Question 1

Hello guys, I´m planning on buying this motherboard and I´m going to pair it with and FX-6300, will it be compatible right out of the box? or do I need to update the BIOS to make it work? Hope it´s the first one, cause I don´t have any other AMD processors around. Thank you

Accepted Answer

Yes, it works perfectly. I used the exact same processor and board and it worked right out of the box.

Question 2

will this motherboard accept an AMD FX-6300 Vishera processor?

Accepted Answer

yes.
CPU THAT HAVE AM3+ will fit.
Go for the AMD FX 8350 eightcore 4.0 awesome cpu.
DO NOT TRY TO OVERCLOCK ANY AMD CPUS UNTIL U UPGRADED HEATSINK AND COOLING FAN.

Question 3

I'm new to PC gaming and plan to build my own computer. I notice that the picture of the mobo doesn't have a HDMI port so how would I connect a monitor?

Accepted Answer

This mother board doesn't have a built in graphics card, you'd have to buy one separately. Since you'll be using it for gaming, you probably want a higher end card anyways.

This board is in my recording computer in my studio, and I have no doubts about its amazing capabilities!

Make sure you read up on as much info as possible on your build and then check it multiple times to make sure everything is compatible with eachother!

Good luck with you first build, and welcome to the club:)

Question 4

In 2011 I purchased the ASUS M5A97 AM3+AMD970 SATA 6Gb/s USB3.0 ATX AMD Motherboard with UEFI BIOS and it went out.  It is now discontinued.  Can I replace with this motherboard and will it be compatible with Windows 7?

Accepted Answer

This board appears to be a revision of your original board, as the only differences i see are that "R2.0" in the title of the listing. Regardless, this will work with windows 7 just fine. It should function just like the board you're replacing. You might need to reinstall chipset drivers, but that would be all as far as i can tell.

Question 5

Does this support SLI?

Accepted Answer

I would have to say no, I looked on the ASUS website and the manual and neither mention anything about SLI support, only Crossfire. On the product overview here on Newegg's website towards the bottom it has a picture of the motherboard and it says both but the same picture on the Asus website only says Crossfire.

Question 6

What does it mean by Windows 8 ready? Does that mean it brings an activation key?

Accepted Answer

Hi, I believe it just means the board is certified to be compatible with Win 8.  Like if you already own a copy or are going to buy it this board won't give you any troubles.   Here's some text from ASUS's site.  Windows 8 motherboards by design 
ASUS started preparing for Windows 8 early to ensure fully-optimized products on day one. ASUS innovation has also resulted in dedicated Windows 8-tailored features such as Fast Boot, DirectKey, and ASUS Boot Setting, all tapping the capabilities of the new operating system. 
Early readiness means a better experience for you 
ASUS and Microsoft worked closely on Windows 8 compatibility, putting products through rigorous tests. New drivers and BIOS versions were built ground-up, meaning total product stability. These efforts resulted in the P8Z77-M becoming the first motherboard to pass Windows 8 WHQL certification on June 5, showing the ASUS passion for perfection continues to benefit you. But customer happiness goes deeper than development, and ASUS will continue to improve products after Windows 8 launches for an always-optimized experience. With every motherboard and feature, your satisfaction is our focus, and we are sure you will make the most of Windows 8 only on ASUS motherboards.

Question 7

It seems this board does not have on board graphics...I do not want to buy a video card...so how else can i get video?

Accepted Answer

I am by no means the final authority on the subject, but it seems to me that the vast majority of Motherborads today do not have on board graphics; as most people that are building their own system tend to want to customize. the way I see it, you have 2 options: Buy this motherboard and get a very cheap ATI graphics card to go with it, or Choose another motherboard that might have on board. But my opinion is this: why build your own system if you just want things standard?

Question 8

is the fx 6300 compatible out of the box or do i have to flash the bios?

Accepted Answer

I have had two different FX CPUs installed on the M5A97, FX-6100 and currently an FX-8350; neither required anything out of the ordinary. Simply installed them, powered up and was good to go. I have been running this MB for six months and have had zero problems with it.

Question 9

Does this Mobo support windows 8.1 or just Windows 8?

Accepted Answer

Short:
Yes.

Long:
To add a bit more information first. The requirement between windows 8 and 8.1 that would matter for a mother board is the support for CMPXCHG16b instruction set.

To find out if CMPXCHG16b is supported you can use Coreinfo by Windows Sysinternals.

I realize you do not own this yet, so you cannot do this your self, so I ran it on my system using this motherboard and yes, it does support this instruction set.

Question 10

Is this motherboard compatible with a gtx 660 card. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130833 It says the card has 3.0 x 16 psi but the motherboard only has up to 2.0 x 16

Accepted Answer

I have this motherboard and yes it has 1 PCI express 3 slot and 2 other PCI 2 slots. I have an MSI 7950 running on it and it works perfectly. Even if it was only PCI 2 the card would still work, you just might not have all the frames that the 3 can give you.

Questions & Answers