Gigabyte G1.Sniper 5 Motherboard Review

Motherboards/Intel S1150 by stefan @ 2013-07-31

The G1.Sniper 5 Z87 motherboard from Gigabyte is packed with all bells and whistles and offers stuff like Killer E2200 NIC, a solid 16-phase VRM, Sound Blaster Core3D audio with interference PCB isolation and replaceable OP AMPs, a 2-in-1 heatsink on the VRM which also acts as a water block, 4-way CrossFireX/SLI support and many more.

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Product Features

Dual Silent Fan/Water Thermal Design

 

The GIGABYTE G1.Sniper 5 motherboard features an extreme heatsink design for the PWM area that allows users to employ both passive, active and water cooling setups. A stylish hollow body heatsink fitted with a silent integrated fan ensures superb heat dissipation during extreme performance and overclocked PC gaming configurations.

 

New Dual Silent Fan/Water Thermal Design

 

Water Cooling-Ready

Tube connectors at each end of the heatsink provide easy integration with any water cooled system. These technologies help combat high temperatures by effectively removing heat from critical areas of the motherboard such as the CPU VRM zone, allowing it to remain cool, even when the battle heats up.

 

GIGABYTE OPT Fan Support

 

GIGABYTE 8 Series motherboards feature OPT fan support, an additional CPU fan pin header that can be used to connect a water pump and configured for continuous full speed operation. The OPT Fan is also useful for high performance coolers employing two fans.

 

9 Fan Connectors

 

Further helping to eliminate heat are the 9 strategically placed fan pin headers which allow for more precise control of system and CPU fan speeds. Equipped with their own individual thermal sensors, 7 of the fan headers allow for complete control within BIOS and the GIGABYTE EasyTune™ utility.

 

Extreme Multi-GPU Configurations

 

Featuring the latest PCIe Gen 3.0 support, the GIGABYTE G1.Sniper 5 motherboard is built to handle up to 4 discrete graphics cards, delivering the absolute maximum frame rates at the very highest screen resolutions. The GIGABYTE G1.Sniper 5 supports both 4-Way Crossfire™ and 4-Way SLI™, allowing gamers to see more clearly, aim better, and experience immersive 3D games more realistically than ever before.

 

GIGABYTE On/Off Charge™ 2

 

GIGABYTE On/Off Charge technology is revised and upgraded on all GIGABYTE 8 Series motherboards, with comprehensive and enhanced charging support for a broad range of devices that include those that run both iOS and Android. Users can enjoy fast AC charging over USB on mobile devices, even when the PC is turned off.

 

HyperDuo Technology-Automated SSD/HDD Tiering

 

Greater Performance, Cost-efficient

Equipped with Marvell SE9230 controller, the motherboard supports HyperDuo Technology. While the SSD and HDD are connected, HyperDuo makes the SSD become the cache of the HDD and delivers SSD-like performance.

 

GIGABYTE AMP-UP Audio

 

GIGABYTE G1-Killer motherboards are the world's first to feature an onboard OP-AMP socket, allowing enthusiasts to swap out the motherboard's onboard operational amplifier (OP-AMP) and explore personal audio preferences using a range of nuanced OP-AMPs available on the market. GIGABYTE G1-Killer motherboards include an amplifier upgrade kit that includes a pair of specialized Operational Amplifiers and an IC Extractor for easy installation. Additional amplifiers can be purchased separately to further expand audio capabilities.

 

Creative Sound Core3D

 

GIGABYTE 8 Series G1-Killer motherboards feature a dedicated Sound Core3D™ audio processor from Creative, a multi-core sound and voice processor offering high-performance hardware audio processing, with cutting-edge audio technologies including the SoundBlaster software suite.

 

SoundBlaster with SBX ProStudio™

 

The Creative ™ Sound Core3D takes advantage of the latest SoundBlaster software suite - a powerful audio platform equipped with cutting-edge audio technology including SBX Pro Studio™, Scout Mode™, EAX® ADVANCED HD 5.0, Creative ALchemy, VoiceFX and SBX Surround audio processing features.

 

Nichicon High End Audio Capacitors

 

GIGABYTE 8 Series G1-Killer motherboards use the highest quality Nichicon MUSE ES series and MW series Bi-Polarized audio capacitors at each channel layout. These professional audio capacitors deliver the highest quality sound resolution and sound expansion to create the most realistic sound effects for professional gamers.

 

Headphone Amplifier

 

Gaming Headphone Amplifier (Front Headphone)

Specially designed for gamers, GIGABYTE G1-Killer motherboards utilize a high-capacity amplifier which is able to drive 600Ω loads, giving gamers a fuller range of dynamic sound with crisper details and less distortion when using high quality professional headphones.

 

Audio Noise Guard

 

Audio Noise Guard with Path Lighting

To help protect and insulate the high fidelity Creative Sound Core3D™ audio processor and onboard amplifiers from electromagnetic interference (EMI), GIGABYTE G1-Killer motherboards feature an audio noise guard that essentially separates the board’s sensitive analog audio components from potential noise pollution at the PCB level. LED trace path lighting Illuminates to show the separation of the PCB layers.

 

Gold Plated Audio Hardware

 

GIGABYTE G1-Killer motherboards pack top quality gold plated audio and HDMI connectors for improved connectivity and long lasting durability. Gold has superb signal conductivity and will not tarnish over extended periods of use. The Creative™ Sound Core3D processor is also shielded by a gold plated cover which eliminates electrostatic interference.

 

Qualcomm Atheros Killer™ E2200

 

GIGABYTE G1-Killer motherboards feature the Killer™ E2200 from Qualcomm Atheros, a high-performance, adaptive gigabit Ethernet controller that offers better online gaming and online media performance compared to standard solutions. The Killer™ E2200 features Advanced Stream Detect technology, which identifies and prioritizes all network traffic to ensure important applications that require high-speed connectivity are prioritized over less important traffic.

 

GIGABYTE Exclusive Ultra Durable Technologies

 

Durable Black Solid Caps

GIGABYTE 8 Series motherboards integrate the absolute best quality solid state capacitors that are rated to perform at maximum efficiency for extended periods, even in extreme performance configurations. This provides peace of mind for end users who want to push their system hard, yet demand absolute reliability and stability. With ultra-low ESR no matter how high the CPU loading, these exclusive capacitors also come in customized jet black, exclusively on GIGABYTE 8 series motherboards.

 

Gold Plated CPU Socket

 

GIGABYTE 8 Series motherboards come equipped with a gold plated CPU socket, which means that enthusiasts can enjoy absolute reliability and longevity for the CPU socket overtime, without having any concerns about corroded pins and bad contacts.

 

2x Copper PCB

 

GIGABYTE's exclusive 2X Copper PCBs design provides sufficient power trace paths between components to handle greater than normal power loads and to remove heat from the critical CPU power delivery area. This is essential to ensure the motherboard is able to handle the increased power loading that is necessary when overclocking.

 

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