Installation 1151. Intel processor sockets. Installing the processor into the motherboard

The time has come for another new LGA1151 socket from Intel. It seems to be distinguished from its predecessor LGA1150 by one additional pad. We will, of course, remember the changed technical process of the Skylake architecture, support for DDR4 RAM, moving the built-in power converter back to the motherboard and upgrading the DMI bus to version 3.0.

But, despite these changes, without any larger-scale reforms, ordinary users will not cease to be haunted by the thought of a possible continuity of generations of motherboards. Of course, we won’t know all the pitfalls that Intel engineers had to face; perhaps changing the socket is quite justified, but still...

One of the features of the new platform can definitely be called the Intel Z170 chipset. It is worth noting here the support for the PCI Express 3.0 bus and the ability to support six SATA 3.0 ports and 10 USB 3.0 connectors. The most interesting fact is the presence of 20 unused PCI Express 3.0 lanes; their presence should allow manufacturers to “solder” the Z170 board with many third-party controllers. In this context, it will be interesting to see what approaches manufacturers will take to expand. A typical block diagram of the Intel Z170 Express is shown below.

Now I propose to study the design features of the ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming motherboard; it turned out to be the first Intel Z170 board in our test bench. The Z170 Pro Gaming comes in the usual packaging, with visuals that are all about World of Warships. On the front side there is also a clear name of the supplied model, and on the back there is a detailed description of the main characteristics and technologies used.

At first glance, the package looks quite ordinary. Here, as always, there was a place for the user manual, a disk with drivers, a set of SATA cables, a plug for the rear panel of the case and an SLI bridge. The already familiar set of markers for drives did not go unnoticed - this time they are more colorful and have small logos according to the type of connection.

The feature of the kit for this board, perhaps this item will also be applicable to other ASUS boards based on LGA1151, is the ASUS CPU Installation Tool kit. It is a small plastic guide that is designed to safely install the processor into the socket. Of course, many will say that this is a completely unnecessary attribute, but I found a couple of advantages in it, which are discussed below J. Oh yes, the ship on the box is not depicted specifically for sailors, it speaks of the possibility of obtaining a premium account for 15 days in game and a unique ship.

ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming belongs to the full ATX form factor, hence the corresponding dimensions of 305 × 244 millimeters. If we talk about the visual component, the PCB and almost all connectors on the board are made in strict black; of course, there are small design splashes of red in the area of ​​the radiators, and some connectors have a gray tint.

General arrangement of ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming elements, further details.

On the connector panel there was room for an extensive list of ports, it included: universal PS/2, one S/PDIF, one LAN, five mini-jack audio connectors. In the list of video outputs: one each of DVI-D, DisplayPort and HDMI, with the help of additional solutions D-Sub was also output. USB set, with your permission, I’ll list it:

• 4 x USB 3.0;
• 2 x USB 2.0;
• 1 x USB 3.1 (Type-C);
• 1 x USB 3.1 (Type-A).

To implement USB 3.1, an additional ASMedia ASM1142 controller is used. As one of the features, ASUS claims to implement protection against static electricity and voltage surges.

LGA1151 is a new look for the processor socket, which is designed for use with 6th generation Intel Core processors. Undoubtedly, Intel engineers have done work to optimize the location of the “legs” of the processor socket, but ordinary users will never be left wondering, maybe the old LGA1150 would have been suitable? Perhaps they will be right. In any case, we have a connector with one additional contact and modified keys for installing the processor. Visually, in terms of the structure of the clamping frame and dimensions, it is difficult to find differences.

To install RAM, four DIMM slots for the DDR 4 standard are soldered. As we have already said, the Intel Z170 system logic set also supports DDR3L memory. But personally, I’m not sure that famous manufacturers will use this approach in the mass market segment using this set of system logic. And the cost of such solutions will certainly be unreasonably high. The maximum amount of RAM available for installation has doubled compared to the Intel Z97 and is now 64 GB. The power supply system is single-phase, the locking keys are located only on one side.

In this section of the board, you can additionally note the presence of four LEDs that indicate the process of starting the system. According to ASUS terminology, this technology is called Q-LED. Their presence is, of course, pleasing, but as practice shows, a full-fledged POST indicator turns out to be more functional and visual.

ASUS Z170 PRO GAMING has six expansion slots. They are arranged in the following order:

• PCI Express 3.0 x1;
• PCI Express 3.0 x16 (x16 or x8);
• PCI Express 3.0 x1;
• PCI Express 3.0 x16 (x8);
• PCI Express 3.0 x1;
• PCI Express 3.0 x16 (x4).

The first two full-length PCI Express 3.0 x16 originate from the lines of the central processor and, when using tandems of Nvidia SLI and AMD CrossFireX video cards, divide 16 lines by gender.

All other connectors are implemented using the Intel Z170 system logic set. The layout of the ports is very successful; for example, even when using two video cards, the user still has access to a pair of PCI Express 3.0 x1 and one full-size PCI Express 3.0 x16 (x4).

ASUS, as always, used proven technologies as part of the sound path. Of course, there is a technology here with the implementation of a separate area of ​​​​the printed circuit board for the entire audio path. The component base includes ELNA capacitors from Nichicon and a 300-ohm amplifier TI R4580I. The manufacturer completed the final complex, called SupremeFX, with backlighting and a cover that screens the audio codec. But the codec itself is clearly familiar to us - it’s Realtek ALC1150.

The set of connectors for connecting storage devices looks rather unusual, the whole point is the appearance of SATA Express, which is not yet so familiar to the eye. Without its use, six standard SATA 6 Gb/s connectors are available to the user.

The expansion of M.2 also continues, there are some restrictions when using it; when SATA mode is enabled, the SATA_1 port will not be available, but if the PCI Express x4 bus is used, it will not affect other connectors.

The M.2 connector itself is now located in the corner area of ​​the board, and not between the expansion connectors. The manufacturer can position it in this area thanks to the “lifting” design above the area of ​​the board itself. I would like to separately praise ASUS for a small detail, namely the standard drive mounting bolt. It finally allows you to secure the drive; all the boards that I had in my hands before did not allow me to perform this operation (the bolt was short and did not secure the drive).

Three completely separate radiators are responsible for cooling the heating elements of the board. Two of them are used to cool batteries. The third is intended for a set of system logic. All radiators are quite simple: made of aluminum alloy and do not have heat pipes in their set.

Finally, thermal pads are used as a thermal interface for all elements. In the case of a system logic set, where they usually used a solid “thermo-cushion”, this is definitely more practical. Although for a user who does not plan to disassemble his board at all, any approach will be the same :).

The chipset of the Intel Z170 system logic is visually very difficult to distinguish from its predecessors.

I hope I didn’t forget to mention earlier that the voltage controller for Skylake processors has now been returned to the motherboard. I believe many manufacturers will emphasize this factor in more detail. Of course, ordinary users are unlikely to notice the differences, but enthusiasts should get a little freedom in terms of voltage control, plus when using motherboards with a “pumped up” element base, a certain margin of reliability appears. Speaking directly about the Z170 Pro Gaming, it uses a ten-phase system based on the ASP1400 controller. The element base uses NTMFS4C09N transistors and IR3598 drivers.

An important point is the location of the mounting holes for installing the cooling system. Fortunately, for LGA1151 and LGA1150 they are completely identical; there will be no problems with compatibility of cooling systems available on the market.

Now a couple of my words about the bundled ASUS CPU Installation Tool. Frankly, during the presentation of this line of motherboards, many listeners jokingly took its presence, I was also among them. But after installing the processor in the socket, I can say that the thing is not at all useless.

Firstly, the Skylake generation processors have a truly reduced substrate, as a result of which the processor appears less massive, and all the weight is concentrated in the heat distribution cover. Therefore, the extra part definitely does not interfere with installation - it is simply more convenient to hold in your hand.

But the most important advantage that I discovered is the protection of the socket space from possible thermal paste residues. Without an installed frame, a small layer can definitely get into the socket, and as we know, cleaning the legs from thermal paste is not the most pleasant task. But here again, for users aimed at one or two assemblies, this is not the most critical factor, but for my colleagues or enthusiasts it can definitely be significant.

Computer equipment and its components are constantly being improved, so at the beginning of the year it is appropriate to ask what is still relevant and what is losing its objective relevance and will leave the corresponding market segment in the near future. Let's look at motherboards with socket 1151 in this context.

Suitable boards for Intel LGA 1151 processors

For a long period of time, the developer of Intel processors could do whatever they wanted, because there was practically no competition as such in this segment. At least for the consumer sector, this trend is obvious.

Despite this, AMD successfully existed on the market, offering its APUs. However, its products had a rather narrow demand, despite the fact that they did not lose their own positions. At the same time, buyers looking for laptops or gaming computers chose Intel. After some time, AMD introduced a new product - Ryzen processors. According to analysts, this stage marked the beginning of active competition or even a “battle of processors” in the market. However, with the advent of a strong rival, Intel processors have by no means lost their popularity. The current generations of Kaby Lake and Skylake processors on socket 1151 are in great demand among buyers, so they cannot be called weak or outdated. If this information has convinced you of the relevance of such processors, we suggest you go to the site to select a motherboard with socket 1151. Perhaps this is the basic answer to the question of whether motherboards of this format will lose relevance this year.

What are the benefits of Kaby Lake and Skylake processors?

If we talk about the advantages of the mentioned processors, they are as follows:

• optimally suited for applications with one or two cores;
• provide higher frequencies and multi-threading, which allows them to function much more efficiently.

The popularity of certain motherboards directly depends on the relevance of certain processors on the market. And taking into account the fact that Kaby Lake and Skylake processors are in constant demand at the moment, motherboards with socket 1151 should also not lose their position in the coming 2018. The main thing is to choose the right product, taking into account the popularity and reliability of the manufacturer, technical characteristics and cost. Then your PC or laptop will enjoy trouble-free and efficient operation for a long time.

Central processing unit (CPU)

For the average user, the difference in performance and quality of work of similar models from Intel and AMD is usually invisible and lies more in the psychological perception of numbers. You can compare the performance of processors on our ratings pages (Composite processor test and Summary test of extreme processors). The type and frequency of the required RAM will depend, among other things, on what processor will be in your PC (we will talk about it in one of the next parts of our workshop).

If you need a top-end option for a powerful gaming system, then currently the Core i7-7700K (LGA 1151 socket, costs about 25,000 rubles) will provide maximum performance.

The best gaming processor from AMD today is the Ryzen 7 1800X (socket AM4, price about 28,000 rubles).

Intel Core i5-7500 (LGA 1151 socket, about 12,000 rubles) and Ryzen 5 1600X (AM4 socket, about 16,000 rubles) can be a good choice.

A socket is a socket used for installation into a motherboard. For example, the LGA 1151 socket means that the processor has 1151 working pins, and the chip itself does not have pins; they are located on the motherboard.

When choosing a processor of previous generations, it is worth remembering that the more cores it is equipped with, the more efficiently it performs calculations. For example, models from Intel, starting from the fifth generation, have eight cores. AMD today uses eight cores in its processors for home PCs, and a platform with 16 cores is already offered for enthusiasts. If possible, you should choose models with the largest cache. CPUs are supplied in two versions: OEM - without a radiator and cooler, BOX - with a proprietary radiator and cooler. Considering the price and variety of cooling systems on the market, it is better to choose the OEM option and then customize the cooling yourself. System board

The system board is the link that connects the entire system into a single organism. Speed, stability, interaction, and the ability to install new equipment depend on the joint venture.

The choice of system (motherboard) depends on the processor manufacturer (Intel or AMD) and its socket. To install additional cards, you may need PCI and PCI-E slots, and the more of them, the better. The number of USB, FireWire and other ports should be in excess.

Boards with multiple PCI-E slots for video cards support NVIDIA SLI, or AMD CrossFireX technology, which allows you to install and combine multiple GPUs. Important: when installing the motherboard into the case, you should handle it carefully, without bending it and, if possible, without touching the contacts. In addition, the MP with RAM modules and a processor already installed on it is mounted in the case after installing the power supply and case fans. After this, control and notification cables coming from the case are connected to it (Power and Reset buttons, LED indicators, speaker).

CHIP option:

MSI B350 PC MATE motherboard

A motherboard that allows you to smoothly transition to new technologies without using the most expensive components. This board supports newfangled trends and in the future will not become a bottleneck in the PC being assembled or upgraded.

There is a set of video outputs, which, together with some processors, allows you not to buy a video card. In the future, this model will make it possible to overclock an aging system or easily replace an old CPU with a newer one.

Average price: 6000 rub.

AMD Ryzen 5 1600 OEM processor Not the most powerful representative of the new line of CPUs from AMD, but for the next couple of years its power will be enough for any game, and even more so for all office needs. Later, if necessary, it can be replaced with a more advanced model or tried to be “overclocked”. But it is worth considering that this processor does not have a video core.

Average price: about 15,000 rubles.

Remember in one of the articles we talked about? In the mentioned article, we gave recommendations on choosing a processor, but many beginners, after purchasing a processor, will face the problem of installing and reinstalling it. So that this does not become a problem for you, we would like to talk about this process in our article.

The essence of installing a processor

It is important to note that the radiator and cooler perform the cooling function. Since the processor heats up very much during its operation, it needs cooling so that it simply does not burn out. The metal radiator is pressed tightly against the processor, due to which the processor transfers part of its heat to the radiator, which in turn is cooled by the cooler. There should be a layer of thermal paste between the processor and the heatsink, which will create a high-quality connection and good heat transfer between these two parts. Now we will tell you about all this in more detail.

How to install a processor

In order to install the processor, you need to lift up the metal lever of the processor lock in the motherboard. On motherboards for Intel processors, you will also need to pry off the metal processor cover to gain access to the socket. A plug may be installed in place of the processor or on the lid, which will need to be removed. Motherboards for AMD processors are somewhat simpler in this regard, since to access the socket you only need to lift the locking lever. After the socket on the motherboard is ready for installing the processor, we take the processor itself out of the box and continue the installation.

New AMD processors come with thermal paste, so you won't need to apply it. At the same time, do not grasp its upper (flat) part, so as not to erase this thermal paste. You also won't need thermal paste for Intel processors, since it is also already applied, but only to the front of the heatsink.

Look at the location of the processor legs and the grooves that are found among them in order to determine which side to install the processor. You can determine the correct position of the processor by looking at the triangle in the corner; it should be in the same part as the triangle on the motherboard. Intel processors have special grooves in the form of a semicircle, thanks to which you can also determine its correct placement.

When you have determined which side to insert the processor into, lower it into the socket, and the processor legs should fall into the holes themselves, without using the slightest effort.

When the processor is inserted into the socket, check that it fits correctly into it, and then lower the locking lever downwards, sliding it into the grooves (for AMD processors). Then carefully grasp the processor and gently pull it towards you to check whether it is securely fastened. For Intel processors, you will need to lower the metal cover before lowering the release lever.

The native cooling system from Intel has 4 legs, for which there are 4 holes in the motherboard. As a rule, the processor cooling system is installed in such a way that the power cord reaches the connection connector and does not hang down.

Attach the cooler with radiator to the motherboard so that the mounting legs coincide with the holes for them. We press on the leg from above - and it is fixed in the hole, then repeat this procedure with the opposite fixed leg, and then fix the remaining 2 legs. After this, press again on each of the legs to check the reliability of the fixation. Now, holding the motherboard with your hands, pull on the cooler to check if it is firmly secured.

As for mounting the radiator and cooling cooler for an AMD processor, it has a slightly different installation procedure. In the center of the cooling radiator there is a metal strip, which has a hole at the bottom and a latch with a handle at the top. Thus, carefully place the cooling radiator with cooler on the processor so that the radiator mounting handle is on top, after which place the lower part of the bar into the mounting grooves shown in the picture. Then we insert the upper part of the bar into the groove and turn the latch to the left to secure the cooling system.

How to change the processor

In order to remove the cooling system from an Intel processor, you need to turn the latches on the legs counterclockwise and lift them up. In some cases, in order to remove the cooling system, it is necessary to remove the motherboard from the system unit in order to unfasten the leg clamps from its rear wall. In order to remove the AMD processor cooling system, you need to turn the latch in the opposite direction and remove the upper part of the fixing bar, and then the lower one.

When the fasteners are removed, and before removing the cooling system, move it from side to side, as the thermal paste can adhere the processor to the cooling radiator quite firmly. This must be done carefully with minimal effort. When the cooling system is moving, remove it. How to remove the processor - read above. When the processor is removed, be very careful not to accidentally bend the processor legs.

If you need to replace the processor, make sure that its socket matches the motherboard socket, and then insert the new processor into the socket. How to do this - read above. If you want to change the thermal paste on the processor, then below we will tell you how to do this.