Is this motherboard compatible with 7th gen intel?

[Clown]

Is the MSI Z170A (https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130871) compatible with an i5-7600k? Sorry, I'm sort of bad when it comes to this stuff and this is my first time building a PC. If it has the same CPU socket does it mean it's compatible? Both are LGA 1151.

[DocSwag]

Yes, but I'd recommend getting a z270 board because you need the newer bios version for the 7600k to be supported and you don't know for sure if the one you'll get has the newer bios.

[Clown]

13 minutes ago, DocSwag said:

Yes, but I'd recommend getting a z270 board because you need the newer bios version for the 7600k to be supported and you don't know for sure if the one you'll get has the newer bios.

I don't want to spend too much money on this build so would the ASRock H270 Pro4 work? (https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157735&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-PCPartPicker, LLC-_-na-_-na-_-na&cm_sp=&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID) It only supports 2400 MHz RAM though. Does the RAM speed make a significant difference?

[SeanAngelo]

2 minutes ago, Clown said:

I don't want to spend too much money on this build so would the ASRock H270 Pro4 work? (https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157735&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-PCPartPicker, LLC-_-na-_-na-_-na&cm_sp=&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID) It only supports 2400 MHz RAM though. Does the RAM speed make a significant difference?

yeah but you'll lose overclocking support and other good features. if you're gonna get a H270 board, get a non K processor.

[Clown]

8 minutes ago, SeanAngelo said:

yeah but you'll lose overclocking support and other good features. if you're gonna get a H270 board, get a non K processor.

So than is it worth the extra money just for a better motherboard? Thanks for the reply btw.

[DocSwag]

30 minutes ago, Clown said:

So than is it worth the extra money just for a better motherboard? Thanks for the reply btw.

If you wanna overclock, yes.

[Clown]

8 minutes ago, DocSwag said:

If you wanna overclock, yes.

How much could I overclock my CPU and RAM? Also, how difficult is it to do so? Thank you for the reply.

[DocSwag]

1 minute ago, Clown said:

How much could I overclock my CPU and RAM? Also, how difficult is it to do so? Thank you for the reply.

You could probably reach 5 ghz or so if you overclocked your CPU. Idk about ram as it matters from stick to stick but ram frequency shouldn't make much of a difference anyways. At most just get some 3000 MHz sticks and enable XMP in the bios and your ram will be at 3000 MHz. So if you want to "overclock" your ram if it has an XMP profile it's quite easy.

 

As for overclocking your CPU you need some decent cooling first. It isn't too hard but might take a little while. Basically what you do is:

 

1. Start at a frequency like 4.5 ghz and a voltage of 1.34 or so.

2. Run a stress test like Aida 64 for 5 minutes to ensure stablity.

3. If it crashes or your system black screens or something, raise the voltage a little bit (.1 volts or so) and try again.

4. If it succeeds and you are fine with the temps raise the clock speed by .1 ghz and go back to step 2. Otherwise run a stress test for a few hours to make sure they overclock is stable.

 

If you system black screens and won't turn on at all after changing the frequency, you'll need to reset the cmos. This will reset all your overclock settings so make sure you remember the frequency and voltage you had before and add a little voltage this time to make sure it boots successfully.

 

This is a bit of a rough guide. Note though that you shouldn't push the voltage past 1.4 unless you have a 280 mm AIO or something. Also temps shouldn't exceed 80C.

 

Heres a decent guide: http://lifehacker.com/a-beginners-introduction-to-overclocking-your-intel-pr-5580998

 

Use Aida 64 for stress testing though, not prime 95.

 

[SeanAngelo]

43 minutes ago, Clown said:

So than is it worth the extra money just for a better motherboard? Thanks for the reply btw.

i personally think its worth paying extra for the features you get.

 

overclocking isn't that hard, there are a lot of guides online.

[Clown]

18 hours ago, DocSwag said:

You could probably reach 5 ghz or so if you overclocked your CPU. Idk about ram as it matters from stick to stick but ram frequency shouldn't make much of a difference anyways. At most just get some 3000 MHz sticks and enable XMP in the bios and your ram will be at 3000 MHz. So if you want to "overclock" your ram if it has an XMP profile it's quite easy.

 

As for overclocking your CPU you need some decent cooling first. It isn't too hard but might take a little while. Basically what you do is:

 

1. Start at a frequency like 4.5 ghz and a voltage of 1.34 or so.

2. Run a stress test like Aida 64 for 5 minutes to ensure stablity.

3. If it crashes or your system black screens or something, raise the voltage a little bit (.1 volts or so) and try again.

4. If it succeeds and you are fine with the temps raise the clock speed by .1 ghz and go back to step 2. Otherwise run a stress test for a few hours to make sure they overclock is stable.

 

If you system black screens and won't turn on at all after changing the frequency, you'll need to reset the cmos. This will reset all your overclock settings so make sure you remember the frequency and voltage you had before and add a little voltage this time to make sure it boots successfully.

 

This is a bit of a rough guide. Note though that you shouldn't push the voltage past 1.4 unless you have a 280 mm AIO or something. Also temps shouldn't exceed 80C.

 

Heres a decent guide: http://lifehacker.com/a-beginners-introduction-to-overclocking-your-intel-pr-5580998

 

Use Aida 64 for stress testing though, not prime 95.

 

Wow 5ghz is crazy. I will definitely overclock it once I get it. Thanks for the in depth reply.

18 hours ago, SeanAngelo said:

i personally think its worth paying extra for the features you get.

 

overclocking isn't that hard, there are a lot of guides online.

I will get a better motherboard than. Thank you.

[DocSwag]

6 hours ago, Clown said:

Wow 5ghz is crazy. I will definitely overclock it once I get it. Thanks for the in depth reply.

In the reviews I've seen the 7600k and 7700k have an average max overclock of around 5 ghz (assuming you have really good cooling, though). If you go with something like a $30-50 cooling solution I still believe you could probably reach 4.7-4.9 ghz and if you're lucky 5. 

[Ben718]

Note you need a good cooler for 5ghz

[Clown]

4 hours ago, DocSwag said:

In the reviews I've seen the 7600k and 7700k have an average max overclock of around 5 ghz (assuming you have really good cooling, though). If you go with something like a $30-50 cooling solution I still believe you could probably reach 4.7-4.9 ghz and if you're lucky 5. 

Which cooler do you recommend?

[DocSwag]

1 hour ago, Clown said:

Which cooler do you recommend?

It depends on your budget but I've heard good things about the cryorig h7 (which costs $35 or so). I don't know a lot about coolers in that price range so if you want something $30-50 you might want to make a new post.

[Clown]

2 minutes ago, DocSwag said:

It depends on your budget but I've heard good things about the cryorig h7 (which costs $35 or so). I don't know a lot about coolers in that price range so if you want something $30-50 you might want to make a new post.

I'll do that. Thanks for the reply man! You've been a big help.