MSI Z97 Gaming 9 AC Motherboard Review

[section_title title=”Test Setup”]Test Setup

Test Setup & Methodology & Benchmarks

Test Setup

CPU: Intel Core i7-4770K @4.5GHz

CPU Cooler: Corsair H80i

Motherboard: MSI Z97 Gaming 9 AC

RAM: TeamGroup Vulcan 2400MHz 8GB (2x4GB)

PSU: Cooler Master V850 850w

OS: Windows 7 Ultimate 64 bit

Methodology:

All benchmarks are done on a fresh install of Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit that is fully up-to-date with Windows Updates to ensure that the performance reflects a real-world scenario and not that of a tweaked benchmarking system. Every benchmark runs for a total of three times and then an average is taken of those results.

3D Benchmarks:

3DMark 11 – Performance and Extreme presets

3DMark Fire Strike – Normal and Extreme presets

Hitman: Absolution (gaming benchmark)

2D Benchmarks:

AIDA64

CINEBENCH

SiSoftware SANDRA 2013

x264 HD v5.0.1