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Five Z87 Motherboards For Your Mini-ITX Build, Reviewed

Five Z87 Motherboards For Your Mini-ITX Build, Reviewed
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Z87 rules the PC enthusiast market by exposing the Haswell architecture's full feature set. We're particularly interested in mini-ITX-based platforms able to integrate Z87 in a compact form factor. Five boards contend for supremacy of compact computing.

Every time we hear about the death of the desktop PC, that conclusion seems to be based on slowing sales from big tier-ones like Dell and HP. But we know from talking to boutique builders that the demand for high-end gaming PCs and workstations continues to increase. It's a good time to be an enthusiast, and games like Battlefield 4 help illustrate why. 

At least some of the excitement comes from high-performance, high efficiency hardware, which is allowing the community to construct faster machines in smaller enclosures. It's no longer necessary to drop a big case next to your desk with two or three 250 W graphics cards for playable frame rates in the latest titles. Now we can get plenty of speed in small machines that look more like living room appliances, but are every bit PCs. 

Up until recently, the mini-ITX form factor was all about compromise. You'd give up most of your motherboard's slots and room for integrated extras to fit into tighter spaces. But as this segment grows, more and more companies are recognizing a desire for premium-class platforms with all of the on-board features expected from a larger ATX board. Drop in a high-end, overclockable processor, one dual-slot graphics card with multiple display outputs, and some solid-state storage. Sounds about as sexy as any monolithic gaming box we've ever seen.

So, which motherboard would we choose to serve as the foundation for a build like that? There are certainly many options on the market, and five of the industry’s top performance-oriented brands sent us a sample to compare.

LGA 1150-Based Mini-ITX Motherboard Features
 ASRock
Z87E-ITX
Asus
Z87I-Deluxe
EVGA
Z87 Stinger
Gigabyte
Z87N-WiFi
MSI
Z87I
PCB Revision1.051.031.11.01.0
ChipsetIntel Z87 ExpressIntel Z87 ExpressIntel Z87 ExpressIntel Z87 ExpressIntel Z87 Express
Voltage RegulatorSix Phases12 PhasesFour PhasesFour PhasesFour Phases
BIOSP2.10 (10/04/2013)0702 (08/30/2013)102 (08/07/2013)F4 (08/03/2013)V1.4 (09/30/2013)
100.0 MHz BCLK100.10 (+0.10%)99.94 (-0.06%)100.12 (+0.12%)99.77 (-0.23%)100.01 (+0.01%)
I/O Panel Connectors
P/S 21NoneNone11
USB 3.046444
USB 2.024422
Network11122
CLR_CMOS Button111None1
Digital Audio OutOpticalOpticalOpticalOpticalOptical
Digital Audio InNoneNoneNoneNoneNone
Analog Audio53556
Video OutDVI-I, DisplayPort, HDMIDVI-I, HDMI, DisplayPortDisplayPort, HDMIDual HDMI, DVI-IHDMI, DisplayPort, DVI-I
Other DeviceseSATA, Wi-Fi/Bluetooth ModuleUSB BIOS Flashback, Wi-Fi/Bluetooth ModuleBluetooth Transceiver
Wi-Fi/Bluetooth ModuleWi-Fi/Bluetooth Module
GO2BIOS button
Internal Interfaces
PCIe 3.0 x1611111
PCIe 2.0 x16NoneNoneNoneNoneNone
PCIe 2.0 x1Mini-PCIe (filled)NoneMini-PCIeMini-PCIe (filled)Mini-PCIe (filled)
USB 3.01 (2-ports)1 (2-ports)1 (2-ports)1 (2-ports)1 (2-ports)
USB 2.02 (4-ports)1 (2-ports)1 (2-ports)1 (2-ports)1 (2-ports)
SATA 6.0 Gb/s6 x (shared with
eSATA, mSATA)
6444
4-Pin Fan24322
3-Pin FanNoneNoneNoneNoneNone
FP-Audio11111
S/PDIF I/ONoneOutput OnlyNoneOutput OnlyNone
Internal ButtonsNoneMemOKPower, ResetNoneNone
Internal SwitchNoneNoneNoneNoneNone
Diagnostics PanelNoneNoneNumericNoneNone
Other DevicesNoneNoneNoneSerial COM portSerial COM port
Mass Storage Controllers
Chipset SATA6 x SATA 6Gb/s (Total)
Shared w/eSATA, mSATA
6 x SATA 6Gb/s4 x SATA 6Gb/s4 x SATA 6Gb/s4 x SATA 6Gb/s
Chipset RAID Modes0, 1, 5, 100, 1, 5, 100, 1, 5, 100, 1, 5, 100, 1, 5, 10
Add-In SATANoneNoneNoneNoneNone
USB 3.0Integrated-onlyIntegrated-onlyIntegrated-onlyIntegrated-onlyIntegrated-only
Networking
Primary LANWGI217V PHYWGI217V PHYWGI217V PHYWGI217V PHY8111G PCIe
Secondary LANNoneNoneNoneAR8161 PCIe8111G PCIe
Wi-FiBCM4352 PCIe
802.11ac Dual-Band
BCM4352 PCIe
802.11ac Dual-Band
NoneIntel 2230 PCIe
802.11n Single-Band
Intel 2230 PCIe
802.11n Single-Band
BluetoothBy 802.11ac ComboBy 802.11ac ComboAR3011 USBBy 802.11n ComboBy 802.11n Combo
Audio
HD Audio CodecALC1150ALC1150CA0132 (Core3D) PCIeALC892ALC892
DDL/DTS ConnectDTS ConnectDTS ConnectNoneNoneNone
WarrantyThree YearsThree YearsThree YearsThree YearsThree Years
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  • 0 Hide
    LePhuronn , 25 November 2013 12:34
    As soon as I saw the Maximus VI Impact wasn't included I just stopped reading. If you're talking premium Mini-ITX builds to replace full-size systems then there simply isn't any comparison.

    Or is that why it's not included?
  • 0 Hide
    Rammy , 25 November 2013 12:50
    The Maximus Impact is certainly noticeable by its omission. It's not really competing with the Gigabyte, MSI, ASRock or Z87I-Deluxe, as it's significantly more expensive in general. The Stinger kinda invalidates that argument somewhat though, as in both the UK and US (on which these value comparisons are based) the Stinger and Impact cost about the same. A $100/£70 price delta is pretty vast for motherboards.
  • 0 Hide
    LePhuronn , 25 November 2013 15:07
    The Stinger is way overpriced for what it is, especially compared to just how much is crammed onto the Maximus VI Impact.

    Yes, the Impact is a very expensive board, but given everything that's crammed onto it and the engineering involved I actually think it's *almost* reasonable. But given the price increase, I do agree it's not competition for the boards chosen here.

    A significant omission given the point of the article, and understandable omission given the nature of comparison.

    But I wouldn't mind seeing the Impact and the Asus Deluxe go head-to-head given their socket and power delivery systems are almost the same I believe (the Impact being a further refinement on the Deluxe).
  • 0 Hide
    Rammy , 25 November 2013 15:37
    I think the Deluxe and Impact are pretty clearly separated product lines.
    The Deluxe has greater connectivity options, is cheaper and maybe a slightly easier layout, while the Impact has a fancy soundcard, paint job and an array of acronyms. Despite the fact they use a slightly different power designs, from what I've seen elsewhere there's not a lot in it.

    I think the Impact is a bit silly and expensive, but I still want one.
  • 0 Hide
    RedJaron , 26 November 2013 00:43
    Typically Tom's simply invites the manufacturers to submit a product. If a given item isn't in the review, blame the vendor, not the reviewer.
  • 0 Hide
    lorribot , 26 November 2013 23:16
    Why can I buy a m-ATX z series motherborad for around £60 but the cheapest of these is £100? (not that I can find prices anywhere in the article, maybe its a UK thing)

    Where is the ITX board that just gives you what you need with out all the spurious extras?

    The only reason you buy a Z series mobo is because you want to overclock, and 99% of overclockers will have their own discreet graphics card, you do not therefore need any video out ports, one if you must but three? Where is the common sense.
    WiFi? No thanks. Bluetooth? does any one actually use it? Cut out the junk, pare back the board to basics cut a big chunk off the price and they may just hit the nail on the head and ITX might just become the defacto standard for motherboards.
    For me, none of these borads affer any kind of value and none of them are smart buys.
  • 0 Hide
    mi1ez , 27 November 2013 04:07
    4 awards?! What the hell?
  • 0 Hide
    Trustdesa , 6 December 2013 16:09
    I have got the Gigabyte Z87N-WiFi and I am really satisfied! The only downside is the location of the SoC too close to the PCI 3.0 slot which does not leave too much options for a big cooler. I have combined this motherboard to a case Cooler Master 120 Advance and I really love it!