Introduction When it comes to Intel’s Extreme or “Enthusiast” series of motherboards and processors, like the X79 and its Ivy-Bridge-E combo, we seem to get a bit more time between updates. Intel initially launched its X79 Chipset with Sandy-Bridge-E, then 18 months later Ivy-Bridge-E hit store shelves without a major Chipset change. Unlike its mainstream Z series Chipset, which has seen updates almost every 12 months or so (give or take a few months), the X79 chipset is roughly 3 years old now. Today we have the new X99 Chipset which promises a large improvement over its predecessor X79. With the rise of DDR4 memory and demand for faster and larger bandwidth capabilities, it was only a matter of time. As we dig a little deeper today, we will talk a little more about this Chipset later. Along with the new Chipset comes a newly released processor refresh. The X99 Chipset has made some other improvements which now allow users to sport the new Intel Haswell-E Processor. This CPU starts with a 6core for the HT 5820K, 6core for the HT 5930K, and lastly an 8core for the HT 5960X with a Socket 2011-3. Of course with these changes, it has pre-empted the design of new motherboards, so we now have the chance to put the Gigabyte X99-UD4 motherboard to the test and see if the improvements are going to be worth the upgrade.   In recent years, Gigabyte has grown to be one of the most recommended brands. The reputation of great performance to value has put them on ...

 

Introduction With the release of Intel’s X99 platform there has been a groundswell of new boards from every manufacturer. Most of the emphasis has been placed on boards modeled for gaming, thereby leaving boards for professionals to the wayside. Workstation boards offer some unique features and additional GPU support that can be used for gaming or GPGPU functions. With X99 there are even more additions to what is usually an already stacked product line. Not to mention the ability to use the absolute best processors available in a desktop form factor. ASRock was ready to rock and roll on X99 launch day by dropping not one or two boards but instead a full lineup of seven X99 gaming and professional boards. Today we will be looking at the X99WS, a workstation board designed for those that require a bit more than any standard gaming board could provide. We are excited to see what ASRock has in mind for professionals and gamers that take their craft to the max.   About ASROCK ASRock Inc. is established in 2002, specialized in the field of motherboards. ASRock strives to build up its own brand. With the 3C design concept, “Creativity, Consideration, Cost-effectiveness”, the company explores the limit of motherboards manufacturing while paying attention on the eco issue at the same time, developing products with the consideration of eco-friendly concept. ASRock has been growing fast and become world third largest motherboard brand with headquarter in Taipei, Taiwan and...

 

Introduction A few months back we took a look at the ASUS Maximus VII Hero Motherboard (HERE) . The Maximus VII Hero, which is part of ASUS’ mid range Republic of Gamer’s line, took home the Editors Choice award for its great performance and outstanding aesthetics. However, that was only the tip of the iceberg for the ROG line up. Today… we have the chance to take a look at ASUS’ flagship motherboard the ASUS Maximus VII Formula. We are really excited to start putting this motherboard to the test. Its aesthetics alone really stand out, especially its Armor Shield. If you are an water cooling enthusiast, the hybrid CrossChill Cooling VRM block is also a great feature. Can the ASUS ROG Maximus VII Formula live up to its little brother the Hero and earn another Editor’s Choice Award? Let’s dive in and take a look.   But before we do, let’s here a word from ASUS. Origin of the Name “Asus” ASUS comes from the last four letters of Pegasus, the winged horse in Greek mythology that represents the inspiration of art and learning. ASUS embodies the strength, creative spirit and purity symbolized by this regal and agile mythical creature, soaring to new heights of quality and innovation with each product it introduces to the market.

 

  Introduction   We all know the woes AMD and their fans have been dealing with over the last few years so we will not be hashing that topic again. We will instead focus on the updated line for what they are, a place holder. They are designed to hold the interest of fans, budget shoppers and gamers until further notice. There have been no grand design changes that will suddenly put AMD on top of the performance heap. Instead, this is a product to cover those that have yet to make the switch from an older AM3 or AM3+ CPU or even a lesser CPU in the current AM3+ product stack. There is also a shift in how the FX series chips line up to the competition. We will move right into the overview and benchmarks that cover the new FX-8370 and FX-8370E 8 core CPUs.   Press Release   Introducing AMD FX Optimized for Power and Efficiency Multi-core processing is the future. Game engines are being designed to do more at a time; particle effects, physics calculations, light rays, and shadows are growing progressively more complex by the day. Large-scale computing now relies more on the overall throughput of parallelism than the singular speed of CPU cores. Today, AMD FX-Series CPUs return to push the boundaries of value to the high-performance desktop platform – introducing the speed-optimized 125W AMD FX-8370 and power-optimized 95W AMD FX-8370E and AMD FX-8320E processors. Featuring the “Piledriver” x86 core architecture, all of our new FX solutions feature...

 

Introduction The Z97 chipset motherboards have now gone into full swing, and with the Haswell refresh we saw a lot of new flavor in motherboard choices this time around. Today, we are going to be looking at the Biostar HiFi Z97WE Motherboard. At first glance, we have to be honest here… we didn’t really like the color combination Biostar used with the HiFi Z97WE Motherboard. The gold heatsinks with its yellow and black accents really don’t go well together aesthetically speaking. However, putting the aesthetics aside we are going to put the Biostar HiFi Z97WE to the test in terms of performance and see how well it stacks up with other Z97 Motherboards we have already tested. So before we dive in for a closer look, let’s talk about who Biostar is: In 1980,the IT industry was growing at a phenomenal rate. With wide experience in buying and selling electronic parts as well as researching on future demands for mainboards and add-on cards , the founder of BIOSTAR GROUP,established BIOSTAR MICROTECH INTERNATIONAL CORP in 1986. In the early years, BIOSTAR concentrated on the manufacture of mainboards built for XT form factor. To maintain steady business growth, BIOSTAR managed to keep a large portion of its capital and manpower invested on the design and development of new products, which at the same time has enabled it to stay competitive in the rapid evolution of the computer industry. BIOSTAR has enriched its competence in the design and manufacture of p...

 

A few months ago we had the honor of reviewing the new MSI Z97 Gaming 5 motherboards during the launch of the Z97 chipset. Today, we are here again to look at another MSI motherboard. We have MSI's flagship Gaming Motherboard the MSI Z97 Gaming 9 AC. At first glance the MSI Z97 Gaming 9 AC motherboard looks rather close aesthetically to the Gaming 5 we reviewed. While the looks are similiar, the Gaming 9 has some additional features and aesthetic improvements that make it stand out on its own. The first obvious improvement on the Gaming 9 motherboard is the shield that covers the rear I/O port section and the isolated PCB for its sound card. During the Z97 chipset many manufacturers started to switch over to using higher quality Japanese capacitors and while the caps were much better in quality they looked rather ugly on many of the new boards. It was nice to see that MSI designed the Gaming 9 series motherboard with the shield to cover up that section making the motherboard look much sexier. Let's dive in and put the MSI Z97 Gaming 9 AC Motherboard to the test and see how it performed against its little brother the Gaming 5. But before we do that, let's talk a little about who MSI is.

 

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