The launch of the new LGA1851 desktop platform with Core Ultra 200S processors opens a new stage in the development of Intel's productive solutions. Despite some ambiguities with CPU gaming performance at the start of sales, the overall capabilities of Arrow Lake-S chips are at a decent level, and the outstanding potential of the platform allows you to unleash functional motherboards based on the top Intel Z890 chipset. Today we are reviewing ASUS ROG STRIX Z890-E GAMING WIFI, a well-equipped model based on the new PCH, which we will test in conjunction with an Intel Core Ultra 7 265K processor.
| Model name | ASUS ROG STRIX Z890-E GAMING WIFI |
| Processors | Core Ultra 200 |
| Connector | LGA1851 |
| Form factor | ATX, 305×244 mm |
| Chipset | Intel Z890 |
| Memory. | 4×DIMM DDR5, up to DDR5-9200+; 192GB max. |
| Expansion slots | 1×PCI-E 5.0 x16; 1×PCI-E 4.0 x16 (x4) |
| Storage devices | 3×M.2 PCI-E 5.0 x4; 3×M.2 PCI-E 4.0 x4; 1×M.2 PCI-E 4.0 x4/SATA; 4×SATA 6 GB/s |
| Network | 1×5 GbE LAN (Realtek RTL8126); 1×Wi-Fi 7 (Intel Wi-Fi 7 BE200, 802.11be, Bluetooth 5.4) |
| Elements of the interface panel | 2×Thunderbolt 4 (Type-C); 2×USB 3.2 Gen2 (Type-C); 7×USB 3.2 Gen2; 3xUSB 3.2 Gen1; 1×HDMI 2.1; 1×DisplayPort; RJ-45; 2× Wi-Fi antenna; 2× audio; S/PDIF; BIOS Flashback and Clr CMOS buttons |
| Fans | 7×4 foam (PWM/DC) |
| Sound | Realtek ALC4080 codec + Savitech SV3H712 AMP |
| Approximate price | 23,500 UAH (~$565) |
Package contents
ASUS ROG STRIX Z890-E GAMING WIFI has an extended package. The board is offered with an additional antenna (ASUS Wi-Fi Q-Antenna) for the wireless network module, a pair of SATA interface cables, an additional heat-conducting sticker, as well as a set of rubber M.2 racks and a pair of sliders for fixing compact drives.
Plastic cable ties will surely come in handy when organizing cables in your system unit. A set of decorative stickers will not be superfluous when decorating the system, and a fabric keychain will remind you once again which series the motherboard in your PC belongs to.
Before you get acquainted with the kit, here is a stock photo from the manufacturer for the reason that we got ASUS ROG STRIX Z890-E GAMING WIFI for review as part of a gaming system from Artline. Therefore, the conditions for testing the board are as realistic as possible.
Layout and equipment
Obviously, ASUS ROG STRIX Z890-E GAMING WIFI is based on the flagship chipset for the new platform - Intel Z890. The top-of-the-line system hub is still the only option for boards with the LGA1851 connector. Of course, the model is designed to work with any chip from the Arrow Lake-S line. The latter is not so numerous yet, but the manufacturer has already presented the CPUs that are most likely to be used with Intel Z890-equipped boards.
The model has the characteristic features of the ROG STRIX line of boards: a dark overall color scheme, massive coolers, and decorative accents with diagonal accents. So, the black 8-layer PCB with a matte finish was not a surprise, along with the large cooling radiators that cover a significant area of the PCB.
ASUS ROG STRIX Z890-E GAMING WIFI has a powerful processor power stabilization unit. The VRM has a 23-phase (18+1+2+2) circuit. For the computing cores, Infineon PMC41430 assemblies with an operating current of up to 110A are provided, Infineon PMC41420 (90A) are used for the integrated video core and inter-tile interface, while the system agent uses two MP8768 (80A) elements from Monolithic Power Systems.
A three-segment structure is used to cool the power assemblies, with the largest radiators interconnected by a heat pipe.
A pair of 8-pin connectors is used to connect the additional power supply.
The board is equipped with four slots for memory modules, which allows you to increase the total capacity of RAM up to 192 GB. The LGA1851 platform provides for the use of DDR5 exclusively, so the PC needs to be equipped with this standard. For ASUS ROG STRIX Z890-E GAMING WIFI, the developers declare support for kits up to DDR5-9200+. Of course, the board can work with CUDIMMs (Clocked Unbuffered DIMMs), which have their own clocks that improve the stability of operation at higher frequencies. The list of validated kits already includes DDR5-9200 kits.
The developers claim that the memory slots use a new proprietary NitroPath DRAM technology, which involves the use of gold-plated contact groups with a special shape of conductors. Such an arrangement is supposed to provide a certain additional margin for overclocking (up to +400 MT/s) and also improves the overall mechanical properties of the connector, which is important for enthusiasts. If at least the latter statement has practical confirmation, then this is already a plus.
In general, the LGA1851 platform is really very forgiving of high-speed memory and contributes to setting world records. Nowadays, almost every day there are news reports about breaking the next frequency bar. Most recently, enthusiasts have already managed to surpass DDR5-12600.
Looking at the overall layout of ASUS ROG STRIX Z890-E GAMING WIFI, we can see that the board is equipped with only two PCI-E x16 slots for additional expansion cards. This isn't the first time we've come across such a layout, even in the case of full-size ATX models.
The main full-size slot is designated PCIEX16(G5) and supports PCI-E 5.0 x16 mode using PCI Express 5.0 processor lines. It can also work in PCI-E 5.0 x8 mode if the system has M.2_3 and M.2_4 ports. This is an interesting option that we will return to later.
As for the PCIEX16(G5) port, it has already received additional metal "armor" to increase the mechanical strength of the connector itself. In addition, the slot has a new mechanism for fixing the graphics adapter, called PCIe Q-Release Slim. Variants with buttons or additional levers are not always convenient in a tight layout. In this case, all you have to do to release the video card is pull it upward from the side of the interface connectors.
The second full-size slot is chipset driven and always operates in PCI-E 4.0 x4 mode. The distance between the main and auxiliary slots is sufficient to ensure that the latter remains available even when using graphics cards with a 4-slot cooling system.
Are two expansion slots enough for a system? The answer depends on the needs of the individual user. With the current level of integration, in the vast majority of cases, a single PCI-E x16 slot for a video card is enough. The presence of a second slot is already "in reserve", and most additional peripherals are equipped with external interfaces, which adds to their versatility. But everything is individual.
ASUS ROG STRIX Z890-E GAMING WIFI offers impressive capabilities for using M.2 drives, allowing you to simultaneously install seven (!) SSDs of the corresponding format. At the same time, the available ports have an interesting layout and resource allocation. The first M.2_1 port exclusively uses PCI-E 5.0 processor lanes and always operates in PCI-E 5.0 x4 mode. It is also equipped with a large heatsink with a U-shaped heatpipe for faster heat distribution. The heatsink is equipped with a screwless M.2 Q-Release mount with a metal clasp.
Below the first M.2_1 are two more ports, M.2_3 and M.2_4, which are covered by a large heatsink with a complex profile shape. These connectors also offer PCI-E 5.0 x4 modes, allowing you to simultaneously use three maximum speed drives with a bandwidth of up to 16 GB/s each. However, these ports use the resource of PCI-E 5.0 lines from the main full-size PCI-E slot. Therefore, if M.2_3 and M.2_4 are occupied by drives, the PCIEX16(G5) slot switches to PCI-E 5.0 x8 mode instead of the standard x16 mode.
Breaking the structural numbering, the next port is M.2_2, which also uses the processor bus lines, but already operates in M.2 PCI-E 4.0 x4 mode.
M.2_5 and M.2_6 are designed for classic 2280 form factor drives with PCI Express interface. The chipset is already responsible for these ports, allocating four PCI-E 4.0 lines for their needs. M.2_7 is also on the Intel Z890's balance sheet, and it is interesting because it provides the ability to connect SSDs of 2242/2260/2280 sizes with PCI-E 4.0 or SATA interfaces. This means that the board allows you to make good use of drives that, for example, are left over from a laptop or previous desktop upgrade.
Despite the fact that the board has seven M.2 bays at once, additional coolers are provided for all drives. We have already mentioned radiators for high-speed SSDs. We'd just like to point out that these ports also come with heat dissipation plates to remove heat from the elements on the back side.
The M.2_2, M.2_5, and M.2_6 use one common plate with heat conductive stickers. While M.2_7 has a separate cooler. In these cases, the radiator blocks are already attached with screws. But for the M.2 drives themselves, they are fixed with plastic M.2 Q-Latch fasteners that do not require a screwdriver.
For connecting SATA devices, four SATA 6Gb/s ports are provided, located near the right edge of the board and positioned parallel to the PCB plane to allow for cable connections even with a massive graphics card cooling system hanging overhead.
We should pay special attention to the rather massive chipset cooler. The radiator is not in direct contact with the M.2 blocks, so even when using a high-performance hot SSD, the PCH chip will not receive excessive heating.
ASUS ROG STRIX Z890-E GAMING WIFI offers eight 4-pin connectors for customizing the cooling system elements. Of course, this includes the ability to automatically identify PWM/DC control. Two channels, CPU_FAN and CPU_OPT, which are nominally allocated to the CPU cooler, have a common control channel, while the rest are independent.
It is somewhat unusual to see that the list does not include a reinforced connector for connecting elements with increased power, such as high performance SRO pumps. All available ports provide 12V/1A (12W) mode. This is enough for typical solutions, but powerful "exotics" may require more.
The board is equipped with one two-pin connector for connecting an external temperature sensor. If necessary, you'll have to buy it separately, although the presence of an additional thermocouple in the standard package didn't hurt.
Additional backlighting on motherboards is usually optional, but the quality of the illumination can be a pleasant surprise. In the case of ASUS ROG STRIX Z890-E GAMING WIFI, there is a segment with a large logo of the gaming series on the casing of the interface panel, implemented in a kind of "pixel" format. The Polymo Lighting backlight is really quite impressive, especially in modes with a gradual change in color.
Usually, this area of the board is clearly visible through the transparent case wall. An additional illuminated fan next to it somewhat dissolves the initial accents, but this is a matter of individual configurations.
If you need even more illumination, the board has three connectors for connecting ARGB Gen2 addressable strips. But there is no room for RGB classics on the 5050 elements.
In terms of equipment, ASUS ROG STRIX Z890-E GAMING WIFI is at the intersection of two classes - motherboards for enthusiast platforms and models for gaming systems. It received a set of options for working in an open stand. The board has a large Power button to start the PC. Next to it is the FlexKey, which is used by default to reset the system. If necessary, it can also be reconfigured to activate Safe Boot or to turn on/off the Aura backlight.
The board is also equipped with a Q-CODE segment indicator, which allows you to identify the problematic node by the error code at startup. A line of Q-LEDs for rapid diagnostics is also available. One of the LEDs in the set has an additional function, signaling the correctness of the contacts in the memory module slot. The indicator light will draw your attention to the fact that the bar is not correctly inserted into the slot.
Among the interesting options, we note the presence of a separate three-position toggle switch that allows you to select the PCI-E processor line mode. It is possible to use the standard version, as well as switch to PCI-E 4.0 and PCI-E 3.0. This is a good option, for example, for experimenting with the effect of bus bandwidth on video card performance.
The board has an internal USB Type-C port, which allows you to bring the corresponding port to the chassis panel, if it is provided by design. In this case, it supports USB 3.3 Gen2x2 with a bandwidth of up to 20 GB/s.
The ROG SupremeFX 7.1 sound subsystem is based on the Realtek ALC4080 8-channel codec, with an additional Savitech SV3H712 AMP amplifier and a set of specialized capacitors. The audio path area is isolated on the total PCB area.
The sound is clear and well balanced. There is a slight emphasis on high frequencies - it makes it bright, but not too sharp. There are not too many basses, they are clear and do not "smear" even in heavy compositions. The middle frequencies are also processed well, the sound does not feel "dry".
The Realtek RTL8126 Ethernet controller (5 Gb/s) is used to connect to a wired network. The board is also equipped with an Intel Wi-Fi 7 BE200 module, which allows you to fully unleash the potential of Wi-Fi 7. The three-band unit supports 802.11be, 4096QAM modulation, and 320 MHz bandwidth, providing data transfer at speeds up to 5.8 Gbps.
To connect an external antenna, Q-Antenna connectors are used, which do not require screw fixation. This option may not be optimal in terms of versatility, but the standard antenna is unlikely to require replacement.
The interface panel has a stationary cap and a dense layout of connectors. There are two Thunderbolt 4 ports (40 GB/s) and a pair of USB 3.2 Gen2 (10 GB/s) in Type-C format. One of these connectors supports 30W PD with the ability to quickly charge gadgets. In addition, the panel provides 10 USB Type-A ports at once. Seven of them comply with USB 3.2 Gen2 (10 Gb/s), and three more with USB 3.2 Gen1 (5 Gb/s).
Full-size HDMI and DisplayPort are available for disconnecting screens, and the available Thunderbolt 4 also supports DP Alt mode, allowing for image transfer.
The panel also has an Ethernet socket, Q-Antenna connectors for an external antenna, two 3.5 mm audio jacks and an S/PDIF optical output. In addition, there are two compact buttons to clear the CMOS memory and launch the BIOS Flashback firmware update mechanism.
The back side of the PCB also has a decorative design. A "pixel print" with a huge logo can be seen if you use a case with both transparent side panels. But it will also depend on the internal layout of the elements in the case.
Platform configuration
- Motherboard: ASUS ROG STRIX Z890-E GAMING WIFI (ATX, Intel Z890)
- Processor: Intel Core Ultra 7 265K (8P+12E; 3.9/5.5 GHz + 3.3/4.6 GHz)
- CPU cooling: ASUS ROG Strix LC III 360 ARGB
- Memory: Kingston FURY Renegade 64 GB (2x32 GB) DDR5-6000 Black/Silver (KF560C32RSK2-64)
- Video card: ASUS ROG Strix GeForce RTX 4070 Ti 12GB OC Edition (ROG-STRIX-RTX4070TI-O12G-GAMING)
- Drive: Kingston FURY Renegade 1 TB (SFYRS/1000G)
- PSU: ASUS ROG Strix 1000W Platinum (1000 W)
- Body: ASUS TUF GAMING GT502 PLUS
As we have already mentioned, a system from Artline was used to test the board. The PC was equipped with a Core Ultra 7 265K chip, which has 8 high-performance and 12 energy-efficient cores, 30 MB of L3 cache, and a claimed TDP level of 125 W with a maximum MTP (Maximum Turbo Power) of 250 W. Taking into account the latter value, as well as the ability of the board to maintain the CPU in this mode for a long time, the presence of an efficient liquid cooling system will certainly not be superfluous. It is for this reason that the platform was equipped with ASUS ROG Strix LC III 360 ARGB.
The system was also equipped with a dual-channel Kingston FURY Renegade DDR5-6000 RAM kit. Although for Core Ultra chips, even the standard recommended mode is DDR5-6400. So in general, it is better to use such memory or even faster modules on a platform with these CPUs. We will "fix" this nuance during overclocking experiments.
The PC was powered by an ASUS ROG Strix GeForce RTX 4070 Ti 12GB OC graphics card. The model is undoubtedly interesting and impressive, although the RTX 4070 Ti series graphics adapters are almost no longer on sale. Their place has been taken by GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER 16 GB with higher performance and more local memory capacity.
The operating system, benchmarks, and games were installed on a standard Kingston FURY Renegade 1 TB drive and an additional Samsung 980 1 TB drive.
The ASUS ROG Strix 1000W Platinum provided stable power to the PC. The "Platinum Kilowatt" is a newcomer to the STRIX series of PSUs. The model with 80 PLUS Platinum certification has an efficiency of over 94% (at ~50% load), supports ATX 3.1 standard and is equipped with a 135mm fan that only begins to spin up at ~600W consumption. Is it excessive for a PC of this configuration? Practical tests will show.
The whole set was carefully assembled in the ASUS TUF GAMING GT502 PLUS case. It's a well-known "broad-shouldered" model with a specific, but very convenient layout in practice. We have seen this many times before when reviewing other motherboards. Due to the almost panoramic view with transparent side and front panels, this case will be especially suitable for those who build a system with components that will be pleasant to look at even after the purchase.
In operation
Core Ultra 7 265K is the first model of Intel's new chip line to officially go on sale in Ukraine. The 20-core (8P+12E) processor has a current retail price of UAH 21 (~$500).
After Intel abandoned Hyper-Threading technology, the question remained whether developers would be able to compensate for the lack of logical multithreading by improving the performance of computing cores.
Numerous reviews of the new CPUs have confirmed that Intel has generally coped with this task, even providing some additional impetus.
To make it easier to evaluate the capabilities of Core Ultra 7 265K, we suggest comparing its performance with that of the junior model in the series - Core Ultra 5 245K (6P+8E; 4.2/5.2 GHz + 3.6/4.6 GHz), as well as Ryzen 7 9700K in the mode with increased TDP up to 105 W.
As you can see, in computing tasks where the load is distributed across all computing units, the advantage of Core Ultra 7 265K over Core Ultra 5 245K can be up to 40%. This significant difference can be explained by the difference in the number of cores and slightly higher operating frequencies.
Under maximum load, Cinebench R23's productive cores (P-Cores) ran at 5200 MHz, while the energy-efficient cores were consistently maintained at 4600 MHz.
At the peak, the chip temperature rose to 78C, while typical values under high load were 67-68C. The indicators are very good, but let us remind you that in this case we are talking about the temperature regime of the processor when using the ASUS ROG Strix LC III 360 ARGB liquid cooling system.
During prolonged continuous loads, the temperature of the motherboard VRM elements rose to 43-45C. The chipset chip warmed up to 47C.
Overclocking the RAM
As we noted, the test platform was equipped with a set of DDR5-6000 RAM with 32-38-38-80 timings. For Core Ultra 200S chips, this mode is even lower than the standard one according to the official specification (DDR5-6400).
Let's measure bandwidth and latency using the AIDA64 utility.
[caption id="attachment_263085" align="aligncenter" width="539"]
DDR5-6000 (32-38-38-80)[/caption]
The read/write/copy speed in this case was 90-93 GB/s, and the total latency was 86.9 ns.
[caption id="attachment_263087" align="aligncenter" width="539"]
DDR5-7200 (36-48-48-80)[/caption]
ASUS ROG STRIX Z890-E GAMING WIFI usually allows you to experiment with overclocking RAM. Without changing the supply voltage, we managed to accelerate the existing kit to DDR5-7200 (36-48-48-80). After additional overclocking, the transfers increased to 100-109 GB/s, while the latency of the memory subsystem dropped to 76.5 ns.
Overclocking the processor
During the processor overclocking experiments, in order not to significantly increase the power consumption of the chip, we limited ourselves to the mode without additional increase in the supply voltage, relying on the automatic regulation of the board. At the same time, the power limits were removed beforehand.
Under such conditions, the frequency of productive processor cores was increased to 5400 MHz, and energy-efficient cores - to 4800 MHz. As a result, both types of computers gained +200 MHz.
The acceleration has improved the performance of Core Ultra 7 265K. Although the difference is not fundamental, you can count on an additional 5-7%.
Performance in games
Although the GeForce RTX 4070 Ti 12 GB is probably not the optimal graphics card to fully unleash the gaming potential of the Core Ultra 7 265K processor, such combinations are quite realistic, so we suggest evaluating the capabilities of such a platform in several popular projects.
For 1080p and 1440p modes, a video card with 12 GB of memory is usually enough to get decent performance and not be annoyed by the lack of fps. Especially when it comes to an RTX 4070 Ti graphics adapter, the main drawback of which is the same local RAM capacity. It is worth reminding that at one time this model could have been released under the "GeForce RTX 4080 12GB" label, and only active community dissatisfaction forced NVIDIA to abandon its initial plans and offer it under the guise of a lower-end "Ti". In general, it's an acceptable option for 1080/1440p, but it's too expensive. That's why its place in the corresponding category was taken by the slightly slower, but significantly more affordable and economical GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER 12 GB.
Power consumption in games
Having touched on the topic of power consumption, we propose to evaluate the overall performance of the platform while playing games in specific projects. As a reminder, the GeForce RTX 4070 Ti 12GB in the stock version has a TDP of 285 watts. Obviously, the overclocked ASUS ROG Strix GeForce RTX 4070 Ti 12GB OC will require a little more, but this is a rough guide.
According to the test results, the platform consumed 320-415 watts in total when playing games in 1440p mode. The highest figures were seen during adventures in Knight City from Cyberpunk 2077. This is a moderate result, especially considering that a significant part of it falls on the video card.
In this configuration, the kilowatt power supply is obviously the option with a large margin for the future. But the advantage of this combination is close to the maximum efficiency, and under such a load the PSU operated in passive mode. According to the results of third-party reviews, this model starts and slowly spins the fan only at a load of 600+ watts.