Asus Z-170 Pro Gaming MOBO

[untoweechja 35]

I am looking into a new Skylake build and am considering the Asus Z-170 Pro Gaming motherboard.  

 

I'd appreciate any comments (good or bad) from anyone who has this motherboard as well as any recommendations from those who are 'in the know' regarding a solid, reliable Z170 motherboard in the $150 - $250 price range.

 

Thanks in advance.

[martin-w 3,234]

Had a quick glance at the reviews and it looks like a nice board with all the features most would need.

 

I went for the Z170-A. I was looking at the deluxe, but I didn't need many of the features so saved some dosh and went fro the -A.

[untoweechja 35]

It does look like a good value at its price, but it seems to get less than stellar reviews from people who've purchased it (Amazon, Newegg).

 

However, it appears most motherboards have their share of negative reviews since people are more likely to report bad experiences than good.

 

I'm still in the early stages of research, though, and thank you for your remarks.

[fakeflyer737 991]

It does look like a good value at its price, but it seems to get less than stellar reviews from people who've purchased it (Amazon, Newegg).

 

However, it appears most motherboards have their share of negative reviews since people are more likely to report bad experiences than good.

 

I'm still in the early stages of research, though, and thank you for your remarks.

 

 

I'm using the Z170 Pro Gaming and I love it. I've got a great OC and she just runs really nice.

[sgreen91 182]

I went with the Z170A for my Skylake build and no issues with it so far. Very happy with my build.

 

Only took a few minutes to OC to a stable 4.7, my first time so I'm no pro at this.

[mwilk 1,104]

I'm using the Z170 Pro Gaming and I love it. I've got a great OC and she just runs really nice.

Ron,

         I also have the Pro gaming board and for the life of me, I can't tell if my OC took. When I check on CPU-Z or OCCP it shows it running at 4008 mhz. How did you do your OC?

[fakeflyer737 991]

Ron,

         I also have the Pro gaming board and for the life of me, I can't tell if my OC took. When I check on CPU-Z or OCCP it shows it running at 4008 mhz. How did you do your OC?

Mike, I do it the old fashion way in the BIOS manually. I tired using the other methods but they try to do stupid things and I don't trust them. How did you OC it? In BIOS Manually, Auto BIOS OCing or Asus AI Suite? Have you run an stress tests? I use CPUID HWMonitor when Im OCing to have a look at all the things I need to see.

[martin-w 3,234]

Ron,

         I also have the Pro gaming board and for the life of me, I can't tell if my OC took. When I check on CPU-Z or OCCP it shows it running at 4008 mhz. How did you do your OC?

 

 

 

Are you remembering that it will throttle back frequency and voltage when not under load, if using adaptive? Check the frequency while under load.

Mike, I do it the old fashion way in the BIOS manually. I tired using the other methods but they try to do stupid things and I don't trust them. How did you OC it? In BIOS Manually, Auto BIOS OCing or Asus AI Suite? Have you run an stress tests? I use CPUID HWMonitor when Im OCing to have a look at all the things I need to see.

 

 

"The other methods". Do you mean 5 way optimisation? What stupid things did it do? It's quite sophistcated softawre with lots of options for you to adjust to your liking. It shouldn't have done stupid things.

 

I've been finding that those who have issues, weren't too familiar with the software, or what to set. For example, many aren't aware that TPU1 and TPU 2 are different. 1 giving you a multiplier overclock, and 2 both multiplier and BCLK.

[simon747 185]

Had this mobo since release of skylake and got it up to 4.7 on my little 6600k; no problems; good on-board sound and good price!

[TheBoom 31]

I'm also considering a skylake upgrade. Being doing some research and there seem to be no reviews or videos about the z170 Pro. It's supposed be a middle ground between the Deluxe and the A.

 

I won't go for the pro gaming since it doesn't match my color theme.

[untoweechja 35]

Lots of good info here, and I feel much better about giving this board serious consideration.  Thank you all.

[mwilk 1,104]

I just downloaded the latest version of CPU-Z and it's showing my overclock of 4.6 GHZ. It never did that before. It's also showing a core voltage of 1.42 which is really high. I'm going to have to go in and make some adjustments. I can't remember if I used the TPU settings to OC. Thanks for everyone's help. I keep following this thread as there is some very good information being exchanged.

[Gary A 8]

I'm reading a lot of woes respecting ASUS Z170 boards and various post issues and issues related to memory errors.  I am not seeing as much rhetoric about Gigabyte.  I was always happy with Gigabyte or ASUS as my MB selection.  This round If I could have a do-over, and based on the experiences with my current board, likely Gigabyte.

[overspeed3 410]

I recently bought a pre-built rig from CyberPowerPC: It came with a Z170A MOBO.  As it was purchased from TigerDirect, there was no choice in that.  But it also features an Intel 6700k (Not O/C), and the GXT 970 that I wanted.  So far, it's working great - I monitor temperatures and all the components are well within normal bounds, even after several hours on FSX.  And FPS are amazing - I have a 50 FPS limit which I get consistently.

 

Hope that helps you...

[martin-w 3,234]

I'm reading a lot of woes respecting ASUS Z170 boards and various post issues and issues related to memory errors.  I am not seeing as much rhetoric about Gigabyte.  I was always happy with Gigabyte or ASUS as my MB selection.  This round If I could have a do-over, and based on the experiences with my current board, likely Gigabyte.

 

I think the issues some are having are with the Z170 Deluxe Gary. Don't think there are any issues with other Asus boards as far as I know.

I just downloaded the latest version of CPU-Z and it's showing my overclock of 4.6 GHZ. It never did that before. It's also showing a core voltage of 1.42 which is really high. I'm going to have to go in and make some adjustments. I can't remember if I used the TPU settings to OC. Thanks for everyone's help. I keep following this thread as there is some very good information being exchanged.

 

Asus and Intel recommend 1.45 as max voltage. If you used TPU2, either the switch on the board or within Ai Suite, it is a generic overclock, not system specific, so yes the voltage will be higher. TPU1 overclocks to 4.2 I believe. You'll need to run 5 way optimisation or overclock manually to reduce the voltage. 

 

Note though, there's a TPU 1 and 2 option in 5 way optimisation. It works differently though. TPU1 overclocks multiplier whereas TPU2 overclocks multiplier and BCLK.