Test Setup
I tested the ECS Z97-Machine motherboard with an Intel Core i7-4770K Haswell processor. The full specifications of the system I used are listed below:
Operating System: Windows 7 Ultimate 64bit
Motherboard: ECS Z97-Machine
Processor: Intel Core i7-4770K
CPU Cooler: DeepCool Captain 360
Memory: Klevv Genuine 8GB DDR3-2666MHz
Graphics card: Zotac GeForce GTX 970 AMP! Extreme Core Edition
Storage Drive: Plextor M6 Pro SSD 256GB
Power Supply: Seasonic 1050W Platinum
Chassis: DimasTech Easy v3.0 Test Bench
Please take note that the motherboard’s performance is as good as the other components you install on it. Don’t expect that the ECS Z97-Machine will make your system perform way faster compared to other Z97 motherboards with the same components installed. Don’t expect also that the components you installed, like CPU, memory and graphics card, will perform faster than expected just because you installed them on a motherboard like this one.
However, when it comes to overclocking a CPU or memory or graphics card that depends on how good the motherboard is and the “overclockability” of the component. Not all components are 100% the same. For example, you got lucky and got an Intel Core i7-4790K that overclocks to 5GHz easily. Or you got an i7-4790K that can’t even reach 4.6GHz making you (very) unlucky.
In this case, I was able to overclock my i7-4770K to around 4.4GHz. I didn’t push it any further since I don’t want to stress the CPU and I know that this motherboard isn’t really built for that kind of heavy overclocking. For the rest of my test, I decided to stay within the rated speed of the i7-4770K.
