The Z97E from ASRock is a good motherboard but is not recommended if you are into overclocking your CPU. The small size limits the cards and components which can be installed but the M.2 slot at the back does redeem some functionality in this Mini-ITX board.
The placement of most of the components including the CPU ATX power connector, USB 2.0 headers, fan headers, SATA connectors etc., are quite odd. If you were to install a custom CPU cooler then some of these aforementioned components will be difficult to connect making these features non-usable. But realistically speaking, this board isn’t one which is going to be purchased by an overclocker who’d need such a cooler so you’ll easily be able to get the maximum out of this board.
Though we do believe that a better job could have been done to arrange the components. And better cable management matters in SFF computers which make use of such motherboards. This board has plenty of features packed into a small area but lacks better component placement compared to others.
Specifications
Chipset: Intel Z97
Memory support: 4×3200(OC)MHz upto 32GB
LAN: Intel Gigabit Ethernet
Audio: ALC1150 7.1
SATA: 6x SATA III
Expansion: 1x PCIe X16
Dimensions (LxWxD): 170 mm x 170 mm
Warranty: 38 months
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Mithun Mohandas
Mithun Mohandas is an Indian technology journalist with 10 years of experience covering consumer technology. He is currently employed at Digit in the capacity of a Managing Editor. Mithun has a background in Computer Engineering and was an active member of the IEEE during his college days. He has a penchant for digging deep into unravelling what makes a device tick. If there's a transistor in it, Mithun's probably going to rip it apart till he finds it. At Digit, he covers processors, graphics cards, storage media, displays and networking devices aside from anything developer related. As an avid PC gamer, he prefers RTS and FPS titles, and can be quite competitive in a race to the finish line. He only gets consoles for the exclusives. He can be seen playing Valorant, World of Tanks, HITMAN and the occasional Age of Empires or being the voice behind hundreds of Digit videos. View Full Profile
