As we continue our coverage of Z690 motherboards we move over to ASRock and their Z690 Taichi motherboard. I’ve always been a fan of the Taichi series from ASRock as these boards were always loaded with features and they have that awesome clockwork theme. On the Z590 Taichi we finally got a moving gear on the board and of course they are bringing that back with the new Z690 version. On top of that you are getting all of the features you would expect from a Z690 motherboard like a 20 phase power design, PCI-Express 5.0 support, Thunderbolt 4, USB 3.2 gen 2×2, WiFi 6E and so much more! Is this the Z690 motherboard you need for your Alder Lake build? Read on as we find out!
Special thanks to ASRock for providing us with the Z690 Taichi Motherboard to review.
Features
– Supports 12th Gen Intel® Core™ Processors (LGA1700)
– 20 Phase SPS Dr.MOS Power Design
– Supports DDR5 6400MHz (OC)
– 2 PCIe 5.0 x16, 1 PCIe 4.0 x16, 1 PCIe 3.0 x1
– Graphics Output Options: HDMI, 2 Thunderbolt™ Type-C
– Realtek ALC1220 7.1 CH HD Audio Codec, ESS SABRE 9218 DAC, WIMA Audio Caps
– 6 SATA3, 1 Independent SATA3
– 2 Hyper M.2 (PCIe Gen4 x4)
– 1 M.2 (PCIe Gen3 x2 & SATA3)
– 2 Thunderbolt™ 4/USB4 Type-C
– 1 USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Front Type-C
– 2 Rear USB 3.2 Gen2 Type A
– 8 USB 3.2 Gen1 (4 Rear, 4 Front)
– 1 Independent USB 3.2 Gen1 Type A Port
– Killer E3100 2.5G LAN, Intel® Gigabit LAN
– Killer AX1675 802.11ax (WiFi 6E) + Bluetooth
– Lightning Gaming Ports
– ASRock Graphics Card Holder
Packaging
The Z690 Taichi comes in a very large retail box that says Z690 Taichi on the front. The front of the box actually opens up like a book so you can take a look at the board and some of the main features are listed.
You’ll also find a ton of information on the board on the back of the box. Opening the box up and getting everything out as far as accessories go you have four SATA cables, WiFi antenna, 3010 cooling fan with bracket, 4010 cooling fan bracket, graphics card holder, USB 2.0 bracket, M.2 screws, ASRock keychain, two Velcro ties, ASRock keycap, software installation guide, quick installation guide, and a driver and software CD.
