ASUS SABERTOOTH Z77 LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
ASUS SABERTOOTH Z77 LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard Features
- Thermal Armor Technology - Improves air flow with an innovative shunt design and integrated turbo fan on two focal points
- TUF Capacitors, Chokes and MOSFETS - Certified by military standard to ensure ultimate durability
- Thermal Radar - Real-time thermal detection for a better cooling solution
- Dust Defender - Protect all dusts and extend the lifespan of slots and connectors
- ASUS USB 3.0 Boost - Set USB 3.0 devices into 3 modes: Normal,
Turbo, UASP to improve overall read/write performance instantaneously
- AI Charger+
- AI Suite II
- Dual Intelligent Processors 3 ( EPU, TPU, SMART DIGI+ Power Control )
Product Description
Based on Intel Z77 chipset, Sabertooth Z77 motherboard
incorporates the ultimate reliability of ASUS TUF series with advanced
thermal design and military-standard components all backed by limited
5-year warranty. It features new Thermal Armor and Thermal Radar for a
comprehensive cooling solution and Dust Defender for specially designed
covers to protect unused PCIe, memory and USB slots against dust.
Sabertooth Z77 also features: USB 3.0 Boost with UASP Support for up to
170% faster transfer rate; USB Charger+, for up to 3x faster charging
for USB devices; and complete BIOS solution with one-click USB BIOS
Flashback and award-winning UEFI BIOS.
This review is from: ASUS SABERTOOTH Z77 LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard (Personal Computers)
This great motherboard is now sitting within a NZXT Phantom 410 Mid Tower USB 3.0 Gaming Case - White
and is looking brilliant. The capabilites of this board are
fantastic: PCI-E 3.0, USB 3.0, native Ivy Bridge support, with a lot of
utilities to go along with it. The Bios alone is awe-inspiring with how
much control you have over every aspect of each component down to how
much power you want to send down to .01V.
This really is a
fantastically built component, aesthetically it looks great in a case.
The installation is rather tedious because the screws must go into
rather deep holes within the Thermal Armor, which makes it a balancing
act if your screwdriver happens to not be magnetized, but I wouldn't
deduct a star or anything for this inconvenience.
The only real
downside comes from the 8-pin connector which is diagonal to the 24-pin
power connector and is also on the top left, so you must have wires
everywhere.
The Thermal Armor works great though, you can install
two 40MM fans that are included to the motherboard to increase airflow
and what's really nice is when you turn off your rig it defaults to
leaving these fans on for one minute to cool off your system faster for
increased component longevity.
It's the Sabertooth, it has a 5
year warranty, military-grade components, and it also has surprisingly
vibrant audio! I was actually taken back by how well this board throws
out music, videos, and games. I know on the RoG lines Asus always adds
extra power and islolates the audio driver on the board, and this
technology has certainly carried over! What you get is audio that is
crisp, clean, and powerful when that 'nade explodes beside you!
Overall,
I would get this board again and again, it is extremely high quality,
looks fantastic in a case, offers great cooling, and has all the latest
capabilities.
Thanks for reading, and hope this review helped!
This review is from: ASUS SABERTOOTH Z77 LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard (Personal Computers)
I did not purchase this board through Amazon (the first time)
I
installed this with an i7-2600k and love the board! I chose it because
of problems I'd experienced with the first board I had--the Asus p8z68v
Pro-Gen3...I figured this board was probably assembled with more
care/higher quality components because of the five year warranty.(and
high price)
Everything on the board worked out of the box, after
installing the drivers. The UEFI Bios is easy to learn and use, and
encourages experimentation. I don't intend to overclock, just want a
fast stable system to edit photos and create art prints. I didn't update
the BIOS. My WEI is 7.7 on all parameters, except my SSD, which scores a
7.9.
<<<<<<<UPDATE: USB controller now works
fine>>>>>>>The only caveat to the otherwise perfect
performance so far is the Intel USB controller is not functional. After
getting everything set up in the case, attempts to plug in my USB 3.0
external Hdd were met with a strange mix of issues. Non functioning
ports, or ports that function at 2.0 instead of 3.0. The device manager
confirms the Intel(R) ICH 10 Family USB Enhanced Host Controller doesn't
work.<<<<<<after many driver updates , plugging my
external usb 3.0 and 2.0 devices into different ports it now is working
properly.
Maybe I should have given this board fewer stars...if,
after my RMA the replacement has issues I will come back and take off
more stars. Right now though, with the features it does have, and the
comparitively smooth set up and operation, I think its probably the best
option going for someone who wants a stable machine with some
longevity.
This review is from: ASUS SABERTOOTH Z77 LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard (Personal Computers)
Very happy with this. The BIOS on these boards has everything you need
to OC, but is still extremely easy to navigate and use; it's a definite
improvement over what boards were offering even a few years ago.
Installation
is easy as well. I used an i7-3770 with a Coolermaster Hyper 212 EVO
cooler, and there's plenty of clearance around the socket area for the
larger cooler without any worries as to the install. I did not install
the optional aux fans for the chipset and backplate vent on the
motherboard, but the option to do this if temperatures aren't to my
liking is a nice touch (it didn't seem necessary since I have no
immediate plans to overclock anything).
The good:
It looks
great, it's solid and sturdy in both looks and feel. Is the thermal
armor necessary? Probably not, but it sure looks good and contributes to
a nice clean build. If it helps with dust and longevity in my house
full of cat hair, then it was worth the money.
Ports are all
clearly labeled on the motherboard; be sure to check the CPU fan port
when plugging it in as complaints of CPU fan alarms seem to be common
with the board. I ran into the same thing, not realizing that I plugged
it in to an aux port where the CPU fan primary plug is normally
located...so while it worked fine, it wasn't monitored on the right port
at first. Check the labeling like I didn't and you'll be
good...probably a good idea to set any unused ports to ignore in the
BIOS after startup as well so you don't see alarms in AISuite for fans
you don't have.
Speaking of AI Suite, the monitoring software is
nice. Easy to use, easy to read, and has the utilities and everything
you need right there for both monitoring and updating. Tools like this
tend to be a pain or have issues you need to deal with, but I actually
like this one. I was running it on a P67 board prior to this build, but
the Sabertooth has its own Thermal Radar feature you can look at that
will show temperature zones all over the board.
More 6G SATA
ports. Still not packed with them, but having 2 primary and a separate
controller for 2 more gives plenty of space for this. They're clearly
marked on the board and easily accessible for plugs.
The bad:
The
3GB USB internal port wouldn't accept the 20p header from my case
(Thermaltake GT 10). It's hard to see the pins on it since it's side
mounted rather than vertical, but either it's a tighter fit than it
should be or there was a bent pin that I couldn't see. No stars off
because I'm honestly not sure if this was the port or with the header
connector in my case... it wasn't vital for me so I just left it.
Onboard
sound is not bad at all for built-in, but it will only output 2-channel
over optical to my receiver (depending on the content). Wound up buying
a PCI-E sound card to replace it. For people with analog speakers,
though, the onboard sound is surprisingly good. It's nothing a cheap
sound card can't fix, but it would have been nice for the onboard. The
software is a little anemic, don't expect a range of options from the
realtek audio manager.
Bottom line:
I like Asus boards, and
this one is a keeper. Their guys are present on forums and boards to
help with issues and give updates, the boards themselves are
feature-rich and stable, and I don't buy anything else anymore.
*9/4/12
edit: After a few days of working with the board, it became apparent
that the optional fans that come with the board aren't really optional.
The Thermal Radar was showing some extremely hot areas on the board,
especially at USB 3 and PCI-E 1 (the PCIE1 slot area was throwing
thermal warnings after a short gaming session). After installation of
the fans, no more issue.
Not something worth dinging the board
for, but it did make me wonder why they don't come pre-installed since
they weren't optional even on a very clean build in a case with a
serious amount of airflow already installed. Be sure to install them
before putting the motherboard into the case, unlike me, and you'll save
yourself a headache.
