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ECS Golden Board Z77H2-AX LGA 1155 Preview

cadaveca

cadaveca

My name is Dave
Joined
Apr 10, 2006
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The eagerly anticipated Intel Z77 Express Chipset is finally here. As always, ECS is first out the gate here at TPU, with none other than their first and only "Golden Board" Z77H2-AX. Built with unmatched quality and funtionality as its main focus, the Z77H2-AX is ECS's latest weapon against the twin overclocking Dragons of AMD and Intel.

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I dont get it?

The main reason we have Z77 is native USB 3, yet you dont test it?
 
AthlonX2 said:
I dont get it?

The main reason we have Z77 is native USB 3, yet you dont test it?
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This is just a preview, When he gets a Ivy bridge chip is when all the full testing begins.
 
That doesnt matter current 1155 chips work in these boards
 
AthlonX2 said:
That doesnt matter current 1155 chips work in these boards
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Well thats true. I have a feeling he didn't want to do two full testes with SB then IB but thats just a guess. Maybe dave can chime in and answer.
 
brandonwh64 said:
Well thats true. I have a feeling he didn't want to do two full testes with SB then IB but thats just a guess. Maybe dave can chime in and answer.
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you said testes :laugh:
 
Thanks Dave :toast:
 
AthlonX2 said:
I dont get it?

The main reason we have Z77 is native USB 3, yet you dont test it?
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Previews do not contain performance compares. Plus, USB 3.0 performance varies from product to product, so covering just that would not actually relate USB 3.0 performance for the chipset, but merely for the individual product.


Full Performance reviews will come after IVB launches.
 
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EarthDog said:
I hope this board works better than it looks. BLEH.
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It is going to be tough to everyone to like, but since it's limited to 200 peices of each model in the "Golden Board" series, i think it's been a good experiment.



As I'm sure you know, Z77 products seem to clock SB CPUS a bit better than P67/Z68, and this board does as well, and I haven't noticed any oddities yet. I just got a new BIOS, too.
 
Indeed, looks are subjective. This just screams "Goldmember" however. :rofl:

Ive read that.. and that is good. Similar o/c's for less voltage - win for all. :)

I cant help but think those (gaudy) crown like golden heatsinks around the CPU wont bump in to some coolers... and most people thought that ram would be the issue. I see the 'left' sink is angled a bit, so hopefully that helps. :)
 
Yeah, I guess that that is possible, but at the same time i've noticed that they are not much taller than most regular DIMMs would be in the DIMM slots, so I think they are nearly 100% safe from that being an issue. Of course one or two heatsinks might have a problem. The Noctua NH-D14 has probably been the largest cooler I've used, and it would fit no problem.


001.jpg
 
It appears as tall as a ramstick without any sinks, so should be good. They are cutting it close however. :)
 
ECS could include a mPCIe SSD in the box at no additional cost and I'd still pass. ECS was my bane for a few early builds when I didn't know any better. I don't care if they made the best boards at the lowest prices I'd still look elsewhere.
 
I'm still disappointed about the lack of solid gold and/or platinum and diamonds.
 
Why they are using a third party USB 3.0 controller when Z77 has that feature natively?
 
Bullly said:
Why they are using a third party USB 3.0 controller when Z77 has that feature natively?
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The Intel Z77 Express PCH only supports 4 USB 3.0 ports natively. This is intended to be used for two at the front panel, and 2 at the rear panel. Most OEMs are using USB 3.0 controller hubs to add additional ports. I've seen a few that support 4 on the front panel alone, while this one has six ports(4 rear, 2 front). It seems that at most, OEMs are enabling just 2 of the Intel Z77 Epxress onboard USB 3.0 ports, and I'm not sure why. I am not provided with review guides, and have to figure this stuff out myself, or ask questions that aren't always answered by the time things are published.;)
 
I like the heat sink design.

Looking forward to the performance review with an IB. Also I'd like to see SB performance compared to IB in it.
 
SonDa5 said:
I like the heat sink design.

Looking forward to the performance review with an IB. Also I'd like to see SB performance compared to IB in it.
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I'd like 3 PCIe 3.0 VGAs to compare the PCIe switch's offered bandwidth vs X79.
 
What you've labelled as the ASM1081 USB 3.0 controller is an ASM1061 SATA 6Gbps controller...
 
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