Overclock.net banner

[HCW] EVGA Z87 FTW Review

7K views 27 replies 11 participants last post by  szeged 
#1 ·
evga-z87-ftw-review-620x413.jpg


evga-z87-ftw-cpu-vrm-620x382.jpg


z87-ftw-bios-overclock-main-1-620x465.jpg


evga-overclock-4.8.png

Quote:
As for the board itself, it has some great components and features that are well thought out for the most part. I like the VRM design, with 6 phases of 60A PowIRstage driver/mosfets, and the extra PWM may help it run as efficiently as possible. ...

Some of the extra onboard features are good to have, such as power buttons and clear-CMOS switches. I especially like that the diagnostic LED doubles as a CPU temperature monitor as soon as it boots past the BIOS.
EVGA Z87 FTW Review @ HCW
 
See less See more
4
#3 ·
Is it just me or does anyone else feel that the team whos been designing the heatsinks lately on their boards a bit lacking?
 
#7 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by szeged View Post

1.354v for 4.8, hope thats delidded lol.
I don't. If it's deluded then that means there's no room for improvement, but it's a stock CPU then that means that that voltage can go lower.
wink.gif
 
#12 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by xCloudyHorizon View Post

I wanted an EVGA board for my rig, but they took a little too long for my tastes. I love the color scheme, the IO cover, and the UEFI, but the boards just seem a little bare.
What kind of extras would you be looking for? Better sound? Extra ethernet?

I agree that this board is pretty basic, but IMO it's solid where it counts (VRM)
 
#14 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by spuppy View Post

What kind of extras would you be looking for? Better sound? Extra ethernet?

I agree that this board is pretty basic, but IMO it's solid where it counts (VRM)
Not quite sure how the audio sounds, but who knows, maybe it could use a boost in audio. Pretty much what szeged said though, the bare space kinda gives off the impression of a low end board. A board the same price is almost always packed to the gills with capacitors and other things.
 
#17 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by xCloudyHorizon View Post

Pretty much what szeged said though, the bare space kinda gives off the impression of a low end board.
People buy boards based on how it is "filled"? Wow.

BTW, as for capacitors more does not mean better, just like cores I guess. This board has IR PWMs, it seems to me like a more valuable reason to consider it as a quality product than ZOMG caps tbh.
 
#18 ·
I dont buy based on how boards are filled, i was just pointing out that compared to other manufacturers, evga does have a bit of space managment issues on their boards. Lots of bare spots which could have been thought out a bit better, or used more wisely. I know that adding more capacitors or other components doesnt make it better
tongue.gif
I buy for performance, and if the performance is there, ill grab it even if it looks like poo
tongue.gif
 
#19 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by adridu59 View Post

People buy boards based on how it is "filled"? Wow.

BTW, as for capacitors more does not mean better, just like cores I guess. This board has IR PWMs, it seems to me like a more valuable reason to consider it as a quality product than ZOMG caps tbh.
EXACTLY!

However... I think they could have used some more caps for the audio codec
wink.gif
 
#20 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by adridu59 View Post

People buy boards based on how it is "filled"? Wow.

BTW, as for capacitors more does not mean better, just like cores I guess. This board has IR PWMs, it seems to me like a more valuable reason to consider it as a quality product than ZOMG caps tbh.
I would've bought it either way, but EVGA took a bit too long releasing the boards so I just picked up the Hero instead.
 
#21 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by szeged View Post

I dont buy based on how boards are filled, i was just pointing out that compared to other manufacturers, evga does have a bit of space managment issues on their boards. Lots of bare spots which could have been thought out a bit better, or used more wisely. I know that adding more capacitors or other components doesnt make it better
tongue.gif
I buy for performance, and if the performance is there, ill grab it even if it looks like poo
tongue.gif
IMO the 'bare spots' equate to a clean look... The less they can put on there, the better! Their Z75 SLI was actually even cleaner than this...
 
#24 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by szeged View Post

i know it was, and i hated it
tongue.gif


idk i like my pcbs to look packed lol.
Usually the more advanced the ICs used, the less filled the PCBs are.

About the power delivery capacitors... Ironically, the faster the switching speed is, the less you need bigger smoothing capacitors. And that's good, because large capacitors generally have larger ESRs, which also lower the efficiency of the system, as well as limiting the power output.

You should be happy that they are using small capacitors there
tongue.gif
 
#25 ·
Its not the size of the components or how many the use thats bothering me. I just posted that evga could take a small lesson in space management on their motherboard/gpu pcbs.

Somehow that keeps getting twisted into "i think if a motherboard has more components on it, it is better" which i know is not true
thumb.gif


so again - i just dont like the look of bare spots on pcbs, but if it functions fine, thats great, ill just live with it being ugly imo
tongue.gif
 
#26 ·
so now they used a sniper scope for its heatsink
rolleyes.gif


i wonder if the bios are greatly improved. the z77 bioses has alot of problems.... i like the clean look of the pcb!

although the IO cover might hit the first graphics card when the first pcie slot is used. specially if the graphics card has a backplate.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top