A duo of reports from the last two days has confirmed the Intel Rocket Lake-S launch for March 30th. We’ll see if, by some miracle, this doesn’t turn into an effective paper launch with a months long wait to get one of these chips. At the same time, WCCFTech has the full details on all of the Rocket Lake-S chips:
Z590 brings a sizable refresh to Intel’s enthusiast platform motherboards. Starting with the spotlight feature, PCIe Express Gen4, bringing Intel up to par with AMD on both the storage front allowing for incredibly fast NVMe storage to be deployed and GPUs that extra bandwidth. Additional features include support for Thunderbolt 4, USB4, USB 3.2 Gen2x2 (20Gbps), 2.5Gbe as standard equipment, and Intel CNVi for Wi-Fi 6 and 6e. All of this made possible with Intel doubling DMI link bandwidth to the chipset.
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Overall we were quite impressed with the hardware on this motherboard. We like the VRM very much, but what really impressed us is the feature count. For starters, ASRock’s approach to PCI-E 4.0 is more unique than we have seen, with a separate fourth M.2 slot just to be used with next generation CPUs. We also have USB 3.2 2×2 (20Gb/s), 2.5Gbit LAN, and a lot of USB internal and rear IO connectors. The aesthetics of the motherboard are also quite pleasing. Overall, the Z490 Taichi from ASRock once again fulfils the legacy of the product line and would make its predecessors proud.
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Don’t let its 6+2 phase VRM fool you, the C9Z490-PGW is loaded with high quality parts that are capable of taking your CPU to a very comfortable overclock without much hassle. The level of quality of the motherboard ensures excellent performance as well. The PEX8747 and the 10Gbit NIC are very nice additions, and pretty much make this a mixture between a high-end gaming/enthusiast motherboard and a workstation product.
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We kick off motherboard specifications starting with the Intel LGA1200 socket and behind it the Z490 chipset. This platform is compatible with an entire range of processors from 10th Gen Core i3 to Core i9 and even Pentium Gold and Celeron. Memory support includes speeds up to DDR4400 with overclocking and 2933MHz in JEDEC timing mode. Four slots support 32GB DIMMS offering a peak capacity of 128GB.
Audio is next in line with the ALC1220VB Codec supporting 8 channels and DTS:X Ultra. Networking is two part, one being 2.5Gbe powered by the Intel i225 with a second Intel Gbe controller for backup. Wi-Fi 6 is included on this platform with the AX201 from Intel offering Wi-Fi 6 and BT5.1 connectivity.
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Courtesy of Videocardz, we have some additional Intel Core i9-11900K benchmarks today. A recent test using CPU-Z shows the chip operating with an all-core clock of 4.7GHz, or the stock setting. No added boosts here. The chip was tested on an Intel Z490 motherboard, complete with DDR4-3200. The chip racked up a score of 716 points for single threaded performance and 6,539 for multi-threaded. They also have numbers from Geekbench 3, 4 and 5. All of which are impressive. Single threaded performance on GB 5 rolls in at 1920, with 10955 multi-threaded. head over to see the full details.
Ryan Shrout of Intel dropped some additional performance numbers for the upcoming Rocket lake-S platform, this time focusing on PCIe 4.0 performance. Intel has been behind AMD for years now in their support for PCIe 4.0, so it’s nice to see them finally join AMD with the Rocket Lake-S CPUs. Unfortunately, that also means a motherboard upgrade to get there. Intel is claiming an 11% gain over the AMD Ryzen 5950X in the PCMark10 Quick test with an i9-11900K. This should be an interesting battle once all performance numbers roll out in a few weeks.
The motherboard has a very neutral aesthetic appeal, with a nice black and gunmetal color theme. Most of the motherboard’s shields are actually made of actual metal instead of the typical plastic we see most of the time. There are eight fan headers located on the motherboard, including two pump headers that probably operate at full speed by default, and a CPU_OPT header. There are also two external temperature sensors circled in green, and there are included temperature probes that you can stick in a GPU or near an exhaust or intake vent in the case.
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We kick off motherboard specifications starting with the Intel LGA1200 socket. This platform is compatible with an entire range of processors from 10th Gen Core i3 to Core i9. This board’s power design is thoroughly overkill, even for the enthusiast overclocker, offering a doubled seven-phase design for the Vcore with Intersil ISL99390 stages at 90A each. SOC is powered by a single Vishay SIC651 50A stage and Intersil ISL69269 PWM controller behind it all.
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The Gigabyte W480 Vision D is a striking motherboard. Gigabyte has done a good job of creating a white theme that stands out visually, but still fits a wide array of components. While the RGB LED implementation lags behind some other boards in terms of complexity and customization, diffusion is excellent, and the placement blends in seamlessly with the board’s theme.
Out of the box, performance was excellent for the Gigabyte W480 Vision D. Memory overclocking was good as well, as I reached 4000 MHz CL16 stable with my Trident Z Neo kit. CPU overclocking is locked down on the W480 chipset, but VRM thermals were great when running Prime95 at stock settings, never exceeding 45 °C.
Read more @ TechPowerUp