We have something very special for you today! Intel is releasing its 10th Gen desktop CPU and we got our hands on Z490 motherboard. This is ROG Strix Z490-A Gaming motherboard from ASUS and she is a beauty! I really like this white version.
In the box we have:
4 Sata cables
1 Cable ties pack
3 Different M.2 mounts
1 RGB and 1 addressable RBG extension cables
1 Fan bracket
1 Thermistor cable pack
1 Set of ROG Strix stickers and a thank you card
1 Support DVD and user manual*
1 ROG keyring
This is a fully featured board for the upcoming LGA 1200 socket. The first thing that jumps to my eyes are the beefy heatsinks over the VRM. Together with the 8+4 CPU power headers – it looks like it will support a very hungry chip with a good amount of overclocking potential.
Here we also find 4 DIMM slots for dual channel memory, with maximum total support of 128GB. This board supports RAM with speeds up to 4800 MHz, but be aware not all RAM is supported – Asus has a qualified vendor list on their website.
Below we have three PCIE gen 3 slots x16. There are also 2 m.2 slots supporting basically any size drives. It even comes with a heatsink for one of them. Note that the first slot can be run in PCIE x4 or Sata mode.
There is another m.2 slot with key E socket where you can install a Wi-Fi module – should you wish to purchase that separately.
On the bottom right we have 6 SATA ports.
This board has 7 PWM fan headers which is more than you would normally expect. One of them is for m.2 cooling and another one for VRM to accompany that little VRM fan bracket. Of course, you can use these for whatever you like.
Down the bottom we have front audio, two usb 2 headers, front I/O and also oddly enough it has thunderbolt header.
On the right hand side we find two USB 3.2 gen 1 headers. One Type C and one Type A. Both are 5gigabit versions.
We also have two RGB 12v headers and one addressable RGB 5V header. On the side of that we have a thermal sensor header.
On the back we find:
HDMI 1.4
DisplayPort 1.4
2 USB 2 ports in type A
Bios FlashBack button
2 USB 3.2 gen 2 ports – one type B and one type C
4 USB 3.2 gen 1 ports in type A
2.5 Intel gigabit network port
Full array of audio connections
This board also includes colour debug code LED’s which is another sign that this board will be a good match for the overclockers. I am looking forward to seeing this board paired up with the new CPU in the very near future. For more details and pricing check out the links below.
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