Intel Z77 Panther Point Chipset and Motherboard Preview – ASRock, ASUS, Gigabyte, MSI, ECS and Biostar
by Ian Cutress on April 8, 2012 12:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Motherboards
- Intel
- Biostar
- MSI
- Gigabyte
- ASRock
- Asus
- Ivy Bridge
- ECS
- Z77
Gigabyte GA-Z77MX-D3H—Visual Inspection
In a twist to the previous motherboards, Gigabyte sent us a micro-ATX sample, the GA-Z77MX-D3H. While still a Z77 product, capable of dual GPU setups, we have a motherboard aimed at the cheaper end of the spectrum. This is shown with what looks like a 4 + 2 VRM power delivery, and the relatively small sized heatsinks. We are also limited in terms of fan headers (three), and rear panel USB 3.0 ports (only two) compared to the Z77X-UD3H WiFi bigger brother.
The socket itself is clean with little obstructions—fan headers are found below the VRM heatsink, where we have two of the 4-pin variety. The other fan header on board can be found at the bottom next to the TPM.
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Despite being a cheaper small motherboard, we still have typical Gigabyte features, such as dual BIOSes next to the USB 3.0 header underneath the 24-pin ATX power connector, but only the SATA ports from the PCH. This means two SATA 6 Gbps and three SATA 3 Gbps. The chipset heatsink is also small but has enough surface area to keep Gigabyte confident of its functionality.
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The south side of the board is relatively naked, with a front panel audio, fan header, TPM and two USB 2.0 headers. Given the look of the board and that it does not display many potential features (presumably to fit into a price bracket), I was not expecting anything elaborate such as power/reset buttons.
The PCIe layout is aimed at users wanting dual GPUs or users needing an extra PCIe device alongside their GPU. The PCIe layout becomes x16 (x8 on dual GPU), x1, x8, x4, with this final x4 only being PCIe 2.0.
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The rear IO panel is more substantial than I assumed, which can only be a good thing. From left to right we have a pair of USB 2.0 (black), a combination PS/2 port, D-Sub, DVI, two USB 3.0 (blue), HDMI, four more USB 2.0 (black), gigabit Ethernet, and standard audio jacks with a combination optical SPDIF output.
Board Features
| Gigabyte GA-Z77MX-D3H | |
| Size | mATX |
| CPU Interface | LGA-1155 |
| Chipset | Intel Z77 |
| Power Delivery | TBC |
| Memory Slots |
Four DDR3 DIMM slots supporting up to 32 GB Up to Dual Channel, 1066-1600 MHz |
| Video Outputs | HDMI, DVI-D, D-Sub |
| Onboard LAN | Atheros |
| Onboard Audio | Via VT2021 |
| Expansion Slots |
2 x PCIe x16 Gen3 (x16, x8/8) 1 x PCIe x16 Gen2 (x4) 1 x PCIe x1 Gen2 |
| Onboard SATA/RAID |
2 x SATA 6 Gbps (PCH), Support for RAID 0, 1, 5, 10 4 x SATA 3 Gbps (PCH), Support for RAID 0, 1, 5, 10 |
| USB |
4 USB 3.0 ports (2 back panel, 2 from headers) 10 USB 2.0 ports (6 back panel, 4 from headers) |
| Onboard |
4 x SATA 3 Gbps 2 x SATA 6 Gbps 3 x Fan Headers 1 x Front Panel Header 1 x Front Audio Header 1 x SPDIF Output Header 1 x USB 3.0 Header 2 x USB 2.0 Headers 1 x TPM |
| Power Connectors |
1 x 24-pin ATX connector 1 x 8-pin 12V connector |
| Fan Headers |
1 x CPU Fan Header (4-pin) 2 x SYS Fan Headers (4-pin) |
| IO Panel |
1 x PS/2 Combo Port 1 x D-Sub 1 x DVI-D 1 x HDMI 2 x USB 3.0 6 x USB 2.0 1 x Gigabit Ethernet 1 x Optical SPDIF Audio Jacks |
| Warranty Period | 3 Years |
| Product Page | Link |
As with the Gigabyte Z77X-UD3H WiFi, this Z77MX-D3H comes with an Atheros/Via network and audio combination. Given the lack of features on the main area of the board due to the size and the audience this product is aiming for, it seems good if all you want is a stock processor and a working Ivy Bridge system with no frills.
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t4murphy - Wednesday, April 18, 2012 - link
That was a good cpu for me before I went to the 920. I still ran MS FS9 with good results along with my GTX 8800. Im not laughing:)rocknrob - Thursday, April 12, 2012 - link
I had a 920 X58 setup and decided to rebuild to an i7 2700K Z68. So far I've regretted the whole thing. I'm going to pick up one of these ASUS Z77 Deluxe boards but I don't think it's going to make a big difference.The X58's/i7's were rock solid and performance monsters. I honestly see very little in terms of performance gains. Supposedly Ive Bridge processors are only going to give you about 15% to 20% increase in performance. If that's the case I think I'm going to stick with the 2700K until the next architecture change.
457R4LDR34DKN07 - Sunday, April 8, 2012 - link
you need to get a asus P8Z77-I DELUXE review.Mitxplease - Sunday, April 8, 2012 - link
Hells yes.GreenEnergy - Sunday, April 8, 2012 - link
I only found one (tiny) review sofar:http://vr-zone.com/articles/first-look-asus-p8z77-...
457R4LDR34DKN07 - Wednesday, April 11, 2012 - link
I actually would like a comparison with ZOTAC Z77-ITX WiFi, as I'm leaning toward the zotac mobo due to the msata compatibility by removing the wifi/bt module.ViperV990 - Sunday, April 8, 2012 - link
Does the Virtu MVP stuff work with an Eyefinity or NV Surround setup?martinw89 - Sunday, April 8, 2012 - link
I'm very curious about this too. On page two, Ian says "Within the hybrid system, the integrated GPU takes over two of the tasks for the GPU – snooping for required frames, and display output. This requires a system to run in i-Mode, where the display is connected to the integrated GPU."But on page 3, Lucid's own slide makes it sound like these new features are monitor configuration independent: http://images.anandtech.com/doci/5728/Lucid1.png
This is a super interesting feature, and I hope it performs as well in reality as it sounds like on paper. And with a triple screen setup it would be bliss.
jimnicoloff - Sunday, April 8, 2012 - link
I have a three monitor setup working just fine on a Z68 board with all monitors attached to a 6970. Virtu gives the option of which you want to be primary - the video card or the integrated graphics. So for me (with the video card primary) this works kind of backwards from a power saving point, but good for performance since it still allows for quick sync video transcoding, etc.I know this doesn't adress the new Virtu MVP, but I can't see them taking a step backwards when something similar works on the old version. Especially since if you are running in eyefinity mode it is just seen by the system as one big wide monitor and not three separate screens that each get their own render. Hopefully they can pull it off because I like my three screen setup and would hate to lose features because of that.
Zoomer - Tuesday, April 10, 2012 - link
I'm leading no:"This requires a system to run in <b>i-Mode, where the display is connected to the integrated GPU.</b>"