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Honey, I shrunk the boards! Intel Z170 boards for your mini-ITX system

By Koh Wanzi - 5 Oct 2015

ASRock, ASUS, EVGA

ASUS Z170I Pro Gaming. (Image Source: ASUS)

Powerful pint-sized Mobo

Intel Z170 may be Intel’s performance-oriented chipset for anyone who doesn’t need the 40 PCIe lanes offered by Intel X99, but that doesn’t mean that you need a full-sized ATX chassis to accommodate it.

For those of us who deal with small apartments and cramped desks on a daily basis, space is a luxury we don’t have. Mini-ITX cases like this beauty from Lian-Li, and mini-ITX boards, are a godsend if all you need is a functional gaming system without the extravagance of multi-GPU setups or the full 64GB of DDR4 RAM (most gamers are well served by just over 10% of that RAM capacity).

We’ve rounded up a selection of mini-ITX boards from various manufacturers to help you with your decision.

 

ASRock

 

ASRock Fatal1ty Z170 Gaming-ITX/ac

ASRock Fatal1ty Z170 Gaming-ITX/ac. (Image Source: ASRock)

The ASRock Z170 Gaming-ITX/ac is a mini-ITX motherboard targeted at the gaming crowd. As part of ASRock’s Fatal1ty series of boards, it comes with features like high-quality 60A chokes, Nichicon capacitors and an eight-phase digital power design.

As it’s a mini-ITX board, you only get a single PCIe 3.0 x16 slot, but ASRock has also included a single M.2 socket that supports both PCIe and SATA devices. It is also compatible with ASRock’s U.2-to-M.2 adapter for installing 2.5-inch PCIe drives like the Intel 750 series SSD.

And bearing in mind that mini-ITX boards often find use in HTPCs where connectivity is of paramount importance, ASRock has also included a 2x2 dual-band Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.0 module that supports the latest 802.11ac Wi-Fi standard. Finally, there are two USB 3.1 (one Type-A, one Type-C) ports on the rear I/O panel for support of the latest devices.

The 2x2 dual-band Wi-Fi and Bluetooth module attaches to the rear I/O panel. (Image Source: ASRock)

 


ASRock Z170M-ITX/ac

ASRock Z170M-ITX/ac. (Image Source: ASRock)

The ASRock Z170M-ITX/ac is a slightly cutdown version of its Fatal1ty counterpart. Instead of an eight-phase power delivery system, it is equipped with just six. The power chokes are also 45A variants instead of the 60A chokes found on the Fatal1ty board. It is also lacking the dual Intel Gigabit LAN and USB 3.1 ports found on the latter board.

There is also just a single PCIe 3.0 x16 slot on the Z170M-ITX/ac, and it retains the 2x2 dual-band Wi-Fi module from the Fatal1ty board. However, wireless support now takes the form of two antennas that interface with the rear I/O panel, instead of the Wi-Fi module in the Fatal1ty board.

 

ASUS

 

ASUS Z170I Pro Gaming

ASUS Z170I Pro Gaming. (Image Source: ASUS)

Before the arrival of the ASUS Maximus VIII Impact, we have the ASUS Z170I Pro Gaming, another gaming-oriented mini-ITX motherboard.

As expected, there is just a single PCIe 3.0 x16 slot and one M.2 socket that supports both PCIe and SATA drives. There are just three SATA 6Gbps ports (including one SATA Express port), but that should be enough for most small form factor systems.

The rear I/O panel also houses two USB 3.1 ports (one Type-A, one Type-C) for compatibility with the latest devices. Dual LAN ports are missing, and there is just a single Gigabit Ethernet port provided via the Intel I219-V controller. However, there is still wireless support with an included 2x2 dual-band 802.11ac Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.1 module.

Finally, the board also features ASUS’ SupremeFX audio solution, which can drive up to 300ohm headphones and is equipped with EMI shielding for less signal interference.


EVGA

 

EVGA Z170 Stinger

EVGA Z170 Stinger. (Image Source: EVGA)

The EVGA Z170 Stinger is one stealthy looking board. However, it has just four power phases in its power delivery system, so it doesn’t look like EVGA is placing a lot of emphasis on overclocking here.

Nevertheless, it comes with a beefy-looking I/O cover, a feature that is missing from quite a few mini-ITX boards. It also features four SATA 6Gbps ports, but it doesn’t look like there are any SATA Express connectors. Networking is handled by a single Intel Gigabit NIC, but EVGA did not mention any wireless support for the board. However, the board does have one M.2 connector (Key E), which will take Wi-Fi add-in cards so there is still the possibility of adding wireless support.

EVGA has opted not to implement any USB 3.1 ports, and the board has just six USB 3.0 and two USB 2.0 ports on its rear I/O panel.

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