Product comparison · 2 motherboards

ASUS P8Q77-M2 Intel® Q77 Express LGA 1155 (Socket H2) micro ATX vs MSI Z77A-G45 Thunderbolt

38specifications compared
12differ
26identical
48known for one product only

Key differences

The MSI Z77A-G45 Thunderbolt has 12 MB more maximum graphics card memory than the ASUS P8Q77-M2 Intel® Q77 Express LGA 1155 (Socket H2) micro ATX (1760 MB vs 1748 MB). The ASUS P8Q77-M2 Intel® Q77 Express LGA 1155 (Socket H2) micro ATX has 1 more PS/2 ports quantity than the MSI Z77A-G45 Thunderbolt (2 vs 1). The ASUS P8Q77-M2 Intel® Q77 Express LGA 1155 (Socket H2) micro ATX has 1 more DVI-D ports quantity than the MSI Z77A-G45 Thunderbolt (1 vs 0). Compatible processor series: Intel® Celeron®, Intel® Pentium® on the ASUS P8Q77-M2 Intel® Q77 Express LGA 1155 (Socket H2) micro ATX, Intel® Celeron® G, Intel® Pentium® on the MSI Z77A-G45 Thunderbolt. Parallel processing technology support: Not supported on the ASUS P8Q77-M2 Intel® Q77 Express LGA 1155 (Socket H2) micro ATX, 2-Way CrossFireX, 2-Way SLI on the MSI Z77A-G45 Thunderbolt.

Maximum graphics card memory
- P8Q77-M2 Intel® Q77 Express LGA 1155 (Socket H2) micro ATX:1748 MB
- Z77A-G45 Thunderbolt:1760 MB
Parallel processing technology support
- P8Q77-M2 Intel® Q77 Express LGA 1155 (Socket H2) micro ATX:Not supported
- Z77A-G45 Thunderbolt:2-Way CrossFireX, 2-Way SLI
PS/2 ports quantity
- P8Q77-M2 Intel® Q77 Express LGA 1155 (Socket H2) micro ATX:2
- Z77A-G45 Thunderbolt:1
DVI-D ports quantity
- P8Q77-M2 Intel® Q77 Express LGA 1155 (Socket H2) micro ATX:1
- Z77A-G45 Thunderbolt:0
LAN controller
- P8Q77-M2 Intel® Q77 Express LGA 1155 (Socket H2) micro ATX:Intel® 82579
- Z77A-G45 Thunderbolt:Realtek RTL8111E
Motherboard form factor
- P8Q77-M2 Intel® Q77 Express LGA 1155 (Socket H2) micro ATX:micro ATX
- Z77A-G45 Thunderbolt:ATX
Motherboard chipset
- P8Q77-M2 Intel® Q77 Express LGA 1155 (Socket H2) micro ATX:Intel® Q77 Express
- Z77A-G45 Thunderbolt:Intel Z77
Audio chip
- P8Q77-M2 Intel® Q77 Express LGA 1155 (Socket H2) micro ATX:Realtek ALC887
- Z77A-G45 Thunderbolt:Realtek ALC892

Side by side

Differences highlightedShow differences only

Comparison of P8Q77-M2, Z77A-G45 Thunderbolt
86 specifications	A ASUS P8Q77-M2 Intel® Q77 Express LGA 1155 (Socket H2) micro ATX Model P8Q77-M2 View product	B MSI Z77A-G45 Thunderbolt View product
Processor1 differ
Compatible processor seriesDiffers	Intel® Celeron®, Intel® Pentium®	Intel® Celeron® G, Intel® Pentium®
Maximum number of SMP processorsKnown for one	1	Unknown — not stated by the source
Intel Core i3/i5/i7/i9 seriesKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	i3-2xxx, i3-3xxx, i5-2xxx, i5-3xxx, i7-2xxx, i7-3xxx
Memory1 differ
ECC сompatibilityKnown for one	Non-ECC	Unknown — not stated by the source
Supported memory clock speedsDiffers	1066,1333,1600,1800,2000,2200 MHz	1066,1333,1600,1866,2000,2133,2200,2400,2600,2666,2800 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
Graphics2 differ
Maximum graphics card memoryDiffers	1748 MB	1760 MB
Parallel processing technology supportDiffers	Not supported	2-Way CrossFireX, 2-Way SLI
On-board graphics cardKnown for one	Yes	Unknown — not stated by the source
Graphics card familyKnown for one	Intel	Unknown — not stated by the source
Maximum resolutionKnown for one	1920 x 1200 pixels	Unknown — not stated by the source
Discrete graphics supportKnown for one	Yes	Unknown — not stated by the source
Internal I/Oidentical
ATX Power connector (24-pin)Known for one	Yes	Unknown — not stated by the source
Number of EATX power connectorsKnown for one	1	Unknown — not stated by the source
CPU fan connectorKnown for one	Yes	Unknown — not stated by the source
Number of chassis fan connectorsKnown for one	2	Unknown — not stated by the source
EPS power connector (8-pin)Known for one	Yes	Unknown — not stated by the source
Number of COM connectorsKnown for one	1	Unknown — not stated by the source
Parallel connectorKnown for one	Yes	Unknown — not stated by the source
Number of Parallel ATA connectorsKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	0
TPM connectorKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	Yes
Rear panel I/O ports2 differ
PS/2 ports quantityDiffers	2	1
DVI-D ports quantityDiffers	1	0
DVI-I ports quantityKnown for one	1	Unknown — not stated by the source
eSATA ports quantityKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	0
Firewire (IEEE 1394) portsKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	0
VGA (D-Sub) ports quantityKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	1
HDMI ports quantityKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	1
Headphone outputsKnown 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	1
Thunderbolt ports quantityKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	1
Network1 differ
LAN controllerDiffers	Intel® 82579	Realtek RTL8111E
Features3 differ
Motherboard form factorDiffers	micro ATX	ATX
Motherboard chipsetDiffers	Intel® Q77 Express	Intel Z77
Audio chipDiffers	Realtek ALC887	Realtek ALC892
Cooling typeKnown for one	Passive	Unknown — not stated by the source
Expansion slots1 differ
PCI Express x4 slotsKnown for one	1	Unknown — not stated by the source
PCI Express x16 slotsDiffers	1	3
PCI Express configurationsKnown for one	1x4, 1x16	Unknown — not stated by the source
PCI slotsKnown for one	2	Unknown — not stated by the source
PCI Express x1 slotsKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	4
BIOS1 differ
BIOS typeDiffers	AMI	UEFI
BIOS memory sizeKnown for one	128 Mbit	Unknown — not stated by the source
ACPI versionKnown for one	2.0a	Unknown — not stated by the source
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
Packaging contentidentical
Cables includedKnown for one	SATA	Unknown — not stated by the source
Drivers includedKnown for one	Yes	Unknown — not stated by the source
Trial softwareKnown for one	Antivirus	Unknown — not stated by the source
Bundled softwareKnown for one	ASUS Utilities ASUS Update	Unknown — not stated by the source
Other featuresidentical
Controller interface typeKnown for one	Intel Q77	Unknown — not stated by the source
Audio outputKnown for one	3	Unknown — not stated by the source
Intel® vPro™ Platform EligibilityKnown for one	Yes	Unknown — not stated by the source
PCI Express slots quantityKnown for one	2	Unknown — not stated by the source
Quick installation guideKnown for one	Yes	Unknown — not stated by the source
Serial port via internal headerKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	Yes
Weight & dimensionsidentical
WidthKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	305 mm
DepthKnown for one	Unknown — not stated by the source	245 mm

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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