Seznam kapitol
Hot news in the offer of motherboards by Gigabyte is G1.Sniper Z87, whose name indicates that it is for gamers. Nevertheless, this board provide us high-quality sound with the possibility of replacement of operating amplifiers and other advantages.
The company Gigabyte offers a number of motherboards with the Z87 chipset, from which we have chosen hot news, the model
, which was only presented and launched in November. It is not a generally abundantly equipped board, as the recently tested model
. Instead of that, we have in front of us a specialized model designed for computer game sets that wants to offer high-quality configurable sound and an interesting network solution. Sniper is also significantly cheaper than UD5H.
- click to zoom in -
- click to zoom in -
Specifications of Gigabyte G1.Sniper Z87 | |
| CPU | Support of Intel Haswell processors for LGA 1150 socket |
| Chipset | Intel Z87 Express |
| Memory | 4x DIMM for up to 32 GB DDR3 with max. clock time 3000 MHz (OC) |
| Graphic outputs | 1x HDMI 1.4a (max. 4096 x 2160 @ 24 Hz, 2560 x 1600 @ 60 Hz) |
| Audio | HD audio |
| LAN | Qualcomm Atheros Killer E2201 (10/100/1000 Mbit Ethernet) |
| Slots | 2x PCI Express 3.0 x16 (configuration x16/-, x8/x8) |
| SATA | chipset: 6x SATA 6 Gbps (RAID 0/1/5/10) |
| USB | 6x USB 3.0 (4 on the rear panel) a 7x USB 2.0/1.1 (3 on the rear panel) |
| Firewire | - |
| Other connectors | 1x 24pin ATX power supply |
| Rear I/O panel | 1x PS/2 for keyboard / mouse |
| BIOS | 2x 64Mbit flash - Dual AMI EFI Bios |
| Other features | Support of Q-Flash, Xpress Install, APP Center (@BIOS, EasyTune, EZ Setup, USB Blocker, Smart TimeLock, Smart Recovery 2) |
| OS support | Windows 8.1 / 8 / 7 |
| Board format | ATX (305 x 233 mm) |
If we compare the used chipset Intel Z87 with the previous model Intel Z77 for the processors Ivy Bridge.
Chipsets Intel Z87 and Z77 | ||
| Chipset | Z87 | Z77 |
| Code name | Lynx Point | Panther Point |
| Overclocking | CPU + GPU + RAM | CPU + GPU + RAM |
| Integrated graphics support | yes | yes |
| RAID | yes | yes |
| Max. USB 2.0 / 3.0 | 8 / 6 | 10 / 4 |
| Max. SATA 2.0 / 3.0 | 0 / 6 | 4 / 2 |
| Primary PCI Express | 1× PCIe 3.0 ×16 | 1× PCIe 3.0 ×16 |
| Secondary PCI Express | 8× PCIe 2.0 | 8× PCIe 2.0 |
| PCI | no | no |
| Intel Rapid Storage | yes | yes |
| Intel Smart Response | yes | yes |
| Intel Anti-Theft | yes | yes |
| Intel Smart Connect | yes | yes |
| Intel Rapid Start | yes | yes |
| Intel vPro | no | no |
| Maximum TDP | 4.1 W | 6.7 W |
| Production process | 32 nm | 65 nm |
So, after the model
we have another board with the chipset Intel Z87 and the differences between this one and the older 7 Series version are not big, they mainly include the support of the SATA and USB interfaces, where the emphasis has shifted to newer versions. The diagram shows 14 USB 2.0 ports, whilst the specification states 8. But if we add the other six USB 3.0, which are naturally compatible with USB 2.0, the quantity fits. So, our motherboard
G1.Sniper Z87
almost fully uses the USB ports offered by the Z87 chipset. It provides six ports USB 3.0, and just one from the available USB 2.0 ports is not at user's disposal.
At the same time, the motherboard offers all the supported ports SATA 6 Gbps and its slots PCI Express 3.0 x16 work in full configuration, that is, either as one slot with the full number of lines or two slots by eight lines each. The difference compared to the Z87X-UD5H model is that G1.Sniper Z87 uses, with respect to the offer of basic interfaces, rather just the possibilities of the chipset, which definitely is not to any harm. But one would miss, for example, an interface for Trusted Platform Module, or FireWire or two Ethernet interfaces. On the other hand, Sniper offers other advantages we will be focusing on in the third chapter.
In the case of the current generation, the chipset is still linked to the processor by means of the DMI 2.0 bus, support of DDR3L has been added but it still is 1600 MHz and 2 channels, and the Serial ATA interfaces still have the maximum of 6 ports but all versions are SATA 6 Gbps.
Gigabyte G1.Sniper Z87 - accessories and software | |
| IDE cable | no |
| SATA cable | 4× SATA (two angular) |
| SATA power adapter | no |
| SLI jumper | yes |
| Documents etc. | Installation manual, user manual (brief version also in Czech), installation CD, sticker, label for rear I/O |
| Software | controllers + software for audio |
Main advantages of the motherboard
- technology Ultra Durable 4 Plus
- replaceable operating amplifier
- sound solution by Creative (Sound Core 3D)
- network solution Killer E2200
Article in Czech:
Gigabyte G1.Sniper Z87: herní deska s kvalitním zvukem
