Intel Z390 Motherboard Overview: 50+ Motherboards Analyzed
by Ian Cutress & Gavin Bonshor on October 8, 2018 10:53 AM EST- Posted in
- Motherboards
- Intel
- MSI
- Gigabyte
- ASRock
- EVGA
- Asus
- NZXT
- Supermicro
- Z390
ASUS ROG Strix Z390-F Gaming
The ASUS ROG Strix Z390-F Gaming has a very similar feature set to the Strix Z390-E gaming with the main differences coming in integrated networking capabilities and in that the Strix Z390-F Gaming only has a single M.2 heatsink included. Visually it’s expected the Strix Z390-F as similar visuals to the Z390-E Gaming model, with only minor visual adjustments between the two gaming-focused models with a single M.2 heatsink (as opposed to two) and the lack of an integrated Wi-Fi adapter.
Specifications wise the ROG based Z390-F Gaming model has support for two-way SLI and three-way CrossFire multi-graphics card support thanks to three-full length PCIe 3.0 slots which operate at x16, x8 and x4; accompanying these are three further PCIe 3.0 x1 slots. The storage capabilities are identical to the Z390-E Gaming with two PCIe 3.0 x4 capable M.2 slots, with only one offering SATA support; the main difference is the Strix Z390-F Gaming has a single M.2 heatsink. The Strix Z390-F Gaming has six SATA ports in total which support RAID 0, 1, 5 and 10 arrays. There are four available RAM slots which support DDR4-4266 and with up to a maximum of 64 GB in total.
What we do know about the rear panel is that it has a single LAN port powered by an Intel I219V Gigabit controller and five 3.5 mm jacks, with a single S/PDIF optical output which takes direction from a SupremeFX S1220A HD audio codec. Also included are three USB 3.1 Gen2 Type-A ports, one USB 3.1 Gen2 Type-C port, a DisplayPort and HDMI video output too.
The current availability and pricing of the ASUS ROG Strix Z390-F are currently unknown, but as more details and information becomes available, we will ensure to keep this section updated.
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pawinda8 - Monday, October 15, 2018 - link
Still no mention of any Z390 boards with native Thunderbolt 3 (not AIC)! Has Intel given up on Thunderbolt for the PC world?gavbon - Monday, October 15, 2018 - link
If it's not integrated into the chipset, it's not really native as such. The ASRock Z390 Phantom Gaming-ITX/ac has a Thunderbolt 3 port on the rear panel, but that's the only one I'm afraidHikariWS - Monday, October 15, 2018 - link
Oculus Rift requires 3 USB3 ports and doesn't accept any of them being connected to a hub, they all need to be connected directly into a raw port. I had to buy a dedicated 3GIO USB 3 board that added 6 useful extra ports. In my (yes, old) Gigabyte z87 mobo I also had issues using keyboard and mouse on USB 3 ports inside UEFI and some recovery softwares, so I had to buy a USB 2 mirror to connect them.Because of that, having USB 2 ports on front panel and nice quantity of USB 3 is what most differs mobos for me, given that all other features are nearly the same.
ASUS Z390-A seems to be the best option. It has the important double USB2 ports, 5 USB3 ports and still has HDMI and DP for emergencies.
just4U - Monday, October 15, 2018 - link
I wish MSI had released a "godlike" board for the Ryzen series.ThugEsquire - Tuesday, October 16, 2018 - link
You list the ASRock Z390 Phantom Gaming-ITX/ac above as an ATX board, but it's actually mITX. FYIgavbon - Friday, October 19, 2018 - link
I have gone through every page where the Phantom Gaming-ITX/ac is listed, but I can't see where it says it's an ATX board? Could you please be more specific? Are you viewing on mobile or desktop?Galcobar - Tuesday, October 16, 2018 - link
It would be really helpful to break out one more criteria into a table: Type-C header for case-front ports.Helping a friend put together an i5 system and, knowing he'll keep it for a long time, am trying to get even with peripheral connectors (already has a monitor, so no using that as a hub). It's relatively easy to identify cases with a Type-C port, but that's pointless without a motherboard header. Having to go into each board's page to check is time-consuming.
jjnam - Thursday, April 18, 2019 - link
6 months later and I'm here for EXACTLY this reason. I've gone through probably 50 manuals over the past few days squinting to find this information. What a pain.Synomenon - Thursday, October 18, 2018 - link
So on the ASRock Z390 Phantom Gaming-ITX/ac, is the TB3 port on the rear using up lanes from CPU (making the only 16x slot, 8x only)?If it's not using lanes from the CPU, how will using that TB3 port (say with a USB3.1 Gen2 hub OR TB3 hub) affect all the other ports / IO on the board?
repoman27 - Thursday, October 18, 2018 - link
Going off of what TweakTown published, it's a single-port Intel JHL6240 "Alpine Ridge" controller with a PCI 3.0 x2 connection to the PCH. So it won't affect the PEG lanes from the CPU. I'm amazed it's not Titan Ridge at this point though.