Solved Z87 Motherboard Suggestions?

[sygnus21]

What card did you end up changing your mind about?

I know it's not AMD, but the new GTX 780ti is an absolute beast. Out performs the 290x for a few bucks more.

Dropped the 7970 in favor of AMD's new release. Specifically this card: Sapphire Radeon VAPOR-X R9 280X 3GB (OC Version)



It's right at my price range and for me a single card is all I need for gaming.

As for the GTX 780ti, that's way more than I want to spend on any card. I might look at a 770 though, even though I love Big Red

 

[kbrady1979]

If you don't mind, will you recap what you've decided on so far and what you are still on the fence about?

 

[sygnus21]

If you don't mind, will you recap what you've decided on so far and what you are still on the fence about?

This is basically it…

- Intel Core i7-4770K
- Gigabytes GA-Z87X-UD5 TH ($264 @ newegg.com)
- Corsair Dominator Platinum 32GB (4x8GB) DDR3 1866 MHz
- Sapphire Radeon VAPOR-X R9 280X 3GB (OC Version)

I’m still researching parts but it will definitely be a Haswell system. To be honest I really won’t know the exact parts until I actually place the order at the end of this month. Plus, I’m waiting to see what Black Friday sales have to offer.

I'm also seriously looking at this board: G1.Sniper 5 even though it’s over kill for what I need, and I already have the soundcard that’s built into the board (it’s based off of SoundBlaster’s ZXR card which I have), the board just appeals to me, even at 399.

Also Gigabyte is/was supposed to release a UD7 version of the UD5 TH but so far nothing so…

That said, the list above is pretty much it and will be used to upgrade my current rig. The replaced parts will then be used to upgrade the family computer.

That’s it.

 

[sygnus21]

Went with Gigabyte G1 Sniper 5 board

Ok, decided to go with the Gigabyte G1.Sniper 5 board (in fact it arrived today). Yeah it's a bit over kill, and I've already got the built in soundcard in the form of the very impressive SoundBlaster ZXR card. But....

At $339 (389 minus a $50 rebate), this is a solid gaming board with expandability to spare should I want/need it. Plus I really like the quality build and looks of the board (well aside from the green accents, of the pirate logo). Add to the fact that I already own a Gigabyte board I just felt like this board was calling my name... price and features didn't hurt too. Anyway a video review...



He makes a good point at the end on whether or not you'd want to spend $400 bucks on a board. And for me, no, but at 339, it's a different story.

Anyway I can't check the board out till next week when I get my memory and processor in so until then...

 

[Lady Fitzgerald]

...Anyway I can't check the board out till next week when I get my memory and processor in so until then...

...you'll go nuts with anticipation. Been there, done that.

 

[linnemeyerhere]

Watched and unboxing and it looks like you have a real nice board there !

 

[sygnus21]

...Anyway I can't check the board out till next week when I get my memory and processor in so until then...

...you'll go nuts with anticipation. Been there, done that.

You're right but there nothing I can do about it now

I'm kind of apprehensive though with my RAM order through NCIX. They have all these weird conditions when ordering through them. If it weren't for the $70+ dollar difference between them and Amazon/Newegg I would have ordered them elsewhere. Never dealt with NCIX before so I Just hope the items arrive as advertised.

As for the processor, I have to drive up to Microcenter next week to take advantage of their sale price (i7-4770K, $199.99 ) since sales like these can only be picked up in-store :shock:

 

[sygnus21]

Watched and unboxing and it looks like you have a real nice board there !

Yeah I really like it. Can't wait to get it up and running. It sure looks pretty though as I sit and stare at it while waiting for the RAM and CPU.

Since I ordered the memory when I did due to availability and fluctuating prices, I figured I'd order the board as well since I also got scared it would become hard to find or go up in price as well.

By doing that, my parts come in all over the place though. Thankfully Amazon has a 30 day return policy should I need to return the MB for any reason.

Anyway I should have all my parts by day 15 so I'm good

 

[sygnus21]

Got my processor, and RAM today

Drove up to Microcenter today to pick up my Processor (4770K). Was on sale for 199.99...

It's a good thing I got there when I did because I got next to the last one they had in stock. BTW the sale ends 24 Nov., and it's in store pick-up only.

Was also going to get the Corsair H100i water cooler but Microcenter was out of them. Wound up ordering it from Amazon. Anyway My RAM also came in today from NCIX as well

Thus far I've got my RAM, CPU, and motherboard...



Have to wait till next week to order my video card. In the meantime I may start putting what I have together this weekend and just use my current GPU until the new one arrives...

 

[linnemeyerhere]

We become like little kids as we can't wait to play with the new toys. The build will be one wicked build and we expect pictures all the way thru !

 

[sygnus21]

We become like little kids as we can't wait to play with the new toys. The build will be one wicked build and we expect pictures all the way thru !

Yeah the toys will be even better with a shiny new video card

Anyway my cooler should be here Friday, and I won't be able to get my new vid card till the end of the month. And with a few odds & ends here and there, I should have the system completed by the first week of Dec. Well... as complete as the next big thing

Just need to decide which on OS to install... 7 or 8(.1) Hmmm....

And I'll post some pictures when I finish it

 

[Computer0304]

7 if you want more support on this forum and keep your member status. or you could just move to 8 forums

 

[Computer0304]

If you need a Storage device, I would go with a wdc hdd or a corsair ssd. don't judge me anyone because these are just my opinions.

 

[sygnus21]

7 if you want more support on this forum and keep your member status. or you could just move to 8 forums

I'm already a member at 8. And I'm also running 8.1 on my laptop and have no issues there. I'm just not sure I want to run it on this rig just yet. Plus a desktop has a lot more stuff going on than a laptop.

Anyway I'm still doing driver research to make sure there aren't any issues with the hardware, or software I need for this rig.

If you need a Storage device, I would go with a wdc hdd or a corsair ssd. don't judge me anyone because these are just my opinions.

See my system spec's; I'm upgrading it with the parts listed shown.

Anyway once my H100i water cooler gets here sometime today I'll start the build. It's looking like it'll be a Win 8.1 machine, but we'll see.

Thanks.

 

[smarteyeball]

Just need to decide which on OS to install... 7 or 8(.1) Hmmm....

8.1 - New build, newer OS

I went with 8 straight away with this current build and haven't had an issue. Don't regret it it at all.

Plus with the WDM in 8 and the latest range, driver support "should" get a little more focus. (operative word being "should" lol.

And I'll post some pictures when I finish it

You should know by now that's mandatory around here

Congrats on your new build Drew Can't wait to see it up and running

Good choice on card. It's only candy addicts like me who go for the overpriced stuff. And you know I love my candy

7 if you want more support on this forum and keep your member status. or you could just move to 8 forums

Some of us here are the support

(Seriously though, most Q's about 8 can be asked here anyway)

 

[sygnus21]

Just need to decide which on OS to install... 7 or 8(.1) Hmmm....

8.1 - New build, newer OS

I went with 8 straight away with this current build and haven't had an issue. Don't regret it it at all.

Plus with the WDM in 8 and the latest range, driver support "should" get a little more focus.

Yeah that's my intention; especially since I'm already running it on my lappy. It's just that desktops have much more stuff so I need to make sure there are no hardware driver issues there.

BTW I've been reading where some are having issues with their soundcards under 8.1, especially the ZxR cards, which is what I have. Additionally Creative stated 8.1 drivers are scheduled to be released end of Jan 2014, so that definitely concerns me...

Driver release schedule - Creative Worldwide Support
Issues - ZXR + Win 8.1 64 - Not Detected

Hopefully a clean install will avert those issues. We'll see. Right now I waiting for my CPU cooler arrive so I can start the build.

 

[Computer0304]

Dual boot? You could get Windows 7 first and when the sound card drivers are available, you could either have a dual boot setup or just upgrade to Win 8.

 

[sygnus21]

I'm just going to 8.1 and see what happens. If I find issues I'll go back to 7. Not interested in dual booting as I'm going to go with one or the other OS.

Anyway my cooler just came in so off to the build. Next post should be from the new system.

Until then...

 

[Computer0304]

What's your case going to be?

 

[smarteyeball]

[

BTW I've been reading where some are having issues with their soundcards under 8.1, especially the ZxR cards, which is what I have. Additionally Creative stated 8.1 drivers are scheduled to be released end of Jan 2014, so that definitely concerns me...

Driver release schedule - Creative Worldwide Support
Issues - ZXR + Win 8.1 64 - Not Detected

Yeah I saw that - and saw my USB sound card is not on the list

Which means I'm stuck with vanilla 8 for my desktop - for some reason 8.1 freezes the GUI etc forcing hard resets

So far that's been the only issue I've had with 8. But even vanilla it's a nice stable OS (and customized to my liking so .1 or .2 doesn't bother me much)

Just make sure it's one of the first drivers you install so if it doesn't work, you haven't wasted much time setting up an OS that's not useable.

Looking forward to the pics