ASRock’s Z690 Excessive WiFi 6E would possibly indicate it’s a high-end motherboard, the worth (at present $196.99) is something however. A step above the PG Velocita and beneath the premium Taichi, the Excessive comes with virtually all of the bells and whistles most customers will need. This contains three M.2 sockets, eight SATA ports, twin 2.5 GbE ports and built-in Wi-Fi 6E, succesful energy supply, and an all-black look with vivid RGBs you’ll be proud to indicate off inside your chassis.
The Z690 Excessive’s efficiency throughout our testing trusted the benchmark. Normally, single or evenly threaded benchmarks ran properly, however closely muilti-threaded outcomes tended to be beneath common. For instance, it excelled in Procyon Workplace however was slower in 7Zip, Handbrake and Cinebench. Exterior of that, the outcomes have been common in different exams, together with gaming and energy consumption. If you wish to get essentially the most out of this board for multi-threaded exams, you’ll have to make some straightforward tweaks within the BIOS. In any other case,this can be a performant board. With solely 5 type-A ports on the rear IO (with a number of headers for entrance panel ports), you’ll want to make sure that’s sufficient in your wants.
Under, we’ll take an in depth look into the options and specs to higher perceive how this funds Z690 motherboard stacks up in opposition to the competitors and see if the Excessive earns a house on our greatest motherboards record. However earlier than we get into all the small print, here’s a full record of specs from ASRock’s web site.
Specs: ASRock Z690 Excessive WiFi 6E
Socket | LGA1700 |
Chipset | Z690 |
Type Issue | ATX |
Voltage Regulator | 15 Part (13 60A DrMOS MOSFETs for Vcore) |
Video Ports | HDMI (v2.1) |
DisplayPort (v1.4 – [email protected]) | |
USB Ports | (1) USB 3.2 Gen 2, Sort-C (10 Gbps) |
(1) USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10 Gbps) | |
(4) USB 3.2 Gen 1 (5 Gbps) | |
Community Jacks | (1) 2.5 GbE |
(1) GbE | |
Audio Jacks | (5) Analog + SPDIF |
Legacy Ports/Jacks | PS/2 |
Different Ports/Jack | ✗ |
PCIe x16 | (1) v5.0 (x16) |
(1) v4.0 (x4) | |
(1) v3.0 (x4) | |
PCIe x8 | ✗ |
PCIe x4 | ✗ |
PCIe x1 | (1) v.3.0 (x1) |
CrossFire/SLI | AMD CrossFire |
DIMM Slots | (4) DDR4 5333+(OC), 128GB Capability |
M.2 Sockets | (1) PCIe 4.0 x4 (64 Gbps) / PCIe (as much as 80mm) |
(1) PCIe 3.0 x4 (32 Gbps) / PCIe + SATA (as much as 80mm) | |
(1) PCIe 4.0 x4 (64 Gbps) / PCIe (as much as 110mm) | |
Helps RAID 0/1/5 | |
U.2 Ports | ✗ |
SATA Ports | (8) SATA3 6 Gbps (Helps RAID 0/1/5/10) |
USB Headers | (1) USB v3.2 Gen 2×2, Sort-C (20 Gbps) |
(2) USB v3.2 Gen 1 (5 Gbps) | |
(2) USB v2.0 (480 Mbps) | |
Fan/Pump Headers | (7) 4-Pin (CPU, CPU/Water pump, Chassis/Water pump |
RGB Headers | (3) aRGB (3-pin) |
(1) RGB (4-pin) | |
Diagnostics Panel | (4) POST LEDs |
Inner Button/Change | ✗ |
SATA Controllers | ✗ |
Ethernet Controller(s) | (1) Intel I219-V (GbE) |
(1) Realtek Dragon RTL8125BG (2.5 GbE) | |
Wi-Fi / Bluetooth | Intel AX210 Wi-Fi 6E (2×2 ax, MU-MIMO, 2.4/5/6 GHz, 160 MHz, BT 5.2) |
USB Controllers | ASMedia ASM1074 |
HD Audio Codec | Realtek ALC1220 |
DDL/DTS | ✗ / ✗ |
✗ / ✗ | 3 Years |
Contained in the Field of the ASRock Z690 Excessive WiFi 6E
Contained in the field together with the motherboard, ASRock throws in a couple of equipment designed to get your system up and operating with out a further journey to the shop. There’s additionally a graphics card holder (which mounts to the board) to assist assist heavy video playing cards and forestall sagging. Under is an entire record of the included equipment.
- (4) SATA cables
- Wi-Fi antenna
- (3) M.2 screws
- (2) M.2 standoffs
- Velcro straps
- Excessive keycap
- Help DVD
- Consumer Information
Design of the ASRock Z690 Excessive WiFi 6E
ASRock’s Z690 Excessive WiFi 6E is a handsome board for the worth. The black, 6-layer PCB with 2 ounces of copper traces has a big notch reduce out of the PCB by the SATA ports, together with flat corners on the sides that units it other than its opponents. All heatsinks and shrouds are black, with a brushed aluminum end. The chipset heatsink and rear IO shroud have blue accent items to interrupt up the monotony of black. All slots (save for the first PCIe slot) and sockets are black as properly.
In the event you’re into RGB lighting, the Excessive has you coated, after which some. The chipset heatsink and rear IO cowl have a number of RGBs beneath, illuminating these areas. Alongside the suitable edge on the again facet of the board is a further RGB strip that shines by means of the translucent “Excessive” branding alongside that very same edge. The built-in RGBs are vivid and the colours are saturated. If RGBs are your factor and also you’re on a funds, the Excessive provides one of many extra spectacular gentle exhibits out of the field.
Beginning with the highest half of the board, we get a greater have a look at the rear IO shroud and heatsink beneath. The shroud’s RGBs shine by means of ASRoc’sk branding, in addition to reflecting off the highest of the left VRM heatsink. Sporting a brushed aluminum end, the VRM heatsinks have sufficient mass and floor space to maintain the ability bits beneath operating inside spec. Simply above the VRM heatsinks are two 8-pin EPS connectors tol energy the CPU (one required).
Wanting proper, simply previous the socket and earlier than the DRAM slots, is the primary 4-pin fan header (CPU_FAN1). In complete, there are six 4-pin headers scattered across the board, which all assist 4-pin PWM and 3-pin DC followers with energy output various from 1A/12W (CPU header) to 2A/24W headers (CPU/Water Pump and Chassis/Water Pump headers). CPU_FAN2/WP and CHA_FAN1-5/WP auto-detect the kind of fan in use. Fan management is dealt with by means of the BIOS or the A-Tune utility.
Persevering with proper, we run into 4 unreinforced DRAM slots with a single-sided locking mechanism. ASRock says the Excessive helps as much as 128GB of DDR4 5333+(OC), however your mileage might differ as reaching these speeds is determined by particular person {hardware}. We didn’t have any points operating our efficiency DDR4 4000 equipment and count on there may be loads of headroom left, particularly when utilizing two sticks.
We move by two extra fan headers alongside the suitable edge and run into the primary (of 4) RGB headers. On this location, there are two 3-pin ARGB headers, whereas alongside the underside fringe of the board is a 4-pin RGB header and the third 3-pin ARGB header.
The proper edge sports activities a novel design component with the phrase “Excessive” written out in translucent PCB layer, with the brilliant RGBs that line the whole proper fringe of the board lighting up the “Excessive” branding. After all, should you’re not a fan or simply wish to flip it down or off, that’s straightforward too by means of the ASRock Polychrome software program.
Offset round a half-inch from the sting, we run into the 24-pin ATX connector that powers the board, a entrance panel USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 (20 Gbps) Sort-C header and a 19-pin entrance panel USB 3.2 Gen 1 (5 Gbps) header. Two extra USB 2.0 headers are discovered alongside the underside edge.
Energy supply on the Z690 Excessive consists of 13 phases for Vcore. Energy comes from the EPS connector(s) and onto a Renesas RAA229131 20-phase controller, the place it’s delivered to the 13 60A Intersil ISL99360 SPS MOSFETs. The 780A for Vcore isn’t quite a bit in comparison with many Z690 boards, however the Excessive dealt with our Intel Core i9-12900K overclock with minimal fuss. We would have liked a bit extra voltage at that very same clock pace than most motherboards (particulars within the Overclocking part), however that didn’t maintain us again for our overclocked settings.
Now on the underside half of the board, the left facet sports activities a completely uncovered audio part centered round a Realtek ALC1220 chip/codec. You’ll additionally discover 5 devoted audio caps right here. Whereas that is final yr’s flagship-class codec, most customers will discover this answer completely acceptable, particularly for a sub-$200 board.
In the course of the Excessive are three M.2 sockets (4 should you depend the Key-E Wi-Fi adapter), two of which have heatsinks. The highest socket, M2_1, connects by means of the CPU, providing 64 Gbps of bandwidth by means of a PCIe 4.0 x4 interface. M2_2 connects by means of the chipset, supporting 80mm SATA and PCIe 3.0 x4 (32 Gbps) modules. The underside socket helps as much as 110mm PCIe 4.0 x4 units and connects by means of the chipset. Word that there’s some minimal lane sharing right here: If a SATA-based storage system occupies M2_2, SATA port 7 is disabled. Moreover, the Z690 Excessive helps RAID0/1/5 on the M.2 sockets.
In the course of the board are three full-length PCIe slots and one open-ended x1 slot for graphics and different PCIe-based units. The highest socket (PCIE1) connects by means of the CPU and provides the one PCIe 5.0 connectivity on the board at PCIe 5.0 x16. The opposite full-length slots join by means of the chipset. The center slot (PCIE2) runs PCIe 4.0 x4 and the underside slot (PCIE4) runs at 3.0 x4 speeds. Lastly, the x1 measurement slot additionally sources its bandwidth by means of the chipset and runs at PCIe 3.0 x1. In the event you’re nonetheless into multi-GPU expertise, the Z690 Excessive helps AMD Crossfire.
Shifting previous the chipset heatsink and onto the suitable edge, we run into six of the eight SATA ports. These run from the chipset, whereas SATA7/8 makes use of an ASMedia chip to borrow bandwidth. I just like the notch that was reduce out from the motherboard right here, as not solely does it give it a uncommon design component, but it surely additionally helps with cable administration. These SATA ports assist RAID0/1/5/10 modes. The opposite two SATA ports stick up from the underside fringe of the board and should not included within the RAID configuration.
The opposite function price mentioning on this space is the 4-LED POST standing checker. Every LED represents a operate throughout POST. In case your system hangs throughout POST, the LED equivalent to the error (both Boot, VGA, DRAM or CPU) stays lit. For boards that don’t have the extra detailed 2-character show, this can be a good option to see the place the issue is.
Throughout the underside of the board are a number of uncovered headers. You’ll discover the same old, together with extra USB ports and RGB headers and extra. Under is an entire record from left to proper.
- Entrance panel audio
- 3-pin ARGB header
- 4-pin RGB header
- 4-pin chassis fan header
- 5-pin Thunderbolt AIC header
- (2) USB 2.0 headers
- Energy/LED speaker headers
- (2) SATA ports
- SPI TPM header
- USB 3.2 Gen 1 header
- System panel header
The rear IO space comes with a pre-installed IO plate. It sports activities a black-and-gray background, with easy-to-read grey port labels paying homage to their PG Velocita line. There are solely six USB ports on the rear IO which, for some customers (me!), gained’t be sufficient. There’s a USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10 Gbps) Sort-C port, one USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10 Gbps) port and 4 Gen 1 (5 Gbps) ports (the inexperienced port is used for BIOS Flashback performance). Extra ports can be found by means of headers.
Video output consists of Displayport and HDMI ports. The Z690 Excessive provides twin Ethernet ports, one GbE and the opposite 2.5 GbE. Extra ports embody the Wi-Fi 6E antenna connectors, 5-plug analog plus SPDIF audio stack, a legacy PS/2 port, and the BIOS Flashback button.
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