MSI Z77A-GD65 LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard with UEFI BIOS

Pros: VERY stable Motherboard
OC has been amazing, I can get 4.7GHz out of my i5-3570K @ 1.248v
BIOS has a good deal of tweaking settings, make sure to update once you install the board.
Plenty of PCI Express slots and are properly spaced
Decent distance from the RAM to the CPU for installation of RAM with lower profile heat spreaders and large CPU heatsinks
Price is best bang for the buck you can get!

Cons: Can be pretty picky when trying to max your OC, Took me 2 weeks to dial in the right settings to get my i5-3570K to 4.7GHz, stick with it and you will get a high overclock. For some reason it likes PLL Voltage to be lower than 1.7v for a high OC, currently have mine at 1.65v

Other Thoughts: The gamer version of this board isn't much different, it has a better NIC and can accept slightly higher OC'ed RAM

Pros: None

Cons: Both bios were corrupted in less than 6 months. From what? Who knows.

Other Thoughts: MSI's technical support is utterly useless. No trouble shooting attempted, just "RMA out of your own pocket because we know we've made a shotty product!" I've never bought a quality MSI product, and shunned this garbage company for years. Read a couple of good reviews, decide to give them a shot and look, they're up to their same old dirty tricks of manufacturing garbage.

If you have ANY technical know-how, avoid this board at all costs. There is a nifty "clear cmos" button at the back that's purely aesthetic and does absolutely nothing. I invite you to google "Error 55 z77a gd65" or "gd65 boot looping" and you'll see.

AVOID AT ALL COSTS.

I want a refund, plain and simple. I want my $200 back.

Manufacturer Response:

Dear Valued Customer,

Please note that error code 55 indicates the connection between processor's IMC and memory are corrupted, which is caused by bent pins.
To verify, please kindly remove the CPU slowly and carefuly and inspect the socket pins to make sure there are no bent pins, if there are bent pins then you will be charged a $45 fee to replace it and Newegg will not refund you because of physical damage caused to the motherboard.

If you have any questions, feel free to get in touch with our tech support team directly at 626.271.1004 for assistance during regular business hours from M to F, 9am to 6pm Pacific Time.
Or you can email us at usreview@msi.com, thank you.

Best Regards,
MSI Review Team | usreview@msi.com

Pros: was great while it lasted

Cons: failed after 2 months. no power/no post

Other Thoughts: Now I have to RMA and pay to ship it to MSI. fail

Manufacturer Response:

Dear Valued Customer,

We apologize for the issues that you are having with this product.

Please kindly visit the URL below to set up a RMA with the following information.
http://service.msicomputer.com/msi_user/rma_form_new.aspx

1. Full name (first, and last)
2. Telephone #
3. Physical address
4. Email address
5. Serial number (located on the box, or underneath the motherboard, eg 601-xxxx-xxxBxxxxxxxxxx)
6. Symptoms you are having onto the Special Remark section (as detailed as possible)

Once your information and warranty coverage are verified then we can proceed with this RMA for you.
Our turn-around time is typically two weeks and our system will notify you automatically at every stage of your RMA process.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding the product, received the unit back from RMA but are still having issues, please do not hesitate to contact us directly at usreview@msi.com and we will be more than happy to assist you, thank you.

Best Regards,
MSI Review Team | usreview@msi.com

Pros: Stable board. Great OC with Genie. Testing Virtu MVP with Intel 4000 and GTX 460.

Cons: RAM won't clock to 1600, stays at 1333. XMP doesn't work and I don't feel like messing with the timing manually since the board is running stable at 4.2.
Will eventually try to get it to work but will wait.
Turned off THX since it looks like it clashes with HD Real Audio when playing games (sometimes mutes dialog)

Other Thoughts: This is a great board that has decent overclocking. Only using OC Genie and that is acceptable to me.
Intel i7 3770K 3.5 OC at 4.2
16gb Team 1600 running at 1333 (will NOT go to 1600) - came with free 8gb Team RAM (Vulcan) and bought Dark since they are both 1600 9-9-9-24.

Manufacturer Response:

Dear Valued Customer,

i7-3770K's default memory speed is 1600MHz therefore you should be able to clock it to 1600MHz.
Have you tried turning on XMP without doing any overclocking?

If you have any questions, feel free to get in touch with our tech support team directly at 626.271.1004 for assistance during regular business hours from M to F, 9am to 6pm Pacific Time.
Or you can email us at usreview@msi.com, thank you.

Best Regards,
MSI Review Team | usreview@msi.com

Pros: Not perfect but I do ♥ it! This was my first build so documentation was important and its included for both the Hardware & Software. Looks awesome w/ the Blue & Black color scheme! I haven't had a need to O?C yet but it's available. Lots of features and I appreciated the BIOS setup, the MSI Live Updates click & forget. Audio sounds sweet!

Cons: I appreciate this Mobo the gripes I have are not worth docking an egg, but hopefully viewed as area's of considerations for readers & MSI for their next. Gen.
1. Biggest gripe is with the Front Panel connector Pins - there too and feel like they will come loose if the PC is move about.
2. The Audio Header was a hard reach for the header was lower back corner & the Corsair Case Font Panel connecters top.
3. I/O panel too flimsy, flex too much while installing the board
4. More Fan headers needed, most newer Mid Tower Cases support 5 to 9 fans! Plan on purchasing a Fan Controller.

Other Thoughts: i5 - 3570k **** ♥
Z77A-GD65 ****♥
Corsair 300r Case ** Not so much!
Corsair Power Supply 500w ( Didn't include mounting screws -wanted me to return a working unit for screws???
Sapphire Radeon 7770 ♥ it
Kingston Ram 2400mhz O/C **** Great if your comfortable w/ upping voltage to 1.65
NZXT Sentry II Fan Controller **

Pros: I just love everything about this board. I have not been this impressed with a peace of hardware in a long time. The click-able bios is easy on the eyes and easy to navigate. The on board digital read out of the boot sequence made the bad stick of ram I got easy to diagnose. Took me less than 3min to trouble shoot the problem and pop some other ram in.

Cons: None that i have found so far.

Other Thoughts: I have not started to overclock yet but I'm sure with all the options for speed and voltage a good stable clock should not be an issue.

Pros: Excellent performance
Clear, detailed documentation
No setup or reliability problems
Solid-looking, attractive design

Cons: MSI's optional driver updating software isn't always up-to-date, which defeats its purpose. Don't bother with it.

Other Thoughts: Pictures don't convey how attractive this design is. The metal-enclosed portions are a nice touch. The mouse-driven BIOS is easy to use and has some excellent features.

Pros: I bought this after going back and forth between this and an ASUS board. I had used ASUS in the past with success, but I took a gamble on MSI and it paid off. There is nothing wrong with this board for what I needed. The OC genie is actually a pretty cool feature. Bush a button, boot up and your a automatically overclocked. Very stable and everything works well. Plus it is a great price!

Cons: I am a little disappointed that 2 days after I received this it is now being packed with 8GB of free RAM... but that is life.

Other Thoughts: Great choice with great features. Does everything I need it to.

Pros: Fast, Reliable, Lots of Features, Decent Price

Cons: I can't think of any.

Other Thoughts: I bought one of these to use in a media server build since it has 8x SATA which will keep me happy for a long time. I did have some issues with the built-in Intel gigabit port and Win 8 x64, but since flashing to the latest bios, I haven't had any issues. I used to buy only ASUS motherboards, but I thought I would give MSI a try, and I have been so pleased that I decided to buy a second one to rebuild my main PC. They are both running great.

Pros: Nice looking card, was perfect for my needs.

Cons: DOA

Manufacturer Response:

Dear Valued Customer,

We apologize for the issues that you are having with this product.
Certain DOA can be caused by bent pins therefore please verify the socket.

If you have any questions, feel free to get in touch with our tech support team directly at 626.271.1004 for assistance during regular business hours from M to F, 9am to 6pm Pacific Time.
Or you can email us at usreview@msi.com, thank you.

Best Regards,
MSI Review Team | usreview@msi.com