems to be thriving, and not just limited to ultra-low-end budget office mobos.
I definitely like this review and mATX z77. It would be great if we could push it a bit with a faster cpu/gpu config and then we can compare it to some other boards in its class. Not so sure a 5770 is uh, worthy?, either way good rev, def want to see what this board does with a fast kepler gpu and an IB part.
Thanks again!
I'd definitely like to use a higher-end GPU, but we try to evaluate the motherboard exclusively with mid-range hardware to differientate if the added performance comes from the mobo or the other hardware. =)
I don't understand the market for mATX. Who is looking to make a high end gaming build -- possibly with multiple GPUs -- but has to make it in a very small form factor?!
My personal opinion is the micro ATX form factor caters mostly to LAN party gamers and HTPC builders because it is a smaller form factor that can be used in portable, lower-wattage PCs. They aren't typically used for "high end" gaming PCs, but more for gaming systems with single or dual graphics cards that aren't comparable to ATX-size boards with higher-end specs.
Steve - Was there contact between the CNPS12X cooler and video card? Is that why the 5770 was installed in the middle PCI express slot (x4) rather than the top PCI express x16 slot? I ask because I have this motherboard and am thinking of getting the same cooler. Any help would appreciated. Thanks
It says right on the motherboard PCIEX16, 4 and 8 - not 2x16 and 1x8.
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