Product comparison · 2 motherboards

ASUS Maximus IV GENE-Z/GEN3 vs MSI Z68MA-G45 Intel Z68 LGA 1155 (Socket H2) micro ATX

36specifications compared
9differ
27identical
37known for one product only

Key differences

Supported memory clock speeds
- Maximus IV GENE-Z/GEN3:1333,1600,1866,2133,2200 MHz
- Z68MA-G45 Intel Z68 LGA 1155 (Socket H2) micro ATX:1066,1333,1600,1866,2133 MHz
USB 2.0 connectors
- Maximus IV GENE-Z/GEN3:2
- Z68MA-G45 Intel Z68 LGA 1155 (Socket H2) micro ATX:4
USB 3.2 Gen 1 (3.1 Gen 1) connectors
- Maximus IV GENE-Z/GEN3:1
- Z68MA-G45 Intel Z68 LGA 1155 (Socket H2) micro ATX:0
USB 2.0 ports quantity
- Maximus IV GENE-Z/GEN3:8
- Z68MA-G45 Intel Z68 LGA 1155 (Socket H2) micro ATX:6
eSATA ports quantity
- Maximus IV GENE-Z/GEN3:2
- Z68MA-G45 Intel Z68 LGA 1155 (Socket H2) micro ATX:0
VGA (D-Sub) ports quantity
- Maximus IV GENE-Z/GEN3:0
- Z68MA-G45 Intel Z68 LGA 1155 (Socket H2) micro ATX:1
DVI-D ports quantity
- Maximus IV GENE-Z/GEN3:0
- Z68MA-G45 Intel Z68 LGA 1155 (Socket H2) micro ATX:1
Headphone outputs
- Maximus IV GENE-Z/GEN3:6
- Z68MA-G45 Intel Z68 LGA 1155 (Socket H2) micro ATX:1

Side by side

Differences highlightedShow differences only

Comparison of Maximus IV GENE-Z/GEN3, Z68MA-G45
73 specifications	A ASUS Maximus IV GENE-Z/GEN3 View product	B MSI Z68MA-G45 Intel Z68 LGA 1155 (Socket H2) micro ATX Model Z68MA-G45 View product
Processor1 differ
Processor manufacturer	Intel	Intel
Processor socket	LGA 1155 (Socket H2)	LGA 1155 (Socket H2)
Compatible processor seriesDiffers	Intel® Celeron®, Intel® Pentium®	Intel® Core™ i3, Intel® Core™ i5, Intel® Core™ i7
Maximum number of SMP processorsKnown for one	1	Unknown — not stated by the source
Memory1 differ
Supported memory types	DDR3-SDRAM	DDR3-SDRAM
Number of memory slots	4	4
ECC сompatibilityKnown for one	Non-ECC	Unknown — not stated by the source
Internal memoryKnown for one	32 GB	Unknown — not stated by the source
Supported memory clock speedsDiffers	1333,1600,1866,2133,2200 MHz	1066,1333,1600,1866,2133 MHz
Maximum internal memory	32 GB	32 GB
Controller typeKnown for one	JMicron JMB362	Unknown — not stated by the source
Flash memoryKnown for one	64 MB	Unknown — not stated by the source
Memory slots typeKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	SO-DIMM
Memory channelsKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	Dual-channel
Storage controllersidentical
Supported storage drive interfaces	SATA II, SATA III	SATA II, SATA III
RAID levels	0, 1, 5, 10	0, 1, 5, 10
Graphicsidentical
On-board graphics cardKnown for one	Yes	Unknown — not stated by the source
Parallel processing technology supportKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	2-Way CrossFireX, 2-Way SLI
Internal I/O2 differ
USB 2.0 connectorsDiffers	2	4
USB 3.2 Gen 1 (3.1 Gen 1) connectorsDiffers	1	0
Number of SATA III connectors	2	2
Number of SATA II connectors	4	4
Number of Parallel ATA connectors	0	0
S/PDIF out connectorKnown for one	Yes	Unknown — not stated by the source
Front panel audio connectorKnown for one	Yes	Unknown — not stated by the source
Number of EATX power connectors	1	1
CPU fan connector	Yes	Yes
Number of chassis fan connectorsKnown for one	3	Unknown — not stated by the source
ATX Power connector (24-pin)Known for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	Yes
Chassis intrusion connectorKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	Yes
Parallel connectorKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	Yes
Rear panel I/O ports5 differ
USB 2.0 ports quantityDiffers	8	6
USB 3.2 Gen 1 (3.1 Gen 1) Type-A ports quantity	2	2
Ethernet LAN (RJ-45) ports	1	1
eSATA ports quantityDiffers	2	0
PS/2 ports quantity	1	1
Firewire (IEEE 1394) ports	0	0
VGA (D-Sub) ports quantityDiffers	0	1
HDMI ports quantity	1	1
DVI-D ports quantityDiffers	0	1
Headphone outputsDiffers	6	1
S/PDIF out portKnown for one	Yes	Unknown — not stated by the source
Digital audio optical outKnown for one	1	Unknown — not stated by the source
Microphone inKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	Yes
Parallel ports quantityKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	0
Serial ports quantityKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	0
Networkidentical
Ethernet interface type	Gigabit Ethernet	Gigabit Ethernet
Networking featuresKnown for one	10/100/1000Mbps	Unknown — not stated by the source
Ethernet LANKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	Yes
LAN controllerKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	Realtek RTL8111E
Wi-FiKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	Yes
Wi-Fi standardsKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	802.11b, 802.11g, Wi-Fi 4 (802.11n)
Featuresidentical
Component for	PC	PC
Motherboard form factor	micro ATX	micro ATX
Motherboard chipset family	Intel	Intel
Motherboard chipset	Intel Z68	Intel Z68
Audio output channels	7.1 channels	7.1 channels
Power source type	ATX	ATX
CertificationKnown for one	CE, FCC	Unknown — not stated by the source
Audio chipKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	Realtek ALC892
Expansion slotsidentical
PCI Express x4 slotsKnown for one	1	Unknown — not stated by the source
PCI Express x16 slots	2	2
PCI Express slots versionKnown for one	3.0	Unknown — not stated by the source
PCI Express x1 slotsKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	2
BIOSidentical
BIOS typeKnown for one	EFI AMI	Unknown — not stated by the source
ACPI versionKnown for one	2.0a	Unknown — not stated by the source
Weight & dimensionsidentical
Width	244 mm	244 mm
Depth	244 mm	244 mm
Packaging contentidentical
Cables includedKnown for one	SATA	Unknown — not stated by the source
Trial softwareKnown for one	Kaspersky Anti-Virus	Unknown — not stated by the source
Bundled softwareKnown for one	ASUS AI Suite II, ROG CPU-Z, ROG GameFirst Utility, Sound Blaster X-Fi MB2 Utility, ROG Mem TweakIt Utility, ASUS AI Charger+, DAEMON Tools Pro Standard, ASUS USB 3.0 Boost	Unknown — not stated by the source
Other featuresidentical
Controller interface typeKnown for one	SATA3	Unknown — not stated by the source
Quick installation guideKnown for one	Yes	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.

More motherboard comparisons

All motherboard comparisons