The Ultimate Z590 Motherboard Guide

While the PC hardware marker has seen many wins and losses throughout 2020, 2021 looks set to be a big year for Intel, with the launch of their next-generation processors and their new Z590 motherboards… and maybe even a graphics card or two!

While it’s uncommon for Intel, Z490 and Z590 motherboards will be forwards and backwards compatible with the Comet Lake CPUs already on the market, and likewise with the Rocket Lake CPUs that are on the way. However, Z590 is primed to support their latest Rocket Lake processors and no doubt offer the best performance possible from their flagship i9-11900K.

While it’s likely many will be running overclocked memory kits anyway, the base clock speed memory support will see a leap from DDR4-2933 to DDR4-3200. However, we should even see some manufacturers produce DDR5 boards for this generation as we begin to transition to the next-gen memory platform over the next two years.

Intel Z590 Motherboards

Another big leap is the upgrade to PCIe 4.0, something that AMD has had the run of for some time now. Keep in mind that many Z490 boards were marketed as Gen 4 ready, so the new CPUs should unlock those abilities for you. However, it’s ready from launch on the new Z590 boards. That’ll mean 20 lanes of ultra-fast connectivity. That could be x16 for the GPU and x4 for storage, or x8/x8, or even x8/x4/x4, but it’s really up to motherboard manufacturers how they want to use the available bandwidth.

Other big upgrades are a doubling of CPU bandwidth, native USB 3.2 G2x” (20Gbps) Type-C, and greatly improved memory support and greater support for Wi-Fi 6. Many of the more high-end boards will undoubtedly take advantage of the latest Intel Thunderbolt 4, which now supports branch chaining rather than just linear chaining!

ASRock

• Z590 Taichi
• Z590 Extreme WiFi 6E
• Z590 Extreme
• Z590 Steel Legend WiFi 6E
• Z590 Steel Legend
• Z590 Pro4
• Z590 PG Velocita
• Z590 Phantom Gaming 4/ac
• Z590 Phantom Gaming 4
• Z590M Phantom Gaming 4
• Z590M Pro4
• Z590M-ITX/ax

ASUS

• ROG Maximus XIII Extreme Glacial
• ROG Maximus XIII Extreme
• ROG MAXIMUS XIII HERO
• ROG STRIX Z590-E GAMING WIFI
• TUF Gaming Z590-PLUS WIFI
• PRIME Z590-A

Biostar

• Z590 VALKYRIE Ver. 5.0
• Z590I VALKYRIE Ver. 5.0
• Z590GTA Ver. 5.0

EVGA

• THE EVGA Z590 DARK
• THE EVGA Z590 FTW WIFI

Gigabyte AORUS

• Z590 AORUS XTREME
• Z590 AORUS MASTER
• Z590 AORUS ULTRA
• Z590 AORUS PRO AX
• Z590I AORUS ULTRA
• Z590 AORUS ELITE AX
• Z590 AORUS ELITE

Gigabyte VISION

• Z590 VISION G
• Z590 VISION D
• Z590I VISION D

Gigabyte

• Z590 GAMING X
• Z590 UD AC
• Z590 UD

MSI

• MSI MEG Z590 GODLIKE
• MSI MEG Z590 ACE
• MSI MPG Z590 Gaming Carbon WIFI
• MSI MAG Z590 Tomahawk WIFI
• MSI MAG Z590 Torpedo

Supermicro

• C9Z590-CGW
• C9Z590-CG

Power Delivery

One of the most important upgrades for Z590 is the way each motherboard handles power. To get the best performance out of newer and faster CPUs, more stable and consistent voltages can make a huge difference, especially so when overclocking.

There’s been much debate over the effectiveness of VMR configurations on previous generations of boards. Furthermore, talk of how many Power Stages each brand is using. For Z590, it looks like all the major brands have gone all out, especially so on their enthusiast and flagship-class motherboards.

Of course, even the budget boards have enough to run the top chips from Intel, assuming you leave things at their stock settings, of course. The more over-engineered the motherboard becomes, the more likely it is to be able to sustain sustained loads at higher clock speeds, voltages, and more.

For the most part, every board uses the ISL69269 Controller, except the MSI MEG Z590 GODLIKE (RAA229828, and the MSI Z590 Pro WIFI and A Pro (RT3609BE). How many Power Stages they have is detailed on the following pages, if that information was available to us (mostly, it was).

Z490 Vs Z590

The MSI MEG Z490 GODLIKE was no slouch, but looking back, it had an INTERSIL digital PWM, 16+1+1 phases with 90A Smart Power Stage, while the MEG Z590 GODLIKE steps that up to a Direct 20 Phases, 90A Smart Power Stages design. The Z490 AORUS Xtreme has 16 Phases Digital VRM Solution with 90A Smart Power Stage and Tantalum Polymer Capacitors Array and that now 20+1 Phases Digital VRM for Z590. We see basically the same from all brands.

Active Cooling

However, the VRM heatsinks are (for the most part) not only bigger, but many of them feature one or more active fans to drive even better performance.

Unless you’re ASUS, who’s taken a giant cooler and stuck some motherboard to it, I’m very interested to see what this thing can do!

Mid-Range

This is true on some “mid-range” boards, in quotes as all Z590 boards are effectively the top-end Z490 boards with all the trimmings. The ASRock Z590 Steel Legend WiFi 6E is basically the old board with significantly bigger VRM heatsinks and a 14 Phase Dr.MOS Power Design vs the old 11 Phase design.

“Affordable” Motherboards

Even the more affordable models from BIOSTAR look like serious high-end competitors compared to previous generations. Their old VRM heatsinks were pretty light, but the new ones are much taller, with fins on the Z590GTA Ver. 5.0. It seems then that when it comes to taking the new Intel CPUs to their limits, all of the boards should be capable. Of course, the extreme overclocking potential will vary.

ASRock

ASRock is coming to market with a strong lineup for this launch. They’ll have 12 new motherboards, which are all pretty much just evolutions of their Z490 boards, but that is no bad thing. We still have the truly gorgeous Taichi at the top of the range, but I can’t help feel it looks a lot more understated than their previous designs, but we have no doubts it’s tuned for extreme performance.

The Extreme comes in two variants, one with WiFi 6 and one without. However, it still packs a lot of features and will no doubt appeal to many high-end system builders that don’t want to pay the big premium for the Taichi.

Want something lighter and with more RGB? The Steel Legend is an exciting looking range, offering up two models again, one with WiFi 6. These boards come with a silver/steel coloured armour, big heatsinks and more, aiming towards high-end gaming builds.

The Pro4 is a little more sensible, offering a small amount of RGB but mostly bringing in design elements via its graphic printed PCB. It’s obviously a lot more stripped-down, with a focus on the CPU performance. This is a good choice for those who want great performance but don’t need additional networking and storage hardware.

My personal favourite right now is the Phantom Gaming series. Even the most affordable Gaming4 model for mid-to-high-end gaming builds comes with a solid feature set. Plus, it’s the first one here that’s available in both ATX and mATX variants. Furthermore, that’s followed by the mATX Z590M Pro 4.

However, the flagship Z590 PG Velocita is the best looking board they’re launching and brings in the flair I feel was missing from the Taichi. They’re similarly equipped too, and it seems the Velocita is just another flavour for the enthusiast market.

ASRock only has a single mini-ITX board for this launch, the Z590M-ITX/ax. They’ve proven that mini doesn’t have to mean limited features once again, as it’s got extremely fast memory support, high-end audio, dual LAN, WiFi 6 and much more beyond.

Check out the AsRock Z590 official product page here.

Z590 Taichi

Features

• Supports 10th Gen Intel^® Core™ Processors and 11th Gen Intel^® Core™ Processors
• 14 Phase Dr.MOS Power Design
• Supports DDR4 5000MHz (OC)
• 2 x PCIe 4.0 x16, 1 x PCIe 3.0 x16, 1 x PCIe 3.0 x1
• Graphics Output Options: HDMI, 2 x Thunderbolt™ Type-C
• 7.1 CH HD Audio (Realtek ALC1220 Audio Codec), Nahimic Audio
• 8 SATA3, 1 x Hyper M.2 (PCIe Gen4 x4)
• 2 x Ultra M.2 (PCIe Gen3 x4 & SATA3)
• 2 x Thunderbolt™ 4/USB 4.0 Type-C (40Gb/s)
• 1 x USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Front Type-C (20Gb/s)
• 2 x Rear USB 3.2 Gen2 Type A (10Gb/s)
• 8 x USB 3.2 Gen1 (8 x Rear, 4 x Front)
• Killer E3100G 2.5G LAN, Intel^® Gigabit LAN
• Killer AX1675x 802.11ax(WiFi 6E) + BT 5.2
• Lightning Gaming Ports (Patent Pending)
• ASRock Graphics Card Holder (Patent Pending)

Z590 Extreme WiFi 6E

Features

• Supports 10th Gen Intel^® Core™ Processors and 11th Gen Intel^® Core™ Processors
• 14 Phase Dr.MOS Power Design
• Supports DDR4 4800MHz (OC)
• 1 x PCIe 4.0 x16, 1 x PCIe 3.0 x16, 3 x PCIe 3.0 x1
• Graphics Output Options: HDMI, DisplayPort
• 7.1 CH HD Audio (Realtek ALC1220 Audio Codec), Nahimic Audio
• 6 SATA3, 1 x Hyper M.2 (PCIe Gen4 x4)
• 2 x Ultra M.2 (PCIe Gen3 x4 & SATA3)
• 1 x USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Front Type-C (20Gb/s)
• Rear USB 3.2 Gen2 Type A+C (10Gb/s)
• 6 x USB 3.2 Gen1 (2 x Rear, 4 x Front)
• 6 x USB 2.0 (2 x Rear, 4 x Front)
• Dragon 2.5 Gigabit LAN, Intel^® Gigabit LAN
• Intel^® 802.11ax(WiFi 6E) + BT 5.2
• ASRock Graphics Card Holder (Patent Pending)

Z590 Extreme

Features

• Supports 10th Gen Intel^® Core™ Processors and 11th Gen Intel^® Core™ Processors
• 14 Phase Dr.MOS Power Design
• Supports DDR4 4800MHz (OC)
• 1 x PCIe 4.0 x16, 1 x PCIe 3.0 x16, 3 x PCIe 3.0 x1, 1 x M.2 Key-E for WiFi
• Graphics Output Options: HDMI, DisplayPort
• 7.1 CH HD Audio (Realtek ALC1220 Audio Codec), Nahimic Audio
• 6 SATA3, 1 x Hyper M.2 (PCIe Gen4 x4)
• 2 x Ultra M.2 (PCIe Gen3 x4 & SATA3)
• 1 x USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Front Type-C (20Gb/s)
• Rear USB 3.2 Gen2 Type A+C (10Gb/s)
• 6 x USB 3.2 Gen1 (2 x Rear, 4 x Front)
• 6 x USB 2.0 (2 x Rear, 4 x Front)
• Dragon 2.5 Gigabit LAN, Intel^® Gigabit LAN
• ASRock Graphics Card Holder (Patent Pending)

Z590 Steel Legend WiFi 6E

Features

• Supports 10th Gen Intel^® Core™ Processors and 11th Gen Intel^® Core™ Processors
• 14 Phase Dr.MOS Power Design
• Supports DDR4 4800MHz (OC)
• 1 x PCIe 4.0 x16, 1 x PCIe 3.0 x16, 3 x PCIe 3.0 x1
• Graphics Output Options: HDMI, DisplayPort
• 7.1 CH HD Audio (Realtek ALC897 Audio Codec), Nahimic Audio
• 6 SATA3, 1 x Hyper M.2 (PCIe Gen4 x4)
• 2 x Ultra M.2 (PCIe Gen3 x4 & SATA3)
• 1 x USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Front Type-C (20Gb/s)
• Rear USB 3.2 Gen2 Type A+C (10Gb/s)
• 6 x USB 3.2 Gen1 (2 x Rear, 4 x Front)
• 6 x USB 2.0 (2 x Rear, 4 x Front)
• Dragon 2.5 Gigabit LAN
• Intel^® WiFi 6E (802.11ax) + BT 5.2
• ASRock Graphics Card Holder (Patent Pending)

Z590 Steel Legend

Features

• Supports 10th Gen Intel^® Core™ Processors and 11th Gen Intel^® Core™ Processors
• 14 Phase Dr.MOS Power Design
• Supports DDR4 4800MHz (OC)
• 1 x PCIe 4.0 x16, 1 x PCIe 3.0 x16, 3 x PCIe 3.0 x1, 1 x M.2 Key-E for WiFi
• Graphics Output Options: HDMI, DisplayPort
• 7.1 CH HD Audio (Realtek ALC897 Audio Codec), Nahimic Audio
• 6 SATA3, 1 x Hyper M.2 (PCIe Gen4 x4)
• 2 x Ultra M.2 (PCIe Gen3 x4 & SATA3)
• 1 x USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Front Type-C (20Gb/s)
• Rear USB 3.2 Gen2 Type A+C (10Gb/s)
• 6 x USB 3.2 Gen1 (2 x Rear, 4 x Front)
• 6 x USB 2.0 (2 x Rear, 4 x Front)
• Dragon 2.5 Gigabit LAN
• ASRock Graphics Card Holder (Patent Pending)

Z590 Pro4

Features

• Supports 10th Gen Intel^® Core™ Processors and 11th Gen Intel^® Core™ Processors
• 14 Phase Dr.MOS Power Design
• Supports DDR4 4800MHz (OC)
• 1 x PCIe 4.0 x16, 1 x PCIe 3.0 x16, 3 x PCIe 3.0 x1, 1 x M.2 Key-E for WiFi
• Graphics Output Options: HDMI, DisplayPort
• 7.1 CH HD Audio (Realtek ALC897 Audio Codec), Nahimic Audio
• 6 SATA3, 1 x Hyper M.2 (PCIe Gen4 x4), 2 x Ultra M.2 (PCIe Gen3 x4 & SATA3)
• 1 x USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Front Type-C (20Gb/s)
• 2 x Rear USB 3.2 Gen2 (10Gb/s)
• 6 x USB 3.2 Gen1 (2 x Rear, 4 x Front)
• 6 x USB 2.0 (2 x Rear, 4 x Front)
• Dragon 2.5 Gigabit LAN
• ASRock Graphics Card Holder (Patent Pending)

Z590 PG Velocita

Features

• Supports 10th Gen Intel^® Core™ Processors and 11th Gen Intel^® Core™ Processors
• 14 Phase Dr.MOS Power Design
• Supports DDR4 4800MHz (OC)
• 2 x PCIe 4.0 x16, 1 x PCIe 3.0 x16, 1 x PCIe 3.0 x1
• Graphics Output Options: HDMI, DisplayPort
• 7.1 CH HD Audio (Realtek ALC1220 Audio Codec), Nahimic Audio
• 6 SATA3, 1 x Hyper M.2 (PCIe Gen4 x4)
• 2 x Ultra M.2 (PCIe Gen3 x4 & SATA3)
• 1 x USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Front Type-C (20Gb/s)
• Rear USB 3.2 Gen2 Type A+C (10Gb/s)
• 10 x USB 3.2 Gen1 (6 x Rear, 4 x Front)
• Killer E3100G 2.5G LAN, Intel^® Gigabit LAN
• Killer AX1675x 802.11ax(WiFi 6E) + BT 5.2
• CPU Direct Source LAN (Patent Pending)
• Lightning Gaming Ports (Patent Pending)
• ASRock Graphics Card Holder (Patent Pending)

Z590 Phantom Gaming 4/ac

Features

• Supports 10th Gen Intel^® Core™ Processors and 11th Gen Intel^® Core™ Processors
• 8 Phase Power Design
• Supports DDR4 4800MHz (OC)
• 1 x PCIe 4.0 x16, 1 x PCIe 3.0 x16, 3 x PCIe 3.0 x1
• Graphics Output Options: HDMI
• 7.1 CH HD Audio (Realtek ALC897 Audio Codec), Nahimic Audio
• 6 SATA3, 1 x Hyper M.2 (PCIe Gen4 x4), 2 x Ultra M.2 (PCIe Gen3 x4 & SATA3)
• 1 x USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Front Type-C (20Gb/s)
• Rear USB 3.2 Gen2 Type A+C (10Gb/s)
• 6 x USB 3.2 Gen1 (2 x Rear, 4 x Front)
• 6 x USB 2.0 (2 x Rear, 4 x Front)
• Intel^® Gigabit LAN
• Intel^® 802.11ac WiFi + BT 5.1
• ASRock Polychrome SYNC

Z590 Phantom Gaming 4

Features

• Supports 10th Gen Intel^® Core™ Processors and 11th Gen Intel^® Core™ Processors
• 8 Phase Power Design
• Supports DDR4 4800MHz (OC)
• 1 x PCIe 4.0 x16, 1 x PCIe 3.0 x16, 3 x PCIe 3.0 x1, 1 x M.2 Key-E for WiFi
• Graphics Output Options: HDMI
• 7.1 CH HD Audio (Realtek ALC897 Audio Codec), Nahimic Audio
• 6 SATA3, 1 x Hyper M.2 (PCIe Gen4 x4)
• 2 x Ultra M.2 (PCIe Gen3 x4 & SATA3)
• 1 x USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Front Type-C (20Gb/s)
• Rear USB 3.2 Gen2 Type A+C (10Gb/s)
• 6 x USB 3.2 Gen1 (2 x Rear, 4 x Front)
• 6 x USB 2.0 (2 x Rear, 4 x Front)
• Intel^® Gigabit LAN
• ASRock Polychrome SYNC

Z590M Phantom Gaming 4

Features

• Supports 10th Gen Intel^® Core™ Processors and 11th Gen Intel^® Core™ Processors
• 8 Phase Power Design
• Supports DDR4 4800MHz (OC)
• 1 x PCIe 4.0 x16, 1 x PCIe 3.0 x4, 1 x PCIe 3.0 x1, 1 x M.2 Key-E for WiFi
• Graphics Output Options: HDMI
• 7.1 CH HD Audio (Realtek ALC897 Audio Codec), Nahimic Audio
• 4 SATA3, 1 x Hyper M.2 (PCIe Gen4 x4)
• 1 x Ultra M.2 (PCIe Gen3 x4 & SATA3)
• 2 x Rear USB 3.2 Gen2 (10Gb/s)
• 8 x USB 3.2 Gen1 (4 x Rear, 4 x Front)
• 4 x Front USB 2.0
• Intel^® Gigabit LAN
• ASRock Polychrome SYNC

Z590M Pro4

Features

• Supports 10th Gen Intel^® Core™ Processors and 11th Gen Intel^® Core™ Processors
• 12 Phase Dr.MOS Power Design
• Supports DDR4 4800MHz (OC)
• 1 x PCIe 4.0 x16, 1 x PCIe 3.0 x16, 2 x PCIe 3.0 x1
• 1 x M.2 Key-E for WiFi
• Graphics Output Options: HDMI, DisplayPort
• 7.1 CH HD Audio (Realtek ALC897 Audio Codec), Nahimic Audio
• 4 SATA3, 1 x Hyper M.2 (PCIe Gen4 x4 & SATA3)
• 1 x Ultra M.2 (PCIe Gen3 x4 & SATA3)
• 2 x Rear USB 3.2 Gen2 (10Gb/s)
• 7 x USB 3.2 Gen1 (2 x Rear, 4 x Front, 1 x Front Type-C)
• 6 x USB 2.0 (2 x Rear, 4 x Front)
• Intel^® Gigabit LAN

Z590M-ITX/ax

Features

• Supports 10th Gen Intel^® Core™ Processors and 11th Gen Intel^® Core™ Processors
• 8 Phase Dr.MOS Power Design
• Supports DDR4 5066MHz (OC)
• 1 x PCIe 4.0 x16
• Graphics Output Options: HDMI, DisplayPort
• 7.1 CH HD Audio (Realtek ALC897 Audio Codec), Nahimic Audio
• 4 SATA3, 1 x Hyper M.2 (PCIe Gen4 x4)
• 1 x Ultra M.2 (PCIe Gen3 x4 & SATA3)
• 1 x Rear USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type-C (20Gb/s)
• 5 x USB 3.2 Gen2 (4 x Rear, 1 x Front Type-C)
• 2 x Front USB 3.2 Gen1
• 3 x USB 2.0 (1 x Rear, 2 x Front)
• Dragon 2.5 Gigabit LAN, Intel^® Gigabyte LAN
• Intel^® 802.11ax WiFi 6E BT 5.2

ASUS

There are two things we come to expect from an ASUS motherboard these days, it’ll be packed with more features than any consumer could use, and it’ll likely be pretty darn expensive. However, it’ll also likely be one of the best motherboards hitting the market, and that certainly looks true glancing over the six boards they’re launching. The ROG Maximus XIII Extreme Glacial and the ROG Maximus XIII Extreme certainly tick all the enthusiast market boxes.

The ROG Maximus XIII Extreme (and the Glacial) come with an E-ATX design, 18+2 power stages, five M.2 slots, USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 front-panel connector, USB 3.2 Gen 2 front-panel connector, dual Thunderbolt 4, Marvell AQtion 10 Gb Ethernet, Intel® 2.5 Gb Ethernet, PCIe® 4.0, onboard WiFi 6E (802.11ax) and Aura Sync RGB lighting. Of course, one comes with an integrated full-coverage EK water block, and the other has to make do with an enormous heatsink array and armoured design.

Further down the range, we have the ROG MAXIMUS XIII HERO, and while it may not be the flagship, it’s still going to be one of the most advanced boards for the Z590 launch. It still offers up a huge range of features such as quad M.2 and Dual 2.5Gb Ethernet. Furthermore, it’s certainly one of the most attractive ATX boards in the ASUS range, not that the others aren’t!

Next up, what’s likely to be one of their biggest sellers, the ROG STRIX Z590-E GAMING WIFI, another ATX, feature-packed beast that’s highly tuned towards high-performance gaming builds. It comes with many overclocking features, dual LAN, quad M.2, RGB, AI noise-cancellation, and so much more. It’ll still be an expensive board but gives you most of the flagship boards’ thrills at a much lower price.

Finally, we have both the TUF GAMING Z590-PLUS WIFI and the PRIME Z590-A. Again, not exactly trimming many of the more high-end boards’ features, but still ticking all the right boxes even for enthusiast-grade workstation and gaming builds. Both have fast networking, lots of storage options and even Thunderbolt 4.

What’s strange is that there isn’t a single mATX or mini-ITX board in the line up… something we hope to see change in the coming months.

Check out the ASUS Z590 official product page here.

ROG Maximus XIII Extreme Glacial

The rear I/O keeps that silver and white theme too, with exceptional high-end connectivity from top to bottom.

Features

• Intel® Socket LGA 1200 for 11th Gen Intel® Core™ processors and 10th Gen Intel Core, Pentium® Gold and Celeron® processors
• Optimized Thermal Design: Integrated EK water block that cools VRM, CPU and PCH; high-conductivity thermal pads, five M.2 heatsinks with embedded backplates and ROG Water-Cooling Zone
• Intelligent Control: ASUS-exclusive software and firmware utilities that simplify setup and improve performance: AI Overclocking, AI Cooling, AI Networking and Two-Way AI Noise-Cancelation
• Robust Power Solution: 18+2 teamed power stages – each rated at 100 Amps, ProCool II power connectors, MicroFine alloy chokes and 10K Japanese-made black metallic capacitors
• High-Performance Networking: Onboard WiFi 6E (802.11ax), Marvell® AQtion 10 Gb Ethernet, Intel® 2.5 Gb Ethernet, and ASUS LANGuard
• Fastest Gaming Connectivity: PCIe® 4.0, five M.2 slots, USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 front-panel connector, dual Thunderbolt™ 4 USB-C®
• Industry-Leading Gaming Audio: ROG SupremeFX ALC4082 with ESS® ES9018Q2C DAC for high-fidelity sound
• Unmatched Personalization: 2” LiveDash colour OLED, ASUS-exclusive Aura Sync RGB lighting, including one RGB header and three addressable Gen 2 RGB headers
• DIY-Friendly Design: Pre-mounted I/O shield, V_Latch switch, BIOS FlashBack™, Q-Code, FlexKey, Q-Connector, SafeSlot and Graphics Card Holder
• Renowned Software: Bundled 1-year AIDA64 Extreme subscription and intuitive UEFI BIOS dashboard with integrated MemTest86

ROG Maximus XIII Extreme

Features

• Intel® Socket LGA 1200 for 11th Gen Intel® Core™ processors and 10th Gen Intel Core, Pentium® Gold and Celeron® processors
• Intelligent Control: ASUS-exclusive software and firmware utilities that simplify setup and improve performance: AI Overclocking, AI Cooling, AI Networking and Two-Way AI Noise-Cancelation
• Robust Power Solution: 18+2 teamed power stages – each rated at 100 Amps, ProCool II power connectors, MicroFine alloy chokes and 10K Japanese-made black metallic capacitors
• Optimized Thermal Design: Enlarged VRM heatsinks plus integrated aluminum I/O cover, high-conductivity thermal pad, five M.2 heatsinks with embedded backplates and ROG Water-Cooling Zone
• High-Performance Networking: Onboard WiFi 6E (802.11ax), Marvell® AQtion 10 Gb Ethernet, Intel® 2.5 Gb Ethernet, and ASUS LANGuard
• Fastest Gaming Connectivity: PCIe® 4.0, five M.2 slots, USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 front-panel connector, dual Thunderbolt™ 4 USB-C®
• Industry-leading Gaming Audio: ROG SupremeFX ALC4082 with ESS® ES9018Q2C DAC for high-fidelity sound
• Unmatched Personalization: 1.77” LiveDash OLED, ASUS-exclusive Aura Sync RGB lighting, including one RGB header and three addressable Gen 2 RGB headers
• DIY-Friendly Design: Pre-mounted I/O shield, V_Latch switch, BIOS FlashBack™, Q-Code, FlexKey, Q-Connector, SafeSlot and Graphics Card Holder
• Renowned Software: Bundled 1-year AIDA64 Extreme subscription and intuitive UEFI BIOS dashboard with integrated MemTest86

ROG MAXIMUS XIII HERO

Features

• Intel^® Socket LGA 1200 for 11th Gen Intel^® Core™ processors and 10th Gen Intel Core, Pentium^® Gold and Celeron^® Processors
• Intelligent Control: ASUS-exclusive software and firmware utilities that simplify setup and improve performance: AI Overclocking, AI Cooling, AI Networking and Two-Way AI Noise-Cancelation
• Robust Power Solution: 14+2 teamed power stages rated for 90 Amps, ProCool II power connectors, MicroFine alloy chokes and 10K Japanese-made black metallic capacitors
• Optimized Thermal Design: Enlarged VRM heatsinks plus integrated aluminium I/O cover, high-conductivity thermal pad, quad M.2 heatsinks with embedded backplates and ROG Water-Cooling Zone
• High-performance Networking: Onboard WiFi 6E (802.11ax), dual Intel^® 2.5 Gb Ethernet and ASUS LANGaurd.
• Fastest Gaming Connectivity: PCIe^® 4.0, quad M.2, USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 front-panel connector, dual USB Type-C^® ports with Thunderbolt™ 4 USB-C^®
• Industry-leading Gaming Audio: ROG SupremeFX ALC4082 with ESS^® ES9018Q2C DAC for high-fidelity audio
• Unmatched Personalization: ASUS-exclusive Aura Sync RGB lighting, including one RGB header and three addressable Gen 2 RGB headers
• DIY-friendly Design: Pre-mounted I/O shield, BIOS FlashBack™, Q-Code, FlexKey, Q-Connector, SafeSlot and Graphics Card Holder
• Renowned Software: Bundled 1-year AIDA64 Extreme subscription and intuitive UEFI BIOS dashboard with integrated MemTest86

ROG STRIX Z590-E GAMING WIFI

Features

• Intel® Socket LGA 1200 for 11th Gen Intel® Core™ processors and 10th Gen Intel Core, Pentium® Gold and Celeron® processors 
• Optimal Power Solution: 14+2 power stages with ProCool II power connector, high-quality alloy chokes and durable capacitors to support multi-core processors  
• Optimized Thermal Design: VRM and aluminum I/O heatsink, L-shaped heatpipe, Trio onboard M.2 heatsinks, including an M.2 backplate for improved cooling for PCIe 4.0 M.2 slot 
• High-performance Networking: On-board Intel® WiFi 6E AX210 (802.11ax) and dual Intel® 2.5 Gb Ethernet with ASUS LANGuard  
• Best Gaming Connectivity: Supports HDMI® 2.0 and DisplayPort™ 1.4 output, and featuring quad M.2 and USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A and Type-C® connectors  
• Intelligent Control: ASUS-exclusive software and firmware utilities that simplify setup and improve performance: AI Overclocking, AI Cooling, AI Networking and Two-Way AI Noise-Cancelation 
• DIY Friendly Design: M.2 Q-Latch, Pre-mounted I/O shield, BIOS FlashBack™, Clr CMOS button, Q-Code and FlexKey 
• Unmatched Personalization: ASUS-exclusive Aura Sync RGB lighting, including RGB headers and Gen 2 addressable headers 
• Industry-leading Gaming Audio: High fidelity audio with ALC4080 with Savitech SV3H712 amplifier, along with DTS^® Sound Unbound and Sonic Studio III  
• Renowned Software: Bundled 60 days AIDA64 Extreme subscription and intuitive UEFI BIOS dashboard with integrated MemTest86

TUF Gaming Z590-PLUS WIFI

Features

• Intel^® LGA 1200 socket: Ready for 11th and 10th Gen Intel^® Core™ processors
• Enhanced power solution: 14+2 DrMOS power stages, six-layer PCB, ProCool sockets, military-grade TUF components and Digi+ VRM for maximum durability
• Comprehensive cooling: Enlarged VRM heatsink, PCH fanless heatsink, M.2 heatsink, hybrid fan headers and Fan Xpert 4 utility
• Next-gen connectivity: PCIe^® 4.0, USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 Type-C^®, front panel header for USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-C^® and Thunderbolt 4™ support
• Made for online gaming: Intel^® WiFi 6, Intel^® 2.5 Gb Ethernet, TUF LANGuard and TurboLAN technology
• Two-way AI Noise Cancelation: Reduces background noise from the microphone and audio output for crystal-clear communication in games or video conferences
• Realtek S1200A codec: Pristine audio quality with unprecedented 108 dB signal-to-noise ratio for stereo line out and 103 dB SNR for line in

PRIME Z590-A

Features

• Intel^® LGA 1200 socket: Ready for 10th and 11th gen Intel^® Core™ processors
• Enhanced power solution: 14+2 DrMOS power stages, six-layer PCB, ProCool sockets, alloy chokes and durable capacitors for stable power delivery
• AI Overclocking: Optimizes CPU performance based on the CPU and cooler, achieving results that are extremely close to manual tuning by experts
• AI Cooling: Manages and controls all motherboard fans, automatically optimizing settings based on current system load and temperature
• Two-way AI Noise Cancelation: Reduces background noise from the microphone and audio output for crystal-clear communication in games or video conferences
• Comprehensive cooling: Large VRM heatsink, M.2 heatsink, hybrid fan headers and Fan Xpert 4
• Next-gen connectivity: PCIe^® 4.0, Intel^® 2.5 Gb Ethernet, USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 Type-C^®, front panel USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-C^®, Thunderbolt™ 4 header support

BIOSTAR

BIOSTAR only have three boards ready for the launch, but it seems they’re all pretty high-end choices. Perhaps they’ll have some more budget-focused models later, but I guess Z490 still fills that void. The Valkyrie Ver. 5.0 is their flagship, and it looks phenomenal with its mixture of RGB LED lighting and pastel cream and pink highlights. It’s just a bit whacky and different, and I think that’s what’ll make it sell. One of the biggest features is the greatly improved VRM configuration, which comes with two tiny active fans. There’s a full metal backplate and a mighty 22-phase power design.

If you think that looks good, you’ll love its little sibling, the Z590I Valkyrie. There aren’t many mini-ITX boards this launch, and this one still comes with a huge VRM heatsink, a single active fan, and a 10-phase power design. Not bad for a small motherboard, but it certainly keeps the slick aesthetics of the ATX model.

BIOSTAR seem to have listened to feedback, too, as they’ve dropped the cheap-looking design on their RACING board. The Z590GTA Ver. 5.0 still features the dual fan design like the bigger board, but it has a 14-phase design, 20K solid caps and a kick-ass heat sink and RGB design. Good work BIOSTAR, you’ve really stepped up for this generation.

Check out the BIOSTAR Z590 official product page here.

Z590 VALKYRIE Ver. 5.0

Features

• Supports 10th/11th Generation Intel Core™ Processor
• Intel Z590 single chip architecture
• Supports 4-DIMM DDR4- 2133/ 2400/ 2666/ 2800/ 2933 3200/ 3600(OC)/ 3733(OC)/ 3800(OC)/ 3866(OC)/ 4000(OC)/ 4133(OC)/ 4266(OC)/ 4333(OC)/ 5000+(OC) up to 128 GB Memory
• Supports PCIe 4.0
• Supports PCIe M.2 4.0 (64Gb/s)
• Supports Intel Optane Technology
• Supports Display Port 5K
• Supports 2.5 GbE LAN
• Supports USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type C
• Supports WiFi 6 (No Wifi 6 card included)

Z590I VALKYRIE Ver. 5.0

Features

• Supports 10th/11th Generation Intel Core™ Processor
• Intel Z590 single chip architecture
• Supports 2-DIMM DDR4- 2133/ 2400/ 2666/ 2800/ 2933 3200/ 3600(OC)/ 3733(OC)/ 3800(OC)/ 3866(OC)/ 4000(OC)/ 4133(OC)/ 4266(OC)/ 4333(OC)/ 5000+(OC) up to 64 GB Memory
• Supports PCIe 4.0
• Supports PCIe M.2 4.0 (64Gb/s)
• Supports Intel Optane Technology
• Supports HDMI 2.0
• Supports 2.5 GbE LAN
• Supports USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type C
• Supports WiFi 6 (No Wifi 6 card included)

Z590GTA Ver. 5.0

Features

• Supports 10th/11th Generation Intel Core™ Processor
• Intel Z590 single chip architecture
• Supports 4-DIMM DDR4- 2133/ 2400/ 2666/ 2800/ 2933 3200/ 3600(OC)/ 3733(OC)/ 3800(OC)/ 3866(OC)/ 4000(OC)/ 4133(OC)/ 4266(OC)/ 4333(OC)/ 5000+(OC) up to 128 GB Memory
• Supports PCIe 4.0
• Supports PCIe M.2 4.0 (64Gb/s)
• Supports Intel Optane Technology
• Supports HDMI 2.0
• Supports 2.5 GbE LAN
• Supports USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type C
• Supports WiFi 6 (No Wifi 6 card included)

EVGA

EVGA is hitting the market with a fairly limited selection, but that’s pretty much what they always do. Rather than a full range of motherboards, you get an extremely high end one, and then one that’s even more extreme than that! These are both hardcore extreme performance and overclocking motherboards for bleeding-edge gaming performance and world-record-setting. Beyond that, they’re overkill for most PC users.

The Dark is one of the most highly tuned boards I’ve ever seen, with a 22-Phase VRM and a heatsink and copper arrangement that looks like it has enough cooling potential to freeze the sun. This motherboard is purely designed for overclocking world records. Sure, some with deep pockets may put it in a gaming rig, but it’s unlikely to see its full potential without some LN2 on top of it.

While the Z590 FTW is the lesser model, it still seems extremely overpowered compared to most consumer boards from other brands. Basically, this one is Extreme, and the other is XTREME!!!! It still offers up a 17-Phase VRM, an 8-layer PCB, and absolutely enormous head sinks and armour. 4800 MHz+ memory support. 7.1 audio, Gigabyte NIC, and all the other usual top-end features are more than accounted for too.

Check out the EVGA Z590 official product page here.

EVGA Z590 DARK

Features

• Intel® Socket LGA 1200 for 11th Gen Intel® Core™ processors and 10th Gen Intel Core, Pentium® Gold and Celeron® processors
• PCIe Gen4 Ready
• ATX Form Factor
• 8-layer PCB
• 22-Phase VRM
• 12+ USB Ports
• 8 SATA ports
• 2 x 2.5Gbps NICs + WiFi 6/BT 5.1
• 7.1 Channel HD Audio
• Three M.2 Key-M slots
• 2 Dedicated AIO CPU Cooler Headers

EVGA Z590 FTW WIFI

Features

• Intel® Socket LGA 1200 for 11th Gen Intel® Core™ processors and 10th Gen Intel Core, Pentium® Gold and Celeron® processors
• PCIe Gen4 Ready
• ATX Form Factor
• 17-Phase VRM
• 8-layer PCB
• 4800MHz+ memory support
• 12+ USB Ports
• 8 SATA ports
• WiFi 6/BT 5.1
• DisplayPort 1.4 and HDMI 2.0
• ARGB headers
• 7.1 Channel HD Audio

Gigabyte AORUS

AORUS are the flagship enthusiast division of Gigabyte, offering the best the brand has to offer in terms of features and performance. That being said, they’re also the more expensive, and if previous generations are anything to go by, they’ll be some of the best (and most expensive) options out there. However, for the must-have enthusiast, it’s hard not to fall in love with them.

Their flagship is the Z590 AORUS XTREME Motherboard, which will satisfy the overclocking enthusiasts with 20+1 Phases Digital VRM, Fins-Array II Heatsink, Direct-Touch Heatpipe II, and their custom NanoCarbon Baseplate. Of course, you get all the other luxurious, such as Intel® Thunderbolt 4, ESSential USB DAC, AORUS PRO Gen4 AIC Adaptor, Intel® WiFi 6E 802.11ax, AQUANTIA® 10GbE LAN. Basically, this board has the best-of-the-best, and it’s all armoured, powered, and cooled to the XTREME!

The boards that are likely more attainable in terms of cost and requirements still come with some very impressive VRM configurations. All of these boards should be able to get the best out of the latest Intel CPUs. However, the XTREME is likely the most dialled in for enthusiast liquid cooling and LN2.

Connectivity, cooling, and design look strong throughout the entire range! However, as we’ve seen with other brands, no mATX options here and only a single mini-ITX. The Z590I AORUS Ultra may be smaller but still comes with a Direct 10+1 Phases Digital VRM Design, Advanced Thermal Solution, Intel® WiFi 6 802.11ax, Intel® 2.5GbE LAN, HDMI 2.0, RGB FUSION 2.0.

Check out the AORUS Z590 official product page here.

Z590 AORUS XTREME

Features

• Supports 11th and 10th Gen Intel^® Core™ Series Processors
• Dual Channel Non-ECC Unbuffered DDR4, 4 DIMMs
• 20+1 Phases Digital VRM Solution with 100A Smart Power Stage and Tantalum Polymer Capacitors Array
• XTREME MEMORY with SMT DIMM and Shielded Memory Routing
• Thermal Reactive Armor with Fins-Array II Heatsink, Direct Touch Heatpipe II and NanoCarbon Baseplate
• Intel^® Thunderbolt™ 4 Onboard
• Onboard Intel^® WiFi 6E 802.11ax 2T2R & BT 5 with 2X AORUS Antenna
• Exclusively bundled ESSential USB DAC
• 127dB SNR AMP-UP Audio with High-End ESS SABRE 9018K2M DAC, LME 49720, OPA1622 and WIMA Audio Capacitors
• AQUANTIA^® 10GbE BASE-T LAN and Intel^® 2.5GbE LAN with cFosSpeed
• Exclusively bundled AORUS PRO Gen4 AIC Adaptor
• Triple Ultra-Fast NVMe PCIe 4.0*/3.0 x4 M.2 with Thermal Guards II
• RGB FUSION 2.0 with Multi-Zone Addressable LED Light Show Design, Support Addressable LED & RGB LED Strips
• Smart Fan 6 Features Multiple Temperature Sensors, Hybrid Fan Headers with FAN STOP and Noise Detection
• Q-Flash Plus Update BIOS without Installing the CPU, Memory and Graphics Card

Z590 AORUS MASTER

• Supports 11th and 10th Gen Intel^® Core™ Series Processors
• Dual Channel Non-ECC Unbuffered DDR4, 4 DIMMs
• Intel^® Optane™ Memory Ready
• 18+1 Phases Digital VRM Solution with 90A Smart Power Stage and Tantalum Polymer Capacitors Array
• Shielded Memory Routing to Avoid Interference
• Advanced Thermal Solution with Fins-Array II, Direct Touch Heatpipe II and NanoCarbon Baseplate
• Onboard Intel^® WiFi 6E 802.11ax 2T2R & BT 5 with AORUS Antenna
• 125dB SNR AMP-UP Audio with High-End ESS SABRE 9118 DAC, ALC1220 and WIMA Audio Capacitors
• AQUANTIA^® 10GbE BASE-T LAN with cFosSpeed
• Triple Ultra-Fast NVMe PCIe 4.0*/3.0 x4 M.2 with Thermal Guards II
• RGB FUSION 2.0 with Multi-Zone Addressable LED Light Show Design, Support Addressable LED & RGB LED Strips
• Smart Fan 6 Features Multiple Temperature Sensors, Hybrid Fan Headers with FAN STOP and Noise Detection
• Q-Flash Plus Update BIOS without Installing the CPU, Memory and Graphics Card

Z590 AORUS ULTRA

Features

• Supports 11th and 10th Gen Intel^® Core™ Processors
• Dual Channel Non-ECC Unbuffered DDR4, 4 DIMMs
• Intel^® Optane™ Memory Ready
• Direct 16+1 Phases Digital VRM Solution with 90A Smart Power Stage
• Shielded Memory Routing for Better Memory Overclocking
• NanoCarbon Fins-Array II Heatsink and Direct Touch Heatpipe II
• Onboard Intel^® WiFi 6 802.11ax 2T2R & BT5 with AORUS Antenna
• AMP-UP Audio with ALC4080 and WIMA for Rear 120dB SNR
• Blazing Fast Intel^® 2.5GbE LAN with cFosSpeed
• Triple Ultra-Fast NVMe PCIe 4.0*/3.0 x4 M.2 with Thermal Guards II
• RGB FUSION 2.0 with Multi-Zone Addressable LED Light Show Design, Support Addressable LED & RGB LED Strips
• Smart Fan 6 Features Multiple Temperature Sensors, Hybrid Fan Headers with FAN STOP and Noise Detection
• Q-Flash Plus Update BIOS without Installing the CPU, Memory and Graphics Card

Z590 AORUS PRO AX

• Supports 11th and 10th Gen Intel^® Core™ Series Processors
• Dual Channel Non-ECC Unbuffered DDR4, 4 DIMMs
• Intel^® Optane™ Memory Ready
• Direct 12+1 Phases Digital VRM Solution with 90A Smart Power Stage
• Shielded Memory Routing to avoid interference
• Advanced Thermal Solution with Fins-Array II Heatsink, Direct Touch Heatpipe II and Thermal Guard II
• Intel® WiFi 6 802.11ax 2T2R & BT5 with AORUS Antenna
• AMP-UP Audio with ALC4080 and WIMA for Rear 120dB SNR
• Blazing Fast Intel® 2.5GbE LAN with cFosSpeed
• Triple Ultra-Fast NVMe PCIe 4.0*/3.0 x4 M.2 with Thermal Guards II for extreme RAID Performance
• RGB FUSION 2.0 with Multi-Zone Addressable LED Light Show Design, Support Addressable LED & RGB LED Strips
• Smart Fan 6 Features Multiple Temperature Sensors, Hybrid Fan Headers with FAN STOP and Noise Detection
• Q-Flash Plus Update BIOS without Installing the CPU, Memory and Graphics Card

Z590I AORUS ULTRA

• Supports 11th and 10th Gen Intel^® Core™ Series Processors
• Dual Channel Non-ECC Unbuffered DDR4, 2 DIMMs
• Intel^® Optane™ Memory Ready
• Direct 10+1 Phases Digital VRM Solution with 90A Smart Power Stage
• Fins- Array II and Multi-Layered PCH / M.2 Heatsink with Two Heatpipes
• Blazing Fast Intel^® 2.5GbE LAN with cFosSpeed
• Intel^® WiFi 6 802.11ax 2T2R & BT5 with AORUS Antenna
• AMP-UP Audio with ALC1220 for Rear 120dB SNR
• HDMI 2.0 supports Premium 4K
• Dual Ultra-Fast NVMe PCIe 4.0*/3.0 x4 M.2 with Thermal Guard
• RGB FUSION 2.0 with Multi-Zone Addressable LED Light Show Design, Support Addressable LED & RGB LED Strips
• Smart Fan 6 Features Multiple Temperature Sensors, Hybrid Fan Headers with FAN STOP and Noise Detection
• Q-Flash Plus Update BIOS without Installing the CPU, Memory and Graphics Card

Z590 AORUS ELITE AX

• Supports 11th and 10th Gen Intel^® Core™ Series Processors
• Dual Channel Non-ECC Unbuffered DDR4, 4 DIMMs
• Direct 12+1 Phases Digital VRM Solution with 60A DrMOS
• Shielded Memory Routing for Better Memory Overclocking
• Fully Covered Thermal Design with High Coverage MOSFET Heatsinks
• Onboard Intel^® WiFi 6 802.11ax 2T2R & BT5 with AORUS Antenna
• AMP-UP Audio with ALC1220 and WIMA Audio Capacitors
• Fast 2.5GbE LAN with Bandwidth Management
• Triple Ultra-Fast NVMe PCIe 4.0*/3.0 x4 M.2 with Thermal Guards
• SuperSpeed USB 3.2 Gen2x2 TYPE-C^® delivers up to 20Gb/s transfer speeds
• Pre-installed IO Shield for Easy and Quick Installation
• RGB FUSION 2.0 with Multi-Zone Addressable LED Light Show Design, Support Addressable LED & RGB LED Strips
• Smart Fan 6 Features Multiple Temperature Sensors, Hybrid Fan Headers with FAN STOP
• Q-Flash Plus Update BIOS without Installing the CPU, Memory and Graphics Card

Z590 AORUS ELITE

• Supports 11th and 10th Gen Intel^® Core™ Series Processors
• Dual Channel Non-ECC Unbuffered DDR4, 4 DIMMs
• Direct 12+1 Phases Digital VRM Solution with 60A DrMOS
• Shielded Memory Routing for Better Memory Overclocking
• Fully Covered Thermal Design with High Coverage MOSFET Heatsinks
• AMP-UP Audio with ALC1220 and WIMA Audio Capacitors
• Fast 2.5GbE LAN with Bandwidth Management
• Triple Ultra-Fast NVMe PCIe 4.0*/3.0 x4 M.2 with Thermal Guards
• SuperSpeed USB 3.2 Gen2x2 TYPE-C^® delivers up to 20Gb/s transfer speeds
• Pre-installed IO Shield for Easy and Quick Installation
• RGB FUSION 2.0 with Multi-Zone Addressable LED Light Show Design, Support Addressable LED & RGB LED Strips
• Smart Fan 6 Features Multiple Temperature Sensors, Hybrid Fan Headers with FAN STOP
• Q-Flash Plus Update BIOS without Installing the CPU, Memory and Graphics Card

Gigabyte VISION

Gigabyte has a second range of high-end motherboards called VISION. These are still very high-end boards, ensuring the best throughput for storage, networking and memory. Of course, they’re also designed to get the best out of the latest CPUs too.

While the AORUS boards are heavily marketed towards gamers and overclockers, the VISION serious is built for content creators. For video editors, 3D renderers, and the like, the VISION series has a lot to offer.

Z590 VISION G

Features

• Powerful performance support 11^th and 10^th Gen Intel^® Core™ series processors
• Dual Channel Non-ECC Unbuffered DDR4 memory, 4 DIMMs
• Go further without more cables by VisionLINK I/O design
• High-bandwidth and low-latency network support by Intel^® 2.5GbE LAN
• Comprehensive connectivity by front and rear USB3.2 Gen 2×2 Type-C^® connectors
• PCIe 4.0 hardware design and maximum memory capacity up to 128GB for empowering real-time workload
• 4 Ultra-Fast NVMe PCIe x4 M.2 connectors with unique thermal guards
• Effective cooling solution design for the better thermal dissipation
• Smart Fan 6 features hybrid fan headers and numerous temperature sensors for fan mode configuration
• Q-Flash Plus Updates BIOS without Installing the CPU, Memory and Graphics Card

Z590 VISION D

Features

• Powerful performance support 11th and 10th Gen Intel^® Core™ Series Processors
• Dual Channel Non-ECC Unbuffered DDR4 memory, 4 DIMMs
• Go further without more cables by VisionLINK TB I/O design
• The limitless connectivity by Thunderbolt™ 4
• High-bandwidth and low-latency network support by dual Intel^® 2.5GbE LAN
• Intel^® Wi-Fi 6 2×2 802.11ax with all-new antenna support for better signal
• SuperSpeed USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type-C^® Header
• Triple Ultra-Fast NVMe PCIe x4 M.2 connectors with unique thermal guards
• Comprehensive cooling solution design for the better thermal dissipation
• Smart Fan 6 features hybrid fan headers and numerous temperature sensors for fan mode configuration
• Q-Flash Plus Updates BIOS without Installing the CPU, Memory and Graphics Card

Z590I VISION D

• Powerful performance support 11th and 10th Gen Intel^® Core™ Series Processors
• Dual Channel Non-ECC Unbuffered DDR4 memory, 2 DIMMs
• The limitless connectivity by Intel^® Thunderbolt™ 4
• High-bandwidth and low-latency network support by Intel^® 2.5GbE LAN
• Intel^® Wi-Fi 6 2×2 802.11ax with all new antenna support for better signal
• Dual Ultra-Fast NVMe PCIe x4 M.2 connectors with unique thermal guards
• Comprehensive cooling solution design for the better thermal dissipation
• Smart Fan 6 features hybrid fan headers and numerous temperature sensors for fan mode configuration
• Q-Flash Plus Updates BIOS without Installing the CPU, Memory and Graphics Card

Gigabyte

Gigabyte AORUS and Gigabyte VISION are exceptional, but let’s not forget the mainline of Gigabyte boards. These include the Gaming X, the UD AC and the UD. Don’t be fooled though, these may not be the flagships, but they’re hardly ill-equipped. All three come with a Direct 12+1 Phases Digital VRM with DrMOS. They all feature a full PCIe 4.0 design, with robust Thermal Design hardware and Integrated IO armour. Of course, the main difference between the UD and UD AC is one features WiFi 6 and one does not. However, all three models come equipped with 2.5 GbE LAN, USB 3.2 Gen2 TYPE-C®, RGB FUSION 2.0, and Q-Flash Plus.

Check out the Gigabyte Z590 official product page here.

Z590 GAMING X

Features

• Supports 11th and 10th Gen Intel^® Core™ Series Processors
• Dual Channel Non-ECC Unbuffered DDR4, 4 DIMMs
• Direct 12+1 Phases Digital VRM Solution with 60A DrMOS
• Shielded Memory Routing for Better Memory Overclocking
• Fully Covered Thermal Design with High Coverage MOSFET Heatsinks
• Fast 2.5GbE LAN with Bandwidth Management
• Triple Ultra-Fast NVMe PCIe 4.0*/3.0 x4 M.2 with Thermal Guards
• Rear USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-C^® and Front USB3.2 Gen1 Type-C^® for Connecting Devices
• Pre-installed IO Shield for Easy and Quick Installation
• RGB FUSION 2.0 with Multi-Zone Addressable LED Light Show Design, Support Addressable LED & RGB LED Strips
• Smart Fan 6 Features Multiple Temperature Sensors, Hybrid Fan Headers with FAN STOP
• Q-Flash Plus Update BIOS without Installing the CPU, Memory and Graphics Card

Z590 UD AC

Features

• Supports 11th and 10th Gen Intel^® Core™ Series Processors
• Dual Channel Non-ECC Unbuffered DDR4, 4 DIMMs
• Direct 12+1 Phases Digital VRM Solution with 50A DrMOS
• Shielded Memory Routing for Better Memory Overclocking
• Enlarged VRM Heatsink with Air-Flow Grooving to Increased Surface Contact
• Fast 2.5GbE LAN with Bandwidth Management
• Onboard Intel^® 802.11ac Wireless & BT with High-Gain Antenna
• Triple Ultra-Fast NVMe PCIe 4.0*/3.0 x4 M.2 with Thermal Guard
• USB 3.2 Gen2 and Front USB Type-C^® for Fast and Versatile Connections
• Pre-installed IO Shield for Easy and Quick Installation
• RGB FUSION 2.0 with Multi-Zone Addressable LED Light Show Design, Support Addressable LED & RGB LED Strips
• Smart Fan 6 Features Multiple Temperature Sensors, Hybrid Fan Headers with FAN STOP
• Q-Flash Plus Update BIOS without Installing the CPU, Memory and Graphics Card

Z590 UD

Features

• Supports 11th and 10th Gen Intel^® Core™ Series Processors
• Dual Channel Non-ECC Unbuffered DDR4, 4 DIMMs
• Direct 12+1 Phases Digital VRM Solution with 50A DrMOS
• Shielded Memory Routing for Better Memory Overclocking
• Enlarged VRM Heatsink with Air-Flow Grooving to Increased Surface Contact
• Fast 2.5GbE LAN with Bandwidth Management
• Triple Ultra-Fast NVMe PCIe 4.0*/3.0 x4 M.2 with Thermal Guard
• USB 3.2 Gen2 and Front USB Type-C^® for Fast and Versatile Connections
• Pre-installed IO Shield for Easy and Quick Installation
• RGB FUSION 2.0 with Multi-Zone Addressable LED Light Show Design, Support Addressable LED & RGB LED Strips
• Smart Fan 6 Features Multiple Temperature Sensors , Hybrid Fan Headers with FAN STOP
• Q-Flash Plus Update BIOS without Installing the CPU, Memory and Graphics Card

MSI

MSI is yet to release a complete specification or features list for their upcoming motherboards. However, they’ve talked about them at length and even released some lovely pictures of them. We expect more information in the coming days though.

Obviously, the Z590 GODLIKE is still king. This is their flagship weapon, featuring Direct 20 Phases, 90A Smart Power Stages, and it should be the motherboard of choice for many of those seeking to break world records in overclocking. Of course, it’s likely to appeal to the gamers with deep pockets too, as this is likely to be one of the most expensive boards for this launch.

You get armoured heatsinks on everything, and then a full backplate, to ensure total stability. Of course, you get 4 x Gen 4 M.2, Dual Thunderbolt 4, and even dual 10 Gigabit LAN + 2.5 Gigabit LAN, and WiFi 6.

Next up, we have the MSI MEG Z590 ACE. Designed to be exceptionally robust and reliable. Even below the GODLIKE, it’s still better equipped than most. It features 19 (16+2+1) 90A Power Stages as well as an outstanding cooling solution. The result – a motherboard that can unleash the full potential of even the most demanding latest Intel processors without breaking a sweat. With an 8-layer PCB and 2oz of copper traces, it’s going to be heavy too. You get 2.5 Gb LAN and Wifi 6E, 2-way SLI/3-way CrossFire support, with full PCIe Gen 4.0. There are 4 x M.2 slots, again running on Gen4, and Dual Thunderbolt 4 Type-C ports (USB 4.0).

The MSI MPG Z590 Gaming Carbon WIFI blends the matte black style with high-end gaming hardware. It features a 6-layer PCB with an excellent thermal solution to ensure this board can successfully harness the power of even the most powerful processors in Intel’s newest lineup. A Digital PWM solution with 18 (16+1+1) 75A Power Stages means it’s no slouch when it comes to overclocking. You even USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 (20Gbps) and 3 x M.2 slots.

For the MSI MAG Z590 Tomahawk WIFI, MSI is trying to offer value for money while still offering next-gen features. It features a robust Digital PWM with 17 (14+2+1) 60A Power Stages to allow for excellent overclocking. To further help with stable memory and processor overclocking, the motherboard comes with a 6-layer PCB and thickened 2 oz Copper traces. Intel 2.5 Gigabit LAN and Wi-Fi 6E offer modern networking capabilities, while PCI-E 4.0 standard ensures GPUs and storage can reach their potential.

The MSI MAG Z590 Torpedo is a little bit of a mystery, with no pictures just yet. However, MSI says it’s “for those on the lookout for a more value-oriented solution.” While features like a robust VRM and digital power delivery remain the same, the networking is different. Instead of Wi-Fi, the MAG Z590 Torpedo comes with dual onboard LAN: Intel 2.5 Gigabit and 1 Gigabit LAN. You get PCIe Gen 4, allowing for dual SLI or 2-way CrossFire. The Torpedo also features 3 x M.2 slots and USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 Type-C ports.

Check out the MSI Z590 official product page here.

MSI MEG Z590 GODLIKE

Features

• Supports 11th and 10th Gen Intel^® Core™ / Pentium^® Celeron^® processors for LGA 1200 socket
• Dual Thunderbolt 4 ports: Thunderbolt USB-C at true 40 Gb/s speeds, 8K display support, Daisy-Chaining and Multi-Port Accessory Architecture provide reliable connectivity and better user experience.
• Quadruple M.2 Connectors: Onboard 4x M.2 connectors for the maximum storage performance with one Lightning Gen 4 solution. Shield Frozr design keeps M.2 SSDs safe while preventing throttling, making them run faster.
• 20 (18+1+1) VRM power phases
• 90A Smart Power Stage
• More Details Coming Soon

MSI MEG Z590 ACE

Features

• Supports 11th and 10th Gen Intel^® Core™ / Pentium^® Celeron^® processors for LGA 1200 socket
• Supports DDR4 Memory, up to 5600(OC) MHz
• Dual Thunderbolt 4 ports: Thunderbolt USB-C at true 40 Gb/s speeds, 8K display support, Daisy-Chaining and Multi-Port Accessory Architecture provide reliable connectivity and better user experience.
• Quadruple M.2 Connectors: Onboard 4x M.2 connectors for the maximum storage performance with one Lightning Gen 4 solution. Shield Frozr design keeps M.2 SSDs safe while preventing throttling, making them run faster.
• Extreme Power Design: INTERSIL digital PWM, 16+2+1 phases with 90A Smart Power Stage, dual CPU power connectors and exclusive Mirrored Power Arrangement to unleash the true power of your processors.
• Outstanding Cooling Solution: Aluminum Cover, VRM Heat-pipe, 7W/mK thermal pads, M.2 Shield Frozr and Aluminum Backplate ensure the extreme performance with low temp.
• 2.5G LAN with latest Wi-Fi 6E: Onboard 2.5G LAN with LAN manager and latest Wi-Fi 6E solution which supports 6GHz spectrum delivering the best online gaming experience.
• Smart Button: One button with multiple hardware control. Reset Computer, Safe Boot, Turbo Fan and EZ LED control functions with just one click.
• 8 Layer PCB with 2oz Thickened Copper: Provides higher performance and long-lasting system stability without any compromise.
• Audio Boost 5 HD: Ultimate audio solution with latest premium ALC4082 audio processor combining ESS audio DAC and amplifier deliver the breathtaking experience.

MSI MPG Z590 Gaming Carbon WIFI

Features

• Supports 11th and 10th Gen Intel^® Core™ / Pentium^® Celeron^® processors for LGA 1200 socket
• Supports DDR4 Memory, up to 5333(OC) MHz
• Lightning Fast Game experience: PCIe 4.0, Lightning Gen 4 x4 M.2, USB 3.2 Gen 2×2
• Enhanced Power Design: 16+1+1 Duet Rail Power System, dual 8-pin CPU power connectors, Core Boost, DDR4 Boost
• Premium Thermal Solution: Enlarged heatsink with heat-pipe, MOSFET thermal pads rated for 7W/mk, additional choke thermal pads and 3x M.2 Shield Frozr are built for high performance system and non-stop gaming experience
• MYSTIC LIGHT: 16.8 million colors / 29 effects controlled in one click. MYSTIC LIGHT EXTENSION supports both RGB and RAINBOW LED strip.
• 2.5G LAN with LAN Manager and Intel Wi-Fi 6E Solution: Upgraded network solution for professional and multimedia use. Delivers a secure, stable and fast network connection
• AUDIO BOOST 5: Reward your ears with studio grade sound quality for the most immersive gaming experience
• High Quality PCB: 6-layer PCB made by 2oz thickened copper and server grade level material
• Pre-installed I/O Shield: Better EMI protection and more convenience for installation

MSI MAG Z590 Tomahawk WIFI

Features

• Supports 10th Gen Intel^® Core™, 11th Gen Intel^® Core™, Pentium^® Gold and Celeron^® processors for LGA 1200 socket
• Supports DDR4 Memory, up to 5333(OC) MHz
• Premium Thermal Solution: Extended Heatsink Design and M.2 Shield Frozr are built for high performance system and non-stop works
• 2.5G LAN and Intel Wi-Fi 6E Solution: Upgraded network solution for professional and multimedia use. Delivers a secure, stable and fast network connection
• Lightning M.2: Running at PCIe Gen4 x4 maximizes performance for NVMe based SSDs
• Lightning USB 20G: Powered by USB 3.2 Gen2x2 controller, offering never before seen USB speeds up to 20Gb/s with USB Type-C
• AUDIO BOOST 5: Reward your ears with studio grade sound quality for the most immersive gaming experience
• Multi-GPU: With Steel armor PCIe slots. Supports 2-Way AMD Crossfire™

MSI MAG Z590 Torpedo

Features

• Supports 10th Gen Intel^® Core™, 11th Gen Intel^® Core™, Pentium^® Gold and Celeron^® processors for LGA 1200 socket
• Supports DDR4 Memory, up to 5333(OC) MHz
• Premium Thermal Solution: Extended Heatsink Design and M.2 Shield Frozr are built for high performance system and non-stop works
• Latest Network Solution: Onboard 2.5G LAN plus Gigabit LAN with LAN Manager deliver the best online experience without lag
• Lightning M.2: Running at PCIe Gen4 x4 maximizes performance for NVMe based SSDs
• Lightning USB 20G: Powered by USB 3.2 Gen2x2 controller, offering never before seen USB speeds up to 20Gb/s with USB Type-C
• AUDIO BOOST 5: Reward your ears with studio grade sound quality for the most immersive gaming experience
• Multi-GPU: With Steel armor PCIe slots. Supports 2-Way AMD Crossfire™

Super Micro

Super Micro have two new boards for this launch, and while they’re still equipped to suit the needs of modern gaming rigs, they’re also a little more industrial looking. That’s hardly surprising, given Super Micro does more work in the server market. However, they also build their consumer boards to the higher standards of the enterprise market. Reliability and stability are the core of Super Micro designs, and that’s easy to see in both the C9Z590-CGW and the C9Z590-CG.

However, both these boards share many features, such as identical memory support, USB ports, and display connections. However, the CGW is the more high-end of the two, offering an additional M.2 port and WiFi 6. However, both boards come with Intel Gigabyte LAN and the mighty Marvell AQC113C 10Gb LAN, so you’re hardly left wanting for networking performance here.

Check out the SuperMicro Z590 official product page here.

C9Z590-CGW

• 11th Generation Intel® Core™ Processors (i3/i5/i7/i9), Pentium® and Celeron® Processors
• Single Socket LGA-1200 (Socket H5) supported, CPU TDP supports Up to 125W TDP
• Intel® Z590
• Up to 128GB Unbuffered non-ECC UDIMM, DDR4-3200MHz, in 4 DIMM slots
• 2 PCI-E 4.0 x16 slots (16/NA or 8/8)2 PCI-E 3.0 x1
  • M.2 Interface: 2 PCI-E 3.0 x4 and 1 PCI-E 4.0 x4
  • M.2 Form Factor: 2260/2280/22110
  • M.2 Key: M-Key
• 2 attached to PCH by PCI-E3.0x 4, 1 attached to CPU by PCI-E4.0x 4), support Raid 0,1 and 5 by RST; M.2-E1 port pre-installed one Intel Wi-Fi 6(802.11ax)+BT5.1 module
• 1 HDMI port, 1 DP (DisplayPort) port, DP version 1.4a, HDMI version 2.0b
• Single LAN with Intel® single Ethernet PHY i219V 1Gb
• Single LAN with Marvell AQC113C 10Gb

C9Z590-CG

• 11th Generation Intel® Core™ Processors (i3/i5/i7/i9), Pentium® and Celeron® Processors
• Single Socket LGA-1200 (Socket H5) supported, CPU TDP supports Up to 125W TDP
• Intel® Z590
• Up to 128GB Unbuffered non-ECC UDIMM, DDR4-3200MHz, in 4 DIMM slots
• 2 PCI-E 4.0 x16 slots (16/NA or 8/8)2 PCI-E 3.0 x1
• 2xPCI-E 4.0 x16 Slots (Slot#4 and Slot#6 can be configured as 16/NA, 8/8)
  • M.2 Interface: 1 PCI-E 4.0 x4 and 2 PCI-E 3.0 x4
  • M.2 Form Factor: 2260/2280/22110
  • M.2 Key: M-Key
• 2 attached to PCH by PCI-E3.0x 4, 1 attached to CPU by PCI-E4.0x 4), support Raid 0,1 and 5 by RSTe software raid
• 1 HDMI port, 1 DP (DisplayPort) port, DP version 1.4, HDMI version 2.0a
• Single LAN with Intel® single Ethernet PHY i219V 1Gb
• Single LAN with Marvell AQC113C 10Gb

Final Thoughts

Prices

While prices are still being confirmed, you can expect to pay around £180 – 250 for the standard boards. This includes the Gigabyte motherboards (not AORUS or VISION), MSI Tomahawk, and the entry models from BIOSTAR, to name but a few.

Moving up, the mid-range options will cost anything up to £400, and basically cost more than their Z490 versions due to the increase in materials used in their construction. This covers the AORUS and VISION boards, MSI MEG and MPG series, etc.

However, this is where things get crazy. The flagship boards are going to be North of £1000. This includes the MSI GODLIKE, the ROG Maximus XIII Extreme Glacial, the AORUS XTREME, and I bet the EVGA boards cost even more than all of them.

Check for the latest stock and prices of Z590 motherboards on Amazon here.

A full list of where to buy links and prices will be added as soon as stock is available.

Overview

There’s clearly no shortage of choices when it comes to Z590 motherboards. However, what’s clear is that they’re all fairly high-end solutions, which is actually the point. The CPU support on these motherboards is broadly identical to that of Z490. It’s certainly rare to see Intel release a new chipset that doesn’t require a new socket, but it’s certainly refreshing.

Z590 is basically everything Z490 could have been. Sure, there are some fantastic Z490 boards out there right now. Many of them will even support the new processors, and as a result, can unlock their full PCIe Gen 4 potential. However, Z590 is dialled in with massively improved power delivery on just about every board from every brand. There’s now active cooling on the VRM for most of them too. This means that the new flagship CPU will be able to hit some massive boost clocks for much longer periods than what we saw on Z490.

If you’re after a more affordable board for your new Intel CPU, then Z490 is likely the way to go. The more affordable motherboards live in that older chipset, as do many mid-range and high-end boards. In fact, many of the flagships from Z490 aren’t all that different from the Z590 variants. However, while Z590 boards have increased power delivery, it’s not like all the Z490 were lacking.

Z590 is all high-end solutions. Even the more affordable ones from BIOSTAR, Gigabyte, and a few others are still very well equipped. The VRM configurations, the motherboard heatsinks and armour, the PCB layers and overall copper content have all been boosted.

One thing is for certain, the prices of the top-end models are going to be a new level of scary, but we are really looking forward to seeing the next-gen levels of performance that they seem to promise!