ASRock Z77 Extreme4-M Motherboard

Introduction

The ASRock Extreme4-M is a microATX motherboard based on the Z77 chipset and targeted to current Intel processors. Let’s check it out.

The Intel Z77 is an upgraded version of the Z68 chipset with the same basic features (Intel Smart Response Technology and Virtu video switching technology), plus native support to four USB 3.0 ports. It also includes the addition of two new technologies: Smart Connect (allowing the computer to receive emails and refresh webpages while it is in sleep mode) and Rapid Start (faster boot times).

In addition, the ASRock Z77 Extreme4-M supports the Virtu Universal MVP, which allows you to combine the performance of the integrated graphics processor available in the CPU with the performance of any video card installed. This is similar to what occurs with the Hybrid SLI and ATI Hybrid Graphics technologies, with the notable difference of not being limited to GPUs from a specific manufacturer.

To date, ASRock has launched 14 different motherboard models based on the Intel Z77 chipset. In the tables below, we compare their main specifications. Prices were researched at Newegg.com on the day we published this article. The Z77 Professional, the Z77 Professional-M, and the Z77 Performance are part of the “Fatal1ty” series, coming with a special USB port with a higher polling rate for gaming mice.

Specification	Z77 OC Formula	Z77 Professional	Z77 Performance	Z77 Extreme9	Z77 Extreme6	Z77 Extreme4	Z77 Extreme3
Form Factor	CEB	ATX	ATX	ATX	ATX	ATX	ATX
Memory Sockets	4	4	4	4	4	4	4
PCI Express 3.0 x16	2 (x16/x0 or x8/x8)	2 (x16/x0 or x8/x8)	1 (x16)	5 (x16/x16/x0/x16/x0 or x16/x8/x8/x8/x8)	2 (x16/x0 or x8/x8)	2 (x16/x0 or x8/x8)	2 (x16/x0 or x8/x8)
PCI Express 2.0 x16	1 (x4)	1 (x4)	1 (x4)	1 (x4)	1 (x4)	0	1 (x4)
PCI Express 2.0 x1	2	1	1	1	1	2	1
Mini PCI Express	0	0	0	1	1	0	0
Standard PCI	0	2	2	0	2	2	2
CrossFireX	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
SLI	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
SATA-300	4	4	4	4	4	4	4
SATA-600	6	6	2	6	4	4	2
eSATA-300	0	0	1	0	0	0	0
eSATA-600	0	1	0	1 (shared)	1	1	0
USB 2.0	10	10	10	8	8	8	8
USB 3.0	8	8	6	12	6	6	4
FireWire	0	2	0	2	2	0	0
Bluetooth	No	No	No	4.0	No	No	No
Gigabit Ethernet	1	2	1	2	1	1	1
Wi-Fi	No	No	No	a/b/g/n	No	No	No
VGA	No	No	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes
DVI	No	No	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes
HDMI	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
DisplayPort	No	Yes	No	No	Yes	No	No
Audio	ALC898	ALC898	ALC892	ALC898	ALC898	ALC898	ALC892
Voltage Regulator	12+4	16+8	8+4	8+4	8+4	8+4	8+3
Price	USD 240	USD 220	USD 140	USD 300	USD 180	USD 135	USD 120

Yes

Specification	Z77 Pro4	Z77 Pro3	Z77 Professional-M	Z77 Extreme4-M	Z77 Pro4-M	Z77M	Z77E-ITX
Form Factor	ATX	ATX	microATX	microATX	microATX	microATX	Mini-ITX
Memory Sockets	4	4	4	4	4	2	2
PCI Express 3.0 x16	1 (x16)	1 (x16)	2 (x16/x0 or x8/x8)	2 (x16/x0 or x8/x8)	1 (x16)	1 (x16)	1 (x16)
PCI Express 2.0 x16	1 (x4)	1 (x4)	1 (x4)	1 (x4)	2 (x1/x4)	1 (x4)	0
PCI Express 2.0 x1	1	1	1	1	1	0	0
Mini PCI Express	0	0	0	0	0	0	1
Standard PCI	3	2	0	0	0	2	0
CrossFireX	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
SLI	No	No	Yes	Yes	No	No	No
SATA-300	4	4	4	4	4	4	2
SATA-600	4	2	4	4	4	2	2
eSATA-300	0	0	0	0	0	0	1
eSATA-600	0	0	1	1	1 (shared)	0	0
USB 2.0	10	10	8	10	10	10	6
USB 3.0	4	4	6	4	4	4	6
FireWire	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Bluetooth	No	No	No	No	No	No	No
Gigabit Ethernet	1	1	1	1	1	1	1
Wi-Fi	No	No	No	No	No	No	802.11n
VGA	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
DVI	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
HDMI	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
DisplayPort	No	No	Yes	No	No	No	Yes
Audio	ALC892	ALC892	ALC898	ALC898	ALC892	ALC892	ALC898
Voltage Regulator	4+2	4+1	8+3	4+2	4+2	4+2	6+2
Price	USD 95	USD 95	USD 155	USD 140	USD 110	USD 90	USD 150

In Figure 1, you see the ASRock Z77 Extreme4-M motherboard. It is based on the microATX form factor (9.6 x 9.6 inches or 244 x 244 mm).

Figure 1: ASRock Z77 Extreme4-M motherboard