Overclocking and Conclusion
Overclocking
To give a feel for the overclocking performance potential of the Z170-A motherboard, we attempted to push it to known CPU-supported performance parameters with minimal tweaking. The board was able to hit a maximum base clock speed of 267MHz (thanks to the decoupled CPU clock generator of the Z170 board design) with a CPU speed of 4.5GHz, a matching 4.5GHz ring bus speed, and a 2490MHz memory speed. With the base clock rolled back to 167MHz, we were able to push the CPU to 4.67GHz with a 4.5GHz ring bus and 2672Mhz memory speeds. With the base clock rolled back even further to its stock 100Mhz speed, we pushed the CPU to a cool 4.7GHz with a 4.5GHz ring bus and 3200MHz memory speeds. All overclocking sessions remained stable for over 4hrs. System stability was tested running the AIDA64 stability test in conjunction with EVGA's OC Scanner X graphical benchmark running at 1280×1024 resolution and 8x MSAA in stress test mode. Note that 16GB (2 x 8GB) of Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR4-2666 and 16GB (4 x 4GB) of Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR4-3200 memory modules were used for the overclocking tests.
267MHz Base Clock Stats
167MHz Base Clock Stats
100MHz Base Clock Stats with 3200MHz Memory
Note that this is is meant only as a quick preview of the board's performance potential. With more time to tweak the settings to a greater extent, pushing to a higher base clock and ring bus speed may have been achievable, in addition to an overnight stability run without issue.
Performance
ASUS has a true champion in the Z170-A motherboard. Both its stock and overclocked performance is nothing short of stellar with the board taking everything we threw at it without a hitch.
Pricing
As of August 26, the ASUS Z170-A motherboard was available at Amazon.com for $163.99 with Prime shipping. The board was also available from Newegg.com for $164.99 and from B&H for $165.00.
Conclusion
There is absolutely nothing wrong with this board. It has a very stunning appearance with its white and black coloration, suitable for just about any build. All integrated components are placed well and easily usable. Further, ASUS did not appear to scrimp on the quality of any of the integrated components despite its price point. This is especially evident in the inclusion of the latest version of the Intel network controller(the I219-V) and in its overclocking potential and stability. The board was rock-stable no matter how far I pushed it.
Strengths
- Stock performance
- Overclocking performance
- Board aesthetics, layout, and design
- Motherboard manual details and quality
- UEFI BIOS design and usability
- Quality of included power circuitry
- Intel GigE network controller performance
- M.2 port location
- CMOS battery placement
Weaknesses
- Inclusion of PCI slot
- Circuitry in close proximity to socket on underside of board
From the specs:
DVI-D with
From the specs:
DVI-D with max. resolution 1920 x 1200 @ 60 Hz
That looks like a dual link DVI connector which should have a max resolution of 2560×1600.
I understand what it actually
I understand what it actually is, but, in most pictures that Sata Express port looks a lot like an IDE connector. It certainly brings back memories.
What does this BLK
What does this BLK overclocking capability mean for non-k chips? It looks like it is a much more viable option for skylake than it has been for many generations.
for both, it decouples the
for both, it decouples the PCIe clock from the base clock so your PCIe clock remains static no matter what. However, your memory speed is still tied to the base clock value. For non-K overclocking specifically, it is still bound to the limits of what speed your CPU can run at. Should be easier than with a Z97, but still constrained because you cannot change the CPU ratio – your memory may not like odd base clocks as much…
It looks like there are a
It looks like there are a bunch of memory strap options as well though. The article states that they got the BLK up to 266 from 100. That seems to be a huge amount of headroom.
I’m having a nightmare with
I’m having a nightmare with the onboard ethernet (I219-V) on this board.
The moment I install the Intel ethernet driver (version 12.13.17.4), the system will not reboot. It makes it past the splash screen and I’m then left with a blinking cursor in the top left of the screen. It seems as if the SSD isn’t being recognised?
I’ve searched for a other/newer versions of the driver on both the Asus and Intel sites but cannot come up with any alternatives. So frustrating…
The non-K OC is really easy
The non-K OC is really easy and can be done within few minutes. Depending on the CPU you can increase the clock between 15-70% without any problems.
Pre-Skylake CPUs such as Haswell or Devils Canyon could only be overclocked by about 3-5% using the BCLK because the BCLK was still tied to the DMI and the PCIe.
However, for Skylake CPUs, BCLK and PCIe have a dedicated reference clock which always stays at 100 MHz – no matter how you change the BCLK. In other words: You can push the BCLK without worrying about other components.
The non-K BIOS is skipping some parts of the power-management, so there are few things you have to keep in mind:-
1) The missing power-management will not allow to read out any core temperature. No matter which tool you use, it will always just read 100°C.
2) No C-States. CPUs will always run full speed and full voltage.
3) No Turbo-Mode.
4) No iGPU.
5) Intel AVX is screwed. Some benchmarks like Intel XTU use AVX and you will have about 4-5 times lower score. As far as I know no game is using AVX so it’s no problem to use this for gaming rigs. Not suitable for professional usage though.
6) Avoid high memory clocks. Everything around 2600 MHz will be fine.
Follow this link for a complete OC guide:-
http://overclocking.guide/asus-z170-non-k-overclocking-guide/
My ASUS-Z170-A motherboard
My ASUS-Z170-A motherboard bios; Under ‘Tools’ tab, the ‘Graphics Card Information’ does not exist. Could you please tell me what is wrong? (CPU: Intel core I5-6600k).
I am sorry, my mistake. It is
I am sorry, my mistake. It is a H110M-D D3 Asus motherboard.
Would a be quiet Dark Rock
Would a be quiet Dark Rock Pro 3 CPU Cooler be compatible with this motherboard? I think the backplate might come into contact with that troublesome chip…