Z97 vs Z87

[Sa1tama]

Hi!

I have 2 options:

1. Buy an Asus Z87 Plus for 80USD

Or 

2. Buy a Gigabyte Z97X Gaming G1

For 95USD

Which one should i go for?

Also my budget is 200USD so i also have to think about a CPU.

[Fasauceome]

If you get a z97, factor in these things:

- do you need the features many offer? Thunderbolt, overclocking, M.2 support are more common on those nicer boards.

- if you're overclocking, which CPU will you get? 4770k is a great chip, but maybe too expensive, so a 4570k may be more realistic.

- make sure to cool the CPU appropriately. For overclocking, a stock cooler won't cut it, and it will drag down a non-overclocked i7.

 

the price difference only becomes a value difference when comparing these aspects.

[Sa1tama]

1 minute ago, fasauceome said:

If you get a z97, factor in these things:

- do you need the features many offer? Thunderbolt, overclocking, M.2 support are more common on those nicer boards.

- if you're overclocking, which CPU will you get? 4770k is a great chip, but maybe too expensive, so a 4570k may be more realistic.

- make sure to cool the CPU appropriately. For overclocking, a stock cooler won't cut it, and it will drag down a non-overclocked i7.

 

the price difference only becomes a value difference when comparing these aspects.

I have been thinking about buying an i5 4460K ( used ) since there is no difference ( not including +0.2ghz frequency ) among 4460k and 4570K

Also today I found a DeepCool Maelstorm 240T for 65USD and i am assuming that it will handle the heat.

If you have any suggestions please let me know.

[ApolloX75]

Z97 and Z87 are very similar chipsets. The only real differences you will find are feature sets like M.2 support and SATA Express on Z97. Performance wise they are pretty much identical, so get whichever board more appeals to you and makes sense for your build.

 

CPU wise you can grab a 4670K or 4690K for a pretty reasonable price now, but 4790Ks are still quite expensive unless you get lucky. An overclocked 4670K will keep up with even a GTX 1080 quite well, I have done the benchmarks.

[Fasauceome]

2 minutes ago, _SAITAMA_ said:

I have been thinking about buying an i5 4460K ( used ) since there is no difference ( not including +0.2ghz frequency ) among 4460k and 4570K

Also today I found a DeepCool Maelstorm 240T for 65USD and i am assuming that it will handle the heat.

If you have any suggestions please let me know.

Cooler seems like a good choice, so given that + z97, you'd have that much left for a CPU, so about $40 out of the $200 you stated. Increasing the budget by a little might not hurt, but if you can't make it happen, the old hyper 212 has got your back. I use mine to OC my 4790k, so I know for sure it's a more than serviceable setup.

[Sa1tama]

@fasauceome

I researched a lot, but i can't find a single side by side comparison of Maelstorm 240T and some other AIOs, so if you know any good Liquid Cooler for around 65USD please let me know.

[Fasauceome]

Just now, _SAITAMA_ said:

@fasauceome

I researched a lot, but i can't find a single side by side comparison of Maelstorm 240T and some other AIOs, so if you know any good Liquid Cooler for around 65USD please let me know.

I'm still an air cooling pleb, so I usually feel like saving money with a nice tower cooler is a good option. $65 for a cooler seems like a lot to me.

[Sa1tama]

7 minutes ago, fasauceome said:

I'm still an air cooling pleb, so I usually feel like saving money with a nice tower cooler is a good option. $65 for a cooler seems like a lot to me.

Yeah... I have been saving for a long long time.

[Fasauceome]

1 minute ago, _SAITAMA_ said:

Yeah... I have been saving for a long long time.

well, your cooler choice is good, so see if you can stretch your budget closer to $250 or $300.

[Zusafek]

5 hours ago, _SAITAMA_ said:

Hi!

I have 2 options:

1. Buy an Asus Z87 Plus for 80USD

Or 

2. Buy a Gigabyte Z97X Gaming G1

For 95USD

Which one should i go for?

Also my budget is 200USD so i also have to think about a CPU.

Another thing to remember is the possibility of the bios on a Z87 not being up to date with the Haswell Refresh chips.  I myself purchased a used Gigabyte Z87-D3H board and had to pick up a cheap celeron so I could update to board to work with my I5 4460 cpu.  Once I did that I have had zero issues with this board.  Plus I picked it up for 50 USD including shipping...then the celeron cpu set me back 20 usd.  I kept that chip and now its being used in my Plex server setup with a GTX 750TI.  So not a penny wasted for me.

[Fasauceome]

14 minutes ago, Zusafek said:

Another thing to remember is the possibility of the bios on a Z87 not being up to date with the Haswell Refresh chips.  I myself purchased a used Gigabyte Z87-D3H board and had to pick up a cheap celeron so I could update to board to work with my I5 4460 cpu.  Once I did that I have had zero issues with this board.  Plus I picked it up for 50 USD including shipping...then the celeron cpu set me back 20 usd.  I kept that chip and now its being used in my Plex server setup with a GTX 750TI.  So not a penny wasted for me.

getting one on ebay reduces the risk because users are inclined to update their bios.

[O9B0666]

I had a 4440 and was super happy with it and would use it still. Handled gaming new titles great and I used a aio so it wasn't hot ever (tower coolers I think are obnoxiously big and ugly) I think a 4460k would be great. I have that very same gigabyte board also still in use with the i5 cpu in our pc room great board too. 

[JoostinOnline]

That's way too much for such an old board. Check the guide in my signature if you're on a budget.

[O9B0666]

4460 is fine for that board. 

1 minute ago, JoostinOnline said:

That's way too much for such an old board. Check the guide in my signature if you're on a budget.

 

[JoostinOnline]

2 minutes ago, O9B0666 said:

4460 is fine for that board. 

 

I'm talking about the prices. I didn't say anything about the 4460. It's stupid to buy with either board though, as it's a locked processor.

[O9B0666]

27 minutes ago, JoostinOnline said:

I'm talking about the prices. I didn't say anything about the 4460. It's stupid to buy with either board though, as it's a locked processor.

That's a fact.