When it comes to gaming, it pays to be picky about motherboards. Shortcomings that otherwise go unnoticed in office applications can crash the party in action or racing games, and keep you off leaderboards like a case of shaky hands. Make sure those pricey drives, graphics cards and overclocked CPUs live up to their potential by giving them a loving home with a good motherboard. We've looked into dozens of them to find the best at a variety of prices and form-factors.
The new Skylake CPUs demand a new family of chipsets, which finally pave the lanes wide for serious I/O performance. We've put together a separate guide onthe best Z170 motherboard for enthusiasts, while this guide covered all the bases. The 170 chipset blurs the lines between Intel’s extreme and standard platforms with plenty of positive results for gamers and enthusiasts, although X99’s higher prices have rubbed off a little, too.
The best all-around Skylake motherboard (LGA 1151)
If you’re tired of waiting while ASUS sorts out the Pro Gaming series or gun-shy about going with MSI, ASUS offers the Z170-Pro. This non-gaming focused alternative features better VRM hardware than either of those midrange boards along with ALC 1150 audio, Intel v219 Ethernet, subdued white/silver looks, and ASUS’s signature-series BIOS, a package that provides the best overall experience on LGA1151 today.
Skipping past the beta-board waiting line will cost you a bit though, as the Z170-Pro is only available at its hefty initial list price of $195, making it costly for a general recommendation but the best fit for the vast $200 gap in between Z170 mid-range and newfound $300+ high-end frontier. These are early days for Skylake however, so expect $150-170 street prices before long, once the new-car aroma wears off and the discounts begin.
The best mid-range Skylake motherboard (LGA 1151)
MSI continues its winning streak in a shocking upset victory over ASUS with theZ170A Gaming Pro, a just-right mix of style, features, and price that resets expectations for motherboards under $150. Matching the more expensive ASUS Pro Gaming in features but beating it handily in price and current firmware stability, MSI seems to have a better grip on Intel’s new chipset than the competition, at least in this segment.
The best budget Skylake motherboard (LGA 1151)
Budget boards aren’t meant for overclocking, which puts Intel’s H170 chipset front and center in the value class. The substantial cost saving from H170 vs Z170 comes mostly from skipping K processor price premiums, although there’s cash to be recovered from H-series motherboard purchases as well. When every dollar counts, it pays to put the pennies towards a better GPU once four healthy cores are present.
The best mini-ITX Skylake motherboard (LGA 1151)
ITX remains a land of limited returns for gamers, although Skylake’s power and heat reductions mean better build scenarios than Haswell could provide. While ASRock’s Fatal1ty series narrowly missed taking the budget pick in the ATX form factor, the Fatal1ty Z170 Gaming-ITX/AC managed to land the overall ITX recommendation for Z170 with a full-sized feature list along with some special tricks that separate it from the rest of the pint-sized pack.
The best high-end Skylake motherboard (LGA 1151)
While ASUS may be having problems with a few mid-range boards, there’s no problem at the high end. A perusal of the product catalog shows a bevy of overachievers above $200. There isn’t a loser in the lot, but some are smarter than others, and the Z170 Deluxe is ASUS’s overall valedictorian. A genius in motherboard form, it can do everything other motherboards do, only better.
FIN
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