It's wild honestly. Watching this from a machine that's been running a i7-2600 for at least a decade. Finally upgrading my rig and going from 4 cores to 12 along with this mobo and new ram.
A great review, just like your other reviews. Let me note, however, that ROG STRIX Z790-H is not the only ROG STRIX Z790 variant with a 6-layer PCB. ROG STRIX Z790-A and -F also have a 6-layer PCB. By the way, although all of ROG STRIX Z790 variants seem to be available in the U.K. and the U.S., it is not necessarily the case elsewhere. For instance, only ROG STRIX Z790-A, -F, and -I are sold in Japan.
I was searching for this motherboard overview for a long time. Finally one good guy did it! The only thing I miss on this MB is the second front usb 3.0 header (ex for Corsair 5000t case). I don't understand why the hell they put 8 fan connectors to the MB, since all water coolers have their own hubs. Just remove the headers and other unnecessary stuff to make things cheaper. I like the ROG logo here much more than on z790-F or z790-E that looks covered by plastic. I like the rog strix series, but paying 400+$ for 400$ CPU looks stupid.
Yeah i was overhauling my pc back in January, and i saw this board on asus's website but could not find it anywhere. After a while i found it at a small computer store in california, no pictures just the listing, and somehow got one. It seems they are finally coming into circulation now. Great board
Basically 2 CPU_connectors is doubled/paired, so it's already 6 connectors, 1 is for W_Pump(i guess it's not regulated with app, only some BIOS percentage=curve regulation) so is already 5, 5 seems good for chassis_fans and if you don't have "fancy" Strix V-card with own fan_connectors. The stupidity for me is all remained connectors are located at bottom of the board, so it's additional pain in E-ATX case with searching long-corded fans or wire extensions for fans.
Is it not enough that it has 1x "3.2 gen 1" header, which supports 2 front "3.2 gen 1" ports? Front USB (Total 7 ports) 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 connector (supports USB Type-C®) 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 header supports 2 additional USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports 2 x USB 2.0 headers support 4 additional USB 2.0 ports Edit: Oh, I see you need "(4x) USB 3.0", you wrote "second", so I thought you only needed a total of 2 in the front
This guy is the most hand talking-est youtube guy i've seen yet. I gotta say though, i'm actually learning a lot more about motherboards just from this video. he talks about a lot of stuff the others don't bother to mention.
Please answer!! I have the same motherboard and I had some problems with RAM RGB, I got it solved only by moving it from slots 2 4, to 3 4. Will it still work with 2 channels?
Yes and also check for these Mobos MSI MAG Z790 TOMAHAWK MAX WIFI MSI PRO Z790-A MAX WIFI Gigabyte Z790 AORUS ELITE X AX Gigabyte.Z790 AERO G (rev. 1.0)
Great review! Do you have plans to review the STRIX z790-A? Also, out of curiosity, what is the origin of your accent? It sounds a little like someone else I watch. It's not a hindrance at all, it's cool so was curious! Thanks!
By the looks of it this Z790-H board seems to be an exact copy of the Z690-F, so there's that. There is some heavy recycling going on :) But at a 100 USD/EUR discount, not bad at all.
I've got a great idea. How about Asus manufacturing a Z790 motherboard that actually works. Not just some of the of the components on the board but all of the components. Example, RAM slots, USB slots, M.2 slots, etc. You know, like Asus used to manufacture back in the old days. I understand that there will be some boards with issues. So, another great idea. If an Asus customer happens to get one of these boards, how about Asus standing behind their product and actually supporting their customer. After all, this customer paid the astronomical price Asus charges for these boards and now the customer is out a lot of money and a board that doesn't work as advertised.
I just got a z790-F model, and it seems to be buggy with the network issue. I almost think that I might buy a secondary network card. To install windows 11 on it is a Herculean task it comes with NO onboard drivers. What a pain in the azz.
Hi Laurent, great review! Just bought this MOBO and I want it to pair it with a Peerless Assasin 120 SE aircooler. I've read that some dual-tower coolers have clearance issues with the VRM heatsinks. Do you know know if this is the case? Thanks!
Hi Axel. If people reported so, you ll probably either be very close to the cooling elements or blocked by it. I would suggest a lower profile cooler ?AIO from EKWB are really great
Yes and also check for these Mobos MSI MAG Z790 TOMAHAWK MAX WIFI MSI PRO Z790-A MAX WIFI Gigabyte Z790 AORUS ELITE X AX Gigabyte.Z790 AERO G (rev. 1.0)
So does putting a M.2 in the top slot reduce the PCIE to gen 4.0 and 8x, or does it bypass since it's 4.0 and not 5.0? I've already ordered this board but it's still in shipping. It's also my first build, so I'm not sure exactly how the M.2 reacts with the PCIE slots, all I know is that on some motherboards it drop it from 5.0 to 4.0, but idk the technicalities of it. Also, would putting the SSD in one of the lower slots decrease the performance by any noticeable margin, or would it just be best to just put it in the top? Good review BTW, the color coding for the connections and ports really gives a easier layout to someone that hasn't built a PC before. Seeing all the capacitors, pins, and "stuff" on the board makes it a little overwhelming.
@@jupitervolcano I skimmed over the manual and I couldn't find anything regarding the storage and GPU limits. I ended up putting the SSD in the second slot and my download speeds are capped by my internet, the main limiting factor for most people is gonna be internet speed. I have a 980 pro 2TB by the way.
On the z-790-h, the NVME PCIE is Gen 4 only in all slots, even in the top slot (I have this board). Only the top graphics card slot is PCIE 5 so it runs at x16 and is not affected by the NVME drives - which suits me as I do not see the need to get an Gen 5 NVME as Gen 4 is fast enough
@@danijelb.3384 I am very satisfied with the board overall. It does have has very high heatsinks which can interfere with some larger air coolers so beware if you run on air. I am running a 13600K so cannot comment on its performance with a 14900K, but assume you would be using an All in One Liquid cooler on such a chip.
@danijelb.3384 it works fine , the only thing that's not working are the rams that wont go to 6000gh tli tried to change their frequency but the motherboard will light up LED for cpu error , any ideea how i could put them to work on 6000freq?
That's strange, that board should support up to 78000mhz. Have you checked whether the ram is officially supported? Have u tried another ram sticks? How many sticks 2 or 4?@@Yasshiro99
hi laurent, always loved your talk and detailed review with motherboards.. its actually more useful than checking reviewer or other channels! is there any chance you'll take a look at MSI X670E Tomahawk?, seems to be more competitive than other X670E on that price range.
This motherboard caught my eye and the features to price point is quite good. I've seen some issues with this motherboard online. Please share your thoughts and findings with me. Especially if you own this motherboard.
Yes, there have been MAJOR issues with VSOC on Asus boards. Watch my coverage on the topic : ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-c7xdT0h1XhQ.html
@@Laurentschoice :/ thats not good im planning to make a new system with an 13700k ddr5 i need thunderbolt header. i thought about the asus prime A or this gaming model i guess they release this one not too long ago i don't remember seeing it before .. im going to watch your video but i would appreciate if you give me some recommendations base on your reviews .
i've readed early that some Asus boards have very high VRM radiators, some Air-Coolers just didn't fit in there. And owners had to buy new cooler or dissasemble or cut some parts of VRM-heatsink.
Had a really hard time deciding between this and the ROG STRIX Z790-F which is a bit discounted (but still pricier than the Wifi7). Ultimately went with the Wifi7, haven't built the PC yet though. Other components are 14700K, Noctua NH-U12a, Gigabyte Gaming OC V2 4070TI, 64GB@6800 Corsair Platinum and Be Quiet Dark Power 13 1000W in a Fractal Meshify 2 Compact
Similar build here: 14700K, ZOLTAC 4070, 64 GB DDR5 @ 5600 (I believe), 1000W Power supply, Arcti Liquid Freezer II 360 AIO in a Fractal Meshify 2 Case. Im buying a motherboard right now. I guess this is the one Im going with hahaha
@@Shadowsamy Nice! The U12A was getting pretty hot so I ended up replacing with an LF-2 as well! But went with 280 front mount since there is no room with my RAM for top mount (Corsair Dominator). Now the GPU doesnt fit the Meshify 2 Compact (you won't have any issues with the full size version), so I am replacing it with a Be Quiet 500DX
Great review and video, just a shame it looks like this board wont allow you to use a NH D15 or NH-D15 chromax black or similar air cooler, or can anyone confirm that you can ? thx
The cooler works out of the box rotated 90 degrees in this board, not ideal considering how close it sits to GPU's. Literally only ONE heatpipe barely touches a small piece of plastic on the right hand side (not the large back plastic shroud). Personally, I took a soldering iron cutter and made a small notch in the plastic to accommodate the heatpipe. It's so ridiculous how small of an area needed to be different in order to make the cooler fit out of the box.
@@ChrisDaytrader Deepcool has really cheap AIO options close to the price of the D-15, only $10-15 USD more. It would fit no problem, but if you're wanting the air cooler for simplicity then I guess there's no problem with doing some trimming, lol.
Thank you! A very detailed review, all important spots highlighted. Seems like almost ideal board for me. One thing is i dont know why Asus so hate to add M.2_Sata support, yes this board can handle one M.2 Sata by one M.2 slot but it's still so idiotic. I know it's only my problem that several of my M.2_Sata SSDs still working well and healthy and didn't expired warranty, what do i do with them? throw in trashcan? or buy additional wired/PCI-e M.2 addons for my money? Even 1/2 price cheaper boards from Giga or MSI got atleast two M.2 slots with M.2_Sata support. Same thing with Sata_6G ports for all 600/700 Asus boards, only 4 Sata_6G ports except Pro-Art series MoBos, and yes i'am that person, who still uses more that 4 HDDs in my system (i need atleast 5 Sata_6G for my needs). And as you mentoied only 6-layered PCB, thats guaranteed no any RAM sticks can achieve that, i guess even a 7000+ MHz for 2 slots is not reacheable(maybe i wrong). That is looks expensive for offer to buy.
I feel this and it seems like it is some kind of predictive design change in how most users don't need the extra sata ports however the one I'm upgrading from has 8 and I feel the same way. Do I just use one of the M.2 ports to expand sata ports if need be?
@@stevensims3342 sure, you can use NVMe(PCI-E) to Sata expansion card. But it seems to be you need to take of that aluminum cover(heatsink) for SSDs, so you might lose some in aestethics with than crunches. And again, in my country that expansion card(adapter) with 6 sata-ports by one NGFF PCB costs around ~ $40, so it's still additional money-drain for that ~ $300 MoBo. Also i've searched by Noctua Compatibility Center that NH-D15S incompatible with that board in horizontal air-flow position cause of height of VRM radiators, only vertical positioning where is CPU cooler blows through itself hot air created by videocard. I'am already ordered that MoBo and chosing/searching RAM modules. i hope Noctua did that measurements with 2-fan configuration, or i just will be screwed and have to do reversed(upside-down) build in my Silent Base 802 cause GPU will be roasting CPU.
@@unheard5982 idk everything I'm seeing you don't need a insane CPU cooler in most cases. That is interesting for sure as I have my current setup running vertically but with old gtx970. I'm glad you said that as I am looking at the NH-D15 and will get a new GPU soon.
@@stevensims3342 You can find videos on YT where people remove some of the useless plastic covers from the VRM radiator. This problem with Noctua seems to be widespread since some of 600-series "High-End" Strix boards from Asus. Honestly, I don’t know how other vendors deal with this. Maybe they made usual VRM rads without any useles plastic and normal by height for most of Air-Coolers. But removing this stuff from MoBo may be not good in guarantee case.
I liked Asus mobo but now it's not a great choice anymore. Overpriced... And f***bios that put the CPU to a max wattage right out of the box... Not really great. I have friends who bought a 13700K or 13900K CPU that runs at 100°C all the time and thermal thottles.... Not great... why ? Because of mobo makers f***bios. Intel's adviced PL2 is 253 Watts.... On those motherboard it's by default up to 340 watts ! Whaaat ? WTF !!! On AMD platform it's far from being better... what a mess !
Running a 14700k and a Strix 4090 with this mobo and it works perfectly fine with a 32Inch 4K monitor, VRM temps are good, same as in the video, with multiple hours of gaming and heat accumulating in the case it will reach 55C but its still fine, havent got my hand on the Arctic freezer III 360 yet so with a VRM fan it will be even more cool
Yes and also check for these Mobos MSI MAG Z790 TOMAHAWK MAX WIFI MSI PRO Z790-A MAX WIFI Gigabyte Z790 AORUS ELITE X AX Gigabyte.Z790 AERO G (rev. 1.0)
Hi Gordon :) Good to read you :) ! They are correct. Channel 1 are the two first dimms (from the CPU) Channel 2 the two remaining Let me know if there is something u want me to clarify. :)
I have the Strix-Z790-E. Let me really quick give alittle feedback on ASUS. The 1303 bios absolutely fine. The release 1402 it bricks my system. Well, not bricked, but might as well have been. Locking up setting things up IN THE BIOS screen. Impossible to enter windows (BAD blue screens) at DEFAULT settings! So, I post for people NOT to go with 1402 bios it's a hack job. I got FLOODED with users having the exact same thing. So what does ASUS do? They send me and email, personally, with links to the NEW 1501 beta bios to fix all of this. I'm an idiot I took the bait. 1501 did as bad as 1402 but 1501 DETROYED MY BOOT SSD Data! Yep. I'd suggest you stay away. They don't have a freaking clue anymore. They are NOT the ASUS of old. Garbage company.
I'm glad to see ASUS stepping up their game with the ROG STRIX Z790-H GAMING WiFi motherboard. It's about time they addressed the pricing issue from last year. Looking forward to more reviews on this! 👍🤩
I am still feeling great about my Z690 Tomahawk (DDR4). Asus has been notoriously selling heavily ovepriced mobos and the trend does not seem to slow down any time soon.
Hey, a video explaining the current technology in motherboards would go a long way towards helping people (including me) choose one! I feel like theres an abundance of purposeful obfuscation around motherboard technology from corporations so people buy less for more. Reviewers talk of VRM phases and lane sharing, audio codecs, futureproofing, etc, and yet i still cant tell what information is truly relevant (because it all sounds important!).Ive done countless hours of research into boards but still many of those things i truly only half understand. I hate having to read reddit for hours just to get 3 or 4 vague conflicting answers for various next gen board features and their overall relevance to my build. Trying to optimize a build for a 7800x3d and a 7800xt will be completely different from trying to optimize for a 7950X3D and a 7900xtx. But every time garunteed im spending 20x more time looking for the most optimal motherboard compared to other componets because theres so much market hyperbole to make random features that dont matter selling points. Please guide us though these tumultuous technology times motherboard jesus. Alternatively a simple motherboard ranking video per chipset (so i dont have to think at all) would be great too.
been there myself. Hence the channel. PCIe standards dictates how much bandwidth flows from the CPU / CHIPSET towards the components. PCIe 3.0 = 1 GBs / lane PCIe 4.0 = 2 GBs / lane PCIe 5.0 = 4 GBs / lane When a component advertises PCIe.5 standard, it will also indicate upto how many lanes it will operate. For example, a 16 Lane, PCie 5.0 export slot will be able to swap upto 64 GBs worth of bandwidth in both directions simultaneously ( 4 GBs * 16 lanes ) . Components can operate any standard below its advertised standard. I.e. : PCIe 5.0 M.2 SSD connector can operate a PCIe 4.0 or PCIe 3.0 enabled M.2 SSD. Finally, every bandwidth hungry component creates an electro-magnetic field which can interfere with other components and cause system instability. That is what we refer to as "PCIe bleeding". The more layers the PCB has, the better is can handle with signal interferences. Hope this helps. L.
Tommahawk for me have better board layout, especially for chassis fans, 16+1+1 90A Power phases (vs 17 Power phases 80A by Strix-H), more Sata ports, Realtek ALC4080(a little bit better specs) vs S1220A (by Strix-H), cheaper than Strix-H by 1/3 or 1/4.
Yes and also check for these Mobos MSI MAG Z790 TOMAHAWK MAX WIFI MSI PRO Z790-A MAX WIFI Gigabyte Z790 AORUS ELITE X AX Gigabyte.Z790 AERO G (rev. 1.0)
