ASUS ROG Maximus Z890 Extreme Wifi DDR5 Intel Motherboard

The ASUS ROG Maximus Z890 Extreme WiFi DDR5 is a flagship E-ATX motherboard engineered for Intel Core Ultra Processors (Series 2) on the LGA1851 socket. Built around the Intel Z890 chipset, it delivers the raw headroom and precision tooling that serious overclockers and power users demand. At the heart of its memory subsystem sit four DDR5 DIMM slots supporting up to 192 GB of non-ECC unbuffered DDR5 memory, with overclocked speeds rated beyond 8800 MT/s when using compatible kits. ASUS AEMP III, DIMM Fit, DIMM Flex, and NitroPath DRAM Technology work together to extract maximum stability and bandwidth. A dedicated differential-sensing circuit monitors CPU voltages with greater accuracy than conventional single-ended designs, simplifying the fine-tuning process significantly. Expansion is equally formidable. Two PCIe 5.0 x16 slots (configurable as x16, x8/x8, or x8/x4/x4) feed the fastest discrete GPUs available, while six M.2 slots — including two PCIe 5.0 x4 slots for blazing-fast NVMe SSDs — are all backed by ROG M.2 PowerBoost to sustain simultaneous peak throughput across every device. Four SATA 6 Gb/s ports round out legacy storage connectivity. Networking is handled by a dual-Ethernet setup comprising a Marvell AQtion 10 Gb port alongside an Intel 2.5 Gb port, complemented by Intel Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be, 2x2, 2.4/5/6 GHz, up to 5.8 Gbps) and Bluetooth 5.4. AI Networking II software continuously optimises wireless performance in real time. The rear I/O panel hosts two Thunderbolt 5 USB Type-C ports, one USB 20 Gbps Type-C port, five USB 10 Gbps Type-A ports, two USB 10 Gbps Type-C ports, HDMI 2.1 (up to 8K@60 Hz with DSC), dual Ethernet jacks, optical S/PDIF out, LED-illuminated audio jacks, a BIOS FlashBack button, and a Clear CMOS button. Front-panel USB 20 Gbps with Quick Charge 4+ delivers up to 60 W of device charging. Audio is powered by the ROG SupremeFX codec (ALC4082) paired with an ESS ES9219 Quad DAC, offering 120 dB SNR stereo playback output, 110 dB SNR recording input, and support for 32-bit/384 kHz front-panel playback, with SupremeFX Shielding Technology minimising electromagnetic interference. For extreme overclocking sessions, the board includes an LN2 Mode jumper, ProbeIt measurement points (18 total), a ReTry button, a Safe Boot button, an onboard Start button, a Slow Mode switch, BCLK buttons, and a Dual BIOS configuration. NPU Boost in the UEFI enables one-click overclocking of the integrated NPU found in Core Ultra Series 2 processors. A full-colour 5-inch onboard LCD display provides real-time system telemetry. Aura Sync ARGB headers, a Q-Dashboard, Q-Code LED readout, and an extensive Extreme OC Kit complete the package. Verified Specifications: - Form Factor: E-ATX (12 in x 10.9 in / 30.5 cm x 27.7 cm) - Socket: LGA1851 — Intel Core Ultra Processors (Series 2) - Chipset: Intel Z890 - Memory: 4 x DDR5 DIMM, max 192 GB, up to 8800+ MT/s (OC), dual-channel, XMP / AEMP III - PCIe Slots: 2 x PCIe 5.0 x16 (CPU) + 1 x PCIe 4.0 x4 (chipset) - M.2 Slots: 6 total (M.2_1 PCIe 5.0 x4; M.2_2 PCIe 4.0 x4; M.2_3 & M.2_4 PCIe 5.0 x4; DIMM.2_1 & DIMM.2_2 PCIe 4.0 x4 via ROG Q-DIMM.2) - SATA: 4 x SATA 6 Gb/s - LAN: 1 x Marvell AQtion 10 GbE + 1 x Intel 2.5 GbE - Wireless: Intel Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be), Bluetooth 5.4 - Rear USB: 2 x Thunderbolt 5 (USB-C), 1 x USB 20 Gbps (USB-C), 7 x USB 10 Gbps (5 x Type-A + 2 x USB-C) - Audio: ROG SupremeFX ALC4082, ESS ES9219 Quad DAC, 7.1 surround, 120 dB SNR playback - BIOS: Dual 256 Mb Flash ROM, UEFI AMI - OS Support: Windows 11 (22H2 and later)