which Z77 motherboard are you already planning to get and why?

That slot is a waste of PCB space. Just get a 120GB SSD for ~$150 (Crucial M4 comes to mind, I paid $140) and install the entire OS onto it. Thunderbolt is also similarly useless -- it needs to integrate the GPU output for monitor chaining. Otherwise there isn't much use. USB3.0 hard drives are going to get good enough throughput for a long time.
 
Neat concept on the mSATA slot, but for $100-130, you may as well get a 64-128GB for around the same price or slightly more.
 
Asus Maximus V Gene probably. I want to try to build something small and light weight.
 
Most likely the Asus P8Z77-V Pro, reasons:

1) Had great luck with Asus for stability/OC in the past, contemplating trying Gigabyte, MSI or ASRock but probably won't
2) Good lay-out and components (I believe the Pro has better power delivery than the non-Pro? Need to research this, extra fan header is good)
3) Need a PCI slot for my X-Fi XtremeGamer (don't feel like upgrading, it's better than onboard)
4) Intel NIC, might finally have 100mbit connection at home in the next year, could make a small difference in performance vs Realtek or other vendors.

Concerns:

1) Would be nice to have more fan headers, getting a Corsair 550D and will have 4 case fans + 2 fans on CPU (NH-D14), if I could control all 6 from the MB with temperature based profiles that would be awesome. Can I just combine multiple fans onto the same header? Never really used mobo fan headers before. I saw an ASRock board with 6 headers previewed.
2) No Thunderbolt, not really a concern as I doubt I'd ever use it, but would be nice,
 
grambo said:
1) Would be nice to have more fan headers, getting a Corsair 550D and will have 4 case fans + 2 fans on CPU (NH-D14), if I could control all 6 from the MB with temperature based profiles that would be awesome. Can I just combine multiple fans onto the same header? Never really used mobo fan headers before. I saw an ASRock board with 6 headers previewed.
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Yes, you can. Newegg sells PWM splinters. Another option is that the Arctic Cooling PWM fans have a daisy chain connector built in to the wiring.
 
How much control is given to us via bios + fan headers will be interesting. I think I saw a picture on Asus'eses (?) site which has a full graph like points+lines of temp vs voltage. If that is fully tweakable it will be sweet. Hopefully it's separate for each fan header.
 
Should be both. With 3-pin fans, you set the temp ranges, voltages, rpm's, etc. With 4-pin fans, you set temp targets, min/max PWM values, etc.
 
DejaWiz said:
Yes, you can. Newegg sells PWM splinters. Another option is that the Arctic Cooling PWM fans have a daisy chain connector built in to the wiring.
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I know the Noctua F12's have a PWM Y-cable included. Might be worth a shot...those fans are awesome!
 
grambo said:
Most likely the Asus P8Z77-V Pro, reasons:

2) Good lay-out and components (I believe the Pro has better power delivery than the non-Pro? Need to research this, extra fan header is good)
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From the Asus website it looks like the V has 12 phase power and the V Pro has 16 phase, I'll be getting the Pro as well then ;)
 
Frys already has Z77 sabertooth and z77 pro by asus in stock in almost all stores.
 
(I kept checking their page every 10 minutes because I couldn't remember which one had how many phases...)

As a mild overclocker would I notice a difference between 12phase CPU and 16phase?

P8Z77-V Deluxe
- Industry leading Digital 20 Phase Power Design (16 -phase for CPU, 4 -phase for iGPU)

P*Z77-V Pro
- Industry leading Digital 16 Phase Power Design (12 -phase for CPU, 4 -phase for iGPU)

P8Z77-V
- Industry leading Digital 12 Phase Power Design (8 -phase for CPU, 4 -phase for iGPU)
 
Druneau said:
(I kept checking their page every 10 minutes because I couldn't remember which one had how many phases...)

As a mild overclocker would I notice a difference between 12phase CPU and 16phase?

P8Z77-V Deluxe
- Industry leading Digital 20 Phase Power Design (16 -phase for CPU, 4 -phase for iGPU)

P*Z77-V Pro
- Industry leading Digital 16 Phase Power Design (12 -phase for CPU, 4 -phase for iGPU)

P8Z77-V
- Industry leading Digital 12 Phase Power Design (8 -phase for CPU, 4 -phase for iGPU)
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Same question except I intend to do some good overclocking with IB. The Sabertooth has 8+4 phases. Would I notice a difference?
 
^ you see, that's where I question Asus's logic. Why give the Pro and Deluxe higher phases, but the Sabertooth only has the same as the Vanilla? I'd assume the ST would of had much higher phases.
 
True, but why skimp on the phases with one of their flagship boards?

I suppose it makes sense if they are going strictly for durability with the military spec components, thermal armor, and what-not, so the higher phases aren't a necessity... but still. It almost feels to me like they cut a corner here.
 
tinate said:
Then what does it mean? Because it certainly adds more cost to the board.
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It can help, but what I mean is a good 8 phase well be better than a decent 16 phase. More phases doesn't directly equal more overclocking, it's also partly marketing. The maximus IV Extreme also uses an 8 phase design. But I'm no expert on phases and vrms and stuff, just know that 16 doesn't automatically mean better than 8.
 
Good, cause I really wanted the reliability of the Sabertooth board as my Ivy Bridge board. I've been itching to start this build, and the motherboard was my last hold out. I'll stick a Sandy Bridge 2700k and wait for the 3770K at the end of April.
 
zzDarkwingDuck said:
It can help, but what I mean is a good 8 phase well be better than a decent 16 phase. More phases doesn't directly equal more overclocking, it's also partly marketing. The maximus IV Extreme also uses an 8 phase design. But I'm no expert on phases and vrms and stuff, just know that 16 doesn't automatically mean better than 8.
Click to expand...

Yeah from the looks of the pics, the max v gene, formula, and sabertooth all roll with the same design. Whether or not all the chips are the same under the sinks is still TBD i think, they do all appear to be the same general design when I look at them. I'd rather wait for a few reviews before I make a decision. Who knows, maybe the gene and sabertooth won't OC like the others, or vice versa.
 
From what I've read (of the past Sabertooth), the reason why it doesn't need the high power phase is because all the other components are just much better, so that takes care of anything it may lack as far as power phase is concerned.
 
I was planning to get one for thunderbolt, but TB remains niche at this point and the mobos with it wont mature until haswell anyway, so bleh.
 
Picked up the Asus Sabertooth myself just waiting for release for it to ship now.
 
xsmokex said:
Picked up the Asus Sabertooth myself just waiting for release for it to ship now.
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I just saw a couple dozen Sabertooth Z77's at the local Fry's. Did they jump the gun?

Only reason I didn't grab one was that I usually wait for the more eager folks to cut their teeth on new mobos. They were $249.99
 
Can anyone comment on the differences between the Asus Z77 Pro and Deluxe or Workstation?

This machine is purely a workhorse. I have no use for games or multiple graphics cards. It is important that I can run a multi monitor setup using DVI.

Of the 3 above mentioned boards, what would I gain out of the Delux or Workstation over the Pro?
 
davewolfs said:
Can anyone comment on the differences between the Asus Z77 Pro and Deluxe or Workstation?

This machine is purely a workhorse. I have no use for games or multiple graphics cards. It is important that I can run a multi monitor setup using DVI.

Of the 3 above mentioned boards, what would I gain out of the Delux or Workstation over the Pro?
Click to expand...

I should add, stability is probably my most important requirement. I see that the Deluxe has a 20 phase design and offers HDMI and a DisplayPort. Will probably go with that unless someone can prove me with a compelling reason not to.
 
After comparing specs over and over again, I'm really torn between the Asus Pro and GB UD5H.

Decisions, decisions...
 
davewolfs said:
Can anyone comment on the differences between the Asus Z77 Pro and Deluxe or Workstation?

This machine is purely a workhorse. I have no use for games or multiple graphics cards. It is important that I can run a multi monitor setup using DVI.

Of the 3 above mentioned boards, what would I gain out of the Delux or Workstation over the Pro?
Click to expand...

I believe the WS uses a PLX multiplexing chip to add more PCI Express lanes from the slots to the CPU, kinda like the NF200 chip did. From what I understand it may add some latency but I think it's more aimed more towards SAS cards rather than GPU's.
 
seamusmc said:
I just saw a couple dozen Sabertooth Z77's at the local Fry's. Did they jump the gun?

Only reason I didn't grab one was that I usually wait for the more eager folks to cut their teeth on new mobos. They were $249.99
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Picked one up today. Sure enough, Frys had them sitting on the shelves. Waiting on a few more parts to arrive before I start the rebuild. Its a nice looking board for sure.
 
MrE said:
Picked one up today. Sure enough, Frys had them sitting on the shelves. Waiting on a few more parts to arrive before I start the rebuild. Its a nice looking board for sure.
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location?
 
I really wish I was near a Fry's or any other box store that stocked the Z77 Sabertooths. That is the last part I need to complete my new build.
 
I wish I was near any store that was selling Z77 boards. :(

Oh well, just a couple/few more days.
 
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