On the microphone panel, you selected a +30dB boost. That's a boost of 1 to 1000; you've told the system to amplify the incoming signal by 1000 times. Why are you surprised that noise is present in that configuration, particularly when you're waving around the input plug, unterminated?
This struck me as well, seems very odd, I am a sound and musical instruments guy, this is exactly why you always pay attention to dBs and never just ramp it up and start waving it and least of all touch it at all, there are lots of conditions you have to pay attention to when you're playing with dBs
@@eye776 Sure, but I wasn't even making that comment in comparison to AMD boards. The range is higher on Z690 than Z590. Even the entry level Z690 boards are about $200, where they should be more towards $150.
@@eye776 Gigabyte AORUS PRO with its 90amp power stages will easily run a 12900k stock and with most overclocks and only runs $329 U.S.D. Personally for a ddr5 z690 mb the Auros Pro is one of the best value/performance to hit the market and has connectivity on a level that is also above most other boards in its price range. All the ASUS z690 boards are way overpriced as compared to the competition.
@@eye776 The 5950x also cost $100 more than the 12900k so that pretty much makes the $200 vs $300 mb argument a wash. Alder lake MB's can also be bought to run with a ddr4 memory standard again making that an irrelevant issue. And regardless whether you are talking 5950x or 12900k the Gpu bottleneck again will be the same. Sounds as if you are trying to make the 5950x sound like a better option while trying to downplay the 12900K because it is an Intel chip. And the one thing Alder Lake does have as an advantage currently is the LGA1700 does actually have an upgrade path to tech to be released q4 2022 where a new AM4 is already at EOL!
@@eye776 I generally buy the i7 "K" level CPU as it gives a good compromise between core count, performance and pricing within the Intel product stack. I actually have an AIB 3080 that was bought at original launch msrp that is in my current 10700k build which that gpu will be used in the Alder Lake build until the new 4080 cards launch and then one of those will find a home in the Alder Lake build. The 10700k system will be replacing an aging 6700k/ 1070 secondary system and I will use the 1070 in the 10700k until the 4080 card is secured to go into the Alder Lake system and then the 3080 will be returned to that. So not everyone had to spend mega dollars to get a good current series GPU to use in a new build. I do not mind spending a few extra dollars today to build a system that should give me multiple years of higher performance level service. My secondary system with the 6700/1070 in it is still running a 1080p monitor and honestly it will play the majority of games at higher settings and reasonable playable frame rates even today. Where most people screw up is always trying to go to the highest "new" resolution or refresh monitors which actually shortens the playability of their hardware a few years into the future. I will probably upgrade the monitor on my secondary system to a 1440p 144hz unit once the 10700k with the 3080 back in it is being used. One thing also about money to a degree, when you get older like me you realize you cannot take it with you when your time to depart this earth arrives.
Thanks for that review. It is sad that the audio section is so messed up, but you can get an audio interface for cheap and it will be way above any integrated audio solution. It really helps that those audio chips don't have to in the HF hell of a modern motherboard.
My buddy jumped on that deal but I wasn’t fast enough. They did it again today, this time for $320 and I was able to grab it. My 3080ti will be thanking me for finally upgrading over a 8700k.
@Skanger Skagz only thing now is the deal is with the lower grade z690 board, not the prime tuf plus. No problems. Running win11 great, undervolted cpu and gpu 3060ti
manufacturer had not spare any thoughts on the pcie slot positioning, the 3 pcie right underneath the gpu slot is completely wasted if there's any decent gpu being installed in the first slot
Just ordered this motherboard to pair with my 12700kf. I've been using external AMP / DAC (Shiit Hel 2) for years now, I never care about onboard audio on MB cause essentially they are all trash compared to a good external unit.
I have a Asus 570 Strix e gaming that works great with the 3900x I upgraded to. I usually really like the Asus boards as they're well built, stable, and great features.
I'm surprised about the audio, maybe you just got a bad board? I'm not sure why the same audio set-up sounds good on another motherboard but not this one, I could only put that down to noise on the board, but then would noise really effect the frequency response curve like you showed on the graph? And I'm baffled as to how audio frequency response would cause sound channel cross-over so that you would hear things coming from the left instead of the right etc... Please explain.
Almost all motherboard brand for Alder lake are so expensive and the xtra feature you paid for this xtra price are missing , and this board is one of then . 200.00 plus US dollars and even doesn't have a bios flash feature or led error code
Good board too, only problem and reason I chose this over it is because the Ros Strix is incompatible with Noctua NH-D15S cooler. This board is almost as good and has nearly as good of VRM. VRMs even on lowest end boards are much better with Z690 roundup than they were on prior gens anways. But love the fact the VRM runs nice and cool on this one and is so capable and overkill. Just wish it had 2 USB 3 headers and 2 more back USB ports and o course better audio. Gigabyte boards for this gen all have a terrible BIOS for manual overclocking that seems to not work as CPU speed fluctuates badly in Windows. Gigabyte was great for X570, but not for Z690.
Hi Tech Yes City It seems a great board apart from the audio at £260 in the UK, it jumps to £310 for the strix Z690-A, not sure if that's worth it. Trouble is the i7 12700KF is £350 and 32gb DDR4 3600 16,16,16,38 samsung b die ram is £159 so the price of this motherboard and the strix seem a little high compared to the other parts. Is a Noctua NH-D15 chromax good enough for a 12700KF overclocked or is a Kraken X63 280mm AIO better if they are about the same price ? Thanks for the review.
3:49 Hang on, Asus customer support claimed that this board - ASUS Z690-Plus TUF Gaming Wifi D4 - has A1200S audio, not ALC897. Can you verify that it actually does have ALC897? Or am I missing something? That being said though, I've always had very mediocre PCs and the audio has been just fine. But people are different, some have good ears. And good headphones. I'm just annoyed that I can't use 250 Ohm headphones on this motherboard.
No you ain't missing something, he reported another sound device to what I have seen on the U.K. board. I read in specs ''Realtek 7.1 Surround Sound High Definition Audio CODEC''
Can you do a guide on properly tuning the board with a 12900k? I’ve been leaving it at stock since there isn’t too much info on how to tune the boards for a consistent 5.0 with using less wattage properly. All there is, is Extreme OCing which my Strix DDR4 is more like your TUF.
I have this board paired with a 12700k. I was able to get 5.2ghz on all P cores no voltage adjustments it’s fantastically fast. 852 single core on cinebench. My question : I’m running the Corsair hs70 headset. I’m plugging in with a usb stick. Will I have the same audio issues you described?
Order same as you tuf with 12700k and some 980 pro for my 3080ti with a z73 lcd 360mm, leaving my long delided 8700k a 5ghz behind which handles everything but i felt the need to upgrade to not lose to much in the end . I would like to get the specs of your overclock to 5.2 ghz , would be appreciated buddy !
@@baam25th31 I got the same deal; going to pick it up tomorrow, but I tried to get the $25 coupon and it said "for new customers only". The thing is I am a new customer. I just created my account before placing the order. I think the problem is I was supposed open my account through the coupon page. Any advice on how to get micro center to give me a code?
This was really helpful. Am currently deciding on parts for another high end 3D / video machine (dual 3090s) so this was great. Looking forward to more reviews soon mate!
Hi! I use this z690 plus wifi D4 with one rtx3090. Recently i want to add another one to accelerate my Vray rendering work. Does this board support dual rtx3090 well or Do I have to upgrade my board? Thank you!
@@lost_places_global9008 Went with the ASUS STRIX Soar 7.1 PCIe sound card, and had to choose windows 10. As windows 11 is having issues with this soundcard and motherboard.
@@lost_places_global9008 supremeFX - This card is not a full-fledged sound card, but an analog expansion to the audio chipset. I'd get a proper soundcard for this motherboard.
I could find nothing else on the internet about the sound troubles you describe. Could you just have a dud board? The board in the U.K. say sound '' Realtek 7.1 Surround Sound High Definition Audio CODEC''
I have a DAC that I connect to the fibre optic audio port. Would that be a solution to the audio problem? I really like this motherboard so I hope this can be a workaround for the audio.
Do you get any BSODs with it? I have it too and I am reusing my old 3600mhz ram kit that gave me zero issues in the past. As soon as I enable XMP it makes my system unstable.
Great review. Good to know that it's more than capable. Regarding the sound card, if I get one and use the front connectors on the case, is it possible to make it default to the new sound card and new the onboard? Thanks
Tried a Seagate firecuda 2tb 530 in m2 next to cpu and in bottom 2 m2 slots. Got the latest bios. Very disappointed with the speed. Max I achieved was 5800MBs and this was only once. The results were not consistent. It was the fastest after I switch on the pc and it got slower, bottoming out around 4300MBs. What is going on? - is it thermally throttling? The max speed is supposed to be well over 7000MBs.
Hi - I use Astro A50 Headphones (with a dedicated mix-amp base) when gaming. Are USB-Headphones affected by the onboard audio on the mainboard? Or only if I connect directly to the Mainboard audio outputs? thx.
From everywhere I have seen and read 1.35 vcore is the max for setting it manually for OC. From what I understand pcore, ring, and e core are all run from the one vcore.
Interesting that the audio is so poor… “Our specialized audio path design separates analog and digital signal domains and significantly reduce multi-lateral interference.” Pit it doesn’t reduce cross talk… hmmm will see if my board is as bad when it turns up… if so I will send it back…
Hello . Great review but i'm concerned about the audio issues. If you use a Optical Out for the headset, the audio will be that bad too ? My headset as built in sound card (Artic Pro Wireless)
@@mikawelll thanks for the reply. I decided to go for the MSI motherboard instead since all the reviews for those are generally better to save myself the worry
@@Cagruntas I prefer stick to Asus. I wanted a ROG Maximus motherboard but it's DDR5 only and it's almost 500€ to 32GB so I will buy a TUF series which is high end "budget" MB (almost 350€). But I have searched many test and video about sound issues. And I have find nothing about this. Only this test. So in a way I'm not that scary be this, if this issue was so bad I will have find this on the Asus forum for sure.
I intend to buy a z690 in the coming days, debating between this mobo to asus rog strix z690-a gaming. strix has a better vrm (16+1) compared to here (14+1) ? will I get decrease in degrees in vrm ? because I mean overclock the hell of my cpu
thanks for teh video m8 ive decided to skip this gen and stick with my trust old i5 10600k it has never steered me wrong. Will just wiat on tuf gaming Z790 and hope its better :D
Got this board and I do like it for the most part. Only issue I’m trying to fix is the download speed I get via speed test through my Ethernet port is increasingly slow :(
Should I get the Tuf Gaming Z690 Plus Wifi ? Or the ROG Strix Z690-A? I mainly have a black setup mainly consisting of Asus Tuf Gaming products .. like my gpu, case and soon AIO cpu cooler. I think the white Z690-A won’t find… but is the value and performance better in that one? Is the audio that much better? Or in general much better?… which should I pick?
I would go for the Asus ROG Strix Z690-A if money is not an impediment, the audio is much better and the quality of its materials, it would be the top range for ddr4 at the moment.
This is why I love the B Man, because I don't know for sure if Asus is sending him this stuff, I know Asrock def does, but weather he gets it for free or pays for it out of his own pocket, he always tells it how it is. #TechYesLoving
Please help me, i've a car music' plant in my house with an amplifier and a power supply, we have the orange jack for the sub and the lime jack for speaker front but he doesnt work
I recently purchased this motherboard and I listened to your advice about the sound quality and I buy a sound blaster . (Cheap one). The difference in sound quantity is huge! But i have a problem with sound interference or static noise! Due to the lack of space, I plugged the sound card in to second video card slot because I have an Aio fitted to the gpu. Is the sound blaster card faulty? How I get rid of this static sound? I did a research on Google but no solution. My headset is hyperx cloud alpha. If I unplug the mic the noise is still there.!
I have this board. When I saw the little tiny caps in the sound area, I had no choice but to reinstate the xonar essence STX II sound card from my old z97 build. I didn't even have to test it, I just knew it would be bad. Thankfully, the dedicated sound card fixes that issue. Other than that, I absolutely love this board. I paired it up with an i7-12700k at 4.8 all core and 1.18v, and an rtx 3080 TI STRIX. Handles those parts like an absolute champ. Too bad the sound really needs an upgrade. Edit: it handles 64gb at ddr4-3600 like a champ as well!
When you say sound problems do you mean that you can’t hear clearly or the microphone? Because i got this board last month and when i hop on discord whoever is playing with me keep saying that my voice keep disconnecting and I’m not sure is it because of the board or my headset. My headset is hyperx cloud 2
@@abdulrahmanalharbi1342 when I play music, it does not have a lot of bass. I tend to like having the full range of sound in my music, and I like having a good amount of very tight base.
Any issues with the Intel NIC on it? I've read a lot about the i225 causing problems even after Intel and Asus supposedly released new versions of it from their Z490 years.
@@arnold00784 It's been good so far, I got it in January & built pc in February. Had to wait until all my parts came. I got Enermax ETS-T50 RGB air cooler. I had to go in BIOS & set the P cores to 4500MHz and E cores to 3500MHz as it got too hot. Sometime I'll get a liquid cooler but for now it rocks the way it is. I came think of it as an upgrade if I ever get a AIO liquid cooler.
I have this board. The audio is awful if you use a high impedance headset. In gaming, I couldn't hear footsteps or anything and had to have the volume at 100 for it to sound normal. My impedance is like 80 ohms too. I had to get a DAC.
@@Ben-ld1qi I think the S1200A is exactly the same as the ALC1220, which is what many articles report. I checked my motherboard, but there are no markings on the audio chipset. If you are interested, the HW_ID reported by windows is: HDAUDIO\FUNC_01&VEN_10EC&DEV_0897&SUBSYS_10438841 In general, I would suggest getting a soundcard/DAC etc if you are using a high-end headset. This motherboard cannot drive an 80ohm headset, so if you use anything more, you NEED to get an alternative solution
Bios flashing for 13 gen cpu will I be able to do it without having 12 gen cpu I am afrade to buy because I don't know will I be able to do that at home
z690 chipset and alc 897 wtf, and overpriced(375$ in Ukraine). i want this mobo to buy, but when i heard from u its 897 codec and problems with it, i didnt want buy this anymore ty for info :) What mobo u can recommend for 12600k/12700k(im not rich so i need good mobo for long period and good quality)?
I personally find the Z690 motherboards to overpriced for what the offer on the new Intel 12th Gen. I ended up getting the Aorus Z690i Ultra DDR4 w/ 12700k as the i7 is sooo much better for temps under load for the loss of 4-E Cores and the gaming performance is 99% of the i9 and the i7, even mentioned herein the below comments, is overclocking to at 5.1Ghz and higher! I still have my AMD rigs as well 👍🥰.
It looks like gigabyte has the best lineup this time around. The Aero D, Gaming X, Aorus Elite, and Aorus Pro look like much better bang for the buck than the competition.
Overpriced is an understatement, in this case it's a robbery, twice the price and they downgraded from ALC s1200a to ALC897 that seems borked thought the MSI z690-a pro looks fair enough because z690-a pro + 12600k is around the same price as 10900f+z590-a pro.
They've been making quality MB's for a couple decades and I for one trust Asus over most, which might even be made by Asus... also, pretty sure it's pronounced (aye-soos).
Guys i have a question i hope you can help. i got this and i cant clock my ram higher than 3000 mhz (ddr4), should i return it?? i use a alderlake 12600k
Sorry its a bit late but can you tell me what model of ram sticks you exactly have and if you have two ram sticks check to see if you have places them well
On the microphone panel, you selected a +30dB boost. That's a boost of 1 to 1000; you've told the system to amplify the incoming signal by 1000 times. Why are you surprised that noise is present in that configuration, particularly when you're waving around the input plug, unterminated?
He's a computer guy and not an audio guy obviously haha.
This struck me as well, seems very odd, I am a sound and musical instruments guy, this is exactly why you always pay attention to dBs and never just ramp it up and start waving it and least of all touch it at all, there are lots of conditions you have to pay attention to when you're playing with dBs
This method produced the most noise :)
Even if he doesn't know much about physics does he not know that dB is not a linear scale?
0-5bB increase is a 4x times increase
Brutal yet precise review. Thanks.
Mate...strong VRMs..... thanks for your work, back
Ground, awesome timing, and just being a Allround Massive HELP....
I feel like "overpriced" describes the whole of the Z690 motherboard range. That's really the biggest downfall of Alder Lake.
@@eye776 Sure, but I wasn't even making that comment in comparison to AMD boards. The range is higher on Z690 than Z590. Even the entry level Z690 boards are about $200, where they should be more towards $150.
@@eye776 Gigabyte AORUS PRO with its 90amp power stages will easily run a 12900k stock and with most overclocks and only runs $329 U.S.D.
Personally for a ddr5 z690 mb the Auros Pro is one of the best value/performance to hit the market and has connectivity on a level that is also above most other boards in its price range.
All the ASUS z690 boards are way overpriced as compared to the competition.
@@eye776 The 5950x also cost $100 more than the 12900k so that pretty much makes the $200 vs $300 mb argument a wash.
Alder lake MB's can also be bought to run with a ddr4 memory standard again making that an irrelevant issue.
And regardless whether you are talking 5950x or 12900k the Gpu bottleneck again will be the same.
Sounds as if you are trying to make the 5950x sound like a better option while trying to downplay the 12900K because it is an Intel chip.
And the one thing Alder Lake does have as an advantage currently is the LGA1700 does actually have an upgrade path to tech to be released q4 2022 where a new AM4 is already at EOL!
@@eye776 I generally buy the i7 "K" level CPU as it gives a good compromise between core count, performance and pricing within the Intel product stack.
I actually have an AIB 3080 that was bought at original launch msrp that is in my current 10700k build which that gpu will be used in the Alder Lake build until the new 4080 cards launch and then one of those will find a home in the Alder Lake build.
The 10700k system will be replacing an aging 6700k/ 1070 secondary system and I will use the 1070 in the 10700k until the 4080 card is secured to go into the Alder Lake system and then the 3080 will be returned to that.
So not everyone had to spend mega dollars to get a good current series GPU to use in a new build. I do not mind spending a few extra dollars today to build a system that should give me multiple years of higher performance level service.
My secondary system with the 6700/1070 in it is still running a 1080p monitor and honestly it will play the majority of games at higher settings and reasonable playable frame rates even today.
Where most people screw up is always trying to go to the highest "new" resolution or refresh monitors which actually shortens the playability of their hardware a few years into the future.
I will probably upgrade the monitor on my secondary system to a 1440p 144hz unit once the 10700k with the 3080 back in it is being used.
One thing also about money to a degree, when you get older like me you realize you cannot take it with you when your time to depart this earth arrives.
Tech yes Content...Your gr8 talking and understanding of pc tech is great..... I supported and sold ATX PC's for 10 yrs..U great
Thanks for that review. It is sad that the audio section is so messed up, but you can get an audio interface for cheap and it will be way above any integrated audio solution. It really helps that those audio chips don't have to in the HF hell of a modern motherboard.
What if i have a wireless usb headphones ??
This MOBO has ALC 4080 Audio codec right?
It's not as bad as he made it out to be. The +30db input is a 1000x boost. It's no surprise there was horrible noise.
Yessss, made Saturday complete, with a TechYes Man video!
Just got this board and a 12700k for $350. Looking forward to the build!
Great review. Explains why they are so popular in cheaper bundle sales
This board is FREE with 12700K for $350 from Micro Center right now. Awesome deal.
My buddy jumped on that deal but I wasn’t fast enough. They did it again today, this time for $320 and I was able to grab it. My 3080ti will be thanking me for finally upgrading over a 8700k.
@@lamakicker69 Nice score! Thanks for the heads up. I see it's available at my nearest store so might try to get it despite the 1.5hr drive away.
Hows the build a couple months later? Im thinkin of picking up this board up with 12900k as they have the bundle for $480? No problems?
@Skanger Skagz only thing now is the deal is with the lower grade z690 board, not the prime tuf plus. No problems. Running win11 great, undervolted cpu and gpu 3060ti
manufacturer had not spare any thoughts on the pcie slot positioning, the 3 pcie right underneath the gpu slot is completely wasted if there's any decent gpu being installed in the first slot
Just ordered this motherboard to pair with my 12700kf. I've been using external AMP / DAC (Shiit Hel 2) for years now, I never care about onboard audio on MB cause essentially they are all trash compared to a good external unit.
Thank you for your honest review. Appreciate it. The problem that I couldn’t find good 12th gen intel with ddr4 motherboard.
Very hard to find a 12th gen that’s ddr4
@@Agent007T more common than ddr5 imo, ddr5 still is very hard to argue over ddr4 unless early adoption/enthusiast is ur thing
I have a Asus 570 Strix e gaming that works great with the 3900x I upgraded to. I usually really like the Asus boards as they're well built, stable, and great features.
Always go with an Asus board. My B550-F Strix has been rock solid.
I liked this so I subscribed and liked. I also have this motherboard. Am I missing out on something in the sound department?
This is the exact type of honest opinion review I was looking for this board.
You gonna buy it?
@@lost_places_global9008 Yep, ordered yesterday this board.
I'm surprised about the audio, maybe you just got a bad board? I'm not sure why the same audio set-up sounds good on another motherboard but not this one, I could only put that down to noise on the board, but then would noise really effect the frequency response curve like you showed on the graph? And I'm baffled as to how audio frequency response would cause sound channel cross-over so that you would hear things coming from the left instead of the right etc... Please explain.
It's because the +30db is actually a 1000x boost. It's no surprise there is horrible noise
Hi can you use a Samsung 980 pro 1tb SSD with this motherboard?????
Almost all motherboard brand for Alder lake are so expensive and the xtra feature you paid for this xtra price are missing , and this board is one of then . 200.00 plus US dollars and even doesn't have a bios flash feature or led error code
Thank you for this detailed review! Would you also review ROG STRIX Z690-A GAMING WIFI D4? It's my alternative for the TUF
Good board too, only problem and reason I chose this over it is because the Ros Strix is incompatible with Noctua NH-D15S cooler. This board is almost as good and has nearly as good of VRM. VRMs even on lowest end boards are much better with Z690 roundup than they were on prior gens anways. But love the fact the VRM runs nice and cool on this one and is so capable and overkill. Just wish it had 2 USB 3 headers and 2 more back USB ports and o course better audio. Gigabyte boards for this gen all have a terrible BIOS for manual overclocking that seems to not work as CPU speed fluctuates badly in Windows. Gigabyte was great for X570, but not for Z690.
The audio issues isn't going to be an issue if you're rocking USB or bluetooth headphones tho, yeah?
Yuhr mic sounds awesome.
Which one do you use??
Please give us a link
Hi Tech Yes City
It seems a great board apart from the audio at £260 in the UK, it jumps to £310 for the strix Z690-A, not sure if that's worth it. Trouble is the i7 12700KF is £350 and 32gb DDR4 3600 16,16,16,38 samsung b die ram is £159 so the price of this motherboard and the strix seem a little high compared to the other parts.
Is a Noctua NH-D15 chromax good enough for a 12700KF overclocked or is a Kraken X63 280mm AIO better if they are about the same price ?
Thanks for the review.
3:49 Hang on, Asus customer support claimed that this board - ASUS Z690-Plus TUF Gaming Wifi D4 - has A1200S audio, not ALC897. Can you verify that it actually does have ALC897? Or am I missing something?
That being said though, I've always had very mediocre PCs and the audio has been just fine. But people are different, some have good ears. And good headphones. I'm just annoyed that I can't use 250 Ohm headphones on this motherboard.
No you ain't missing something, he reported another sound device to what I have seen on the U.K. board. I read in specs ''Realtek 7.1 Surround Sound High Definition Audio CODEC''
please review the z690, it looks like they improved on everything :)
Can you do a guide on properly tuning the board with a 12900k? I’ve been leaving it at stock since there isn’t too much info on how to tune the boards for a consistent 5.0 with using less wattage properly. All there is, is Extreme OCing which my Strix DDR4 is more like your TUF.
I have this board paired with a 12700k.
I was able to get 5.2ghz on all P cores no voltage adjustments it’s fantastically fast. 852 single core on cinebench.
My question :
I’m running the Corsair hs70 headset. I’m plugging in with a usb stick. Will I have the same audio issues you described?
i think your audio is runnibg off the usb dac youre connecting, so youre not using the integrated audio
If you're not connecting anything to the 3.5 mm audio jacks, you're effectively bypassing the onboard audio.
@@hentosama thanks for the reply, this was my presumption but wanted other opinions to confirm!
@@SimplyLewin thanks for the reply, this was my presumption but wanted other opinions to confirm!
Order same as you tuf with 12700k and some 980 pro for my 3080ti with a z73 lcd 360mm, leaving my long delided 8700k a 5ghz behind which handles everything but i felt the need to upgrade to not lose to much in the end . I would like to get the specs of your overclock to 5.2 ghz , would be appreciated buddy !
If we use our mic on usb is there a difference ?
Perhaps they are going to release a separate TUF soundcard? Shitty audio on a 300 dollar motherboard can just get fkd.
I mean the rog strix has ass audio as well.
Any sound card will improve every motherboard no matter how expensive the board is.
I literally got it for a penny this weekend cause microcenter was having a special offer if you buy a 12th gen chip.
Yeah I got it with i12700k for 300 and combined with $25 coupon for 275, great deal.
@@baam25th31 Did you mean the 11700K? The 12700K deal was for 350
@@TheNeernitt 12700k was 350 but you get $25 off with a coupon. And wait i am insane I meant 325 😆
@@baam25th31 I got the same deal; going to pick it up tomorrow, but I tried to get the $25 coupon and it said "for new customers only". The thing is I am a new customer. I just created my account before placing the order. I think the problem is I was supposed open my account through the coupon page. Any advice on how to get micro center to give me a code?
@xDD90x you had to click on the coupon link and enter information including a phone number not registered with them. They text you the coupon.
So professional, excellent!!!
Hi Bryan would you consider making a video on the steps and hardware you use to test the audio of a motherboard?
This was really helpful. Am currently deciding on parts for another high end 3D / video machine (dual 3090s) so this was great. Looking forward to more reviews soon mate!
Hi! I use this z690 plus wifi D4 with one rtx3090. Recently i want to add another one to accelerate my Vray rendering work. Does this board support dual rtx3090 well or Do I have to upgrade my board? Thank you!
This board has the Realtek ALC1220 chip, not ALC897. Did you make a mistake in the review?
I bought this motherboard yesterday - I'm so happy I watched your review for the sound card. Thank you.
What did you end up doing?
@@lost_places_global9008 Went with the ASUS STRIX Soar 7.1 PCIe sound card, and had to choose windows 10. As windows 11 is having issues with this soundcard and motherboard.
@@Guff_Farm
Is the sound card better than the supremeFX audio chip that the ROG Strix mainboard uses? (Z690-A white one).
@@lost_places_global9008 supremeFX - This card is not a full-fledged sound card, but an analog expansion to the audio chipset. I'd get a proper soundcard for this motherboard.
@@Guff_Farm also for the Asus Rog Strix Z690-A ?
I could find nothing else on the internet about the sound troubles you describe. Could you just have a dud board? The board in the U.K. say sound '' Realtek 7.1 Surround Sound High Definition Audio CODEC''
I have a DAC that I connect to the fibre optic audio port. Would that be a solution to the audio problem? I really like this motherboard so I hope this can be a workaround for the audio.
I love this board. But i do use a soundcard. Creative Soundblaster Z
Jeff - I have this exact board and love it! Could you let me know what overclocking settings you used in the bios?
Do you get any BSODs with it? I have it too and I am reusing my old 3600mhz ram kit that gave me zero issues in the past. As soon as I enable XMP it makes my system unstable.
How’s the sound on the board do you come through clear to your pals and does game audio come through clear as well
Hi I was wondering if you could please make a Video of how you got this board to overclock? It is at 4900 MHZ. Thanks
How long have you been using command and conquer music 😱
Hey Brian do know any news for other chipset motherboards
did you ever made a video on how to use a mic on pc?
Don't know how i feel about the mobo but i definitely like the review! Good job 👌
Great review. Good to know that it's more than capable. Regarding the sound card, if I get one and use the front connectors on the case, is it possible to make it default to the new sound card and new the onboard? Thanks
i think you need to connect to the soundcard
Tried a Seagate firecuda 2tb 530 in m2 next to cpu and in bottom 2 m2 slots. Got the latest bios. Very disappointed with the speed. Max I achieved was 5800MBs and this was only once. The results were not consistent. It was the fastest after I switch on the pc and it got slower, bottoming out around 4300MBs. What is going on? - is it thermally throttling? The max speed is supposed to be well over 7000MBs.
Hi - I use Astro A50 Headphones (with a dedicated mix-amp base) when gaming. Are USB-Headphones affected by the onboard audio on the mainboard? Or only if I connect directly to the Mainboard audio outputs? thx.
Same here. Any answers this?
For a general use system where I play no games is the audio good enough?
if you're going to to be using a headset most of the time will the poor audio section mess with that?
From everywhere I have seen and read 1.35 vcore is the max for setting it manually for OC. From what I understand pcore, ring, and e core are all run from the one vcore.
Where i can easily find memory support for asus motherboards? I need to know the memory speed for 2 dimms and 4 dimms, please.
Interesting that the audio is so poor… “Our specialized audio path design separates analog and digital signal domains and significantly reduce multi-lateral interference.” Pit it doesn’t reduce cross talk… hmmm will see if my board is as bad when it turns up… if so I will send it back…
@Andrew Powell how is your board?
brother can you please tell us how is its m.2 slots wil cool the double sided gen 4 ssds in the absence of underneath thermal pads.
would this motherboard supply enough power and be good enough for the i7 13700kf ?
Hello
.
Great review but i'm concerned about the audio issues.
If you use a Optical Out for the headset, the audio will be that bad too ?
My headset as built in sound card (Artic Pro Wireless)
Have you found any information on this? I have a DAC that extend though the optical out where I plug my headphones in as well
@@Cagruntas No sadly but my headphones has a sound card so I think it will be ok. Normally. And I think Asus has done some updates I hope.
@@mikawelll thanks for the reply. I decided to go for the MSI motherboard instead since all the reviews for those are generally better to save myself the worry
@@Cagruntas I prefer stick to Asus. I wanted a ROG Maximus motherboard but it's DDR5 only and it's almost 500€ to 32GB so I will buy a TUF series which is high end "budget" MB (almost 350€).
But I have searched many test and video about sound issues. And I have find nothing about this. Only this test. So in a way I'm not that scary be this, if this issue was so bad I will have find this on the Asus forum for sure.
@@mikawelll I have found nothing about this board having bad sound, apart from this review that may have a dud board.
Hello, everyone ! 🌞😉👌
Very good review ! 🌞👍
What's the best board for gaming on a 12900K?
What software do u use to do the audio test ?
We need more mobo reviews.
I intend to buy a z690 in the coming days, debating between this mobo to
asus rog strix z690-a gaming.
strix has a better vrm (16+1) compared to here (14+1) ? will I get decrease in degrees in vrm ?
because I mean overclock the hell of my cpu
thanks for teh video m8 ive decided to skip this gen and stick with my trust old i5 10600k it has never steered me wrong. Will just wiat on tuf gaming Z790 and hope its better :D
Got this board and I do like it for the most part. Only issue I’m trying to fix is the download speed I get via speed test through my Ethernet port is increasingly slow :(
Try turning off ASUS armory crate and manually installing your drivers. I test fine om my 1gbit Line with consistsnt 900+ Mbit on this board.
Does onboard audio matter if your using a headset via USB like the astro a50 wireless that uses a mix amp
nope the mixamp bypasses that with it's own program you install
Should I get the Tuf Gaming Z690 Plus Wifi ?
Or the ROG Strix Z690-A?
I mainly have a black setup mainly consisting of Asus Tuf Gaming products .. like my gpu, case and soon AIO cpu cooler.
I think the white Z690-A won’t find… but is the value and performance better in that one? Is the audio that much better? Or in general much better?… which should I pick?
I would go for the Asus ROG Strix Z690-A if money is not an impediment, the audio is much better and the quality of its materials, it would be the top range for ddr4 at the moment.
This motherboard is 70 dollars for the ddr5 version at micro center when you put a 12700k currently.
It’s running about 390 all in.
I was looking at this bundle since I went to micro center. Is it worth it?
@@roshanpatel4903 12700k+z690 mobo for 390 isn’t bad.
Why would Asus do us dirty with the audio like this in 2021?
Can i use this mobo with i5 12400? Or B660 is more fit with non K version?
Where do I know that outro music from?
This is why I love the B Man, because I don't know for sure if Asus is sending him this stuff, I know Asrock def does, but weather he gets it for free or pays for it out of his own pocket, he always tells it how it is. #TechYesLoving
what Coolers used for it?
Cheers buddy
I have a SB AE7 so onboard sound will be disabled
No Realtek S1200A codec?
love the design
Got this in a bundle with a 12700K for 320 at Microcenter a while back
Please help me, i've a car music' plant in my house with an amplifier and a power supply, we have the orange jack for the sub and the lime jack for speaker front but he doesnt work
With a software call realtek dont Remember so what i've to do?
Can you use ai suite with this board ?
Does every WiFi Motherboard have bluetooth?
I recently purchased this motherboard and I listened to your advice about the sound quality and I buy a sound blaster . (Cheap one). The difference in sound quantity is huge! But i have a problem with sound interference or static noise! Due to the lack of space, I plugged the sound card in to second video card slot because I have an Aio fitted to the gpu. Is the sound blaster card faulty? How I get rid of this static sound? I did a research on Google but no solution. My headset is hyperx cloud alpha. If I unplug the mic the noise is still there.!
@@akkanomark yes I did. Only sound blaster is enabled
I have this board. When I saw the little tiny caps in the sound area, I had no choice but to reinstate the xonar essence STX II sound card from my old z97 build. I didn't even have to test it, I just knew it would be bad. Thankfully, the dedicated sound card fixes that issue. Other than that, I absolutely love this board. I paired it up with an i7-12700k at 4.8 all core and 1.18v, and an rtx 3080 TI STRIX. Handles those parts like an absolute champ. Too bad the sound really needs an upgrade.
Edit: it handles 64gb at ddr4-3600 like a champ as well!
When you say sound problems do you mean that you can’t hear clearly or the microphone? Because i got this board last month and when i hop on discord whoever is playing with me keep saying that my voice keep disconnecting and I’m not sure is it because of the board or my headset.
My headset is hyperx cloud 2
@@abdulrahmanalharbi1342 when I play music, it does not have a lot of bass. I tend to like having the full range of sound in my music, and I like having a good amount of very tight base.
Any issues with the Intel NIC on it? I've read a lot about the i225 causing problems even after Intel and Asus supposedly released new versions of it from their Z490 years.
@@MD-pz3cn none for me after 9 months. Still going strong
@@ganzonomy Thanks!
Does anyone know about the memory topology of this motherboard?
Got this motherboard for free, can't complain
Lmao, I was worried when ur main problem was audio related. I use a leftover audio interface and mic from my Studio room.
That audio thing is a deal breaker.
FInna build on one of those clock holders and call it an open cooling solution
I ordered this board with 12th gen i9. I don't use on board audio on any pc so I think I'll be happy with it.
how was that ?
@@arnold00784 I use audio through my GPU
@@LinkSquish oh ok, but your i9 with the board how its going so far, i got the boar, just ordered the i9 12th gen
@@arnold00784 It's been good so far, I got it in January & built pc in February. Had to wait until all my parts came. I got Enermax ETS-T50 RGB air cooler. I had to go in BIOS & set the P cores to 4500MHz and E cores to 3500MHz as it got too hot. Sometime I'll get a liquid cooler but for now it rocks the way it is. I came think of it as an upgrade if I ever get a AIO liquid cooler.
@@arnold00784 I also got WD M.2 NVMe 4.0 1tb black edition and WD M.2 NVMe blue SSD cards for it. I boots in seconds, it's crazy.
Is the audio any good via the optical out?
I have this board. The audio is awful if you use a high impedance headset. In gaming, I couldn't hear footsteps or anything and had to have the volume at 100 for it to sound normal. My impedance is like 80 ohms too. I had to get a DAC.
@@ZyNeEnZyNe can you confirm that the audio is Realtek ALC897? In some review it said S1200A... Very confing.. Thanks
@@Ben-ld1qi I think the S1200A is exactly the same as the ALC1220, which is what many articles report. I checked my motherboard, but there are no markings on the audio chipset. If you are interested, the HW_ID reported by windows is: HDAUDIO\FUNC_01&VEN_10EC&DEV_0897&SUBSYS_10438841
In general, I would suggest getting a soundcard/DAC etc if you are using a high-end headset. This motherboard cannot drive an 80ohm headset, so if you use anything more, you NEED to get an alternative solution
Mate been part of dis for years 😃,
Picked up a new one for $175 US shipped, including tax! :)
Bios flashing for 13 gen cpu will I be able to do it without having 12 gen cpu
I am afrade to buy because I don't know will I be able to do that at home
The answer is NO. You need a 12 gen CPU to flash the Bios, it does not have a Bios Flashback button like other motherboards.
z690 chipset and alc 897 wtf, and overpriced(375$ in Ukraine). i want this mobo to buy, but when i heard from u its 897 codec and problems with it, i didnt want buy this anymore ty for info :) What mobo u can recommend for 12600k/12700k(im not rich so i need good mobo for long period and good quality)?
I'm using this mobo with a 12900K, gladly enough I didn't experience any of the mentioned issues.
how's the sound?
I personally find the Z690 motherboards to overpriced for what the offer on the new Intel 12th Gen. I ended up getting the Aorus Z690i Ultra DDR4 w/ 12700k as the i7 is sooo much better for temps under load for the loss of 4-E Cores and the gaming performance is 99% of the i9 and the i7, even mentioned herein the below comments, is overclocking to at 5.1Ghz and higher! I still have my AMD rigs as well 👍🥰.
It looks like gigabyte has the best lineup this time around. The Aero D, Gaming X, Aorus Elite, and Aorus Pro look like much better bang for the buck than the competition.
Overpriced is an understatement, in this case it's a robbery, twice the price and they downgraded from ALC s1200a to ALC897 that seems borked thought the MSI z690-a pro looks fair enough because z690-a pro + 12600k is around the same price as 10900f+z590-a pro.
@@BITCOIlN its 1200 not 897
I'd rather you show me VRM temperature in hwinfo than pointing a thermal camera at heatsinks
Asus doesn't generally support VRM thermal monitoring.
Does it support Xeons? ;)
I wish!
They've been making quality MB's for a couple decades and I for one trust Asus over most, which might even be made by Asus... also, pretty sure it's pronounced (aye-soos).
Nice clock holder.
Guys i have a question i hope you can help. i got this and i cant clock my ram higher than 3000 mhz (ddr4), should i return it?? i use a alderlake 12600k
i tried switching ram and its the same problem
Sorry its a bit late but can you tell me what model of ram sticks you exactly have and if you have two ram sticks check to see if you have places them well
@@yomama6761 nw’s i found out the rams are supposed to go into the b1 and b2 slots, i had a1 and a2
I have problem....problem solved ! My prev new z690 Mobo faulty ..so i claimed under warranty...new mobo replaced and Update the bios !
Mate.. you should bee the Australian Linus 💤👍🌃