The Intel Z690 Motherboard Overview (DDR5): Over 50+ New Models
by Gavin Bonshor on November 9, 2021 9:00 AM ESTBiostar Z690 Valkyrie (DDR5)
Despite not having a large stack at the moment, Biostar has launched three Z690 models for Intel's Alder Lake desktop platform. The most premium of these and subsequently the only one of the three that has support for DDR5 memory is the Z690 Valkyrie. The Biostar Z690 Valkyrie has a sort of 'anime' look to it, with a primarily black theme and colorful elements with RGB enabled backlighting in the rear panel cover and chipset heatsink. The Z690 Valkyrie combines a decent controller set, along with all the typical Z690 and 12th gen features such as PCIe 5.0, and of course support for the latest DDR5 memory.
The Biostar Z690 Valkyrie has plenty of PCIe slot expansion slot real estate, including two full-length PCIe 5.0 slots that can operate at x16 and x8/x8, with a third full-length PCIe 4.0 x4 slot. Storage options include a total of four PCIe M.2 slots, including three PCIe 4.0 x4 M.2 slots, one PCIe 3.0 x4 M.2 slot, and eight SATA ports. Biostar also includes four memory slots which can be found in the top right-hand corner, with support for DDR5-6000 and a maximum capacity of up to 128 GB.
On the rear panel is a high-speed USB 3.2 G2x2 Type-C port and a total of seven USB 3.2 G2 Type-A, with plenty of options for integrated graphics. For those users, Biostar includes two DisplayPort 1.4 and two HDMI 2.0 video outputs which shows lots of potential integrated GPU support. On the networking front, there's one Realtek RTL8125B 2.5 GbE port, and although it has the connectors for a Wi-Fi 6E CNVi, Biostar isn't clear on whether the Z690 Valkyrie actually includes the CNVi; the rear panel says yes, but the specifications say no Wi-Fi 6E card is included. Finishing off the rear panel are five 3.5 mm audio jacks and S/PDIF optical output powered by a Realtek ALC1220 HD audio codec, as well as a PS/2 combo port.
Facebook
Twitter
RSS
126 Comments
View All Comments
Oxford Guy - Wednesday, November 10, 2021 - link
Creating more fiat bills has consequences. Congress literally printed money to give to lobbyists as part of ‘Covid relief’.fcth - Wednesday, November 10, 2021 - link
Sad to see only one mATX board, though at least it looks like a decent (if expensive) option.Mite - Wednesday, November 10, 2021 - link
Can ASUS Z690 Maximus Extreme run PCIe 5.0 x16 GPU and PCIe 5.0 x4 M.2 SSD concurrently? Will the GPU (PCIe 5.0 x16 slot 1) drop to PCIe 5.0 x8 instead when SSD is installed on the PCIe 5.0 x4 (M2 slot)?Kakkoii - Wednesday, November 10, 2021 - link
MSI does show the Audio Codec... just not on the simplified summary. You guys have to click the "Detail" tab on the Specifications page for a given board. All the boards show which audio they're using.The Carbon for example has ALC4080.
gavbon - Thursday, November 18, 2021 - link
At the time of writing, even the detail sections of the specifications didn't show them. On top of this, all of the information we received prior to launch mentioned no specific HD audio codecs. I will update this though :)JackNJ - Friday, November 12, 2021 - link
The GIGABYTE Z690I Aorus Ultra is not DDR5 I think?chavv - Friday, November 12, 2021 - link
5 m2 slots?How is this useful for a normal user?!
Or 600$ mobo for desktop usage?!
World gone mad
mode_13h - Saturday, November 13, 2021 - link
For RAID, obviously. That borderline makes sense. If you're running a 4 or 5-drive RAID of SSDs in a consumer rig, it's more cost-effective and still plenty fast to use SATA. And I think it's not unreasonable to expect anyone using M.2 drives to put them in a PCIe carrier card, which will have better cooling potential anyhow.sunmobo - Friday, November 12, 2021 - link
You've included MSI's ITX variant in the list (MEG Z690I Unify) but I can't seem to find it on their website. Although if you google you'll find a few mentions on some shops, without pics. Is this because MSI is still working on the board, or?gavbon - Thursday, November 18, 2021 - link
It's likely to launch soon, but it does and will exist.