Intel Haswell i4770K Review And Benchmarks

Intel’s Z87 Chipset Features

With the launch of almost every new CPU lineup comes a new chipset to support it and the Haswell launch is more of the same as we see the all-new Z87 chipset introduced to support the new CPUs. The Z77 was a very popular chipset that had manufactures trying to make it even better by way of introducing their own flavors of features and from what we have seen so far the Z87 seems to be a bit more of the same. As of launch day there are at least 30 boards available and more to come as it seems, but what differences will the end user see in the Z87 chipset?

A lot of things will remain the same with some areas just fleshing out their potential with more this or that available. The Intel Z87 chipset enables the performance tuning features of unlocked Intel Core processors, allowing the user to change the core, graphics, and memory frequencies without having to run any other part of the system above specifications. There is an increase in the amount of USB 3.0 ports (From 4 to 6), SATA 6GB/s capable ports (From 2 to 6), faster memory and the removal of all Legacy PCI support.  Those are the main differences that users will be very familiar with, there are additional features such as Digital Display technology moved onto the processor and that all USB ports are now controlled by xXCI instead of the 4 previously available.

If you are someone who is going to be using the onboard graphics the ability to use 3 monitors right from the motherboards HD-4600 embedded solution and with connectivity through Display Port 1.2 allows daisy chaining with twice the bandwidth of the DP 1.0 standard. Using the DP 1.2 connector allows a maximum resolution of 3200X1200@60Hz on either a single monitor or multiple monitor configurations. Intel is not trying to reinvent the wheel with the Z87 chipset, as its main function is to provide better, faster and more stable performance for the Haswell i5 and i7 processors. Intel know how to market and if you want to use a Haswell CPU you will have to have a compatible LGA 1150 motherboard to make it happen.

Continue Reading: Test System & Performance

Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7