Introduction

In today’s review, we are covering ASUS’s flagship motherboard, the ROG Maximus Z690 Extreme Glacial! In late 2021 Intel released the 12th Gen Core processors and accompanying LGA 1700 socket. This platform held the privilege of being the first to bring PCIe Gen 5.0 and DDR5 to the consumer market. With AMD’s upcoming release window for its the next generation of Ryzen CPUs and a new CPU socket on the horizon, Intel is hard at work to keep all eyes on them with the 13th Gen Core processors set to debut later in 2022.

Like clockwork, every new generation of Intel CPUs comes with a new chipset, which often includes technologies introduced previously in the enterprise market. Compared to the previous LGA 1200 socket and Intel Z590 chipset, the largest change besides PCIe Gen5 and DDR5 support in the new Intel lineup is the introduction of E-cores in Intel desktop processors. These E-cores are designed to offload smaller background system tasks, while leaving larger and more complex system tasks to the P-Cores. This leap in computing power, paired with an increase in PCIe lane count and a connection speed boost to the chipset has paved the way for motherboard manufacturers to offer a variety of configurations at different price points. Ultimately, this gives the consumer multiple avenues to fit their personal needs, wants and desires.

The Maximus family serves as ASUS’s flagship line for Intel motherboards, with premium looks, premium features, blazing performance, and broad overclocking support. The Maximus lineup typically comprises four models, the Hero, Apex, Formula, and Extreme. ASUS has collaborated with EKWB once again to bring out the best of the LGA 1700 socket by combining the flagship ASUS ROG Maximus Z690 Extreme motherboard and talents of an industry leader in watercooling for this generation’s Extreme Glacial motherboard.

The ASUS ROG Maximus Z690 Extreme Glacial features an EK Ultrablock (monoblock) designed to provide cooling for the 24+1+2 VRM, CPU and M.2 sockets. Catering to the ultra-high-end, nothing is left out providing features like ASUS’s stress-free overclocking with AI Optimized for the casual overclockers, to a full fledged out BIOS for those who want to get deeply technical. The ROG Maximus Z690 Extreme Glacial also offers great connectivity with the newest WiFi 6E technology, Thunderbolt 4, and five onboard M.2 slots. There is a lot to cover in this review, so let’s take a closer look!

Specifications