ASRock Z77 OC Formula Review: Living In The Fast Lane
by Ian Cutress on January 15, 2013 1:00 PM EST- Posted in
- Motherboards
- ASRock
- Z77
- Overclocking
3D Movement Algorithm Test
The algorithms in 3DPM employ both uniform random number generation or normal distribution random number generation, and vary in various amounts of trigonometric operations, conditional statements, generation and rejection, fused operations, etc. The benchmark runs through six algorithms for a specified number of particles and steps, and calculates the speed of each algorithm, then sums them all for a final score. This is an example of a real world situation that a computational scientist may find themselves in, rather than a pure synthetic benchmark. The benchmark is also parallel between particles simulated, and we test the single thread performance as well as the multi-threaded performance.
In terms of single thread performance at stock, the ASRock ends up middle of the pack.
For our multi-threaded test, the ASRock is king of the pack of all the boards with MultiCore Acceleration. The MultiCore Plus used by the Gigabyte at the top for an extra multiplier still gives a pure MHz lead.
WinRAR x64 3.93 - link
With 64-bit WinRAR, we compress the set of files used in the USB speed tests. WinRAR x64 3.93 attempts to use multithreading when possible, and provides as a good test for when a system has variable threaded load. If a system has multiple speeds to invoke at different loading, the switching between those speeds will determine how well the system will do.
MultiCore Acceleration also plays a part in the variable loaded WinRAR, and the ability to run our memory kit at XMP helps over the weaker boards. There is still a little room for efficiency over the top end ASUS and Gigabyte boards.
FastStone Image Viewer 4.2 - link
FastStone Image Viewer is a free piece of software I have been using for quite a few years now. It allows quick viewing of flat images, as well as resizing, changing color depth, adding simple text or simple filters. It also has a bulk image conversion tool, which we use here. The software currently operates only in single-thread mode, which should change in later versions of the software. For this test, we convert a series of 170 files, of various resolutions, dimensions and types (of a total size of 163MB), all to the .gif format of 640x480 dimensions.
No real surprises in FastStone.
Xilisoft Video Converter
With XVC, users can convert any type of normal video to any compatible format for smartphones, tablets and other devices. By default, it uses all available threads on the system, and in the presence of appropriate graphics cards, can utilize CUDA for NVIDIA GPUs as well as AMD APP for AMD GPUs. For this test, we use a set of 32 HD videos, each lasting 30 seconds, and convert them from 1080p to an iPod H.264 video format using just the CPU. The time taken to convert these videos gives us our result.
x264 HD Benchmark
The x264 HD Benchmark uses a common HD encoding tool to process an HD MPEG2 source at 1280x720 at 3963 Kbps. This test represents a standardized result which can be compared across other reviews, and is dependant on both CPU power and memory speed. The benchmark performs a 2-pass encode, and the results shown are the average of each pass performed four times.
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IanCutress - Tuesday, January 15, 2013 - link
We haven't got around to testing those. I have the Z77 MPower and Z77X-UP7 in to test at the minute, and they will be reviewed in due course.Also, comparing against a board that I gave an award to is perfectly valid - it gives at least a standard and a comparison point. Over a certain price point, various groups of users will refuse to spend money on a motherboard unless there is a tangible benefit.
Ian
Paazel - Tuesday, January 15, 2013 - link
How can this board/company be awarded anything from this site? I thought you guys factor in post sale support/RMA procedure when reviewing boards?My Z68 board has been a nightmare, I upgraded to the newest BIOS and had installed Windows seven times before I realized that the board must be bad. It was a nightmare to get them to send a new BIOS (as the BIOS could not be rolled back). The forgot to ship it, then shipped it to my home rather than the location the computer was at. The BIOS didn't work so I had to RMA the board. ASRock does NOT do advance RMA at all (even if you secure it by credit card). How can this be OK for a silver award at all? Additionally the RMA procedure takes 5-7 business days to examine, upon which they send it out fedex ground. This is typically 2.5 weeks all said and done (I shipped via FedEx 2day). This is among the worst support possible, this should be factored in to all ASRock product reviews.
threeclaws - Tuesday, January 15, 2013 - link
Customer Support should be a major factor in reviews but nobody is doing it. I was "chatting" with a reviewer on hardocp about this and he was saying it would be impossible to do it for every board but that maybe a yearly round up could be implemented. I hope hardocp does it because it will force sites like anandtech (and others) to follow suit whether they want to or not.With companies like Asus running around getting awards left and right, paired with the worst customer service in the industry (this seems fairly well known at this point) there will be no change unless major review sites start taking them to task over it.
p.s. I haven't really experienced asrock customer support but am enjoying my z77 board from them.
A5 - Wednesday, January 16, 2013 - link
None of these companies have good support because they don't need it and the market has clearly shown that it doesn't really care about it. Most motherboards that go bad will do so within the return period.Voldenuit - Tuesday, January 15, 2013 - link
Dear Anandtech,Please stop wasting our time with $200 motherboard reviews.
Thank you,
The Internet.
Razorbak86 - Tuesday, January 15, 2013 - link
Dear Voldenuit, please stop trying to speak for "The Internet". tyvmDear Ian, please continue with your motherboard reviews. I read almost every one, including those in the $200 price category. I suspect I am not alone, but I will not presume to speak for others.
Best regards,
Razorbak86
vwgtiron - Thursday, January 17, 2013 - link
I concur sir, I am all about bang for the buck. And as it is currently time for me to update my gaming rig well. I am trying to decide to pull the trigger or hold off 2 more months. But this motherboard for me hits the sweetspot and offers me a lot for my dollar, still allows me to add in a separate sound card if I deem so. Throw my intel NIC in and boom, cream machine.Also Ian I really like your reviews. Your getting better all the time. Thank you.
A5 - Wednesday, January 16, 2013 - link
What do you want instead?$80 motherboards are boring and $300+ motherboards are just stupid (so incredibly stupid).
irsmurf - Thursday, January 17, 2013 - link
I couldn't disagree more. $200 motherboards are the sweet spot between high performance and enthusiast / superfluous.iamkyle - Wednesday, January 16, 2013 - link
Why haven't the award medals been updated? They still use the old Anandtech logo and style!