ASRock Launches the Z490 AQUA Motherboard

ASRock has just announced the launch of its latest flagship motherboard, the Z490 AQUA. A release that will come to the delight of gamers and power-hungry users alike. And to highlight the launch and it’s significance, ASRock is limiting the Z490 AQUA to only 999 units making it extremely valuable (or at least rare!).

ASRock Z490 AQUA Motherboard

Using the latest 16 Phase 90A Dr.MOS & 2oz Copper PCBs, it delivers up to 95% VRM efficiency. To keep VRM’s and 10-core processors cool even during sustained heavy loads or even overclocking, the Z490 AQUA features an advanced water cooling system that decreases heat on the CPU VRMs to reduce VRM temps dramatically.

Whatever the build requirements, the ASRock flagship Z490 AQUA sets the pace with strong, industrial server-grade low loss PCB motherboard firmness to hold the water cooling blocks which can dissipate heat from the CPU and VRM efficiently. And, something unique to all 999 purchasers, is a set of water cooling fittings which includes hard tube piping widely used by water cooling fanatics. It is the perfect kit to build the ultimate water-cooled rig with extreme performance!

Features

• Uncompromised Build Quality
  • Decked in a matte black undershell, the Z490 complements what young gamers want in a machine these days, simple, refined edges encased with a metallic armor that highlights the vibrant, techno LED lighting which screams I’m a water cooling aficionado and a PC mod enthusiast. “Be Aqua, Be Cool” highlights ASRock’s determination to be the frontrunner in water-cooled gaming motherboard manufacturers, and the PCIe 4.0 ready means it’s prepped and the hardware is ready with PCI-Express Gen-4 support. By uniquely adding an external base clock generator, PCIe 4.0 components such as extra slots, and an M.2 socket we’re assured the motherboard is ready to accommodate the next generation of CPUs.
• Designed to Show Off Quality LEDs
  • What sets the Z490 design apart is a bright built-in OLED display featured prominently in the motherboard for users to get status reports on CPU voltage, temperature, system fan speed, system status, and POST status. The colorful green, white and blue hues reflect a techy upgrade onto the matt black and metal finished motherboard giving it this warm, ice look.
• Blazing Fast Connectivity
  • The Z490 AQUA provides superfast connectivity including Intel’s Thunderbolt reversible USB Type-C interface delivering breathtaking bandwidth (up to 40Gb/s), AQUANTIA® AQtion™ 10Gbps network and the latest WiFi6 (802.11ax) wireless internet connectivity proving the Z490 AQUA not only looks good but also delivers a lot of firepower.
• Crystal Clear Audio Quality
  • Onboard ESS9218 DAC delivers true HiFi audio without distortion to give crystal clear audio quality, and with the 112dB THD+N there is support for higher impedance for up to 600ohm using headphones. Practical WIMA audio caps optimize the sound when working on high-end audio applications to satisfy even the pickiest audiophiles. The Nahimic Audio experience gives vibrant and rich quality whether you are using USB, Wi-Fi, analog, or HDMI outputs, and through the active dashboard interface users can tweak surround sound, voice, bass, and treble to their listening preferences.

What Do We Think?

This certainly looks like a really impressive motherboard design and the only regret is that this ‘flagship’ design is going to be limited to 999 releases. Quite frankly, we’d love to get our hands on one of these, but with such limited stock, frankly anyone interested is going to be lucky!

So, kudos to ASRock for making this amazing board, we just wished there was going to be more of them. Albeit, for the price they’re probably going to be sold for, we might prefer to keep our kidneys!

For more information on this and other ASRock products, you can check out their official website via the link here!

What do you think? – Let us know in the comments!