Something like the ASRock M8 can be difficult to benchmark.  Ultimately what benchmark results we get will essentially be dependent on the hardware a user adds in, and what we have placed in the build will be different to what any other user will do.  Also, there is almost no cross correlation from previous reviews for heat/noise, as Dustin was our case reviewer and I have no other starting point.  Nonetheless, I have repeated the majority of my usual benchmarks in the system, as well as tried to copy Dustin’s benchmark routine for comparison points.  Our test setup is as follows:

Test Setup

ASRock M8 Barebones Build
  Component Price
Chassis ASRock M8 $550
CPU Intel i7-4765T 4C/8T 35W 2.0 GHz (3.0 GHz Turbo) $400
Motherboard ASRock Z87-M8  
Memory G.Skill SO-DIMM DDR3-1866 C9 1.35V 2x8 GB Kit $160
GPU MSI HD7950 Twin Frozr II $320
Power Supply ASRock M8 450W Bronze made by FSP  
SSD OCZ Vertex 3 480GB $485
Storage Toshiba 750GB 2.5" HDD $67
ODD ASRock M8  

Total   $1982

Many thanks to...

We must thank the following companies for kindly providing hardware for our test bed:

Thank you to ASRock for providing the M8 review sample.
Thank you to Intel for providing the i7-4765T CPU used in this review.
Thank you to G.Skill for providing the Ripjaws SO-DIMM 1866 C9 memory kit for this review.

A note on the G.Skill memory kit – up until the opportunity to review the ASRock M8, I was under the impression that SO-DIMM memory kits, for the most part, were set at DDR3-1600 CAS 9 at the high end.  Around the same time, G.Skill launched their Ripjaws SO-DIMM memory range, featuring 8GB modules at speeds higher than 1600 C9.  These were at 1866 C10 (Performance Index rise from 178 to 187), and the two 2x8 GB modules are currently on sale for $160.

Power Consumption

Power Consumption
Long Idle 55 W
Idle 44 W
OCCT 83 W
Metro 242 W

Despite using a 200W TDP graphics card and a 35W TDP CPU, the total system draw under Metro is 242W – more than adequate for the 450W bronze power supply used.  The limiting factor it would seem is temperatures, at which point the system would not be able to exhaust enough heat.

Temperatures

Temperatures
  CPU GPU
Idle 35 ºC 35 ºC
OCCT CPU Load 60 ºC 36 ºC
Furmark 42 ºC 76 ºC

While under load, it was clear when the GPU was being stressed from the top of the case – it became warm to touch, almost uncomfortable if held for a long time.  Although I would be satisfied with these temperatures in the long term – no game stresses the system as much as Furmark.

Windows 7 POST Time

Different motherboards have different POST sequences before an operating system is initialized.  A lot of this is dependent on the board itself, and POST boot time is determined by the controllers on board (and the sequence of how those extras are organized).  As part of our testing, we are now going to look at the POST Boot Time - this is the time from pressing the ON button on the computer to when Windows 7 starts loading.  (We discount Windows loading as it is highly variable given Windows specific features.)  These results are subject to human error, so please allow +/- 1 second in these results.

POST (Power-On Self-Test) Time

At 13 seconds the M8 is not a slouch, but not the speediest boot up sequence we have had for Z87.  There's still some margin to go for a sub 10-second POST.

Rightmark Audio Analyzer 6.2.5

In part due to reader requests, we are pleased to include Rightmark Audio Analyzer results in our benchmark suite.  The premise behind Rightmark:AA is to test the input and output of the audio system to determine noise levels, range, harmonic distortion, stereo crosstalk and so forth.  Rightmark:AA should indicate how well the sound system is built and isolated from electrical interference (either internally or externally).  For this test we connect the Line Out to the Line In using a short six inch 3.5mm to 3.5mm high-quality jack, turn the OS speaker volume to 100%, and run the Rightmark default test suite at 192 kHz, 24-bit.  The OS is tuned to 192 kHz/24-bit input and output, and the Line-In volume is adjusted until we have the best RMAA value in the mini-pretest.  We look specifically at the Dynamic Range of the audio codec used on board, as well as the Total Harmonic Distortion + Noise.

Rightmark: AA, Dynamic Range, 24-bit / 192 kHzRightmark: AA, THD+N, 24-bit / 192 kHz

Despite using a Creative audio codec on the motherboard, the final results are bottom of our small pile - dynamic range seems alright enough, but THD+N needs a rethink.

USB Backup

For this benchmark, we run CrystalDiskMark to determine the ideal sequential read and write speeds for the USB port using our 240 GB OCZ Vertex3 SSD with a SATA 6 Gbps to USB 3.0 converter.  Then we transfer a set size of files from the SSD to the USB drive using DiskBench, which monitors the time taken to transfer.  The files transferred are a 1.52 GB set of 2867 files across 320 folders – 95% of these files are small typical website files, and the rest (90% of the size) are the videos used in the WinRAR test.  In an update to pre-Z87 testing, we also run MaxCPU to load up one of the threads during the test which improves general performance up to 15% by causing all the internal pathways to run at full speed.

USB 2.0 Copy Times

USB 3.0 Copy Times

If anything our USB transfer speeds are pretty much in the gutter - USB 2.0 had issues in peak throughput, leading to the worst XFast timing we have seen, and basic USB 3.0 performance is likewise pretty poor.

DPC Latency

Deferred Procedure Call latency is a way in which Windows handles interrupt servicing.  In order to wait for a processor to acknowledge the request, the system will queue all interrupt requests by priority.  Critical interrupts will be handled as soon as possible, whereas lesser priority requests, such as audio, will be further down the line.  So if the audio device requires data, it will have to wait until the request is processed before the buffer is filled.  If the device drivers of higher priority components in a system are poorly implemented, this can cause delays in request scheduling and process time, resulting in an empty audio buffer – this leads to characteristic audible pauses, pops and clicks.  Having a bigger buffer and correctly implemented system drivers obviously helps in this regard.  The DPC latency checker measures how much time is processing DPCs from driver invocation – the lower the value will result in better audio transfer at smaller buffer sizes.  Results are measured in microseconds and taken as the peak latency while cycling through a series of short HD videos - under 500 microseconds usually gets the green light, but the lower the better.

DPC Latency Maximum

ASRock does really well in our DPC Latency test, being the best Z87 motherboard we have tested so far.  It magically comes under the 145-150 microsecond barrier we had been seeing up until this point.

ASRock M8: BIOS and Software ASRock M8: CPU and Gaming Benchmarks
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  • wperry - Thursday, January 2, 2014 - link

    With cases like this, where size is a major factor, I'd love to see it photographed with a commonplace item so that we have a better sense of scale. Even something as simple as a soda can would suffice.
  • IanCutress - Thursday, January 2, 2014 - link

    Here it is next to my Bitfenix Prodigy: https://twitter.com/IanCutress/status/397329549631...
  • Gigaplex - Friday, January 3, 2014 - link

    That comparison shot actually makes it look pretty big. I've got a Prodigy and it's not a small case. This M8 looks taller.
  • IanCutress - Friday, January 3, 2014 - link

    M8 is a few mm taller, and the bulk goes all the way up. The M8 is almost square, but again, half the width due to the PCIe riser. Compared to all my regular PC cases, the Prodigy is small and mobile - the M8 even more so, for something with a big GPU.
  • Johnmcl7 - Saturday, January 4, 2014 - link

    Agreed, I was disappointed not to see it beside the likes of an Xbox 360 and AW X51.
  • pierrot - Thursday, January 2, 2014 - link

    I like the riser card design for a flatter size but jeez its ugly
  • Xpl1c1t - Thursday, January 2, 2014 - link

    With the industry's clear trend towards mitx and potential future adoption of picoitx, it puzzles me why there aren't reference GPU cards with any sort of gaming potential that are built on the half-height PCI standard. Palit's GTS 450 and AMD's 7750 were release years apart and yet remain in the same performance category.
    Utilizing cards meant for full atx chassis and with lengths exceeding that of a mitx board effectively limits the capabilities of system builders to increase the performance/square-inch factor without resorting to expensive designs requiring special mounting and riser cards... (pointing finger at the recent Mac Pro design, while cool, is a brick in the face of the enthusiast system builder who cannot and will not have the ability to upgrade using market components).
    Now, if laptops can run a GTX 880M with sufficient power and cooling... that same chip should as sure as hell me able to be integrated onto a half height card without exceeding the width of a mitx board. Please, add a few more layers on the pcb to accomplish it, we'll still end up saving money via not needing to utilize these sorts of compromising cases.
  • DanNeely - Friday, January 3, 2014 - link

    Probably because sales for those two cards were too poor to justify creating newer cards on the same form factor.
  • bobbozzo - Thursday, January 2, 2014 - link

    Hi, what does the KNOB do?

    thanks!
  • IanCutress - Thursday, January 2, 2014 - link

    Top of page 2:

    The circular device in the centre is akin to the i-Drive button seen on certain BMW cars – this is the button to turn the PC on. It also shows the date and time, and when in the OS (with the appropriate drivers installed) can be used to adjust the OS volume, implement different power modes, or turn the machine off.

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