These headers can auto-detect the capabilities of compatible lighting devices, easing the setup process. To keep those speedy drives cool and performing optimally, we include M.2 heatsinks aplenty across the lineup. The Z490-H features the same specs as the Z490-A but features no USB 3.2 Gen 2 (Type-C) front panel header. We have already taken a look at two other Intel Z490 boards in our earlier reviews, and one thing that we noted was that the board prices have gradually increased over the years. ASUS ROG Maximus XII Hero Z490 (WiFi 6) LGA1200 ATX Motherboard. This 16 phase VRM is powered by dual 8-pin connectors which provide power to the PWM unit and the LGA 1200 socket itself. SupremeFX S1220 codecs handle audio output, and we ensconce them in shielded circuitry, dedicated PCB layers, dual op-amps, and Japanese capacitors. ASUS ROG Maximus XII Apex (WiFi 6) Z490 LGA 1200 (Intel 10th Gen) ATX Gaming Motherboard (16 Power Stages, DDR4 5000, Intel 2.5Gb LAN, DIMM.2, USB 3.2 Gen 2 … ASUS has yet to reveal the Maximus XII Glacial but it would feature a design scheme similar to the Maximus XII Extreme but with a custom water block fitted on it for an open-loop cooling solution. Additionally, AI Overclocking can adjust its settings over time thanks to continuous algorithm training, adapting to seasonal temperature changes and potential losses in heat dissipation due to circumstances like dust buildup. If your dream Z490 system includes the ability to liquid-cool as many of your components as possible, the Maximus XII Formula is an excellent foundation. It’ll never go out of style. There's also the reduction of the heatsink to non-extended design. ROG Maximus XII motherboards feature comprehensive cooling to meet the demands of the latest Z490 processors and high-performance memory. Two PCIe x16 slots and a PCIe x1 slot—all running at Gen 3 speeds—provide ample room for expansion cards, while two M.2 slots offer real estate for high-speed NVMe storage. VRM, M.2, and PCH heatsinks are all oversized to ensure components can run all out for extended periods without losing performance, and our OptiMem III tech can overclock some of the fastest DDR4 RAM around to its limits. The Hero’s pursuit of balanced performance doesn’t leave overclocking on the roadside. The four DIMM slots on both boards employ a daisy-chain topology for peak frequency potential, and they can drive two-stick sets of RAM at 4600MHz and beyond. Finally, we have the ROG Maximus XII APEX, a motherboard designed specifically for overclockers and features the same 16 phase VRM array as the ROG Maximus XII Formula but with power that will be provided through dual 8-pin connectors. All ASUS ROG STRIX Z490 motherboards feature SupremeFX S1220A powered audio. Keeping an eye on the future, our Z490 boards all include at least two PCIe M.2 slots, and some models can use as many as four. The heatsink resting on those power stages incorporates a heat pipe in its foundation to ensure the components underneath can stay cool while working hard under sustained loads. This intoxicating combination of high thread counts and soaring single-core clocks make them the perfect choice for gaming enthusiasts, while also providing the kind of horsepower needed for streaming, recording, and content creation. The ports support 40 Gbps connectivity as well as DisplayPort output. Dedicated liquid-cooling headers are complemented by the seven additional fan headers, two of which support high-amperage fans. Our award-winning UEFI firmware offers easy and advanced modes, and a concise, clearly organized user interface with search functionality and a summary of any changed settings for extra assurance before you save your tweaks. The Maximus XII APEX has been designed specifically for overclockers and has the highest supported DDR4 spec out of the box, rated at DDR4 5000 MHz. All the lighting can be easily shut off if you find it too distracting during the night or when watching a movie. ASUS Radeon RX 6900 XT ROG STRIX LC, PowerColor RX 6900 XT Red Devil Limited & Gigabyte RX 6900 XT Gaming OC Custom Cards Unveiled, ASUS ROG Maximus XII Extreme / Extreme Glacial. That cutting-edge reversible connector is flanked with three USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports—one Type-C and two Type-A—capable of speeds up to 10Gbps. To help in that endeavor, we've created AI Cooling, an all-new system that can reduce fan noise by up to 37% under sustained loads. A quartet of ROG Maximus XII motherboards sits at the top of our Z490 lineup. The voltage regulator modules (VRMs) for our Z490 boards have been beefed up across the line to deliver reliable, responsive power, and the standard setup across for most models now includes two auxiliary power inputs with ProCool solid-pin connectors. Two slots support both SATA and PCIe 3.0 x4 modes, and the other slot supports PCIe 3.0 x4 for NVMe. The top-chain of the ASUS Gaming lineup is made up of four powerful ROG Maximus XII series Z490 motherboards. An assortment of USB ports provides peripheral connectivity, including a next-generation USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 Type-C port capable of speeds up to 20Gbps. 1.0) ASUS will live up to and include even its low-end motherboards. There’s double-capacity RAM support on tap, too, meaning that you can install as much as 64GB of RAM in this tiny board. The ROG Maximus XII Extreme is an insane motherboard and hence, it comes in an EATX form factor. There's also an aluminum heatsink cover near the PCIe slots which provides cooling to the M.2 slots. There is a single PCIe 3.0 x16 slot but two M.2 slots on the board (one on the front and one on the back). The motherboard offers a total of 8 SATA III ports. Reversible USB Type-C® ports and front-panel USB 3.2 Gen 2 connectors grace almost every board in the lineup. The rest of the features are entirely the same as the Z490-A but you can expect a lower cost for the Z490-H. Mass storage drives can be plugged into an octet of SATA ports, too. The motherboard also has cooling for the M.2 slots in the form of heatsinks and a full cover design that engulfs the entirety of the board. Ample fan and liquid-cooling pump headers are thoughtfully placed throughout our Z490 motherboards. In fact, you’ll be surprised just how easy it is to extract maximum performance from exotic components on this board. The three main PCIe slots come with SafeSlot metal reinforcement for extra durability if you need to move a system with a graphics or expansion card installed. Free shipping . Some posts on Wccftech.com may contain affiliate links. Its proprietary algorithm carefully determines the quality of your CPU’s silicon and predicts its optimal clock speed and voltage settings in a compatible motherboard. A heatsink on the primary M.2 slot keeps your SSD cool under sustained loads. Two slots support both SATA and PCIe 3.0 x4 modes, and the other slot supports PCIe 3.0 x4 for NVMe. We have already got some leaks from Biostar but here we have the leaked Asus ROG Maximus XII Apex and the Z490 ProArt Creator 10G. It's also important that your voice is clearly heard, whether in the middle of a business meeting or when you’re enveloped in a virtual firefight. We combine a cutting-edge OptiMem III design approach with a daisy-chain topology that’s new for our Z490 boards. The ROG lineup is all about giving the most demanding builders everything they want, and we know that many enthusiasts want balance from their high-end systems above all. AI Overclocking will gladly take the wheel if you just want an easy boost on both the Z490-E and Z490-F, though. If you want to establish a quick baseline for your overclock, however, the exclusive AI Overclocking suite present in ROG boards can intelligently find the right combination of multipliers and voltage for a given CPU to get your chip running both swiftly and stably. We can expect the Formula around the $499 US price range. The ASUS ROG Maximus Formula motherboards have been regarded as the best solutions for custom-loop builders as they come with water blocks placed over the VRMs. Two M.2 slots lie beneath heatsinks on the front of the board and there’s one more around the back—all configurable in a RAID array for maximum parallel storage performance. The integrated virtual mixer lets you route multiple audio sources at will, a particularly useful feature for streamers and videographers. Most overclockers tune their processors by twisting each knob manually, and we fully support that fine-grained approach. There are additional onboard headers for two front-panel USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C connectors for use with the latest crop of cases. The Republic of Gamers was established in 2006 with a simple formula: build cutting-edge motherboards with top-shelf components for overclockers and demanding enthusiasts looking for the highest clocks around. Marshaling all those components into a coherent color scheme can be a chore, though. All rights reserved. Moving over to the formula, we see a similar design as the Extreme but in the ATX form factor. Optane Memory and chipset RAID support report for duty across the entire lineup. The ROG Maximus XII lineup features the following motherboards: Each motherboard has different features to talk, some of them really cool in their own respectful manner and carry different price points for different market tiers. Quality sound is one of the hallmarks of the ROG and ROG Strix families, so the Z490-G delivers with a SupremeFX S1220A codec, isolated circuitry, and dual op-amps. A solid aluminum plate mid-board further dissipates heat from high-end NVMe storage in twin M.2 slots. Overclocking doesn’t have to involve frequent reboots or mathematical calculations. That's a broad set of options on its own, but we went one step further. An Intel Wi-Fi 6 adapter and an extra Gigabit Ethernet port give you additional tools to link up with the outside world in just the way you want. It intelligently slows fans down while maintaining a consistent CPU temperature, ensuring that your cooling system isn’t making any more noise than necessary to keep temperatures low. The I/O on the board include 2.5G LAN, 13 USB ports, 4 SATA III ports, a USB 3.2 Gen 2 front-panel header, WiFi 6, and Supreme FX S1220A audio. Both M.2 ports will feature heatsink cooling. Just because it’s small doesn’t mean the Z490-I isn’t capable of big things when it comes to processor and memory performance. A powerful PC requires a well-considered cooling system, and ever-increasing core counts and clock speeds are oftentimes at odds with a quiet PC. The ASUS ROG STRIX Z490-E comes with a 14+2 phase design and has the LGA 1200 socket which is … The ROG Strix Z490-G Gaming caters to microATX enthusiasts with gaming-friendly features and broad connectivity. One of the two M.2 slots is topped off by a dedicated heatsink, and a third M.2 E-key slot stands ready to take in an optional WiFi 6 module. 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There used to be a time when opting for the Mini-ITX form factor meant you’d have to give up a significant amount of features compared to a standard ATX board. Models in the Maximus XII range are all set to juice up both stock and overclocked Core i9 chips thanks to power delivery subsystems with up to 16 teamed power stages for CPU Vcore. Buy ASUS ROG Maximus XII Apex (WiFi 6) Z490 LGA 1200 (Intel 10th Gen) ATX Gaming Motherboard (16 Power Stages, DDR4 5000, Intel 2.5Gb LAN, DIMM.2, USB 3.2 Gen 2 and Aura Sync RGB): Motherboards - Amazon.com FREE DELIVERY possible on eligible purchases To keep the power flowing to those high-core-count CPUs, the Extreme uses ProCool solid pins in its two eight-pin auxiliary 12V inputs and as part of the ATX connector. The latest 10th Gen Core CPUs from Intel now pack up to 10 cores, 20 threads, and higher single-threaded performance than ever. Dedicated control hardware and software keep an eye on temperature, fan speeds, and power draw to ensure there’s enough cooling power for when the system is under load. I will start off with the ROG parts first! We set out to give builders access to everyday memory clocks of 4800MHz with this board, and speeds beyond that are attainable for those ready to explore the outer limits of overclocking. There are also 2 USB 3.2 Gen 2 front panel headers on the motherboard. Our Z490 boards are filled to the brim with peripheral and network connectivity. The ROG Strix family takes a healthy dose of that high-performance DNA and infuses it in an attainable family of boards that give mainstream gamers everything they need for winning performance in their systems. Products certified by the Federal Communications Commission and Industry Canada will be distributed in the United States and Canada. On the audio software side, there’s support for 3D surround sound virtualization via the DTS® Sound Unbound app. Those shields aren’t just beautiful to look at—they eliminate the frustration of forgetting to install a separate I/O shield in your case before you install the motherboard. All specifications are subject to change without notice. ASUS uses high conductive thermal pads to ensure that heat is transferred to the heatsink blocks effectively.