ASRock’s top of the line Taichi motherboard is here; carrying the new Intel Z490 chipset. Will Taichi allow us to achieve our best overclock with Intel Core i9-10900K?
Product on Review: Z490 Taichi
Manufacturer: ASRock
Street Price: GBP £377 | USD $369 | AUD $689
As the dust begins to settle from the initial Intel 10th Gen. launch it’s become increasingly apparent how confidence is oozing from manufacturers for this new platform and the Intel Z490 chipset. There are approximately 50 motherboards to choose from, whereas over in the AMD camp there are just 35 models bearing the X570 chipset. Whether there is any significance in this we’re yet to see, but what it does highlight is that support is certainly drumming up for LGA 1200.
So far, we’ve taken a look at varying options from the cheaper models, right through to the ultra-high-end. Today we’re set to examine an offering which sits towards the upper-end of the market.
The Taichi has been a permanent fixture for ASRock for a number of years and represents the best of what this company has to offer. For this season’s Intel Z490 chipset, we have yet another rendition of this board and it promises to deliver big on features – including USB 3.2 Gen2x2.
ASRock on their Taichi line
Taichi represents the philosophical state of undifferentiated absolute and infinite potential. A motherboard that fulfills every task – with style! Become like water. Shapeless, formless, versatile for any situation.
Technical Specifications
Below are the technical specifications concerning the Z490 Taichi:
Processor
Supports 10th Gen Intel® Core™ and Pentium® Gold /Celeron® processors for LGA 1200 socket1
Chipset
Intel® Z490 Chipset
Memory
4x DDR4 memory slots, support up to 128GB
Supports: 2133-4666+ MHz (OC)
Supports Dual-Channel mode
Supports non-ECC mode, un-buffered memory
Supports Intel® Extreme Memory Profile (XMP)
Expansion Slots
3x PCIe 3.0x 16 slots – Modes: x16, x8, x4 (2 from CPU, 1 from PCH)
2x PCIe x1 slots (from PCH)
Multi-GPU
Supports 2-Way NVIDIA® SLI™ Technology
Supports 3-Way AMD® CrossFire™ Technology
Storage
Intel® Z490 Chipset
8x SATA 6Gb/s ports
1x M.2 slots PCIe 3.0 x4 (Key M) 2242/2260/2280/22110
1x M.2 slots PCIe 3.0 x4 (Key M) 2242/2260/2280
1x M.2 slots PCIe 3.0 x4 (Key M) 2242/2260/2280
Intel® Optane™ Memory Ready
Supports Intel® Smart Response Technology for Intel Core™ processors
USB
Rear USB Port ( Total 8 )
– 2 x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-A Ports (10 Gb/s) (ReDriver) (Supports ESD Protection)
– 1 x USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type-C Port (20 Gb/s) (ASMedia ASM3242) (Supports ESD Protection)
– 5 x USB 3.2 Gen1 Ports (Supports ESD Protection)
Front USB Port ( Total 9 )
1 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 front panel header
2 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 front panel headers
2 x USB 2.0 front panel headers
Audio
– 7.1 CH HD Audio with Content Protection (Realtek ALC1220 Audio Codec)
– Premium Blu-ray Audio support
– Supports Surge Protection
– WIMA Audio Capacitors (For Front Outputs)
– ESS SABRE9218 DAC for Front Panel Audio (130dB SNR)
– Pure Power-In
– Direct Drive Technology
– PCB Isolate Shielding
– Impedance Sensing on Rear Out port
– Individual PCB Layers for R/L Audio Channel
– Gold Audio Jacks
– 15μ Gold Audio Connector
– Nahimic Audio
LAN
1x 2.5 Gigabit LAN (Dragon RTL8125BG)
WiFi & Bluetooth
Intel® AX201
Supports 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax, MU-MINO Rx, 2.4GHz-5GHz (160MHz) up to 2.4Gbps
WiFi 6 Pre-Certified
Supports Bluetooth® 5.0
Internal connectors
– 1 x SPI TPM Header
– 1 x Power LED and Speaker Header
– 2 x RGB LED Headers
– 2 x Addressable LED Headers
– 1 x CPU Fan Connector (4-pin)
– 1 x CPU/Water Pump Fan Connector (4-pin) (Smart Fan Speed Control)
– 6 x Chassis/Water Pump Fan Connectors (4-pin) (Smart Fan Speed Control)
– 1 x 24 pin ATX Power Connector (Hi-Density Power Connector)
– 2 x 8 pin 12V Power Connectors (Hi-Density Power Connector)
– 1 x Front Panel Audio Connector (15μ Gold Audio Connector)
– 1 x Thunderbolt™ AIC Connector (5-pin) (Supports ASRock Thunderbolt™ 3 AIC R2.0 Card only)
– 2 x USB 2.0 Headers (Support 4 USB 2.0 ports) (Intel® Z490) (Supports ESD Protection)
– 2 x USB 3.2 Gen1 Headers (Support 4 USB 3.2 Gen1 ports) (ASMedia ASM1074 hub) (Supports ESD Protection)
– 1 x Front Panel Type C USB 3.2 Gen2 Header (Intel® Z490) (Supports ESD Protection)
– 1 x Clear CMOS Button
– 1 x Dr. Debug with LED
– 1 x Power Button with LED
– 1 x Reset Button with LED
Back panel ports
– 2 x Antenna Ports
– 1 x PS/2 Mouse/Keyboard Port
– 1 x HDMI Port
– 1 x DisplayPort 1.4
– 1 x Optical SPDIF Out Port
– 2 x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-A Ports (10 Gb/s) (ReDriver) (Supports ESD Protection)
– 1 x USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type-C Port (20 Gb/s) (ASMedia ASM3242) (Supports ESD Protection)*
– 5 x USB 3.2 Gen1 Ports (Supports ESD Protection)
– 2 x RJ-45 LAN Ports with LED (ACT/LINK LED and SPEED LED)
– 1 x BIOS Flashback Button
– HD Audio Jacks: Rear Speaker / Central / Bass / Line in / Front Speaker / Microphone (Gold Audio Jacks)
Dimensions
12 in. x 9.6 in. (30.5 cm x 24.4 cm)
ATX Form Factor
Supports 10th Gen Intel® Core™ and Pentium® Gold /Celeron® processors for LGA 1200 socket1
Chipset
Intel® Z490 Chipset
Memory
4x DDR4 memory slots, support up to 128GB
Supports: 2133-4666+ MHz (OC)
Supports Dual-Channel mode
Supports non-ECC mode, un-buffered memory
Supports Intel® Extreme Memory Profile (XMP)
Expansion Slots
3x PCIe 3.0x 16 slots – Modes: x16, x8, x4 (2 from CPU, 1 from PCH)
2x PCIe x1 slots (from PCH)
Multi-GPU
Supports 2-Way NVIDIA® SLI™ Technology
Supports 3-Way AMD® CrossFire™ Technology
Storage
Intel® Z490 Chipset
8x SATA 6Gb/s ports
1x M.2 slots PCIe 3.0 x4 (Key M) 2242/2260/2280/22110
1x M.2 slots PCIe 3.0 x4 (Key M) 2242/2260/2280
1x M.2 slots PCIe 3.0 x4 (Key M) 2242/2260/2280
Intel® Optane™ Memory Ready
Supports Intel® Smart Response Technology for Intel Core™ processors
USB
Rear USB Port ( Total 8 )
– 2 x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-A Ports (10 Gb/s) (ReDriver) (Supports ESD Protection)
– 1 x USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type-C Port (20 Gb/s) (ASMedia ASM3242) (Supports ESD Protection)
– 5 x USB 3.2 Gen1 Ports (Supports ESD Protection)
Front USB Port ( Total 9 )
1 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 front panel header
2 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 front panel headers
2 x USB 2.0 front panel headers
Audio
– 7.1 CH HD Audio with Content Protection (Realtek ALC1220 Audio Codec)
– Premium Blu-ray Audio support
– Supports Surge Protection
– WIMA Audio Capacitors (For Front Outputs)
– ESS SABRE9218 DAC for Front Panel Audio (130dB SNR)
– Pure Power-In
– Direct Drive Technology
– PCB Isolate Shielding
– Impedance Sensing on Rear Out port
– Individual PCB Layers for R/L Audio Channel
– Gold Audio Jacks
– 15μ Gold Audio Connector
– Nahimic Audio
LAN
1x 2.5 Gigabit LAN (Dragon RTL8125BG)
WiFi & Bluetooth
Intel® AX201
Supports 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax, MU-MINO Rx, 2.4GHz-5GHz (160MHz) up to 2.4Gbps
WiFi 6 Pre-Certified
Supports Bluetooth® 5.0
Internal connectors
– 1 x SPI TPM Header
– 1 x Power LED and Speaker Header
– 2 x RGB LED Headers
– 2 x Addressable LED Headers
– 1 x CPU Fan Connector (4-pin)
– 1 x CPU/Water Pump Fan Connector (4-pin) (Smart Fan Speed Control)
– 6 x Chassis/Water Pump Fan Connectors (4-pin) (Smart Fan Speed Control)
– 1 x 24 pin ATX Power Connector (Hi-Density Power Connector)
– 2 x 8 pin 12V Power Connectors (Hi-Density Power Connector)
– 1 x Front Panel Audio Connector (15μ Gold Audio Connector)
– 1 x Thunderbolt™ AIC Connector (5-pin) (Supports ASRock Thunderbolt™ 3 AIC R2.0 Card only)
– 2 x USB 2.0 Headers (Support 4 USB 2.0 ports) (Intel® Z490) (Supports ESD Protection)
– 2 x USB 3.2 Gen1 Headers (Support 4 USB 3.2 Gen1 ports) (ASMedia ASM1074 hub) (Supports ESD Protection)
– 1 x Front Panel Type C USB 3.2 Gen2 Header (Intel® Z490) (Supports ESD Protection)
– 1 x Clear CMOS Button
– 1 x Dr. Debug with LED
– 1 x Power Button with LED
– 1 x Reset Button with LED
Back panel ports
– 2 x Antenna Ports
– 1 x PS/2 Mouse/Keyboard Port
– 1 x HDMI Port
– 1 x DisplayPort 1.4
– 1 x Optical SPDIF Out Port
– 2 x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-A Ports (10 Gb/s) (ReDriver) (Supports ESD Protection)
– 1 x USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type-C Port (20 Gb/s) (ASMedia ASM3242) (Supports ESD Protection)*
– 5 x USB 3.2 Gen1 Ports (Supports ESD Protection)
– 2 x RJ-45 LAN Ports with LED (ACT/LINK LED and SPEED LED)
– 1 x BIOS Flashback Button
– HD Audio Jacks: Rear Speaker / Central / Bass / Line in / Front Speaker / Microphone (Gold Audio Jacks)
Dimensions
12 in. x 9.6 in. (30.5 cm x 24.4 cm)
ATX Form Factor
Video: Unboxing – Overview – Review
For this motherboard review we’ve produced a video which provides you with the unboxing experience, a highly detailed overview of the board revealing all the features with a verdict. Check out the video review here or watch below:
Test Setup & Methodology
Notes: We’ve revamped our benchmark regime by removing a number of tests which reveal little, to no difference between each motherboard model. Gaming performance is one such area which has been removed due to the inability for each motherboard to offer any advantage over another. Instead, we have focussed on meaningful/tangible analysis which examines the VRM/chipset design, and the storage performance which will be far more informative to the end user.
TEST SETUP
CPU Intel Core i9-10900KCooling: Corsair Hydro Series H110i
Motherboard: ASRock Z490 Taichi
Memory: 32GB Corsair Vengeance LPX 3000MHz
Graphics: AMD Radeon RX 480
Storage: Intel S3500 128GB SATA SSD + Samsung 960 Pro 512GB PCIe 3.0 SSD
PSU: Corsair HX1050 80 Plus Gold Certified PSU
Monitor: AOC U2879VF
BENCHMARKS
PCMark 10 – Overall Extended ScoreSiSoftware SANDRA – SATA/PCIe Storage Tests
SiSoftware SANDRA – Processor Image Processing
OTHER SOFTWARE
Temperature Analysis: HWMonitorStress Testing Software: AIDA64 Stability Test
CPU Specification Monitoring: CPU-Z
Benchmarks: Power Consumption
In this first test we analyse the power efficiency from the wall for each motherboard (Minus the GPU). While each model uses the same chipset/platform, energy results can fluctuate between manufacturers due to the features and specifications that are integrated. First of all, for the idle tests the system is cold booted into Windows and no additional applications are executed – wattage is noted on the external energy monitor we use and then we open Aida64 stability test and execute a stress test, noting the highest reading on the monitor. Below are the results of this energy test.
Benchmarks: VRM & Chipset Cooling
Each motherboard manufacturer designs their board with a unique set of heatsinks to cover key areas like the VRM/mosfets and the chipset itself. In these test we use HWMonitor to identify the minimum values for VRM and chipset and then we load up Aida64 stability test again and perform a 20 minute run, recording the maximum value for both attributes.
Benchmarks: PCMark 10
PCMark 10 features a comprehensive set of tests that cover the wide variety of tasks performed in the modern workplace. With a range of performance tests, custom run options, and the new Battery Life Profile, PCMark 10 is the complete PC benchmark for the modern office.
Benchmarks: SATA Performance
In order to ascertain the SATA performance for our motherboards we use SiSoftware SANDRA and the File System Bandwidth performance test. This allows us to obtain the sequential read/write transfer rates for the drive being tested – Intel S3500 128GB SSD.
Benchmarks: PCIe M.2 Performance
In order to ascertain the PCIe M.2 performance for our motherboards we use SiSoftware SANDRA and the File System Bandwidth performance test. This allows us to obtain the sequential read/write transfer rates for the drive being tested – Samsung 960 Pro 512GB.
Benchmarks: CPU Image Processing
AIDA64 Product Page
In our last test we observe the Image Processing performance from the CPU attached to the motherboard. For this we use SiSoftware SANDRA and the benchmark specifically designed for measuring the common algorithms associated with processing imagery.
Overclocking
For the overclocking phase, we already know that our CPU (Intel Core i9-10900K) is capable of having all cores operate at 5.3GHz so this is the target which we aimed for with Taichi.
Taichi was able to take all 10-cores of the mighty 10900K up to 5.3GHz with 1.3v. We should note that other motherboards we’ve tested required significantly more voltage (1.35+) this translates to lower temperatures – allowing our CPU to remain in the low 80 degrees which is a fantastic result!
Conclusion
At its core the Taichi is a great motherboard that represents the best of what ASRock has to offer for the new Intel 10th Gen and Z490 platform.
We really like the styling on this motherboard and that it asserts itself with quite a unique livery which helps to set it apart from other models. There is a tendency for different motherboard designs to be indistinguishable as the neutral themes are favoured by all manufacturers.
Across Taichi there is a strong feature-set with stacks of storage accommodation, whether that is SATA or PCIe M.2. We’re very pleased to see that USB 2.0 has been phased out of the back panel configuration and on offer are USB 3.2 Gen1/2. ASRock has moved things up a notch and incorporated USB 3.2 Gen2x2.
Taichi is the first motherboard we’ve seen for this generation which includes active cooling for the VRM configuration. As you can imagine, having cooling fans around the CPU socket increases overall system noise and, well, we expected it to dramatically improve thermals and they were just ‘OK’. It is the chipset heatsink design which presented us with a cause for concern, the physical design of the middle M.2 slot on Taichi means that if you want to access this slot, you will need to remove the entire heatsink from the Intel Z490 chip. Not only is this cumbersome and awkward (cannot be performed having the motherboard installed inside a computer case) it disturbs the thermal pad sitting over the chipset and if the screws aren’t tightened properly, could cause a negative impact on the thermal performance. ASRock should avoid pairing up M.2 cooling and chipset cooling.
In terms of overall performance ASRock’s Taichi performs very well and overclocking is a particular strength. Like other motherboards we were able to achieve the 5.3GHz milestone across all 10-cores, but the difference in ASRock’s favour was that we only needed 1.3v running through the 10900K to hit this result. Other Z490 boards require more, resulting in higher temperatures, but with the 10900K in our Taichi board, the temperatures remained around 80 degrees which is a fantastic achievement!
Although this is a flagship model for ASRock, we were surprised to learn that the listing price is set at: GBP £377 | USD $369 | AUD $689. For this pricepoint we do expect a Thunderbolt port, or at the very least a Thunderbolt header and provided adapter/device but this isn’t supplied.
The new Z490 Taichi is a solid motherboard which offers a good assortment of features, performs very well and is a strong contender in the overclocking field.
Pros
+ A fresh, unique design
+ Equipped with plenty of RGB lighting
+ Excellent overclocking ability
+ Offers great performance
+ Includes USB 3.2 Gen2x2 port
+ All USB 3.2 ports on back panel
+ Has future support for PCIe 4.0
+ Uses strengthened PCI Express slots
+ Offers triple M.2 slots
Cons
– VRM fans generate noise
– No Thunderbolt support
– Chipset temperature greater than competition
– Central M.2 slot requires chipset heatsink to be removed
– Pricey
+ A fresh, unique design
+ Equipped with plenty of RGB lighting
+ Excellent overclocking ability
+ Offers great performance
+ Includes USB 3.2 Gen2x2 port
+ All USB 3.2 ports on back panel
+ Has future support for PCIe 4.0
+ Uses strengthened PCI Express slots
+ Offers triple M.2 slots
Cons
– VRM fans generate noise
– No Thunderbolt support
– Chipset temperature greater than competition
– Central M.2 slot requires chipset heatsink to be removed
– Pricey
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