[MSI] Z97M-Gaming (Haswell Dragon) - Let the games

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[MSI] Z97M-Gaming (Haswell Dragon) - Let the games begin

Today I got a chance to test this new mATX motherboard from MSI which is name Z97M-Gaming. This motherboard is aimed mostly to gamers who dont have the space or don't want to have a big ATX casing in their desk. This is also for gamers who wants mobility that they can bring their gaming rigs easily and comfortably so now let me introduce to you the motherboard.

The Motherboard:

 

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Now let us look into the features of this motherboard!

The Audio Boost:

 

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Killer LAN:

M.2 Sata Express

Military Class 4 Components and Guard Pro:

 

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OC Genie 4 and Gaming App

 

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Command Center:

Click Bios 4

Motherboard Setting Section

OC Section

Memory Try It: This is a new and useful for quickly checking your RAM's capability

 

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I was able to test my 2133Mhz RAMs to run on 2666Mhz in just one easy step

Above is in Advance mode, this is how it will look like if you are going to switch into Simple mode

 

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Now we go to the juicy part!!

Performance(Synthetic):

Motherboard: MSI Z97M-Gaming
Processor: Intel i5 4670K running @4.5Ghz
RAM: Patriot Viper 2x8GB 2133Mhz CL11
SSD: Intel 530 240GB
GPU: MSI 270X Gaming (running at 1120Mhz)

Sisoft Sandra 2014: The red bar is my result

CPU tests

General Purpose test:

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RAM test:

 

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SSD/Drive Test:

SuperPi:

Cinebench R15

3DMark 11 Performance:

3DMark Firestrike

Catzilla

Real World Gaming Performance Testing:

Borderland 2

 

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Divinity: Original Sin

Sniper Elite: V2

 

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STAR CITIZEN:

 

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MSI Fast Boot

My Take:

This mATX motherboard is awesome it offers a lot of features compacted into an mATX motherboard but did not compromise on the quality. It is a very capable motherboard in terms of Overclocking and providing you the necessary features for gaming like the Sound Blaster Cinema 2 which enhances the audio and the Killer LAN that ensures you get a lag free gaming. It also offers many more features like the Military Class IV components which are tested and proven. The number of USB 3 ports is very welcoming and although you get to have only 6 SATA ports that can be remedied by using the M.2 port to convert it into a SATA express able to deliver 10 Gbps of bandwidth.

This is one of the few mATX motherboard that offer SLI/CrossfireX so you can use 2 GPUs for even greater gaming performance. The first PCI-E x16 slot is a bit near to the CPU so you might want to consider using a smaller tower cooler if you are planing on using one.

The new feature where you can use unlimited size for RAMDisk is very good as you don't need to purchase it to be able to use more than 4GB of RAMDisk. Also setting it up is very easy using the Command Center of MSI application.

All in all this is a very good motherboard with features that are useful both for gaming and daily usage.

 

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reserved for future updates!

 

[clon22]

Wow, thats alot of pics!
Nice.

 

[KeYoKe]

nice bro... support!

Picture loaded... my favourite..
MSI has really go a very long way to come out with a Gaming motherboard for enthusiast whom wish to squeeze extra juice out of their setup and also additional features that fits into their daily needs

 

[eminus]

nice bro... support!

Picture loaded... my favourite..
MSI has really go a very long way to come out with a Gaming motherboard for enthusiast whom wish to squeeze extra juice out of their setup and also additional features that fits into their daily needs

yeah they listen well on feedback

 

[marandaz]

When release? And how much?

 

[eminus]

When release? And how much?

I think it is available now in SLS for pricing I don't know

 

[royfrosty]

Its in SLS and is around $28X board alone.

Buy with bundle cpu cheaper.

Eminus bro bumps for you!