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ASUS Prime Z690-A Intel Z690 LGA 1700 ATX Motherboard PCIe 5.0, Four M.2 Slots, 16+1 DrMOS, DDR5, Intel 2.5 Gb LAN, HDMI, DP, USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 Type-C, Front USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C, Thunderbolt 4

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Before we get to the graphs, let's talk about the testing conditions and methodology. For this article and for any future LGA 1700 VRM thermal testing we've built a dedicated system inside the Corsair iCUE 7000X case. Powering it we have the HX1000 PSU and iCUE H170i Elite Capellix for cooling. Credit is provided by Novuna Personal Finance, a trading style of Mitsubishi HC Capital (UK) PLC, authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Financial Services Register no. 704348. The register can be accessed through http://www.fca.org.uk Although Asus refused to send out the Prime Z690-P D4, it's actually a decent budget Z690 motherboard. The MSI Z690-A Pro WiFi and Gigabyte Z690 UD AX DDR4 are arguably better, but there's certainly nothing wrong with the Prime Z690-P, assuming pricing is competitive in your region.

The Intel Z690 Motherboard Overview (DDR5): Over 50+ New Models The Intel Z690 Motherboard Overview (DDR5): Over 50+ New Models

Extreme Power Design: Premium digital PWM, direct 19+2 phases with 105A Smart Power Stage, Titanium Choke III and dual CPU power connectors to unleash the true power of your processors.For recording temperatures we're using a digital thermometer with K-Type thermocouples. This allows us to report peak rear PCB temperature. but we're not recording Delta T over Ambient, instead we maintain a room temperature of 21 degrees and ensure a consistent ambient temperature with a thermocouple positioned next to the test system. CPU : Intel LGA 1700 i9-12900K, i7-12700K, i5-12600K | Motherboard : ROG Maximus Z690 Hero |VGA: NVIDIA GeForce GTX-1070 | DRAM : Micron DDR5-4800 16GB*2 | Power : G.SKILL PS850G 850W 80 PLUS GOLD | CPU Cooler : Corsair H115i | OS: Windows 11 Each header can be set to monitor and react to three user-configurable thermal sensors for workload-based cooling, and all settings can be easily managed by Fan Xpert 4 or via the UEFI.

BEST Z690 Motherboards In 2023 - Tech4Gamers BEST Z690 Motherboards In 2023 - Tech4Gamers

Integrated Intel® Wi-Fi 6E AX211(Gig+) CNVi solution or Intel® Wi-Fi 6E AX210(Gig+) solution allowing you to connect up to Gigabit Wi-Fi speeds.Everything about the Maximus Z690 Hero is up to mark, and that’s why we are recommending it as the runner-up for the best overall Z690 motherboard. What We Disliked Focusing on networking, Intel has upgraded to an integratedWi-Fi 6E MAC over Wi-Fi 6 in the last two previous generations. While Intel states that it includes an integrated 2.5 GbE MAC/PHY, this is a little nonsensical, as wired ethernet still requires a MAC/PHY as an attached PCIe controller. This means regardless of whether a vendor is using a Gigabit, 2.5 GbE, or even 10 GbE, it connects the exact same way to the PCIe interface. Latest DDR5 Memory: A huge step of DDR performance enhancement with the latest DDR5 memory. Combines with dedicated SMT welding process and MSI Memory Boost technology, it is ready to deliver the world class memory performance. It can be said that the ASUS ROG Strix Z690-I is the absolute best mini-ITX Z690 motherboard on the market right now. Its great power delivery system and a robust feature set make it an excellent choice for enthusiasts building a compact gaming PC on the Raptor or Alder Lake platform. It does not come cheap, but it seems to be worth it for the specific use cases that it’s designed for. Competition Voltage Regulatory Modules (VRMs) are one of the most essential parts of a motherboard. The main difference between chipsets is usually the difference of VRMs. Better VRMs can transmit and handle more voltage, resulting in fewer chances of voltage-related damage to any PC parts. All the Z690 motherboards I chose have the best VRMs. So, you don’t have to worry about electrical faults damaging your computer hardware. Expansion Slots/Connectivity Connectivity on a Typical Z690 Motherboard – Image:Tech4Gamers

Z690 AORUS XTREME (rev. 1.0) - GIGABYTE Z690 AORUS XTREME (rev. 1.0) - GIGABYTE

The feature-set of the MSI Pro Z690-A is nothing to scoff at. It is not as feature-rich as some of the other boards on this list, understandably, but it has everything a regular gamer might want from a Z690 motherboard. The support for DDR5 and PCIe Gen 5 comes standard with the Z690 chipset, and the Pro Z690-A also has 4 M.2 slots with PCIe Gen 4 capability. There is no built-in I/O shield, but the rear I/O itself is decent with a nice selection of USB ports and a 2.5 GbE LAN port along with WiFi capability if you choose that particular motherboard variant. Again, the Asus Prime Z690-A and TUF Gaming Z690-Plus WiFi D4 delivered the best results. Then we have the MSI Z690 Tomahawk and Torpedo followed by the MSI Z690-A Pro. Oddly at the bottom of the graph are three Gigabyte boards, all of which peaked at 60C. Robust Power Solution: 20+1 teamed power stages rated for 90 A, ProCool II power connectors, MicroFine alloy chokes and premium metallic capacitors Take the Prime Z690-A, for example. In many ways, this motherboard looks an awful lot like the higher-end options in our Z690 lineup: PCIe 5.0 connectivity, support for DDR5 RAM, ample M.2 slots, and a rich set of connectivity options including a Thunderbolt 4 header.

Experience a New Approach to Performance-Overclocking and Throughput

A dedicated circuit on the motherboard safely circumvents DDR5 memory PMIC restrictions, allowing you to step past the default 1.1-volt limit and push frequency and timings to the max. Enables individual USB ports to be enabled or disabled as needed. This feature helps provide added protection of data by preventing malicious removal or insertion of data through USB ports. For use only by product developers, software developers, and system integrators. For evaluation only; not FCC approved for resale. Three dedicated heatsinks keep up to three M.2 drives in the optimum operating temperature range for consistent performance and reliability.

Intel Z690 Chipset Product Specifications

Moving on, the MSI Pro Z690-A WiFi features 4x M.2 SSD slots, which is on par, if not outright surprising, for a motherboard so competitively priced. MSI steps it up with another 6x SATA III ports supporting speeds at 6 Gb/s, which we’ve seen before. Nevertheless, it’s nice to have such flexibility, and it adds to the MSI Pro Z690-A WiFi’s value proposition. As you can see we're looking at no more than a 0.3% score variation between the various boards, so performance was identical. Robust Power Solution: 20+1 teamed power stages rated for 105 A, ProCool II power connectors, MicroFine alloy chokes and premium metallic capacitorsEnablesIntel® Rapid Storage Technology features such asRAID 0, 1, 5, and 10 with PCI Express-based NVMe SSDs connected via 12 thGen Intel® Core™ desktop processors and theIntel® Z690 chipset. Then we have the slightly more expensive Prime Z690-A which is a DDR5 only model and it uses Vishay's slightly weaker SiC643 60A powerstages, but there's sixteen in total. So the more expensive Asus models look good and the entry-level model should be decent.

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