Asus Sabertooth Z170 Mark 1 Motherboard Review

1. Introduction2. Asus Sabertooth Z170 Mark 1: Packaging and Bundle3. Asus Sabertooth Z170 Mark 1: Board Layout and Features4. Asus Z170 UEFI & Software5. Testing Methodology6. Tests: System-related7. Tests: Gaming-related8. Tests: Motherboard-related9. Overclocking: Frequencies10. Overclocking: Performance11. Technical: Power Consumption12. Technical: Thermal Imaging13. Closing Thoughts14. View All Pages

SATA

For SATA 6Gb/s testing we use a Kingston HyperX 3K (SandForce SF-2281) SSD.

SATA performance is as expected. Asus' Z170-fed ports deliver leading results, while the ASM1061 implementations are also the joint-fastest of all competitors but are significantly slower than Z170 alternatives.

USB 3.0

We tested USB 3.0 performance using the Kingston HyperX 3K SSD connected to a SATA 6Gb/s to USB 3.0 adapter powered by an ASMedia ASM1053 controller. The test system uses Windows 7 with SP1 as the OS.

Asus wins the day when it comes to USB 3.0 transfer rates using the Windows 7 OS. This is thanks to Asus' UASP-activating tool that competing manufacturers do not offer.

Audio

We use RightMark Audio Analyzer (RMAA) to analyse the performance of the motherboard’s onboard audio solution. A sampling mode of 24-bit, 192 kHz was tested.

RMAA rates the Sabertooth Z170 Mark 1 motherboard's general audio performance as ‘Excellent‘. Frequency response, noise level, and dynamic range numbers are particularly impressive.

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