The Intel Z690 Motherboard Overview (DDR5): Over 50+ New Models
by Gavin Bonshor on November 9, 2021 9:00 AM ESTASUS ROG Strix Z690-I Gaming WIFI (DDR5)
For Intel's 12th generation of Alder Lake desktop processors, ASUS has only made one mini-ITX board available for the launch of its LGA1700 offerings, the ASUS ROG Strix Z690-I Gaming WIFI. Designed for users looking to harness the big P and little E cores on Alder Lake, but in a small package, the Z690-I Gaming WIFI offers a solid feature set in a small form factor-friendly package. Being as small as it is, it still packs a punch in the design stakes, with a primarily black design, with contrasting elements including a tight mesh effect rear panel cover, glossy and matte black heatsinks, and an all-black PCB. In the bottom left-hand corner bridging the rear panel cover and M.2 heatsink is a ROG Strix branded cornerpiece.
Size playing an important role in PCIe support, the ASUS ROG Strix Z690-I Gaming WIFI has just one, a full-length PCIe 5.0 x16 slot. For storage is a pair of PCIe 4.0 x4 M.2 slots, with four SATA ports capable of supporting RAID 0, 1, 5, and 10 arrays. As space is restricted, ASUS includes two memory slots that are located on the right-hand side of the LGA1700 socket, with support for 64 GB, but we don't currently have what speed this model will support at this time.
Much like ASRock has done with its premium ITX models over the years, ASUS has adopted a similar style by including dual Thunderbolt 4 Type-C ports. Other USB options include two USB 3.2 G2 Type-A, three USB 3.2 G1 Type-A, and two USB 2.0 ports. There is a single HDMI video output, with three 3.5 mm audio jacks and S/PDIF optical output powered by a SupremeFX ALC4080 HD audio codec and Savitech SV3H712 amplifier pairing. Finishing off the rear panel is a solid networking array including one Intel I225-V 2.5 GbE port, as well as an Intel Wi-Fi 6E CNVi, and the panel also includes a BIOS Flashback button.
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Duwelon - Tuesday, November 9, 2021 - link
Asus' prices are completely bananas. If I build a new rig with Z690 it'll probably be my first non-Asus build in a very long time.Sivar - Tuesday, November 9, 2021 - link
That caught my eye, too. I bought an Asus Hero-branded board for my current system last year at approximately $200 USD.I suspect Asus is shifting their marketspeak because the word "Maximus" (used for the z690 board but not mine) usually applies to their most expensive boards.
blppt - Tuesday, November 9, 2021 - link
This. $2000 for a consumer grade motherboard? WTF are they smoking?Also, I'm pretty sure ASUS will be releasing some TUF Z690s at some point, probably at a lower price point than the primes. My experience with the TUF series has been very positive for the price.
DigitalFreak - Tuesday, November 9, 2021 - link
They know they're not going to sell many of those. Those boards are either for LN2 e-peen competitions or people with more money than sense.Wrs - Wednesday, November 10, 2021 - link
TUF is historically just a bit more expensive than Prime. They already have a TUF DDR4 version - ordered the Wifi one for $290 the other day. If worried about price DDR5 is the first mistake.blppt - Wednesday, November 10, 2021 - link
The X570 TUF was cheaper than the X570 Prime when I went shopping for an AMD board.COtech - Tuesday, November 9, 2021 - link
Subtitle - "Intel Z690 Chipset: Like Z590, But Now With Native PCIe 4.0"I think "But Now With Native PCIe 5.0" is intended.
gavbon - Thursday, November 18, 2021 - link
The Z690 chipset doesn't have PCIe 5.0, this comes from the CPU. The Z690 chipset does, however, now include PCIe 4.0 lanes, whereas Z590 did not.Someguyperson - Tuesday, November 9, 2021 - link
I don't get the "DP IN" ports on the ASUS ProArt Z690 Creator WIFI. I see the author just wrote what was on the ASUS website, but that doesn't really explain anything. Are they passthrough to the Thunderbolt out ports? Is there a capture card built into this motherboard? I'm very confused by the labeling here.uwsalt - Tuesday, November 9, 2021 - link
Those are passthrough to the Thunderbolt port. Add-in Thunderbolt cards work the same way. You slot in your discrete GPU, send the output from both DP ports to the Thunderbolt controller, and then use Thunderbolt to output to a Thunderbolt monitor or hub.