Asus Z97 Deluxe Motherboard Review

This is my review of the Asus Z97 Deluxe and my first experience with the new Z97 chipset.
What do you think of Asus's new design?
Chapter Selection:
00.16 Box contents
02:35 The board
05:29 Close up tour
11:31 Rear IO
11:54 Quick look at the BIOS
14:51 Overclocking
18:16 Quick look at AI Suite/Software
20:57 Conclusion
Pricing & Availability:
(UK) goo.gl/0AjaCy
(US) goo.gl/m6Ngj5
Overclocking tests were done over two days with 2 hours of Aida64 being classed as stable.
Test Bench Specs:
Maximus VI Formula or Z97 Deluxe
Intel i7 4770K
Corsair H80i with SP120
16GB 1600MHz Dominator Pro Memory
Corsair AX1200 PSU
GTX 660 GPU
Dimastech EasyXL
Other overclocking settings:
The LLC, UnCore, VCCIN/VRIN and vRing were also managed during the manual overclocks. I did not mention these settings in the video as there was not a noticeable difference between the 2 boards worth pointing out, so I used the same settings for both boards.
Overclocking results are not comparable to other reviewers results, as every CPU has different characteristics and will not react the same to voltages/clocks/settings.
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Thanks for watching :)

[@LawrenceTimme]

first person with a Z97 review out :)

[@Darkfox127]

Incredible video. Really enjoy the amount of detailed information and the presentation of your test results. Keep up the great work Lauren. 8)

[@andylindsay]

Your my new best reviewer, I appreciate the more in depth review of the products then most main stream reviewers. Keep up the good work and thanks.

[@TastyPC]

Thanks! I'm glad you like my vids :D

[@HorrorUberAlles]

Awesome and thorough review, as always! :D

[@TastyPC]

Thanks :D

[@jouls3]

The most detailed review I've ever seen!!! I mean it

[@Davidow1]

Best review I've found. Really good walkthrough of the MB!

[@Mr.Finkel]

best review i've seen you do . great job. sold me on making my next board and ASUS too.

[@Audische]

Thanks Lauren, really nice review !!

[@TastyPC]

I'm glad you liked it! :)

[@wondertwins2222]

You are such a role model for young women around the globe!

The most beautiful review of the Asus z97 delux

[@Ender_Wiggin]

the only review

I talk about of the host, she is beautiful

[@SrchangwaytogoC]

Very thorough review, you girl know a lot about hardware. On the top of this you have a very pleasant voice and lovely english accent.

[@xoxo2008oxox]

Awesome review! Love the painted card backer as you moved around the board. great video! Always tasteful color and honest spec comparisons.

[@Ender_Wiggin]

I was looking for information on the Z97 motherboard and I stumbled upon your review, the only one at the moment, I am glad I did. This was a great review and really showed the knowledge you possess. I almost forgot to mention you look gorgeous so that dose not hurt one bit. You have another subscriber. I hope to see this kind of quality in the future as well as you. Thank you Ender PS. I normally don't come out of lurking very often.

[@cvaria]

Man. Just man. This is the most amazing thing I've ever seen.

[@BillyNeverDies]

I just installed my Z97 Deluxe last night. I think classy is a good word for the look of it.

[@captainmullett2175]

Was it worth buying the deluxe version dude? I'm interested but am looking at the same board without all the accessories. The deluxe version just seems like a lot of money (UK).

[@BillyNeverDies]

Captain Mullett I needed the deluxe because I use more than 8 SATA ports, and the deluxe has 10. Also, I really wanted bluetooth.

[@Jedicake]

BillyNeverDies ugh yea I need a motherboard with bluetooth, badly.

[@benvin10365]

Great overview and review of this motherboard. I like how you went over every single component. This looks like a great motherboard with a lot of options and features. I hope you review other Asus Z97 boards.

[@spidey3164]

Well Done Review/Unboxing This is why you stand out from the rest You answered all my questions on this board Thank U :)

[@rmindydotcom]

WOW Thanks for the great review, JJ would never mention an issue(though minor), only the features. I don't think I'll be watching as many reviews from JJ, Paul or Linus now that I have subbed you ;)

[@HackerL96]

Every time you make perfect videos. But I always fear the length of your videos :D

[@CrYDAM1987]

Longer the better if you ask me

[@TastyPC]

I've been trying to make them shorter and shorter and yet every time they end up being longer lol.

[@HackerL96]

TastyPCTV I think you can´t make them shorter because of the amount of information you put in your videos. No one can put that much information in a review like you :)

[@TastyPC]

Dennis3Run Thank you, I'm glad you think so! :D

[@BFCnational]

Linus is great for fun videos about ridiculous tech, but when I know that I want as much info as possible about a product I come to you.

[@fdattore]

Great review! Thanks for all the work that obviously went into this....very informative. I've been looking for something more than a "what's in the box" view and more a "what am I getting for my money" research approach. Thanks.

[@TastyPC]

No problem, glad you found the video helpful :)

[@theodoro89]

Nice and complete review! Beautiful and very professional.

[@denverbasshead]

You need more subs. You're perfect, and your voice is insanely relaxing

[@preilly1866]

Stellar review Lauren thanks and keep them coming

[@ringwurm2010]

Lauren you should consider doing a series on how to pick components, for beginners. I love watching your videos, and your channel seems more geared towards the PC enthusiast. You are obviously knowledgeable about the subject, it would be cool for you to do, if you think people would like it.

[@PCSklejka]

Good job! And You are the first one to do the review;) just before ttl:)

[@JackT9595]

I'm a sucker for a black and gold colour scheme! wish there were more boards out there with it

[@djalexpk]

It will be some of the best Z97 motherboards. Exellent!

[@JoseMendez-xb2sh]

Great review. Very informative. Keep up the good work

[@DanielEdwards42]

Corking review. Concise and knowledgeable!

[@Andiotic]

Love the overhaul to an already great UEFI BIOS menu.

[@G0UDG]

Nice review Lauren Well Done again

[@AnindyaMukherjeeTheGamer]

most beautiful reviewer on youtube

[@jonathanramirezgarcia7829]

Pretty Good Review!!! All the details very well explained!!! Glad i found your job! :P

[@blackpietto]

Lauren, Verry nice review! And a lovely motherboard. Bit expensive for me, but features wise worth the money

[@mikew7418]

very good one, nice to see you again

[@jonskunator]

Crazy amount of engineering has went into this product.

[@oobenoob]

Cool motherboard. I hope they make some nice broadwell itx boards too.

[@MrCharkteeth]

Wow She's awesome! And really knows her stuff :) I have the z87 pro, and although I do like the stuff in this new one, I don't think it's worth upgrading yet.

[@jeffscomp]

Awesome motherboard and great review! I like your accent.

[@TastyPC]

Thanks :)

[@champmav]

Impressively thorough, well done! [I like the gold accents. Apparently they're popular with the Asian market also ;) ] That GUI Boot menu is impressive; makes my sad, old p55 MSI MB seem almost ancient. It is definitely time for an upgrade when I can afford it...

[@hounded01]

very cool info on this new board thanks..

[@meesoren]

Came looking for good MB reviews for a first build and ended up here finding a best one. Others like Linus gave so many (quick) infos in so little time but yours is more detailed, indepth that very much helpful to most like me (tying to build first rig) though at times difficult to catch you due to your accent. Still Great video and look forward to more plus review on graphic cards.

[@OrbofShingeki]

Great Video Lauren! When i start my tech channel. i hope to be as good as you. :) Keep up the awesome work.

[@earthcave-music]

Hey lauren! Thank your - a pefect information about the board (now, i buy this..) Also very nice to look...... :) I really like your channel Greez from Germany!

[@andyj1288]

That bios looks really nice

[@alexdehaan7514]

Great review! Love the looks of the motherboard :)

[@John-fl3ui]

really good video, keep em coming!

[@kchimusaru]

Wow. You're seriously intelligent - no joke. A lot of detail, Masters/PhD definitely. I have an ASUS X79 deluxe with a 3930k. ASUS have made minor improvements since the last but I'm waiting for kingslanding

[@stevid20]

Good thorough review. I like the new BIOS, it looks really nice. I know it's a lot of work but would it be possible that you make videos more often? Last one was nearly a month ago.

[@FungedeBagre]

Very detailed review. Nice.

[@sk8guitardrums]

I would love to see this spec of board in m-ATX form factor. nice review Lauren..

[@rip3700]

Great review. Love the new UEFI bios look, almost want the board just for this. Upgrade to AI Suite looks good as well, but will take some time for me to trust. Can not wait to see how the ROG Z97 motherboards will fair. Just wish you could get more support and we did not have to wait for you to review some new item.

[@sebbysebbseb]

I just brought this motherboard. Now I gotta wait til friday for the cpu. The main reason I brought this board was for the duel LAN ports and the Wi-Fi. Oh and the more USB ports the better.

[@magicaldog]

ordered and on it's way !

[@seanwelding4183]

Very nice video as always Lauren! Keep up all the good work, also whats the wallpaper you have at 18:10? It's amazing.

[@synthoelectro]

It's the Lexus' of Motherboards, and I'm so glad I'm getting one :)

[@1524mclovin]

I wish that ASUS could one day release a 4 pcie x16 compatible micro-ATX board to do a small quad crossfire/sli gaming PC (With water blocks of course). Great video by the way Lauren!

[@RWoody1995]

They are limited by the processor, they cant put more lanes than that without using splitter cards which add fake lanes and switch between them whenever one is under less than full load (which isnt very efficient)

[@victorbart]

Nice colorscheme!

[@Akmarillion]

Thank you for the review.

[@MiniOmegaxis]

Great review! You earned a new Subscriber! :)

[@chunkykizza]

VIDS, are amazing, so detailed, very impressive :)

[@ChristopheChardon]

I am not sure whether I am watching the video for the review or for you ! Hard to stay objective, but These are quite informative...

[@Deca927]

wow this board has a lot of goodies nice to here from you again :)

[@Deca927]

What are talking about?

[@arabianking59]

Nice video!, keep it up! :) would like to see more frequent videos though, think you could be bigger with more videos more often

[@scannerman777]

I think it looks spiffy but I'm still waiting for the X99. Hopefully Asus will introduce this sort of esthetic to the top.

[@Firehawkshadow]

Great video and review Thanks

[@tobiaspahlsson8126]

Wow! That's a sexy motherboard! Excellent review. I love how you walk us through everything.

[@SilkRobes]

Very well reviewed. Beautiful lady, lovely accent, and knowledgeable! Thank you for making my life (in this case choosing an ASUS mainboard) a lot easier with this thorough, well paced and thought out review.

[@halfhigh]

That heat sink

[@TehJonel]

holy crap, she knows her stuff.

[@xXDeltaXxwhotookit]

Nice quick note :)

[@navegante8cores]

I like your videos, good work beauty !

[@TheVintageCustom]

Hi, thanks for the review. You are not the only person to say 10k hr caps. Asus state on their own site that it's 5k hr. I think the spec changed, and am more inclined to believe people who have it in front of them, like yourself, than the mfr's website, which is riddled with errors. I was wondering if you, or anyone reading, could help me out. After spending a good couple of hours going through both the Z97-Deluxe and USB3.1 manuals, I can't add up the PCH lanes, and what gets disabled and what doesn't. I think they made an error in their manual or something. There is only 18 lanes for use from the PCH, with some compromises using Flex I/O. Native: 4x SATA III = 4 lanes 1x SATA Express -or- 2x SATA III -or- 1x M.2 = 2 lanes 4x USB 3.0 = 4 lanes 1x PCIe 16x @ 4x = 4 lanes 4x PCIe x1 @ 1x = 4 lanes TOTAL lanes = 18 (the maximum the PCH can support) That's all fine. Everything is accountable for. There's a total of 18 lanes to use and they're all spoken for. Now the secondary ASMedia chip driven stuff... 2x SATA III = 1 lane (ASM1061) 1x SATA Express -or- 2x SATA III = 2 lanes (ASM106SE) 2x USB 3.0 = 1 lane (ASM1042E)* TOTAL Additional lanes = 4 These are found by substituting this 4x PCI slot lanes PCIe 3_16 @ 4x: Page 127: [Auto Mode] = Keep the USB3.0 + auto detect PCIe_x16_4 @ 2x and disable SATAExpress_E1 [x2 Mode] = Same as above, without auto detecting PCIe. Disables the SATAExpress_E1 [x4 Mode] = Run PCIe_x16_4 @ 4x + disables both ASMedia USB3.0 and ASMedia SATAExpress [Disabled] = All ASMedia stuff works, PCIe_x16_4 is disabled. The manual makes a meal of this, swapping between SATAExpress_E1 (ASMedia106SE) and SATAExpress_1 (native from PCH), which is absurd, because the native one wouldn't and also can't be disabled - can it? * One or both of the USB3.0 ports driven by ASM1042E (1x PCIe 2.0) looks like it might feed the ASM1074 chip and USB_E12 and USB_E34 near the front of the board. ASM1074 is a 1x USB3.0 upstream / 4x downstream hub. Now I have worked that one out, my problem comes when I look at the USB3.1 version: Gone is the ASM1042E USB3.0 chip and in it's place is an ASM1142. ASM1142 takes 2x PCIe 2.0 lanes to create 2x USB3.1 ports. That is 1 more PCIe 2.0 lane than what can be gotten by savaging the 4x lane PCIe 2.0 3_16 slot. An additional PCIe 2.0_x1 needs to be dropped, but the manual makes no mention of it. My guess is that the ASM1061 SATA III chip has been sharing lanes with a PCIe 2.0 x1 slot all the while, and that's why the SATA_E12 (or SATA_E56 in the old manual, why 56?) doesn't mention these ports being disabled by the PCIe 3_16 x4 slot. How are Asus providing an extra PCIe lane to drive that USB3.1 chip? Am I correct with the original USB3.0 incarnation of this board? As in depth as the following review is, there are many errors: benchmarkreviews.com/15453/asus-z97-deluxe-motherboard-hardware-review/3/ 1. There are 2x PCIe 3.0 x16 slots and one PCIe 2.0 x16 slot. Asus do this with most of the boards, except the z97-WS with it's PLX chip. 1b. This board doesn't have a PLX chip 2. The M.2 is shared with the native SATAExpress. The review indicated that it's not, and is shared with the ASMedia driven stuff. An ASM1467 does drive it via SATAExpress/2x PCIe 2.0 lanes. 2b.. The ASM106SE SATAExpres bridge has nothing to do with M.2, it turns 2x PCIe 2.0 into 1x SATAExpress/2x SATA III. Thanks # Edited and cleaned up.

[@jesaustralia]

Yea perfect dialect - it almost made me cry - I wanna be able to speak like that!!! - I'm danish and love when people use their language to the full - you do. About the review - I understood some, but that's not your fault - its my knowledge as in general computing knowledge - isn't good enough - you sound like a beast expert know what I mean? :) - thank you for your review - I think you convinced me to buy it. Cheers mate

[@iconsumeworlds]

What sort of applications are you running on your PC? I am thoroughly impressed with your knowledge of PC hardware, by the way.

[@htasul]

Excellent review gj

[@bingbanghello]

Thanks for the good review ;-)

[@RockabillyChase]

I completely agree with Loren's conclusion here. It seems to me that this motherboard has a few redundant perks. For example, Wi-fi Go! already has a few features of the NFC. Perhaps it would be best to purchase a motherboard with very similar features of the Z97 itself for less money... and forgo the bells and whistles it comes with.

[@Noxz11]

Great Review!!!!

[@Ko700el]

excellent review .. very thorough ..good job BTW i never noticed this in any motherboard i had or in other motherboard reviews i watched or is this a new thing ?? a clock battery ''powering'' a motherboard ..weird

[@aftermethgming3695]

if you are referring to the cmos battery thats on there then like 99.9% of motherboards have them..

[@RWoody1995]

the bios memory chip is basically like ram, it needs to be quickly accessable so it uses a storage type which loses its data if it loses power as a result of this requirement (this is similar to why ram is capable of 12GB/s+ whereas SSDs with a technically similar storage type cant surpass 550MB/s) so all motherboards have this battery, if you ever find a motherboard over 10 years old (because the batteries last approx. 10 years) that wont boot its probably the battery requiring replacement. bios chips do have a storage element that holds data while not powered but it only holds default settings (although its happening increasingly that you can save a few presets to this permanent storage in the case of a cmos reset).

[@ProkonsTechCenter]

I love your multimeter tests. no other tech channel is this thorough. shame on asus for not providing Vcheckpoints on this expensive mainboard. HWmonitor is way more accurate than cpuz when measuring vcore, in fact on my z87 boards HWmonitor is as accurate as the multimeter.

[@thegod7412]

Crystal clear.. Thanks

[@drowninginthoughts]

as always: great job Lauren! just as a side question, do you make these videos all alone or do you have your little tech-team hidden behind the camera? :D

[@TastyPC]

Nopes don't have a team, if I did I'd be able to make a lot more videos, a lot more frequently/quickly! Glad you liked the vid :)

[@drowninginthoughts]

TastyPCTV that makes your videos even more impressive ;D

[@kwjng]

nice top.....they both catch my eye

[@PriestTJB]

Do you compress your audio? I would step it down a notch if you do. Great review though

[@TheChianello]

Yet again, another top flight review. Will NFF storage media make current SSD technologies obsolete? SamC from across the pond.

[@the_Scarlet_one]

Lauren TastyPC This board is backwards compatible with the current chips? I did not know this, and just purchased A Z87 board that I would have loved to went ahead with the Z97. Either way, great review, thank you, and keep up the great work.

[@surft]

Sexy mobo. Lots of CPUs compatible or will be compatible with their release in the future, which is good. I wish they would release a version with the same specs but without the NFC stuff or the Thunderbolt PCIE. I don't really need those right now, and I'm guessing the price would go down significantly without them. It's easier for me to upgrade later if really needed them in the future.

[@josias736]

wow im glad i found your channel.can you do a review on the intel i7 4790 cpu ?

[@mortal4life173]

Sweet board I love it. Is this a gd board for over clocking?

[@TimsTutorialCenter]

Hello, I was wondering if you could consider doing a series on how to pick the parts / build a gaming PC. Thanks!

[@richard9723661]

great video well done

[@vitorferreira8899]

No money to get this gorgeous board... got to work harder!

[@Cyph3rHaxPalm]

Pretty Cool Review, What is the Price Point for this Full Package?

[@georgi81zax]

woooo hoooo weeeelcome back

[@Chlodzenienet]

Very nice stuff ;)

[@burninghalls]

I managed to get 4.6 ghz on my intel I7 3820. All I did was change my profile in bios to the gamer energy using mode thing instead of normal and off it went. My cpu is water cooled by a corsair h100i on a Asus p9x79 housed inside a cooler master haf x Also I live in New Zealand in a place called Dunedin you are very lucky if you get a sunny day with an average 20 degrees so I guess that helps my ambient temp. If ever im cold I play assassins creed black flag and well my pc turns into a heater and with in a few moments my room is warm.

[@achim2986]

Which motherboard are we talking about again?

[@flyby2300]

I watched a view of your reviews. Your reviews are detailed & items are clearly explained. The video-quality (image-quality/lighting) is excellent. After this praise, you may assume that a small neg. critique is coming: Could you try to speak somewhat more clearly (e.g. pronounce words in a more formal manner)? (I am certain, it would earn you more viewers & video-shares). If you like to have some more feedback, send me a message. Cheers

[@ianharrd]

I think I’m in love :)