Product comparison · 2 motherboards

ASUS A78M-E AMD A78 Socket FM2+ micro ATX vs MSI Z97 MPOWER MAX AC

33specifications compared
18differ
15identical
40known for one product only

Key differences

Processor manufacturer
- A78M-E AMD A78 Socket FM2+ micro ATX:AMD
- Z97 MPOWER MAX AC:Intel
Processor socket
- A78M-E AMD A78 Socket FM2+ micro ATX:Socket FM2+
- Z97 MPOWER MAX AC:LGA 1150 (Socket H3)
Supported storage drive interfaces
- A78M-E AMD A78 Socket FM2+ micro ATX:SATA III
- Z97 MPOWER MAX AC:SATA
Parallel processing technology support
- A78M-E AMD A78 Socket FM2+ micro ATX:Not supported
- Z97 MPOWER MAX AC:2-Way SLI, 3-Way CrossFireX
USB 3.2 Gen 1 (3.1 Gen 1) connectors
- A78M-E AMD A78 Socket FM2+ micro ATX:1
- Z97 MPOWER MAX AC:2
USB 3.2 Gen 1 (3.1 Gen 1) Type-A ports quantity
- A78M-E AMD A78 Socket FM2+ micro ATX:2
- Z97 MPOWER MAX AC:8
PS/2 ports quantity
- A78M-E AMD A78 Socket FM2+ micro ATX:2
- Z97 MPOWER MAX AC:1
Motherboard form factor
- A78M-E AMD A78 Socket FM2+ micro ATX:micro ATX
- Z97 MPOWER MAX AC:ATX

Side by side

Differences highlightedShow differences only

Comparison of A78M-E, Z97 MPOWER MAX AC
73 specifications	A ASUS A78M-E AMD A78 Socket FM2+ micro ATX Model A78M-E View product	B MSI Z97 MPOWER MAX AC View product
Processor3 differ
Processor manufacturerDiffers	AMD	Intel
Processor socketDiffers	Socket FM2+	LGA 1150 (Socket H3)
Compatible processor seriesDiffers	AMD A	Intel® Celeron®, Intel® Pentium®
Maximum number of SMP processorsKnown for one	1	Unknown — not stated by the source
Memory1 differ
Number of memory slotsKnown for one	2	Unknown — not stated by the source
Supported memory clock speedsDiffers	1333,1600,1866,2133,2400 MHz	1066,1333,1600,1866,2000,2100,2133,2400,2600,2666,2800,3000 MHz
Maximum internal memoryKnown for one	32 GB	Unknown — not stated by the source
Unbuffered memoryKnown for one	Yes	Unknown — not stated by the source
Internal memoryKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	32 GB
Storage controllers1 differ
Supported storage drive interfacesDiffers	SATA III	SATA
RAID levelsKnown for one	0, 1, 10, JBOD	Unknown — not stated by the source
Graphics1 differ
Maximum graphics card memoryKnown for one	2048 MB	Unknown — not stated by the source
Parallel processing technology supportDiffers	Not supported	2-Way SLI, 3-Way CrossFireX
Graphics card familyKnown for one	AMD	Unknown — not stated by the source
Maximum resolutionKnown for one	4096 x 2160 pixels	Unknown — not stated by the source
Internal I/O1 differ
USB 3.2 Gen 1 (3.1 Gen 1) connectorsDiffers	1	2
Number of SATA III connectorsKnown for one	6	Unknown — not stated by the source
Number of SATA II connectorsKnown for one	0	Unknown — not stated by the source
Number of Parallel ATA connectorsKnown for one	0	Unknown — not stated by the source
S/PDIF out connectorKnown for one	Yes	Unknown — not stated by the source
Number of chassis fan connectorsKnown for one	1	Unknown — not stated by the source
Peripheral (Molex) power connectors (4-pin)Known for one	1	Unknown — not stated by the source
Number of SATA connectorsKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	8
Front panel audio connectorKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	Yes
Rear panel I/O ports2 differ
USB 3.2 Gen 1 (3.1 Gen 1) Type-A ports quantityDiffers	2	8
eSATA ports quantityKnown for one	0	Unknown — not stated by the source
PS/2 ports quantityDiffers	2	1
Firewire (IEEE 1394) portsKnown for one	0	Unknown — not stated by the source
VGA (D-Sub) ports quantityKnown for one	1	Unknown — not stated by the source
HDMI ports quantityKnown for one	1	Unknown — not stated by the source
DVI-D ports quantityKnown for one	0	Unknown — not stated by the source
DVI-I ports quantityKnown for one	1	Unknown — not stated by the source
Headphone outputsKnown for one	1	Unknown — not stated by the source
Microphone inKnown for one	Yes	Unknown — not stated by the source
DisplayPorts quantityKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	1
S/PDIF out portKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	Yes
Digital audio optical outKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	6
Network1 differ
Ethernet interface typeDiffers	Fast Ethernet, Gigabit Ethernet	Gigabit Ethernet
LAN controllerKnown for one	Realtek RTL8111GR	Unknown — not stated by the source
Features3 differ
Motherboard form factorDiffers	micro ATX	ATX
Motherboard chipset familyDiffers	AMD	Intel
Motherboard chipsetDiffers	AMD A78	Intel® Z97
Audio chipKnown for one	Realtek ALC887	Unknown — not stated by the source
Cooling typeKnown for one	Passive	Unknown — not stated by the source
Windows operating systems supportedKnown for one	Windows 7 Home Basic, Windows 7 Home Basic x64, Windows 7 Home Premium, Windows 7 Home Premium x64, Windows 7 Professional, Windows 7 Professional x64, Windows 7 Starter, Windows 7 Starter x64, Windows 7 Ultimate, Windows 7 Ultimate x64, Windows 8, Windows 8 Enterprise, Windows 8 Enterprise x64, Win	Unknown — not stated by the source
Expansion slots2 differ
PCI Express x1 (Gen 2.x) slotsDiffers	1	4
PCI Express x16 (Gen 3.x) slotsDiffers	1	3
PCI-X slotsKnown for one	1	Unknown — not stated by the source
BIOS1 differ
BIOS typeDiffers	UEFI AMI	AMI
BIOS memory sizeKnown for one	64 Mbit	Unknown — not stated by the source
ACPI versionKnown for one	4.0a	Unknown — not stated by the source
Clear CMOS jumperKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	Yes
Clear CMOS buttonKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	Yes
Processor special featuresidentical
Trusted Platform Module (TPM)Known for one	Yes	Unknown — not stated by the source
Weight & dimensions2 differ
WidthDiffers	226 mm	305 mm
DepthDiffers	188 mm	244 mm
Packaging contentidentical
Drivers includedKnown for one	Yes	Unknown — not stated by the source
Bundled softwareKnown for one	ASUS utilities ASUS Update Anti-virus software (OEM version)	Unknown — not stated by the source

A dash means the value is not stated by the source. Unknown values are never counted for or against a product, and there is no overall score.

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