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The MSI Z87-G43 Gaming is a great motherboard which brings alluring gaming features to the low-cost section of Z87's marketplace. Priced below the £100-mark, MSI does well to pack a Killer E2205 NIC and an impressive onboard audio solution onto the red and black gaming-orientated design.
Overclocking performance of the Z87-G43 Gaming was as good as many of the other Z87 motherboards that we have tested. We had no problems taking our 4770K to its 4.5GHz limit nor did we encounter any instances where we were left wishing for additional adjustment parameters. The number of changeable settings provided in the UEFI interface should be perfectly adequate for the Z87-G43 Gaming's target audience.
We didn't register any performance issues or obscurities throughout testing. Given that such a vast quantity of the Haswell processor's performance is related to its on-chip features, it comes as no real surprise that MSI's Z87-G43 Gaming was able to provide competitive performance against a number of higher-priced motherboards.
Gamers will be pleased by the powerful onboard audio solution which could, to some users, negate the requirement for an additional sound card. The Killer E2205 NIC's network prioritisation is also useful for increasing the likelihood of being able to game with minimal interruptions.
MSI's layout choices are generally very good. There is space for a triple-slot graphics card as well as a lengthy device in the lower PCI-E slot. If a long, three-slot graphics card is used, however, the two outwards-facing SATA ports are likely to be rendered inaccessible. As pointed out earlier, MSI could have easily avoided this issue by simply shifting the SATA ports closer to the board's bottom edge.
Another irritating design choice was the lack of writing on the PCB area near the front panel headers. Users are instead forced to read which connections power which devices from the inconvenience of the manual. The omission of an optical audio output will displease some users, but many people will show little regard for the home theatre-favoured connection.
MSI's Gaming series UEFI BIOS is generally a good interface. The stability of the interface is good, as is the set of implemented features. But the overclocking section can be difficult to understand and work with, especially for novice users. Some practise does make the interface much easier to navigate, but it still isn't as streamlined as Asus' version. OC Genie is a good tool, but it was disappointing to see MSI only including the lower speed profile, without the addition of its higher-speed configuration found on other Gaming series motherboards.
While CrossFire support is provided by the G43 Gaming, its potential as a dual-graphics motherboard is limited by the secondary PCI-E x16 slot's reduced bandwidth. I think it is safe to say that the majority of CrossFire users would be happy to pay extra for a board which offers at least a PCI-E 2.0 x8 (or PCI-E 3.0 x4) lane. By that logic, the MSI Z87-G43 Gaming is arguably better suited for single-card users.
Priced at £89.99 from Novatech, MSI's Z87-G43 Gaming offers excellent value for money. While the board does have its shortfalls, and also receives stiff competition from Asus' Z87-K, the gaming-orientated design and feature set, coupled with the strong performance make the MSI Z87-G43 Gaming a Must Have for gamers on a tight budget.
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Pros:
- Excellent value for money.
- Attractive red and black colour scheme with dragon heatsinks.
- High performance ‘Audio Boost' onboard sound system.
- Solid overclocking performance.
- Killer E2205 NIC with network control.
Cons:
- Some questionable layout decisions (SATA, writing for headers).
- UEFI BIOS layout is confusing at first.
- Only includes the slower (4GHz) OC Genie 4 profile.
KitGuru says: A competitive motherboard that provides gamers with plenty of features in a well-priced package.
