ASUS ROG Strix Z790-E Gaming WiFi 6E LGA 1700(Intel® 12th&13th Gen) ATX Gaming Motherboard(PCIe 5.0, DDR5,18+1 Power Stages,2.5 Gb LAN,Thunderbolt…

Concerning ASUS ROG Strix Z790-E Gaming WiFi 6E LGA 1700,

I have this board with a i9-13900KF which I use for gaming. Once I discovered that I had to slow the memory down from the 6600MHz XMP rating to 6200MHz, the board/cpu combo has worked very reliably (multiple passes of OCCT Gold stress test). Just checking the XMP II box, the 6200MHz box and the (so called) AI overclocking box in the bios gives a score of 40K on Cinebench R23 so it’s plenty fast — the loss of 400MHz memory bandwidth isn’t a big deal. I tried various other adjustments but the latter turned out to be sufficiently fast and very reliable.

That said, If you intend to use this for gaming, you would be just as well served with a ASUS ROG Strix Z690-E and a i9-12900KF CPU. This will save you some money for a better graphics card which will make *much* more difference in most games than the CPU.

I doubt it matters for gaming, but this board is not likely to work for a Intel Gen 14 CPU since that CPU will not likely use a LAG1700 socket. If you just have to have a Gen 14, this may not be what you want.

Finally all the peripherals work fine. Interestingly, Linux works better on this board that Windows does (and without Armoury Crate). If only there were more games for Linux…

This is a bit long, but please read before you open your packaging!

Many Asus motherboards have a defect that results in memory slots on new boards being non-functional. Mine arrived with the dreaded Q-55 error Code. I sent the board in to be RMA’d and here are some very important tips I learned and info and the reason for them.
Number 1. Make sure you take very detailed photos of your motherboard both when you first get it and before you send it in for RMA. Include macro photos of your micro processor pins and the board around it. Make sure you can see the board serial number sticker in the photos. Save your processor slot cover plate. You’ll need it.

If the system starts up, but has other errors (mine would start and run normally with memory in slots B1 and B2, but code 55 with any memory in A1 or A2), make sure you take screen shots of the bios screens. Get screen shots of every piece of data you can on the bios, memory, drives, etc. You will need these files.

Also, you should know that it will cost you for shipping (I ended up paying about $95.00 extra for expedited shipping both ways) to RMA your board, so if the board is readily available on Amazon, and you are still in your return window, you might want to avoid the RMA altogether and use Amazon’s wonderful free return program instead of the factory RMA.

Now, here is the reason you’ll need the photos and other files. When I sent my motherboard in for the RMA, after they had it for 7 days I received an email stating that there were damages to the motherboard that were not covered by the warranty and that it was going to cost me $135.00 to have it repaired. They claimed that there were damages to the processor pins and sent me a photo of a motherboard with a couple allegedly damaged pins (looked more like dust particles, but that was their claim) and claimed it was a picture of my board. Couldn’t read the serial number in their picture so no idea if it was really my board. However, because I knew in advance that the pins are often an issue, I had examined my pins with a powerful magnifying camera before sending it in to them AND THERE WERE NO DAMAGED PINS ON THE BOARD. So either the picture they sent me was not my board, or they damaged it during their inspection. Either way, because I knew for a fact that I hadn’t damaged the pins, I disputed the repair charges.

Now the reason you need the photos and other files: their system is set up so that if you do not have files to send in with your dispute, they will not fix your board without the charge. Their automatic system will not even process the dispute without attaching at least 1 file. In my case. I had lots and lots of files I could send them and after the appeal they relented and waived their charges.

Now please understand that pin damages from installing the processor are very, very common and you should not do it yourself if you don’t know what you are doing. Even small dust particles under the processor can cause damage. Therefore, the photos you take when you first get the board are also important and you’ll know if it was really a factory defect or if you damaged the pins yourself and truly do need to pay for repairs. If the pins are damaged right out of the box, pack the board back up immediately and use Amazon’s return service and don’t bother with an RMA. It’s not worth the aggravation and money to RMA the board with the manufacturer.

If you’ve taken all the before and after photos, or have missed your Amazon return window, at least you’ll have the evidence you need to get your board repaired without cost except the mailing charges.

Please be aware… an RMA is a slow process. Even passing for overnight shipping my board has been gone for 10 days already and I assume it will be another week or two before it gets back to me. If you can avoid an RMA, do so. If you can’t, have all the evidence you need to get your board fixed or replaced at ASUS’s cost.

What I like about this motherboard is the fact that it embraces future tech like pcie 5.0. There are 20 pcie lanes going to the cpu. Sixteen are pcie 5.0 and 4 are pcie 4.0. I am using ddr 4.0 Nvme m.2 drive in the M.2_2 slot which is connecter to the CPU. Big noticable increase in the loading of any program or game!. I also like the fact that this board runs ram at a higher clock rate, DDR 5.0 @ 5600Mhz. Have to turn on XMP in the BIOS settings to get to this speed, but works ok once set. The BIOS is very user friendly. I found turning on overclock in the BIOS the best way to get the best stable results. Most times it overclocks my Intel Gen 13 i7 CPU to 5900 MHz. Not bad and everything on this board runs cool. The thing I don’t like about the motherboard is that using the Nvme 5.0 slot in the future will cut down my 16 pcie lanes to 8 lanes, 8 for graphics card and 8 for Nvme drive. There is however lots of bandwidth in the 8x to handle any modern graphic card. There is lots of great and up to date connections on this board as well such as WIFI 6e and USB 3.2 Gen2x2 slots. Over all i am happy with this board as a gaming motherboard. This is my third build using ASUS gaming motherboard. All delivered years of solid performance!!