After Asus, ASRock has announced two new motherboards to accompany the launch of Raptor Lake Refresh. The brand is offering us its Z790 Nova WiFi and Z790 Lightning WiFi. Two boards at opposite ends of the spectrum!
Z790 Nova WiFi: the top-of-the-range model!
With this motherboard, we’re dealing with a mid-range or even high-end reference. As you can see, the design is meticulous, with numerous heatsinks and an attractive NOVA logo between the two PCIe slots. There are numerous markings and logos, and it’s pretty clean.
Connectivity remains quite extensive, with four DDR5 memory slots followed by two PCIe x16 (5.0 x16 4.0 x4) and completed by a single PCIe x1 3.0. The storage section is also well-stocked, with no less than four SATA and six M.2 connectors. Of these, only one is PCIe 5.0 x4, while the rest are PCIe 4.0 x4.
The cooling aspect is quite substantial, as the 20 1 1 power supply phases benefit from imposing heatsinks linked by a heat pipe. In addition, active dissipation is provided by a small fan mounted on the I/O cache.
Finally, this model offers generous connectivity with HDMI and DisplayPort outputs. There are also nine USB-A ports of varying standards, while USB-C is also present. The audio part is entrusted to an ALC4082 chip, while for networking, we have Wi-Fi 7 and Killer E3100G in 2.5 GbE for Ethernet.
Z790 Lightning WiFi: a streamlined model!
With this model, we’re clearly moving down a range, and it’s clear from the visuals alone. The board is more streamlined, with fewer heatsinks and less connectivity.
The board features four memory slots and a PCIe 5.0 x16. This will be complemented by a PCIe x16 x4 4.0 and two smaller PCIe x1 3.0. The storage section has been reduced from six M.2 to three M.2 in PCIe 4.0 x4. These are complemented by six SATA III.
On the rear, connectivity is also reduced, with just seven USB-A ports of varying standards. For the keyboard/mouse, we’re treated to an old PS2 combo, while video outputs are reduced to a single HDMI. Wi-Fi 7 has been replaced by Wi-Fi 6E, but the Killer E3100G Ethernet is retained. Audio is also down a notch, with an ALC897.
Finally, the board also loses its buttons for easy start-up outside the case, as well as the debug LED.
