Product comparison · 2 motherboards

MSI H81M PRO-VD vs MSI Z97A GAMING 9 ACK

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  • 41specifications compared
  • 20differ
  • 21identical
  • 36known for one product only

Key differences

  • Number of memory slots
    • H81M PRO-VD:2
    • Z97A GAMING 9 ACK:4
  • Maximum internal memory
    • H81M PRO-VD:16 GB
    • Z97A GAMING 9 ACK:32 GB
  • Supported storage drive interfaces
    • H81M PRO-VD:SATA II, SATA III
    • Z97A GAMING 9 ACK:M.2, SATA III
  • USB 3.2 Gen 1 (3.1 Gen 1) connectors
    • H81M PRO-VD:1
    • Z97A GAMING 9 ACK:2
  • Number of SATA III connectors
    • H81M PRO-VD:2
    • Z97A GAMING 9 ACK:8
  • Number of SATA II connectors
    • H81M PRO-VD:2
    • Z97A GAMING 9 ACK:0
  • USB 2.0 ports quantity
    • H81M PRO-VD:4
    • Z97A GAMING 9 ACK:2
  • USB 3.2 Gen 1 (3.1 Gen 1) Type-A ports quantity
    • H81M PRO-VD:2
    • Z97A GAMING 9 ACK:6

Side by side

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Comparison of H81M PRO-VD, Z97A GAMING 9 ACK
77 specifications
Processor1 differ
Processor manufacturerIntelIntel
Processor socketLGA 1150 (Socket H3)LGA 1150 (Socket H3)
Compatible processor seriesDiffersIntel® Celeron®, Intel® Pentium®Intel® Core™ i3, Intel® Core™ i5, Intel® Core™ i7
Maximum number of SMP processorsKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the source1
Intel Core i3/i5/i7/i9 seriesKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the sourcei3-4xxx, i3-5xxx, i5-4xxx, i5-5xxx, i7-4xxx, i7-5xxx
Supported processor socketsKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the sourceLGA 1150 (Socket H3)
Memory3 differ
Supported memory typesDDR3-SDRAMDDR3-SDRAM
Number of memory slotsDiffers24
Memory slots typeDIMMDIMM
Memory channelsDual-channelDual-channel
ECC сompatibilityNon-ECCNon-ECC
Supported memory clock speedsDiffers1066,1333,1600 MHz1066,1333,1600,1866,2000,2133,2200,2400,2600,2666,2800,3000,3100,3200,3300 MHz
Maximum internal memoryDiffers16 GB32 GB
Unbuffered memoryKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the sourceYes
Storage controllers1 differ
Supported storage drive interfacesDiffersSATA II, SATA IIIM.2, SATA III
RAID levelsKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the source0, 1, 5, 10
Graphicsidentical
Parallel processing technology supportKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the source2-Way SLI, 3-Way CrossFireX
Maximum resolutionKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the source4096 x 2304 pixels
Discrete graphics supportKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the sourceYes
Number of displays supportedKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the source2
Maximum graphics card memoryKnown for one1024 MBUnknown — not stated by the source
DirectX versionKnown for one11Unknown — not stated by the source
Internal I/O3 differ
USB 2.0 connectors22
USB 3.2 Gen 1 (3.1 Gen 1) connectorsDiffers12
Number of SATA III connectorsDiffers28
Number of SATA II connectorsDiffers20
Number of Parallel ATA connectors00
Front panel audio connectorYesYes
ATX Power connector (24-pin)YesYes
Power fan connectorKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the sourceYes
CPU fan connectorYesYes
Number of chassis fan connectorsKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the source1
Chassis intrusion connectorYesYes
Peripheral (Molex) power connectors (4-pin)Known for oneUnknown — not stated by the source3
EPS power connector (8-pin)Known for oneUnknown — not stated by the sourceYes
TPM connectorYesYes
Number of SATA connectorsKnown for one4Unknown — not stated by the source
Number of COM connectorsKnown for one1Unknown — not stated by the source
Rear panel I/O ports6 differ
USB 2.0 ports quantityDiffers42
USB 3.2 Gen 1 (3.1 Gen 1) Type-A ports quantityDiffers26
USB 3.2 Gen 2 (3.1 Gen 2) Type-A ports quantityKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the source2
Ethernet LAN (RJ-45) ports11
eSATA ports quantity00
PS/2 ports quantityDiffers21
Firewire (IEEE 1394) ports00
VGA (D-Sub) ports quantityDiffers10
HDMI ports quantityDiffers01
DVI-D ports quantityDiffers10
DisplayPorts quantityKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the source1
S/PDIF out portKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the sourceYes
Digital audio optical outKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the source1
WiFi-AP antenna jackKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the source2
Headphone outputsKnown for one1Unknown — not stated by the source
Microphone inKnown for oneYesUnknown — not stated by the source
Networkidentical
Ethernet LANYesYes
Ethernet interface typeKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the sourceGigabit 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
Features3 differ
Component forDiffersMini PCPC
Motherboard form factorDiffersmicro ATXATX
Motherboard chipset familyIntelIntel
Motherboard chipsetDiffersIntel® H81Intel® Z97
Audio chipKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the sourceRealtek ALC1150
Audio output channelsKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the source7.1 channels
Power source typeATXATX
Windows operating systems supportedKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the sourceWindows 7 Enterprise, Windows 7 Enterprise x64, 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, Win
Expansion slots1 differ
PCI Express x1 (Gen 2.x) slotsDiffers13
PCI Express x16 (Gen 3.x) slotsKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the source3
PCI Express x16 (Gen 2.x) slotsKnown for one1Unknown — not stated by the source
BIOSidentical
BIOS typeUEFIUEFI
Clear CMOS jumperYesYes
Clear CMOS buttonKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the sourceYes
Weight & dimensions2 differ
WidthDiffers173 mm305 mm
DepthDiffers231 mm244 mm
Other featuresidentical
BIOS switch buttonKnown for oneUnknown — not stated by the sourceYes

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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