ASUS' P8Z77V-Pro; trimming the cost without paring off the features

Subject: Motherboards | August 21, 2012 - 06:52 PM | Jeremy Hellstrom
Tagged: asus, P8Z77-V Pro

At $208 the ASUS P8Z77-Pro might surprise you, with three PCIe 3.0 16x slots (dual GPUs are limited to 8x speeds), two of both PCIe 1x and legacy PCI slots, four each of SATA2 and SATA 6Gbps ports, eight USB 2.0 ports, a half dozen USB 3.0 ports and built in WiFi it is not exactly a basic Z77 board. It does suffer from the common ailment of Z77/Ivy Bridge systems, the overclocking potential is good but not excellent, though it was rock solid at the 4.79GHz that [H]ard|OCP managed to push it to. ASUS does offer better Z77 boards at higher prices for the hard core enthusiasts which may be why this board didn't pick up an award. For those not looking to overclock much and would rather save a few dollars the P8Z77-Pro is a solid contender for your hard earned money.

"The P8Z77-V Pro is a perfect example of how powerful the ASUS P8xxx series is and what it has to offer. While many would consider it a stripped down model, it is anything but. While not as feature rich as some in the series, the P8Z77-V Pro does have a lot to offer, especially given its price point."

Here are some more Motherboard articles from around the web:

Motherboards

Source: [H]ard|OCP

MSI MPower Motherboard Q&A - Ask your questions!!

Subject: Editorial, Motherboards | August 21, 2012 - 10:18 AM | Ryan Shrout
Tagged: Z77, msi, mpower, live

Tomorrow on our PC Perspective Live! channel we are going to be hosting MSI's Alex Chang, the man in charge of product marketing for motherboards and GPUs - so you'll definitely want to stop by and see what he has to say! In preparation for his visit we wanted to give our readers a chance to ask some questions about the new product line coming from MSI, the MPower motherboards.

Starting with the Z77 model that has been teased at various locations (including our own PC Perspective Hardware Workshop at Quakecon 2012), the MPower motherboards will be doing some unique things like extending warranties to overclockers and running overclocking tests on EACH motherboard board it ships to retailers. Here is a quick note from MSI on the topic:

MPower introduces a 24-hour burn-in test that is one of a kind. Electronic components are manufactured on an assembly line and then statistical sampling is used to ensure quality of construction. Every MPower board is tested using a full Prime95 burn-in test for 24 hours under a heavy overclock.

While you can probably reproduce this yourself in the comfort of your own home, MSI basically is doing this at the factory level to ensure every single board performs at the highest level. Not only are we changing the game of overclocking, but we’re also ensuring consistent and enduring performance from a desktop mainboard.

MSI has posted some new information on its website recently as well including some details on the overclocking burn-in tests:

OC Certified is MSI's OC testing procedure where Z77 MPOWER mainboards tested for stability with a 24-hour Prime95 stress test. OC Certified test a mainboard in three key areas:
• Higher Performance
• Enhanced PWM Cooling
• Better Power Stability

Higher Performance means all OC Certified tests are run at 4.6 GHz CPU speed. The Enhanced PWM Cooling test ensures that, even without airflow in a high-temperature room (30°C) without airflow from a CPU cooler. Better Power Stability is tested by running Prime95 for 24-hours in these conditions.

I would imagine that you have some questions about the product - its features, its new warranty, the overclocking capability for it, etc. and we want to offer you the chance to ASK those questions of MSI directly.

You can comment on our post here (no registration is required) and then join us tomorrow at 1pm ET / 10am PT for the LIVE discussion and presentation of the MSI MPower Z77 motherboard. We will have some prizes for those of you that ask the best questions so be sure to get your question in EARLY!

Source: PC Perspective

Intel brings skulls back to the motherboard with the DZ77GA-70K

Subject: Motherboards | August 13, 2012 - 04:26 PM | Jeremy Hellstrom
Tagged: lga 1155, Intel, DZ77GA-70K

The DZ77GA-70K is not exactly the rebirth of Intel's SkullTrail series but it certainly does bear similar branding. Instead it is a high end Z77 based board which features integral Bluetooth and WiFi, 8 USB 3.0 ports, three PCIe 3.0 16x slots, a pair of PCIe 1x slots and even two PCI slots. [H]ard|OCP liked the UEFI BIOS that Intel has included, though they feel it is lacking in the overclocking settings you would expect from an 'Extreme Motherboard'. They have only good things to say about the stability of the board, so if you need a rock solid system with a lot of expansion capabilities more than you need a good overclocker, this might be the board for you.

"We'll be taking a look at one of Intel's motherboards today, specifically the Intel DZ77GA-70K which is part of its Extreme Motherboard series. How can you tell it's an extreme motherboard? Why it has a skull on it of course! All kidding aside there is more to the DZ77GA-70K than just marketing."

Here are some more Motherboard articles from around the web:

Motherboards

Source: [H]ard|OCP

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PC Perspective Hardware Workshop 2012 @ Quakecon 2012 in Dallas, TX

Subject: Editorial, General Tech, Graphics Cards, Motherboards, Cases and Cooling, Processors, Memory, Systems, Storage, Mobile, Shows and Expos | August 9, 2012 - 10:30 PM | Ryan Shrout
Tagged: video, workshop, streaming, quakecon, prizes, live, giveaways

It is that time of year again: another installment of the PC Perspective Hardware Workshop! Once again we will be presenting on the main stage at Quakecon 2012 being held in Dallas, TX August 2-5th.

Main Stage - Quakecon 2012

Saturday, August 4th, 2pm CT

Our thanks go out to the organizers of Quakecon for allowing us and our partners to put together a show that we are proud of every year. We love giving back to the community of enthusiasts and gamers that drive us to do what we do! Get ready for 2 hours of prizes, games and raffles and the chances are pretty good that you'll take something out with you - really, they are pretty good!

Our thanks for this year's workshop logo goes to John Pastor!!

Our primary partners at the event are those that threw in for our ability to host the workshop at Quakecon and for the hundreds of shirts we have ready to toss out! Our thanks to NVIDIA, MSI Computer and Corsair!!

Live Streaming

If you can't make it to the workshop - don't worry! You can still watch the workshop live on our page right here as we stream it over one of several online services. Just remember this URL: http://pcper.com/workshop and you will find your way!

Case Mod Competition

Along with the Hardware Workshop, PC Perspective is working with Modders Inc on the annual case mod contest! There are two categories for the competition: "Scratch Built" and "In the Box" that will allow those that build their computer enclosures from the ground up to compete separately from those that heavily modify their existing cases and systems.

For more details, be sure to check out the on going thread at the Modders Inc Forums!

Prize List (will continue to grow!)

Continue reading to see the list of prizes for the workshop!!!

Source: PCPer

Gigabyte Unveils GA-H77N-WIFI Mini-ITX Motherboard

Subject: General Tech, Graphics Cards, Motherboards, Cases and Cooling, Processors, Chipsets, Memory, Displays | August 7, 2012 - 10:07 AM | Tim Verry
Tagged: Z77, motherboard, mini-itx, Intel, gigabyte, ga-h77n-wifi

During a European roadshow, Gigabyte showed off a new Mini-ITX form factor motherboard for the first time. Called the GA-H77N-WIFI, the motherboard is well suited for home theater and home server tasks. Based on the H77 chipset, it is compatible with the latest Intel Core i3 (coming soon), i5, and i7 "Ivy Bridge" processors. The board goes for an all-black PCB with minimal heatsinks on the VRMs, and the form factor is the same size as the motherboard that Ryan recently used in his Mini-ITX HTPC build.

The GA-H77N-WIFI features a LGA 1155 processor socket, two DDR3 DIMM slots, PCI Express slot, two SATA 3Gbps ports, two SATA 6Gbps ports, and an internal USB 3.0 header. There are also two Realtek Ethernet controller chips and a Realtek audio chip.

Rear IO on the Mini-ITX motherboard includes:

1 PS/2 port
2 USB 3.0 ports
2 HDMI ports
1 DVI port
2 Antenna connectors (WIFI)
4 USB 2.0 ports
2 Gigabit Ethernet ports
1 Optical S/PDIF port
5 Analog audio jacks

The dual Gigabit Ethernet ports are interesting. It could easily be loaded with open source routing software and turned into router/firewall/Wi-Fi access point. To really take advantage of the Ivy Bridge support, you could put together a nice media server and HTPC recording/streaming box (using something like SiliconDust's HDHomeRun networked tuners or Ceton's USB tuner since this board is very scarce in the way of PCI-E slots). What would you do with this Mini-ITX Gigabyte board?

Unfortunately, there is no word yet on pricing or availability, but the motherboard is likely coming soon. You can find more information on the motherboard over at tonymacx86, who managed to snag get some photos of the board.

Source: Tony Mac X86

Gigabyte has a new Ivy Bridge motherboard; introducing the B75M-D3H

Subject: Motherboards | August 3, 2012 - 06:41 PM | Jeremy Hellstrom
Tagged: gigabyte, lga 1155, b75, b75m-dh3

At first glance the Gigabyte B75M-DH3 looks to have a typo as you would expect a Gigabyte board to start with the letter G and contain upwards of 11 numbers and letters afterwards, but this name indicates it is using the B75 Express chipset. That means full Ivy Bridge support, with a PCIe 3.0 16x slot, a pair of SATA 6Gbps ports and four USB 3.0 ports and it also sports Gigabyte's Ultra Durable 4 technology and a UEFI BIOS. Since this is a business oriented board it lacks some of the overclocking ability common to enthusiast boards and TechPowerUp found the back panel to be a little sparse, however at $80 this is a solid choice for any budget minded tech looking to put together an Ivy Bridge system.

"Gigabyte sent me one of their entry-level products to check out, called the B75M-D3H. Yet make no mistake, just because this product is value-oriented, does not mean it by any means cheap! What makes Gigabyte's B75M-D3H so great? We'll find out in our review."

Here are some more Motherboard articles from around the web:

Motherboards

Source: TechPowerUp

Gigabyte Z77X-UP7 Delivers Up To 2000W of CPU Power.

Subject: Motherboards | July 31, 2012 - 06:46 AM | Tim Verry
Tagged: Z77, ultra durable 5, power phase, overclocking, Gigabyte Z77X-UP7, gigabyte

Motherboard manufacturers are well-versed in marketing, and over-engineering. And when those two aspects combine, enthusiasts get some really cool feats of hardware overkill. Computex brought us two radical motherboard designs, for example. Gigabyte is at it again, and this time it is showing off the prowess of the company’s power phase design.

Using one of the company’s upcoming Z77 motherboards, Gigabyte was able to deliver 2,000 Watts of power through the LGA 1155 socket--did I mention overkill was the name of the game for this demonstration?

Specifically, Gigabyte paired its Z77X-UP7 motherboard with two Corsair 1200W power supplies and some laboratory gear to measure the power delivery. Using the 32 power phases in its “Ultra Durable 5” design, it was able to draw 300.6A, 300.7A, and 236.3A on three DC load testers. While drawing the total 837.6 amps, Gigabyte used a voltage meter to measure the current at 2.42 volts. Gigabyte then determined that the Z77 motherboard was able to deliver up to 2026.992 watts of power! The company claims that this would be enough power to support 25 Intel Core i7 3770K processors. It would also easily allow you to permanently destroy your processors, and really put that Intel overclocking warranty to the test (heh).

Needless to say, the board has some serious power phase and VRM hardware on board, and should easily handle the most extreme of overclocks. Granted, it is a marketing stunt, but it is a very cool one at that. As one area where motherboard companies heavily market, Gigabyte has quite the record for the others to beat. Here’s hoping that they attempt to break the record so that we can see more interesting tech demos. Maybe ASUS will bring out the Wolverine from the R&D lab, and see what its 40 power phases are really capable of!

What do you think about the Gigabyte claims? Below is the video that the company used to show off the Z77X-UP7 motherboard.

Source: Eteknix

Comments (0)

ECS Motherboard First to Support AMD Memory Profiles (AMP)

Subject: Motherboards | July 23, 2012 - 05:32 PM | Tim Verry
Tagged: motherboard, memory profile, memory, ECS, amp, amd

Elitegroup Computer Systems (ECS) recently announced its support for the new AMD Memory Profile (AMP) technology. The A85F2-A Deluxe will be the first of the company’s motherboards to support AMP.

AMP is AMD’s version of Intel Extreme Memory Profiles (XMP) which amounts to known-safe automatic overclock settings. The AMP profiles are stored in the DDR3 memory modules and can be read by supporting motherboards. Now knowing the proper voltage, CAS latencies, and timings to use, the motherboard can ideally automatically configure the modules to run at optimal speeds.

The setting will be able to be enabled/disabled in the BIOS of the new ECS motherboard, as shown in the screenshot below. According to its press release, ECS is the first company to integrate AMD Memory Profile support into its motherboards, and it is honored to lead the charge. “Making a unique and glory prominent product is the only purpose for ECS.”

Here’s hoping the implementation works well and is more accurate than my experience with XMP profiles has been! Will you be using AMP in your AMD builds?

Source: ECS

Comments (0)

ASUS' new flagship, the P8Z77-V Premium

Subject: Motherboards | July 12, 2012 - 06:50 PM | Jeremy Hellstrom
Tagged: asus, p8z77-v premium, thunderbolt

As we mentioned on the PC Perspective Podcast ASUS has a new ultra high end motherboard on the market, the P8Z77-V Premium for the low price of $440. There are four PCIe 3.0 16x slots, capable of running two cards at full speed or four at 8x speeds as well as a pair of PCIe 2.0 1x slots. There are a half dozen of both flavours of USB ports and SATA 6Gbps ports as well as SATA2 and eSATA ports but the big connectivity feature is Thunderbolt. The feature set is almost endless, up to and including an onboard 32GB SSD and it seems that the only thing this board cannot do much better than the competition is overclock. That is not to say you cannot overclock this board, only that the overclocking potential was lower than other Z77 boards from ASUS that [H]ard|OCP tested. If you can afford the price, you will not find a more impressive Z77 motherboard on the market.

"It’s been awhile since we’ve seen the "Premium" moniker on any ASUS boards. ASUS reserves this for boards with truly premium features that set these apart from the rest of the product line. The end result is usually a complex product with more features than most people will ever need. Let's find out just how premium the P8Z77-V Premium truly is."

Here are some more Motherboard articles from around the web:

Motherboards

Source: [H]ard|OCP

GIGABYTE Launches World’s First Fully Certified Dual Port Thunderbolt Motherboards

Subject: Motherboards | July 5, 2012 - 01:26 PM | Jeremy Hellstrom
Tagged: gigabyte, thunderbolt, Z77X-UP5 TH, Z77X-UP4 TH, Z77MX-D3H TH, ultra durable 5

Double Thunderbolt, what does it mean? It means that properly set up, the two Thunderbolt ports can power up to 12 devices and 2 digital displays simultaneously, with a third display possible from a dedicated video out port on your motherboards header. Both Thunderbolt ports offer a bi-directional 10Gbps data pipeline that includes both PCIe and DisplayPort traffic, which can be intelligently shared by the devices attached to the interface. Gigabyte is offering three models of motherboard with this feature, in addition to their standard additional features such as UltraDurable components, which you can read about below.

Taipei, Taiwan, July 5th, 2012 – GIGABYTE TECHNOLOGY Co. Ltd., a leading manufacturer of motherboards and graphics cards, today announced the latest GIGABYTE 7 series motherboards, the very first to offer fully certified dual onboard Thunderbolt™ ports. Capable of connecting up to 12 devices plus 3 digital displays simultaneously, with breathtaking data transfer speeds that can transfer 1TB of data in only five minutes, GIGABYTE Thunderbolt™ motherboards offer the fastest connection interface ever on the desktop PC.

GIGABYTE Thunderbolt™ motherboards allow users to daisy chain up to 12 devices simultaneously via an incredible bi-directional 10Gbps data pipeline that includes both PCIe and DisplayPort traffic. GIGABYTE Thunderbolt™ motherboards redefine desktop PC connectivity to make it far easier to connect multiple high speed storage devices and HD displays to your PC than ever before.

“It’s easy to see how our unique dual port Thunderbolt implementation simply offers more,” commented Henry Kao, Vice President of GIGABYTE Motherboard Business Unit. “We’re the only motherboard vendor currently offering DIY PC builders the absolute maximum in terms of device connectivity.”

“Thunderbolt technology represents a leap in performance and simplicity for media creators and entertainment enthusiasts,” says Jason Ziller, Intel’s director of Thunderbolt marketing. “We are pleased to be working with GIGABYTE as they bring the first dual Thunderbolt port motherboard to market. It’s a great example of what Thunderbolt makes possible.”

GIGABYTE Dual Thunderbolt™ motherboards open up a wealth of new possibilities regarding high-performance storage devices. GIGABYTE has worked closely with several leading device partners, including Promise® Technology, LaCie, BlackMagic, Western Digital, Seagate, Elgato, CalDigit and cable manufacturer Sumitomo:

“Working with GIGABYTE has been very exciting,” said Kosta Panagos, Director of Creative Marketing, at CalDigit. “GIGABYTE’s new line of Intel 7 series motherboards featuring dual Thunderbolt ports, will usher in a new era of flexibility to the PC platform. It is also a perfect match with CalDigit's new T1 and T2 Thunderbolt drives which provide professional level performance on all platforms at consumer prices, a feat that was previously unattainable, thanks to GIGABYTE and Thunderbolt technology.”

“GIGABYTE’s new dual port Thunderbolt motherboards are an exciting innovation, giving incredible performance and are perfect for video and film professionals using Thunderbolt and the PC,” said Grant Petty, CEO, Blackmagic Design. “Customers using our wide range of Thunderbolt devices will now be able to choose to work in whatever format they need, giving them the flexibility to build whatever production and post production workflow they need.”

"In line with GIGABYTE and its dual on board Thunderbolt ports, WD's My Book® Thunderbolt™ Duo offers dual Thunderbolt ports for amazing creative flexibility while allowing daisy-chaining of up to six My Book Thunderbolt Duo drives or other high performance peripherals for fast and efficient workflow," said Craig Davis, Director Sales & Marketing, Retail Division, Western Digital Asia Pacific & Japan Region.

“Thunderbolt technology is a fantastic way to deliver both data and display via one interface. It provides unparalleled performance and plenty of flexibility,” said Leo Paskin, Product Marketing Manager at Seagate. “With the ability to daisy chain up to 12 devices on GIGABYTE’s new dual port Thunderbolt motherboards, you can turn a desktop PC into a central device hub by plugging in a single cable!"

“As the first Intel certified cable vendor, Sumitomo is delighted to see GIGABYTE bring the first dual port Thunderbolt motherboard to market, creating the ultimate connectivity for desktop PCs, commented Motoi Matsuo. “These new Thunderbolt motherboards are also the perfect fit for Sumitomo’s exclusive high speed 20m optical cables.”

"Thanks to their dual Thunderbolt™ ports, Gigabyte's new 7 series motherboards deliver unbeatable flexibility", says Adam Steinberg, Vice President Marketing at Elgato. "The unique dual port feature enables users to combine multiple portable Thunderbolt™ devices like the powerful Elgato Thunderbolt™ SSD."

“LaCie is pleased to see GIGABYTE announce Thunderbolt technology on their lasted motherboards,” said Erwan Girard, Professional Business Unit Manager, LaCie. “The time is now for demanding PC users, especially digital content creators, to experience the unprecedented speeds and advantages enabled by Thunderbolt Technology. The desire for computers and peripherals to keep up with their work flow is a concern of the past.”

Dual Thunderbolt™ - Fast, Flexible and Simple Connectivity for your Motherboard
GIGABYTE Thunderbolt™ motherboards are the first to be certified by Intel featuring dual Thunderbolt™ ports directly on the motherboard back panel I/O, with each Thunderbolt™ port supporting a maximum data transfer speeds with simultaneous bi-directional data transfer at speeds of up to 10Gbps - this means you can transfer a full HD 1080p movie in under 30 seconds.

GIGABYTE’s dual port Thunderbolt™ implementation ensures the absolute maximum potential connectivity, with support to connect up to 12 individual devices simultaneously, with each port offering full 10Gbps bandwidth.

Thunderbolt™ combines both DisplayPort and PCI Express protocols over a single cable so that users can connect a multitude of device types in tandem with HD streaming video and 8-channel audio, simultaneously in one specially developed cable. Users can also enjoy improved flexibility by ‘daisy-chaining’ several devices while still enjoying low latency and industry-leading data transfer speeds.

GIGABYTE Thunderbolt™ Motherboards Models
Dual Thunderbolt™ Ports are featured on the following GIGABYTE motherboard models:

Source: Gigabyte

Subject: Motherboards | August 21, 2012 - 06:52 PM | Jeremy Hellstrom Tagged: asus, P8Z77-V Pro

Subject: Editorial, Motherboards | August 21, 2012 - 10:18 AM | Ryan Shrout Tagged: Z77, msi, mpower, live

Subject: Motherboards | August 13, 2012 - 04:26 PM | Jeremy Hellstrom Tagged: lga 1155, Intel, DZ77GA-70K

Subject: Editorial, General Tech, Graphics Cards, Motherboards, Cases and Cooling, Processors, Memory, Systems, Storage, Mobile, Shows and Expos | August 9, 2012 - 10:30 PM | Ryan Shrout Tagged: video, workshop, streaming, quakecon, prizes, live, giveaways

Main Stage - Quakecon 2012

Saturday, August 4th, 2pm CT

Subject: General Tech, Graphics Cards, Motherboards, Cases and Cooling, Processors, Chipsets, Memory, Displays | August 7, 2012 - 10:07 AM | Tim Verry Tagged: Z77, motherboard, mini-itx, Intel, gigabyte, ga-h77n-wifi

Subject: Motherboards | August 3, 2012 - 06:41 PM | Jeremy Hellstrom Tagged: gigabyte, lga 1155, b75, b75m-dh3

Subject: Motherboards | July 31, 2012 - 06:46 AM | Tim Verry Tagged: Z77, ultra durable 5, power phase, overclocking, Gigabyte Z77X-UP7, gigabyte

Subject: Motherboards | July 23, 2012 - 05:32 PM | Tim Verry Tagged: motherboard, memory profile, memory, ECS, amp, amd

Subject: Motherboards | July 12, 2012 - 06:50 PM | Jeremy Hellstrom Tagged: asus, p8z77-v premium, thunderbolt

Subject: Motherboards | July 5, 2012 - 01:26 PM | Jeremy Hellstrom Tagged: gigabyte, thunderbolt, Z77X-UP5 TH, Z77X-UP4 TH, Z77MX-D3H TH, ultra durable 5

Subject: Motherboards | August 21, 2012 - 06:52 PM | Jeremy Hellstrom
Tagged: asus, P8Z77-V Pro

Subject: Editorial, Motherboards | August 21, 2012 - 10:18 AM | Ryan Shrout
Tagged: Z77, msi, mpower, live

Subject: Motherboards | August 13, 2012 - 04:26 PM | Jeremy Hellstrom
Tagged: lga 1155, Intel, DZ77GA-70K

Subject: Editorial, General Tech, Graphics Cards, Motherboards, Cases and Cooling, Processors, Memory, Systems, Storage, Mobile, Shows and Expos | August 9, 2012 - 10:30 PM | Ryan Shrout
Tagged: video, workshop, streaming, quakecon, prizes, live, giveaways

Subject: General Tech, Graphics Cards, Motherboards, Cases and Cooling, Processors, Chipsets, Memory, Displays | August 7, 2012 - 10:07 AM | Tim Verry
Tagged: Z77, motherboard, mini-itx, Intel, gigabyte, ga-h77n-wifi

Subject: Motherboards | August 3, 2012 - 06:41 PM | Jeremy Hellstrom
Tagged: gigabyte, lga 1155, b75, b75m-dh3

Subject: Motherboards | July 31, 2012 - 06:46 AM | Tim Verry
Tagged: Z77, ultra durable 5, power phase, overclocking, Gigabyte Z77X-UP7, gigabyte

Subject: Motherboards | July 23, 2012 - 05:32 PM | Tim Verry
Tagged: motherboard, memory profile, memory, ECS, amp, amd

Subject: Motherboards | July 12, 2012 - 06:50 PM | Jeremy Hellstrom
Tagged: asus, p8z77-v premium, thunderbolt

Subject: Motherboards | July 5, 2012 - 01:26 PM | Jeremy Hellstrom
Tagged: gigabyte, thunderbolt, Z77X-UP5 TH, Z77X-UP4 TH, Z77MX-D3H TH, ultra durable 5