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[SOLVED] Suggestions and Reviews on Z490 Mainboards

Burigeller

Reputable
Sep 16, 2020
99
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4,565
Hello Everyone, i'm going to buy an i9 10850K to upgrade my Gaming PC and can't really decide on a Mainboard. Since AMD is going through the roof, z490 mainboards got neglected imo and finding reviews on one that doesn't cost more than 350$ seems like an issue. Please feel free to let me know what you think is a great board and what experiences you had with the ones you tested.

Thanks in advance!
 
Solution
The important factor to note here is that the 10th and 11th gen Intel CPU, particularly of the K skew, are very power hungry. In order to provide the kind of power these want they have to have beefy VRM and high layer count PCB. It would not be a good idea to consider a "budget" Z chipset motherboard while also considering the 10850K.

My suggestion is to save a bit of cash and go for a Z590, just in case you were to decide you needed PCI 4.0 later (requires 11th gen CPU).

Gigabyte has a Z590 that is considered among the best, MSI has a line out that are very good, and ASUS makes nice motherboards in the high end as well. Just about the only one I have not read great reviews on are the ASRock boards and in particular the Phantom...
The important factor to note here is that the 10th and 11th gen Intel CPU, particularly of the K skew, are very power hungry. In order to provide the kind of power these want they have to have beefy VRM and high layer count PCB. It would not be a good idea to consider a "budget" Z chipset motherboard while also considering the 10850K.

My suggestion is to save a bit of cash and go for a Z590, just in case you were to decide you needed PCI 4.0 later (requires 11th gen CPU).

Gigabyte has a Z590 that is considered among the best, MSI has a line out that are very good, and ASUS makes nice motherboards in the high end as well. Just about the only one I have not read great reviews on are the ASRock boards and in particular the Phantom Gaming.

I personally have a Z590I Unify by MSI and it has so far been a really good motherboard. I had a few issues right at first since I picked this and the 11600K up almost right at release. The first round of BIOS updates took care of issues and it's been really good.

TL;DR- don't cheap out on a mobo for an i9.
 
Solution
The important factor to note here is that the 10th and 11th gen Intel CPU, particularly of the K skew, are very power hungry. In order to provide the kind of power these want they have to have beefy VRM and high layer count PCB. It would not be a good idea to consider a "budget" Z chipset motherboard while also considering the 10850K.

My suggestion is to save a bit of cash and go for a Z590, just in case you were to decide you needed PCI 4.0 later (requires 11th gen CPU).

Gigabyte has a Z590 that is considered among the best, MSI has a line out that are very good, and ASUS makes nice motherboards in the high end as well. Just about the only one I have not read great reviews on are the ASRock boards and in particular the Phantom Gaming.

I personally have a Z590I Unify by MSI and it has so far been a really good motherboard. I had a few issues right at first since I picked this and the 11600K up almost right at release. The first round of BIOS updates took care of issues and it's been really good.

TL;DR- don't cheap out on a mobo for an i9.

Hey! really appreciate the advice! I was thinking on going Z590 but i don't think i'd go 11th gen. any time since you don't really have a Performance increase and is still more expensive than 10th gen. I've had MSI for a long time on my Z97 and Z270 and really good experience but the software is horrible so i'd like to pass on that for a change. I don't plan on going to cheap on a mainboard i was thinking 200-250$ ish. I'm also looking for a board that doesn't look too horrible. I prefere performance over looks but would still like a PC that looks decent.

Thanks alot, really helped me out!