Asus P8Z77-V LK (Z77) Motherboard Review

Given the good level of performance and an extensive feature set that I saw from the P8Z77-V not too long ago, some may wonder why they should consider this board instead. Well the way to look at it and as it happens the way I see it, is what if you don’t need all the extra options such as WiFi or better overclocking potential? This is where more basic boards come into the game. There are many situations where the need for a board that does as it says on the tin is needed and all the extra bells and whistles that can be had with higher boards are left unused, meaning that the higher cost is disproportionate to the end users needs.

So putting this board in the light of mainstream users who need a board that does as it says on the tin with minimal fuss and at a price which is right for the job in hand, the P8Z77-V LK is bang on target. Such ideal situations for this board would be in schools, offices and general home systems where gaming isn’t a priority and something that is up-to-date with the main modern features is considered to be more important.

Whilst the board does have the ability to overclock, I wouldn’t see this as a major selling point, as the lack of heat sink on some of the power phases may see a shortened lifespan on components if pushed too far in the long run. Following this through I would recommend that if you really wanted to overclock on this board then taking it to somewhere in the region of 4-4.5GHz would satisfy the needs of anyone and would give them a bit more power at the same time.

For a board that does what it needs to with minimal fuss and gives some backward compatibility at the same time with the two included PCI lanes, with some features that steer it towards the mid-range level whilst keeping at a price point that is close to the entry-level P8Z77-V LX, for around £100 you really can’t go wrong.

So where does this leave the LK board? Well for the vast majority of home office users, this is the sort of area you should be looking in, granted there are options from other brands to consider such as the Z77X-D3H from Gigabyte, but this has a slight edge over its competitors on price point and when you’re in that market, price is a major factor when choosing components. With a pretty good level of performance on hand for around £100, there is certainly a bit of bang for your buck right there.