Hi,

You are right. It does not have a PLX chip. I guess I read some stuff that are wrong.

I prefer to stick to some high-end board. Mostly because I have the money and I currently own a M6F (but having an issue, which is unfixable).

Air cooling, nothing more. So I am definitely interested to what those 2 boards bring to me.

Z97 Deluxe :

- 16 Phases
- Cooler
- More stable BIOS

Maximus VII Formula :

- OC better
- Armor
- PS/2

Is one of them better quality than the other? Would those huge heatsinks really make it run cooler? Would 16 phases make a difference?

I thought about the Z97 Extreme9, but I dont like it due to the slot size (all z16), I read some people having issues with those slots and a Creative Z soundcard.

Thanks.

They are both quality boards, the formula vii is designed more for gamers/overclockers.

If you want more overclocking features, the formula vii wins hands down, plus it has the ROG colors as you know.

if you have the cash it's an easy choice, the formula vii.

Right, thanks for the info.

I still have some concerns. I feel like you are mentioning the M7F for its OCing features, although it might not be useful to me due to my uses. I use strictly Air, no watercooling or LN2. Would the M7F make a difference in overclocking on air? I OC strictly my CPU. I use 2133 ram and ocing it would not really increase the performance by a lot, so instead of OCing, I actually use better timings.

So, would the OCing features, despite using air cooling (NH-D14 and Define R5 silent case, so less air flow) be useful to me? Or am I better with a board with bigger heatsinks for cooler temps like the Z97 Deluxe using 16 phases?

I currently use the M6F, is the M7F cooler than M6F? I believe it uses copper heatsink instead of aluminum now.

In my case, it would mostly be a temp reduction vs OCing features on air.

Also, is it possible to replace the wifi module on the z97 deluxe if... lets say... I want to add a 3x3? I know its possible on the mPCIe combo II on M6F.

So far, I am heading towards the Maximus VII Formula, however I want to address those concerns first. If the OCing features are not useful for me, that would leave Armor for dust and PS/2 as pros, which I am not sure if its worth over lower temps in my silent case.

I really appreciate your advices.

Have a look at this. 🙂

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o1uWKuI5BJw&feature=youtu.be&list=UUgTTyN54Hljm7TqD13q8FEg

Hi,

PLX chips add latency.

OC'ing a z97 ROG board is pretty much the same across the board, so any ROG from Hero to OC will give you the same results. Hence, the CPU batch is what determines that extra omph when your OC'ing. You get lucky, you got a good chip...

Now, all things equal - why are you so focused on OC'ing if you're running on air? Do you expect to hit more than 4.6Ghz stable on air from any cpu for that matter? Save your time, don't go that route...4.2ghz and 4.6ghz make no difference in FPS or any other games for that matter. But resolution and refresh rates, make or break your score(at least in FPS) and other games.

As a FPS gamer myself, I would suggest to keep things simple. Fast CPU, any ROG board, 8gbs of ram, low CAS(9 preferably) but high clocks(2400mhz), and a good videocard depending on what you game. If you're a COD gamer, then a 1080P 144hz monitor is what you should go for.

If you're a BF or MMO gamer than go for the ROG Swift. You'll appreciate the high res graphics a lot more, and lag is not an issue since you're not counting pings all the time 😉
Last thought - M2 storage is a great concept, but we're too early to make use of it still. You're not going to benefit much from loading .5 to 1 sec faster than the next guy, plus the $/gb for M2 is very high...go Raid 0 and save your PCIE lanes for something else 🙂

Thanks for your comment,

However, as mentionned multiple times, I asked if the OCing features on the Maximus VII Formula were overkill for me, on air... So its totally the opposite to your claim. There is also a difference between 4.2 and 4.6 when it comes to CPU limited games. With my current chip, I am limited at 4.2ghz because its pretty bad. I highly doubt any of those boards would have trouble getting to 4.8ghz or maybe even more if I had a good chip.

I would think on most occasions, the extra OC features would be totally useless unless you get extremely high clocks like 5ghz or even higher. I dont know for sure, but I would think most people would reach a CPU limitation or temp limit before those features become truly useful. Unless you have LN2 and a very very very good chip, I doubt it makes a difference.

I read the Z97 Deluxe runs cooler due to the huge heatsinks and 16 phases. Apparently the Maximus VII Formula has more OCing features.

I don't know if the 2 dram phases make a difference when I run at stock speed (2133) but use lower timings. Are those 2 phases (M7F is 8+2) mostly for people who use extreme overclocking on their ram? Does it actually make a diffrence?

I thought the Z97 Deluxe had a PLX chip but it does not, so its quite irrevelant in that regard.

Like I said, its mostly the 16 phases, cooler, more stable board on the z97 deluxe versus the armor, extra ocing features and ps/2 for the maximus vii formula. I do not believe it adds more useful "gaming features" than the z97 deluxe, really. However, if it has lower DPC latency and more performance than the Z97 Deluxe, that is huge.

I read some stuff that I am not sure of though...

Some forums claim the Maximus VII Formula has more OCing features and OC more but is also a gaming oriented board.
wccftech claims the Z97 Deluxe OC better.

Can someone give me a definitive answer... Which is true?

Also, what makes it the Maximus VII Formula a more gaming oriented board? Does it have higher gaming performance and lower DPC latency? Otherwise its just another board with a different color scheme and "armor" on it with some useless software. I wont be using the useless software like GameFirst that wont make a single difference and Sonic Radar.

Like I said, if the color scheme and software give its gaming label... I am asking for things that actually matters. If wccftech is actually right, then the Z97 Deluxe OC more and runs cooler due to bigger heatsinks/more phases for better power stability, that would make the Z97 Deluxe a better board.

Also, M.2 matters to me, but not so much on the board because it uses the PCI Express 2.0 lanes. I am waiting for the price to drop. I will just use a M.2 to PCI Express 3.0 card if I have to (considering 10 Gb is not enough for some of the samsung models) and no boards other than extreme6/9 from asrock support Ultra M.2. Pci-e 3.0 8x vs 16x for video card makes no difference, I wouldnt mind using a few for a M.2 device.

Performance on both boards will come down to the hardware you put in it.

Here's something else to have a look at.

http://www.pcper.com/reviews/Motherboards/ASUS-Maximus-VII-Formula-Motherboard-Review/Benchmark-Test...

So neither of them would have a problem reaching 4.7ghz, which would be awesome on air. I dont believe that M7F is any better at OCing than the Deluxe version, unlike what a lot of people claim.

Z97 Deluxe has more features/connections on the board than the Maximus VII Formula. The M7F has the armor, but that doesnt actually bring anything other maybe a reduction of dust on the board. The Deluxe is also cheaper, runs cooler, has more phases for power stability. I think its just higher end than the M7F.

However, it does lack the 2 dram phases that M7F has, but I do not overclock my ram (its already at 2133, I would gain barely anything doing so) but I run with lower timings instead of more speed.

I think I will go for the Deluxe, it seems to be a better board all around. I wont have PS/2 for a future keyboard, but whatever... Unless keyboard manufacturers go back to that, it wont be used anyway.

I thought about the Z97 Pro too, because its cheaper. However its just an inferior board it seems like, between the deluxe and m7f. 12 phases, smaller heatsinks, less features. Less features is fine because the ones I need are still there. I have the money for either of them, but I will think about it if the extra 4 phases, features and bigger heatsink are worth it.