Welcome to the Motherboard News & Reviews Database. This is a collection, primarily of reviews, dedicated to motherboards from across the globe. Looking for something specific? Use the search utility, tags, or just explore through using the drop-down menu. From there, you can select your preferred motherboard manufacturer to find a listing of motherboards by chipset that have reviews available. If it’s been reviewed recently, you’ll find it. All reviews that are not natively in English will have translated links provided where possible.
Are we missing something? Send a tip to hardwarenews (at) mbreview.com to make a submission.
The X13SAE and its X13SAE-F counterpart are both Supermicro platforms built on the Intel W680 chipset. W680, on the surface, is comparable to Z690 with support for the same PCIe technologies, USB including 3.2 Gen2x2 and the 2.5Gbe/WiFi6e Network stack. Far and away, the largest difference is memory support, where W680 formally introduces Alder Lake to ECC support.
Read more @ TweakTown
Around the LGA 1700 socket, there are two reinforced DIMM connectors compatible with DDR5 (in dual-channel, accepting up to 64 GB of DDR5-6400+), a reinforced PCI-Express 5.0 16x port, three SATA 6 Gbps ports , an M.2 2280 (NVMe) connector wired in PCIe 4 4x, a USB 3.2 Gen2x2 connector, a USB 3.2 Gen1 connector, a USB 2.0 connector, the essential HD Audio connector, two RGB connectors − including one addressable − as well as three power connectors for the various fans and/or water cooling system.
Read more @ Comptoir Hardware (French)
As expected, the Z690 PG Velocita also includes DDR5 and PCIe 5.0-ready solutions for those looking for the newest technology. ASRock has also added a M.2 Gen5 4x socket for when these next-gen NVMe drives reach the market in late 2022, which is not commonly found on Z690-based motherboards. To round out the experience, the ASRock Z690 PG Velocita also offers great connectivity with the newest WiFi 6E technology and 2.5G LAN for those who need to transfer data quickly. There is a lot to cover in this review, so let’s take a closer look at what the ASRock Z690 PG Velocita has to offer.
Read more @ TechPowerUp
The expansion includes two PCIe x16 Gen5 slots. These operate in x16 or x8x8 modes, and a third slot pulls from the chipset at x1 connectivity. Storage includes three Hyper m.2 slots onboard and another two available with the DIMM.2 module. SATA includes six ports, all on the right side of the motherboard, and additional expansion is available via the USB 3.2 Gen 1 and 2 headers.
Networking on this board is top end. Mainstream 2.5Gbe and WiFi6e using Intel’s i215 and AX211 chipsets while 10Gbe is deployed with the latest Marvell AQC113. Thunderbolt 4 has also made its way onto this platform, two ports alongside USB 3.2 Gen2x2.
Read more @ TweakTown
The Tachyon has all you’d expect in a Z690 motherboard. There are a total of four M.2 sockets (but none are PCIe 5.0), premium audio, plenty of USB ports (including USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 ports), overbuilt power delivery, along with built-in overclocking buttons and switches to help speed enthusiasts get the most out of their platform. Compared to the Z590 version, the new model sports similar styling and layout. There’s one less PCIe slot, one more M.2 socket, and much-improved VRMs to help support extreme overclocking of Intel’s 12th Gen Alder Lake processors.
Read more @ Tom’s Hardware
So today, we’ll be taking a look at the Gigabyte Z690 AORUS ULTRA Motherboard. It utilizes the Z690 chipset and it’s suitable for all of Intel’s 12th Gen Alder Lake processors on the LGA1700 socket. It features a PCIE 5.0 x16 slot with SMD technology (surface mount diode), and supports DDR5 ram with speed of up to DDR5-6200 (OC). Please take note: The DDR5 memory slot is NOT compatible with DDR4 ram.
Read more @ FunkyKit
The Z690 Aqua comes in two SKUs; the standard Z690 Aqua, a board that offers an identical hardware platform to the board we are testing today, with the difference being four DIMM slots, while the Aqua OC features two DIMM slots, a design more typical of enthusiast OC boards. Outside of that, both platforms offer support for 12th Gen Intel CPUs on the LGA1700 socket. Memory is supported from DDR5 4800 through 7000+ with an overclock, capacity dependent on platform, the standard Aqua at 128GB, and the Aqua OC, 64GB.
Read more @ TweakTown
We have previously told you about the hugely expensive MSI MEG Z690 Godlike and now the time has come for a full review. The hardware includes 22 VRM phases that are each rated at 105A and you get all sorts of goodies such as Thunderbolt 4 and 10 Gigabit Ethernet. On the other hand we have a UK price of £1,850 that takes our breath away in a rather painful manner. We suggest you strap in as the ride promises to be rather rocky.
Read more @ KitGuru
ASRock offers, with its Z690 Phantom Gaming-ITX/TB4 motherboard, a compact platform to accommodate an Intel Alder lake-S processor. We are in front of a high-end solution aimed at demanding players looking for a muscular Mini-ITX configuration.
The beauty is armed with a sleek dress, an active cooling system, “Premium” features and support for DDR5. Its equipment includes two M.2 slots and numerous fast USB ports as well as Wi-Fi 6E support. Added to all this is a PCIe 5.0 x16 port and a 10+1 phase power supply scheme.
Read more @ GinjFo (French)
As we continue our coverage of Z690 motherboards we move over to ASRock and their Z690 Taichi motherboard. I’ve always been a fan of the Taichi series from ASRock as these boards were always loaded with features and they have that awesome clockwork theme. On the Z590 Taichi we finally got a moving gear on the board and of course they are bringing that back with the new Z690 version. On top of that you are getting all of the features you would expect from a Z690 motherboard like a 20 phase power design, PCI-Express 5.0 support, Thunderbolt 4, USB 3.2 gen 2×2, WiFi 6E and so much more!
Read more @ ThinkComputers