Gigabyte Z77X-UP7 Review: OC Oriented Orange Overkill
by Ian Cutress on March 1, 2013 10:30 AM EST- Posted in
- Motherboards
- Intel
- Gigabyte
- Z77
Rightmark Audio Analyzer 6.2.5
In part due to reader requests, we are pleased to include Rightmark Audio Analyzer results in our benchmark suite. The premise behind Rightmark:AA is to test the input and output of the audio system to determine noise levels, range, harmonic distortion, stereo crosstalk and so forth. Rightmark:AA should indicate how well the sound system is built and isolated from electrical interference (either internally or externally). For this test we connect the Line Out to the Line In using a short six inch 3.5mm to 3.5mm high-quality jack, turn the OS volume to 100%, and run the Rightmark default test suite at 16-bit with 48 kHz, 96 kHz and 192 kHz. We look specifically at the Dynamic Range of the audio codec used on board, as well as the Total Harmonic Distortion + Noise.
Our limited audio testing puts the ALC898 on the UP7 quite high up the table for dynamic range, but mid range for THD+N.
USB 3.0 Backup
For this benchmark, we run CrystalDiskMark to determine the ideal sequential read and write speeds for the USB port using our 240 GB OCZ Vertex3 SSD with a SATA 6 Gbps to USB 3.0 converter. Then we transfer a set size of files from the SSD to the USB drive using DiskBench, which monitors the time taken to transfer. The files transferred are a 1.52 GB set of 2867 files across 320 folders – 95% of these files are small typical website files, and the rest (90% of the size) are the videos used in the WinRAR test.
As the Gigabyte Z77X-UP7 has no rear USB 2.0 ports, we are only testing the USB 3.0 on offer. On the Rear IO we get two power from the Chipset, and four ports from a VIA controller. One header on board is from an Etron EJ168 controller, while the other onboard header completes the four from the Chipset.
Obviously the Intel USB 3.0 performs the best out of the options on the UP7, with the 2-port Etron controller matching the performance of other USB 3.0 implementations on the Z77 range. The VIA controller, as noted in previous reviews, is down on performance compared to others.
DPC Latency
Deferred Procedure Call latency is a way in which Windows handles interrupt servicing. In order to wait for a processor to acknowledge the request, the system will queue all interrupt requests by priority. Critical interrupts will be handled as soon as possible, whereas lesser priority requests, such as audio, will be further down the line. So if the audio device requires data, it will have to wait until the request is processed before the buffer is filled. If the device drivers of higher priority components in a system are poorly implemented, this can cause delays in request scheduling and process time, resulting in an empty audio buffer – this leads to characteristic audible pauses, pops and clicks. Having a bigger buffer and correctly implemented system drivers obviously helps in this regard. The DPC latency checker measures how much time is processing DPCs from driver invocation – the lower the value will result in better audio transfer at smaller buffer sizes. Results are measured in microseconds and taken as the peak latency while cycling through a series of short HD videos - under 500 microseconds usually gets the green light, but the lower the better.
Now a regular feature of our testing, the DPC Latency of the Gigabyte Z77X-UP7 goes right under our 200 microsecond ideal line, and sits between the ASRock Z77 OC Formula and MSI Z77 MPower in testing.
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scaramoosh - Friday, March 1, 2013 - link
Why would you have the SLI x16s side by side? Space them out mobo manufacturers! Sick of it.IanCutress - Friday, March 1, 2013 - link
It's not side by side. As mentioned repeatedly and several times in the review, the PCIe x16 in black is used when one GPU is installed, and the orange slots are used when more than one PCIe device is in use. With two GPUs, you use the first and third orange slots at x16.Ian
scaramoosh - Friday, March 1, 2013 - link
That's as useless because it makes every other port on the board useless. I have 3 PCI-E x 1 devices and it basically means they sit right next to the cards getting hot.They need to have the x 16 spaced out at the top and then throw all the PCI-E x1s at the bottom.
IanCutress - Friday, March 1, 2013 - link
If any of the orange are populated the black x16 is disabled. You can still use the top x16 for a single GPU and put other devices in the other PCIe slots. If you have 3 PCIe x1 devices, this board is probably not aimed at your usage scenario - it's aimed at 3x and 4x GPU usage or multi-card with additional x8 RAID cards. There are plenty of other boards that have your usage scenario covered :)Ian
JeBarr - Friday, March 1, 2013 - link
Problem is, if you are a gamer looking to use 3x GPU and wish to add an audio card, ethernet card and PCIe storage card...out of luck. No such product exists. There are a few boards with enough slots but most cases will rob PCIe 3.0 lanes from one or two of the GPUsFlunk - Saturday, March 2, 2013 - link
That is because the standard ivy bridge CPU and chip set only have so many lanes. If you want more you'll need to move up to ivy bridge-e.Besides, no one really needs 3 GPUs, they just don't make games that need that amount of GPU processing power. The market is just too small. Heck, most games are console ports that will run at max settings on a GTX 460.
zenonu - Saturday, March 2, 2013 - link
Incorrect. You don't even need multiple monitors. It's not hard to max out dual 680s in SLI at 2560x1600 on modern games (Far Cry 3, Crysis 3) with complex outdoor environments.CeriseCogburn - Sunday, March 3, 2013 - link
I agree with zenonu, a Titan just tries to clear 1920X1200 single monitor, and it doesn't quite do it.A GTX 460 will get you by, not arguing that.
A 680 or 7970 doesn't cover 1920X1080 single monitor - it's dial down time.
Uber_Roy - Wednesday, March 6, 2013 - link
You sir have obviously not played Crysis 3 lately! Im waiting for the Nvidia 800 series or AMD 8000 series to max this game out, My two 7970s a i7 3930k@4ghz and 16gb of ram does not even play this game on high setting well let alone the Ultra high settingSabresiberian - Friday, March 1, 2013 - link
I so much agree here. Mainboard manufacturers just don't think in terms of an enthusiast that truly wants excellence on all fronts. This isn't helped by Intel, which has decided on-die graphics capabilities are more important than adding more PCI lanes, apparently. That's all good for those not interested in a separate graphics solution, but it's worthless to me.Really, I want 3 fully functional PCIe 3 slots (x16 on all of them, loaded up) and a fourth for a RAID controller, that doesn't gimp my graphics solution, and a PCIe 1 slot for a sound card. I really don't think that's too much to ask for in today's computing enthusiast world.
Stop spending my money by adding a half-ass sound daughter card, and let me install the sound solution I want!
I've been thinking I'll replace my x58 rig with a Haswell one, but I haven't heard anything about PCI lanes - and where's Thunderbolt support? Thunderbolt could feasibly go a long way to help people like me, I think.