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- Jun 5, 2013
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Hey guys, I'm looking to put together a mini-ITX build. I was gonna go with the H170n-WiFi as it's on the recommended list, but it doesn't let you overclock, and I've picked up a 6700k that I would like to overclock as this will be an editing rig.
That leaves the Z170 Gigabyte options, two of which are mini-ITX. The Z170N-WiFi and the Z170N-Gaming 5. I've searched through the forums, and there seems to be a tad more info on the first board, but no super thorough guide like there is for the H170N-WiFi. I think I can probably figure it out though. The issue arises when you look at the Newegg reviews. Many people have mentioned that this board throttles even without an OC, bringing almost all CPUs down to 800 MHz under load. That would be unacceptable for my use. Some people theorize that this is due to the lack of heatspreaders on the MOSFETs, but I dunno.
The next model up, the Gaming 5, is only $15 more and seems to have some north bridge cooling. Looking at the negative reviews, people don't complain about throttling, but there are a few dead boards, and people aren't too happy with the non-Intel (Killer?) NIC.
Does anyone have any insight into which model will be easier to Hac? My strategy is to use my Macbook and clone my installation (which I keep ready on a 64GB flash drive, with all the apps I need installed), and from my Macbook, run Multibeast on it and do whatever else needs to be done, then just pop it in and boot it up.
I'll be ordered the Dell m.2 WiFi board that I've seen mentioned for WiFi, but until then, I will absolutely need the NIC to work.
That leaves the Z170 Gigabyte options, two of which are mini-ITX. The Z170N-WiFi and the Z170N-Gaming 5. I've searched through the forums, and there seems to be a tad more info on the first board, but no super thorough guide like there is for the H170N-WiFi. I think I can probably figure it out though. The issue arises when you look at the Newegg reviews. Many people have mentioned that this board throttles even without an OC, bringing almost all CPUs down to 800 MHz under load. That would be unacceptable for my use. Some people theorize that this is due to the lack of heatspreaders on the MOSFETs, but I dunno.
The next model up, the Gaming 5, is only $15 more and seems to have some north bridge cooling. Looking at the negative reviews, people don't complain about throttling, but there are a few dead boards, and people aren't too happy with the non-Intel (Killer?) NIC.
Does anyone have any insight into which model will be easier to Hac? My strategy is to use my Macbook and clone my installation (which I keep ready on a 64GB flash drive, with all the apps I need installed), and from my Macbook, run Multibeast on it and do whatever else needs to be done, then just pop it in and boot it up.
I'll be ordered the Dell m.2 WiFi board that I've seen mentioned for WiFi, but until then, I will absolutely need the NIC to work.