Product comparison · 2 motherboards

GIGABYTE GA-Z170MX-Gaming 5 vs MSI Z170a Gaming M9 ACK

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  • 50specifications compared
  • 19differ
  • 31identical
  • 34known for one product only

Key differences

The MSI Z170a Gaming M9 ACK has 2 more memory slots than the GIGABYTE GA-Z170MX-Gaming 5 (4 vs 2). The GIGABYTE GA-Z170MX-Gaming 5 has 1 more USB 2.0 connectors than the MSI Z170a Gaming M9 ACK (2 vs 1). The GIGABYTE GA-Z170MX-Gaming 5 has 2 more USB 3.2 Gen 1 (3.1 Gen 1) connectors than the MSI Z170a Gaming M9 ACK (2 vs 0). ECC сompatibility: ECC & Non-ECC on the GIGABYTE GA-Z170MX-Gaming 5, Non-ECC on the MSI Z170a Gaming M9 ACK. Supported storage drive interfaces: SATA on the GIGABYTE GA-Z170MX-Gaming 5, M.2, SATA III on the MSI Z170a Gaming M9 ACK.

  • Number of memory slots
    • GA-Z170MX-Gaming 5:2
    • Z170a Gaming M9 ACK:4
  • ECC сompatibility
    • GA-Z170MX-Gaming 5:ECC & Non-ECC
    • Z170a Gaming M9 ACK:Non-ECC
  • Supported storage drive interfaces
    • GA-Z170MX-Gaming 5:SATA
    • Z170a Gaming M9 ACK:M.2, SATA III
  • RAID levels
    • GA-Z170MX-Gaming 5:0, 1, 5, 10
    • Z170a Gaming M9 ACK:1, 5, 10
  • Parallel processing technology support
    • GA-Z170MX-Gaming 5:Not supported
    • Z170a Gaming M9 ACK:3-Way CrossFireX, 2-Way SLI
  • Maximum resolution
    • GA-Z170MX-Gaming 5:4096 x 2160 pixels
    • Z170a Gaming M9 ACK:4096 x 2304 pixels
  • USB 2.0 connectors
    • GA-Z170MX-Gaming 5:2
    • Z170a Gaming M9 ACK:1
  • USB 3.2 Gen 1 (3.1 Gen 1) connectors
    • GA-Z170MX-Gaming 5:2
    • Z170a Gaming M9 ACK:0

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Comparison of GA-Z170MX-Gaming 5, Z170a Gaming M9 ACK
84 specifications
Processoridentical
Processor manufacturerIntelIntel
Processor socketLGA 1151 (Socket H4)LGA 1151 (Socket H4)
Compatible processor seriesIntel® Celeron®, Intel® Pentium®Intel® Celeron®, Intel® Pentium®
Maximum number of SMP processorsKnown for one1Unknown — not stated by the source
Memory3 differ
Supported memory typesDDR4-SDRAMDDR4-SDRAM
Number of memory slotsDiffers24
Memory slots typeDIMMDIMM
Memory channelsDual-channelDual-channel
ECC сompatibilityDiffersECC & Non-ECCNon-ECC
Supported memory clock speedsDiffers2133,2400,2666,2800,3000,3200,3300,3333,3400,3466 MHz3600,2133,2400,2600,2800,3000,3200 MHz
Maximum internal memory64 GB64 GB
Unbuffered memoryKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the sourceYes
Storage controllers2 differ
Supported storage drive interfacesDiffersSATAM.2, SATA III
RAID levelsDiffers0, 1, 5, 101, 5, 10
Graphics2 differ
Parallel processing technology supportDiffersNot supported3-Way CrossFireX, 2-Way SLI
Graphics card familyKnown for oneIntelUnknown — not stated by the source
Graphics cardKnown for oneHD GraphicsUnknown — not stated by the source
Maximum resolutionDiffers4096 x 2160 pixels4096 x 2304 pixels
DirectX versionKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the source11
Internal I/O3 differ
USB 2.0 connectorsDiffers21
USB 3.2 Gen 1 (3.1 Gen 1) connectorsDiffers20
Number of SATA III connectors66
Number of SATA connectorsKnown for one9Unknown — not stated by the source
Number of SATA Express connectorsDiffers32
Number of Parallel ATA connectors00
S/PDIF out connectorYesYes
Front panel audio connectorYesYes
ATX Power connector (24-pin)YesYes
CPU fan connectorYesYes
TPM connectorYesYes
Thunderbolt headersKnown for one1Unknown — not stated by the source
Number of SATA II connectorsKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the source0
Number of chassis fan connectorsKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the source1
Chassis intrusion connectorKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the sourceYes
EPS power connector (8-pin)Known for oneUnknown — not stated by the sourceYes
Rear panel I/O ports5 differ
USB 2.0 ports quantityDiffers23
USB 3.2 Gen 1 (3.1 Gen 1) Type-A ports quantityDiffers30
USB 3.2 Gen 2 (3.1 Gen 2) Type-A ports quantityDiffers14
Ethernet LAN (RJ-45) ports11
eSATA ports quantity00
PS/2 ports quantity11
Firewire (IEEE 1394) ports00
VGA (D-Sub) ports quantityDiffers10
HDMI ports quantity11
HDMI versionKnown for one1.4Unknown — not stated by the source
DVI-D ports quantityDiffers10
Headphone outputs11
Microphone inYesYes
USB connector typeKnown for oneUSB Type-A, USB Type-CUnknown — not stated by the source
DisplayPorts quantityKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the source1
S/PDIF out portKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the sourceYes
Networkidentical
Ethernet LANYesYes
Ethernet interface typeGigabit EthernetGigabit Ethernet
Wi-FiKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the sourceYes
Wi-Fi standardsKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the source802.11a, Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac), 802.11b, 802.11g, Wi-Fi 4 (802.11n)
BluetoothKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the sourceYes
Bluetooth versionKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the source4.1
Features1 differ
Component forPCPC
Motherboard form factorDiffersmicro ATXATX
Motherboard chipset familyIntelIntel
Motherboard chipsetIntel® Z170Intel® Z170
Audio output channels7.1 channels7.1 channels
Power source typeATXATX
Windows operating systems supportedKnown for oneWindows 10 Education, Windows 10 Education x64, Windows 10 Enterprise, Windows 10 Enterprise x64, Windows 10 Home, Windows 10 Home x64, Windows 10 Pro, Windows 10 Pro x64, Windows 7 Enterprise, Windows 7 Enterprise x64, Windows 7 Home Basic, Windows 7 Home Basic x64, Windows 7 Home Premium, WindowsUnknown — not stated by the source
Expansion slots1 differ
PCI Express x1 slotsKnown for one1Unknown — not stated by the source
PCI Express x16 slotsKnown for one3Unknown — not stated by the source
Number of M.2 (M) slotsDiffers12
PCI Express x1 (Gen 3.x) slotsKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the source3
PCI Express x16 (Gen 3.x) slotsKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the source3
BIOS1 differ
BIOS typeDiffersUEFI AMIUEFI
BIOS memory sizeKnown for one256 MbitUnknown — not stated by the source
ACPI versionKnown for one5.0Unknown — not stated by the source
Clear CMOS jumperYesYes
Clear CMOS buttonKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the sourceYes
Processor special featuresidentical
Intel® Smart Response TechnologyYesYes
Intel Extreme Memory Profile (XMP)Known for oneUnknown — not stated by the sourceYes
Trusted Platform Module (TPM)Known for oneUnknown — not stated by the sourceYes
Weight & dimensions1 differ
WidthDiffers244 mm305 mm
Depth244 mm244 mm
Packaging contentidentical
Cables includedKnown for oneSATAUnknown — not stated by the source
Drivers includedKnown for oneYesUnknown — not stated by the source
Other featuresidentical
Supported UDIMM module capacityKnown for one8GB, 16GBUnknown — not stated by the source
Quick installation guideKnown for oneYesUnknown — not stated by the source
Serial port via internal headerKnown for oneYesUnknown — 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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