ASRock Z790 PG Riptide Motherboard Review

ASRock is recognized for producing high-quality hardware. Their production also expands beyond motherboards to include graphics cards, monitors, mini PCs, and industrial/server-grade solutions. They offer various motherboard lines, including the well-received Taichi series and the enthusiast-oriented AQUA series. In this review, we examine the Z790 PG Riptide motherboard from their Phantom Gaming (PG) series, which features themed motherboards like Riptide and Sonic.

Key Takeaways

• The ASRock Z790 PG Riptide is a budget-friendly motherboard that supports both the Intel’s Gen 12th & 13th along with latest technologies like DDR5.
• You should buy it if you want a value for money motherboard that can also satisfy your robust power delivery requirements with its 16-phase VRM design.
• You might want to consider other options if you are looking for a motherboard that supports wireless connectivity as the ASRock Z790 PG Riptide lacks such features.

Also Read: Best Z690 Motherboards

As usual, we will take a look at the block diagram first and then move on to the design and layout of the motherboard.

In the block diagram of the Z790 PG Riptide motherboard, I observed some key features. The CPU natively supports a Gen 5 PCIe x16 slot and a Gen 5-based M.2 NVMe port. However, when I installed both a Gen 5 graphics card and a Gen 5 NVMe SSD, the graphics card operated at X8 lanes due to Intel’s platform design.

I also noticed that the CPU socket supports DisplayPort, HDMI ports, and Gen 4-based NVMe SSDs. I could safely pair a Gen 5 graphics card with a Gen 4 NVMe SSD without affecting the graphics card’s speed. However, there was no USB support from the CPU socket.

There are two DDR5 channels, each with two DIMM slots supporting up to 7200MHz (although achieving higher speeds would require a BIOS update).

The CPU-to-Chipset bridge operates on DMI Gen4 with X8 lanes. Three more M.2 ports offer X4 speeds, with one Gen 3-based M.2 port reserved for the WiFi module. I should note that there was no included WiFi module.

Network connectivity is on a dedicated Gen 3×1 PCIe bus, and the motherboard features 8x 6Gbps SATA ports, TPM, and Audio connections. Thunderbolt support relies on GPIO, and there are plenty of USB ports, although I had some design concerns. Fan control and hardware monitoring are managed by a Nuvoton controller.

Specifications

Product	ASRock Z790 PG Riptide
Chipset	Z790
Power Phase	14+1+1 Power Phase, 50A Dr.MOS for VCore+GT
Socket	LGA1700
Memory	Dual Channel, Supports DDR5 non-ECC, un-buffered memory up to 7200+(OC)
DIMM Slots	4x DDR5 DIMM Slots
Slots	1x PCIe 5.0, 1x PCIe 4.0, 1x PCIe 2.0, 1x M.2 Socket
Storage	4x Hyper M.2 Socket, 1x Blazing M.2 Socket, 8x SATA3 6.0 Gb/s Connectors
USB	1x USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type-C (Front), 2x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-A (Rear), 1x USB 3.2 Gen1 Type-C (Rear), 6x USB 3.2 Gen1 Type-A (4 Rear, 2 Front), 6x USB 2.0 (2 Rear, 4 Front)
Form Factor	ATX Form Factor

Packaging and Unboxing

Closer Look

ASRock Z790 PG Riptide motherboard is a mid-range gaming motherboard with a few hits and misses here and there to bring the overall proposition at a user-friendly price. It has a full ATX size and blue color accent with gray and black colors giving a pleasant look. Let’s start exploring the motherboard.

ASRock has done a good job in the overall layout and placement of the components. The PCB is black in color. All 4 heatsinks are quite stylish and are finished in gray and black colors combination. You will find the Phantom Gaming logo on the chipset cover, which is RGB backlit, meaning POLYCHROME SYNC is in action for that. Nothing else on this motherboard has an RGB element. ASRock has paid attention to the cooling requirement of key components.

We have an LGA1700 socket, 4x DIMM slots for DDR5 RAM, 3x PCIe slots at X16/X4/X1, 5 M.2 ports, 8x SATA ports, a plethora of USB ports, an on-board audio solution driven by Realtek ALC897, Intel Killer 2.5 GbE NIC, and nice I/O connectivity options. The 6-layered and 2x Copper PCB has a standard ATX form factor measuring 30.5cmX24.4cm and has support for Microsoft Windows 10 and 11.

The above picture shows the motherboard’s overview.

ASRock has provided 2x 8-pin EPS connectors. There is an HDMI and DP ports on the rear IO panel. The Rear IO Panel also has a USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-C port. There are 2x Lightning Gaming USB ports which we will cover later in the content. There is a 2.5GbE NIC. The PCIe Gen5 x16 slot is steel reinforced. In the motherboard, there are 4x M.2 Hyper sockets and 8x SATA ports. The power phases are 14+1+1 design.

CPU Socket, Heatsink, VRM, and Power Delivery

The ASROCK Z790 PG RIPTIDE features an LGA1700 socket. This is the same socket that is on Intel’s 12th-generation platform. This gives cross-generation compatibility between the 12th and 13th generations from Intel. This would also mean that the ILM design issues spotted in the previous generation will be in this generation. Taking a look at the socket, there is a protective cover on it. The arrow indicator on the cover is facing the arrow marking on the socket.

We opened the lid to show the socket itself and contact pins. It should be mentioned that the coolers compatible with Intel LGA1700 will work with the 13th generation as well.

Following graphics solution is native to the socket:

• Intel® Xe Graphics Architecture (Gen 12)
• 1 x HDMI 2.1 TMDS Compatible, supports HDCP 2.3 and max. resolution up to 4K 60Hz
• 1 x DisplayPort 1.4 with DSC (compressed), supports HDCP 2.3 and max. resolution up to 8K 60Hz / 5K 120Hz

We installed the Intel Core i7-13700K during the picture shoot. This CPU was used to test this motherboard.

ASRock has employed a powerful cooling solution for VRM/MOSFETs. This is of important consideration to achieve sustained performance under heavy load. There are two aluminum-made heatsink covers on the VRM/MOSFETS. These are not connected using a heat pipe. Well, this is acceptable at this price point. These heatsinks have a stepped and cut-out layout for effective heat transfer. The right cover has stylish stenciling with Phantom Gaming Series printed in black color, whereas the top cover has no branding at all.

The above picture shows both covers removed from the motherboard. ASRock did not specify the thermal conductivity rating of applied thermal pads. These pads seem to have a thickness of 2mm and are gray in color. The layered design is more visible in this picture, showing a large surface area for effective heat dissipation.

The rear IO panel cover has a Phantom Gaming blue color sticker. It is not RGB backlit.

We can see under the side of the top cover. It is made of plastic material.

While we are at it, let’s take a look at the power delivery of the motherboard.

ASROCK Z790 PG RIPTIDE motherboard has adequate digital power phases. There are 14 phases for VCore, with 1 phase for VCCGT and 1 phase for VCC AUX.

ASRock has used Vishay Siliconix SiC 654 MOSFETs. These are high-frequency integrated power stages optimized for synchronous buck applications to offer high current, high efficiency, and high power density performance with very low shutdown current. They are based on TrenchFET technology that delivers industry benchmark performance to reduce switching and conduction losses. These MOSFETs are rated for 50A current. They can deliver in excess of 50 A continuous current, 70 A peak (10 ms), and 100 A peak (10 μs). These are VRPower (Dr. MOS) type products.

Since these are 50A-rated MOSFETs, we have a total of 700A for the power delivery to VCore. We have 50A for GT and 50A for AUX.

ASRock employs the Richtek RT3628AE PWM controller to manage all three MOSFET types. This synchronous buck controller supports two output rails and fully complies with Intel IMVP9.1 requirements. It features Richtek’s G-NAVPTM topology for easy droop adjustment to meet Intel CPU AVP requirements. The RT3628AE also introduces Adaptive Quick Response (AQR) mechanisms for improved AVP performance during load transients, reducing the need for output capacitors. Additionally, it integrates a high-precision ADC for configuring platform settings.

After checking the specifications of the controller, we can guess that ASRock is using a doubler design on MOSFETs since this controller is rated for 8/7/6/5/4 Phase (CORE VR) + 1 Phase (AXG VR). This means we have 14 phases in doubler based on 7 phase design.

ASRock has provided two 8-pin EPS connectors for smooth power delivery to the circuit. Two would be needed for extreme overclocking on high-end CPUs; otherwise, a single connector is enough for daily requirements.

ASRock has mentioned that PCB is a 6 Layer design to provide stable signal traces and power shapes delivering lower temperature and higher energy efficiency for memory overclocking! Thus, it’s able to support the latest memory modules with the most extreme memory performance! 2-ounce copper inner layers that provide stable signal traces and power shapes! It helps in delivering lower temperatures and higher energy efficiency for overclocking.

DIMM Slots

The ASRock Z790 PG RIPTIDE motherboard has 4x DDR5-based DIMM slots. These slots are not steel reinforced. ASRock has mentioned that DDR5 up to 7200MHz is supported (With BIOS Update). By default, the board supports 4800MHz. A total of up to 128GB RAM capacity is supported with a single stick density of 32GB. This is a Dual Channel design and supports un-buffered DIMM 1Rx8/2Rx8/1Rx16 memory modules. Motherboard supports XMP 3.0 and AMD EXPO as well.

There are limitations in terms of populated sticks and possible speed:

• 1DPC 1R Up to 7200+ MHz (OC), 4800 MHz Natively.
• 1DPC 2R Up to 6000+ MHz (OC), 4400 MHz Natively.
• 2DPC 1R Up to 5600+ MHz (OC), 4000 MHz Natively.
• 2DPC 2R Up to 4800+ MHz (OC), 3600 MHz Natively.

This motherboard has latches or lockers on both ends of the slots.

The motherboard supports the Memory Dynamic Boost feature, which enables high-frequency switching from the native frequency. This feature seems to work without XMP loaded per our testing. ASRock has also provided ASRock Timing and Memory Frequency Boost features.

ASRock did not provide any information if the motherboard supports bypassing the locked PMIC on DDR5 kits to unlock PMIC for extreme overclocking. From the looks of it, this motherboard has support for that which is not enabled by default. By now, we know that some DDR5 modules come with locked PMIC (1.1V), whereas some high-end and high-performance kits come with unlocked PMIC. This is not necessarily a bad thing. The locked PMIC would hurt the overclocking of the kit only.

Due to the unique electrical architecture of DDR5 DIMM, there’s a high risk of damaging the memory module if AC power isn’t disconnected properly during removal or installation. ASRock has mentioned that they have implemented a trouble-free protection circuit on every DDR5 motherboard to lower the risk of damaging the memory module(s) to circumvent the above-stated issue.

There are two SM4337 N-Channel rated at 30V, and 55A MOSFETs, probably for the power delivery of DIMM slots. There are further two similar MOSFETs below the circuitry.

M.2 Ports

ASRock has provided a plethora of M.2 ports or sockets on this motherboard. However, there are three catches on that, which we will mention shortly. Much like Zen4, Intel also releases PCIe Gen5-based M.2 support for the upcoming high-speed PCIe Gen5-based M.2 NVMe SSDs. ASRock has provided one such port on this motherboard.

We can see a gray and black color combination on the top M.2 cover. The top section has what ASRock is using, the Blazing M.2. This top cover is made of aluminum and acts as a heatsink. It is quite stylish and has somewhat depth to provide more surface area for effective heat dissipation.

Look at that. We have not one but two ports here. That is our first catch. The left port is based on PCIe Gen 4, whereas the right side port is based on PCIe Gen5. Regardless of actually showing 6 M.2 ports, we have a useful count of 4x M.2 ports that can be used at a time. This is because we can use either of these two topmost ports.

A second catch that we already mentioned above is that populating M.2 Gen5 port will make the Gen5-based Graphics Card operate at X8 lanes.

The above picture shows the second M.2 cover with the same style, but it is a single piece of aluminum without any depth. Since it has almost double the length of the top cover so it would still serve its purpose in an effective manner. It is labeled as M.2 ARMOR.

We have two M.2 ports at the base. These are PCIe Gen4-based ports and are wired to the chipset.

There are two more ports in the middle section. The top M.2 port is NGF form factor and is reserved for the WIFI/BT module, which the user is required to purchase separately from the market. It is a Key-E type port that supports only the 2230 form factor for WiFi/BT PCIe WiFi module and Intel® CNVio/CNVio2 (Integrated WiFi/BT). The bottom port is Hyper M.2 and is based on Gen4, wired to the chipset.

There comes another catch. Though we have a total count of 6 M.2 ports on this motherboard, one is reserved for WIFI only, and one can use either of the top two ports. Effectively, a user can install a total of 4x M.2 SSDs on this motherboard which is still a good number.

All these ports are M-type, and except for the top two ports, the remaining three M.2 SSD ports support the 2260 and the 2280 form factor. The top PCIe Gen4 and Gen5 M.2 SSD ports can support only the 2280 form factor.

PCIe Slots

This motherboard has 3x PCIe slots. ASRock has put a good implementation of the two slots.

The topmost PCIe slot is wired to the CPU socket and is a fully functional PCIe Gen 5 x16 slot with a theoretical bandwidth of 128GB/s. This slot is stainless-steel reinforced.

The reinforced steel slot is capable of supporting PCI Express 5.0 standard. Some of the key benefits are:

• Extra anchor points
• Stronger latch
• Ensure signal stability
• Make sure heavy graphics cards are well-installed.

Compared to conventional DIP-style PCIe slots, the SMT-type PCIe slot improves signal flow and maximizes stability under high speed, a key breakthrough to fully support the lighting speed of the latest PCIe 5.0 standard. The latest PCI Express 5.0 is capable to perform a breathtaking bandwidth of 128GBps.

The second PCIe slot is wired to the chipset, as we saw in the block diagram. It is a PCIe Gen4 x4 slot which is mentioned as x16. The provision of an x4 PCIe slot is a wise design.

However, the last PCIe slot is a PCIe Gen3x1 slot. Likely because its X1 mode is that the Gen3 lane is being shared with Intel Killer 2.5 GbE NIC.

Z790 Chipset

Now, it is time to take a look at the Z790 chipset area.

The chipset has a low-profile cover. It is made of aluminum material. There is a blue area on the right side with a Phantom Gaming logo that is RGB backlit. This is the only area that has RGB lighting on this motherboard. ASROCK is printed in white color at the base. Three words are highlighted:

• Fast
• Mysterious
• Unbeatable

These seem more like a marketing gimmick than anything useful.

We removed the chipset cover. We did not remove the thermal pad as it could tear. This pad is gray in color. The chipset has a clean power delivery with VRMs on the right side of the chipset. They are driven by SM4337 N-Channel MOSFETs.

The ASRock Z790 PG Riptide has SM Bus-connected microcontroller to a Nuvoton NUC 121ZC2 ARM microcontroller connected to USB. This device is responsible for controlling the RGB illumination of the motherboard. This chip also monitors the state of the board.

Audio Solution

The audio solution on this motherboard is adequate though nothing extraordinary. It uses RealTek ALC897 codec to drive the audio solution. This is just an ok solution which could have been better in my opinion.

The above picture shows well-shielded audio circuitry. This motherboard uses 4x high-end WIMA capacitors along with Fine-Gold capacitors to drive the power of the circuit. This is not a Hi-Res Audio solution. ASRock has provided Nahimic Audio support on this motherboard which is a software-level augmentation.

Networking Connectivity

We have two main areas here:

• Wireless connectivity
  • Wi-Fi
  • Bluetooth
• Wired connectivity

Wired Connectivity

ASRock has employed Intel Killer NUC on this motherboard. This is Killer E3100G controller. There is a single RJ-45 port on the back panel for the wired network connectivity. The 2.5GbE provide roughly double the speed of that 1GbE connectivity for a better online gaming experience. Talking about the ethernet, its port supports 10/100/1000/2500Mbps.

ASRock has provided a specialized engine via drivers for enhanced detection and prioritization to provide the ultimate networking experience for gaming and multimedia applications. Some key benefits are:

1. Faster Gameplay
2. Easy to Use
3. Fully Customizable

The Killer GameFast Technology can free up to 10% of CPU cycles and 20% of memory, allowing the user to enjoy a smooth gaming experience. It is extremely easy to use. Just simply turning on the Killer GameFast  will do the work. All the settings are customizable according to the user’s preference. The one thing that we can change as per the user is ‘adding or removing processes to be stopped’.

The Intel® Killer™ Prioritization Engine ensures you get your lowest in-game latencies by prioritizing your gaming traffic above everything else. Automatically detect, classify, and prioritize network traffic for streaming videos and entertainment to give you the best possible online experience. The Intel® Killer™ Prioritization Engine works automatically, and the Intel® KillerTM Intelligence Center allows you to customize and prioritize your network traffic to your liking.

Wireless Connectivity

There is no wireless connectivity on this motherboard, as we mentioned above. There is an E-Type, 2230 M.2 port which can be populated with WiFi/BT PCIe WiFi module and Intel® CNVio/CNVio2 (Integrated WiFi/BT).

USB Connectivity

The USB connectivity is provided by the chipset:

• 1 x USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type-C (Front)
• 2 x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-A (Rear)
• 1 x USB 3.2 Gen1 Type-C (Rear)
• 6 x USB 3.2 Gen1 Type-A (4 Rear, 2 Front)
• 6 x USB 2.0 (2 Rear, 4 Front)

We can see the plethora of USB connectivity options on this motherboard.

This board has USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 over Type-C interface, providing a theoretical bandwidth of 20Gbps on the front I/O panel. There are two USB ports on the rear panel, which is mentioned as Lightning Gaming Ports. We will discuss them in the testing section.

The ASM1074 is a 4-port USB hub in downstream configuration from the chipset. This controller is from ASMedia. It is a USB3.2 Gen 1 Hub controller for Super-Speed USB3.0 and USB2.0 interface.

ASRock has employed another ASMedia controller that is ASM3042. It is the next generation USB xHCI host controller to bridge PCIe to the USB 3.2 interface. It is compliant with USB 3.2 Specification Revision 1.0 and Intel eXtensible Host Controller Interface specification revision 1.1.

ASM3042 supports two ports of USB3.2 Gen1 x1 and performs exceptional high-speed bandwidth with the support of PCI Express Gen3. It uses an advanced process with a low voltage supply, following standard PCI Express/USB bus power management and advanced chip power management to reduce total power consumption efficiently under an idle/standby state.

The PI3EQX1004E is a low-power, high-performance 10.0 Gbps 2-Port USB 3.1 linear ReDriver™ designed specifically for the USB 3.1 protocol. It supports four 10Gbps differential signal pairs and is fully compliant with USB 3.1 standards.

Internal Connectors

Now that we have covered the main features, functions, and design of the motherboard, let’s take a look at the internal connectors.

• 4-Pin PWM CPU FAN Header
• 4-Pin PWM CPU Fan/Pump Header

• 4-Pin PWM Fan/Pump Header
• 1x Standard 5V 3-pin A-RGB Connector
• 1x Standard 12V 4-pin RGB Connector

4-pin RGB port supports 12V/3A providing up to 36W power for the LED Strip.

3-pin A-RGB port provides up to 15W for the LED Strip using 5V/3A.

CPU Fan1 is rated at 1A, whereas CPU_Fan2/WP is rated at 2A. CHA_FAN1 to CHA_FAN4 are rated at 2A each. Out of these fan headers, only CPU_FAN2/WP and CHA_FAN1 to CHA_FAN4 can detect the connected fan type i.e., PWM or DC. Surprising to see that CPU_FAN1 does not have this function.

ASRock is using nuvoton 3947S controller for the PWM fan/pump headers.

Next, we have:

• A 24-Pin ATX Connector
• 2 Gen2x2 Front Panel Connector
• CHA_FAN3/WP
• 2 Gen1 Header

The PI3EQX2004ZHE handles the USB Type-C 3.2 Gen2x2 port. ASRock has implemented this connector for the front panel connectivity. I wish they had done it on the rear IO panel.

Next, down the line, we have 6x SATA 6Gbps ports wired directly to the Chipset.

There is a 4-pin Fan/Pump header under the CPU socket. It is rated at 2A, providing up to 24W power.

ASRock has provided 4x LEDs to troubleshoot the issues should one encounter. These are for the VGA, CPU, BOOT, and DRAM. They provide additional troubleshooting aid to the. In case of an issue, the corresponding LED will remain lit until the issue is resolved. There is no Debug LED on this board. ASRock has named these as Post Status Checkers.

There is a 13-pin TPM header. It is implemented on the SPI bus.

ASRock has used Nuvoton NCT6796D-E controller. The NCT6796D-E is a member of Nuvoton’s Super I/O series and is capable of monitoring critical parameters in PC hardware, including power supply voltages, fan speeds, and temperatures. It provides both high-accuracy current mode sensing and low-cost thermistor mode sensing. It also supports Nuvoton’s SMART FANTM I and SMART FANTM IV algorithms for fan speed control. The NCT6796D-E supports both LPC & eSPI interface to communicate with chipsets. It implements Intel® PECI, AMD® SB-TSI interface, Intel® S0iX glue logic, and Port 80 diagnostic messages on both LPC & eSPI interface. This is the main IO controller chip on this motherboard.

Now, let’s take a look at the bottom connectivity options on this motherboard.

Starting from the right side, we have a Front Panel header. Please refer to the manual for proper cable connectivity. Next, there is a Speaker header.

Onwards, we have two more SATA 6Gbps connectors. There is a Clear CMOS jumper right next to the SATA connector. It is tilted, which seems to have run passed the QC. Next, we have a CHA_FAN5 Fan/Pump header rated for 2A.

Moving on, we have two 9-pin USB 2.0 headers followed by a 3-pin A-RGB header and a 4-pin RGB header. These have the same power rating of 15W and 36W, respectively.

Next, there is a 5-pin proprietary Thunderbolt header. Only ASRock’s Thunderbolt Add-In card can be used with this port using a GPIO cable.

Lastly, there is a 4-pin PWM CHA_FAN4 Fan and Pump header rated at 2A, followed by a UART port. At last, there is a Front Panel HD Audio connector.

The following options are provided:

• 2 x Antenna Mounting Points
• 1 x HDMI Port
• 1 x DisplayPort 1.4
• 2 x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-A Ports (10 Gb/s)
• 1 x USB 3.2 Gen1 Type-C Port
• 4 x USB 3.2 Gen1 Type-A Ports (USB32_56 are Lightning Gaming Ports.)
• 2 x USB 2.0 Ports
• 1 x RJ-45 LAN Port
• HD Audio Jacks: Line in / Front Speaker / Microphone

The above picture shows the backside view of the motherboard.

The above picture shows the PCB with all the heatsink covers removed.

UEFI/BIOS

This is my first time with ASRock, so UEFI/BIOS run would be a first-time experience. In my opinion, after using this motherboard for some time, ASRock has provided the most user-friendly BIOS in terms of simplicity of the layout, combining the related settings under one head. I have been praising MSI before this, followed by ASUS and then GIGABYTE. I will walk the reader through key settings and variables as this is the first time on ASRock.

Software

ASRock has provided 3x software with this motherboard which you can download from their website.

• ASRock Motherboard Utility (Phantom Gaming Tuning)
• Killer Control Center
• ASRock Polychrome SYNC

It is good to see that brands are moving towards a time when their software can be downloaded automatically. All that you need to do is to enable the Automatic Software Download option in the BIOS. As soon as you are booted into Windows, the program will prompt for searching and downloading software.

Auto Driver install is the name of the utility that ASRock uses to download the drives from the website.

The available drivers will be listed in the window. Select the required ones and click on Update. It will start downloading. All downloads are completed first and then installed one by one.

When there is no driver update available, you will be prompted accordingly.

The App Shop is another software provided by ASRock. You can use it to download Killer Control and other listed utilities.

You can also use App Shop to download the updates.

The Settings menu allows users to change the behavior of this software.

We downloaded Key Master Utility from App Shop.

POLYCHROME SYNC is ASRock’s approach toward RGB/A-RGB light control. Unfortunately, I did not find this app user-friendly. Maybe ASRock needs to check the MYSTIC SYNC app and create something more user-friendly with a rich experience. The onboard LED will list the present RGB/A-RGB elements on the motherboard. You can then decide if to sync these elements and apply a single control or otherwise.

The component section will list the hardware components connected to the motherboard and have RGB/A-RGB elements. You can change the RGB style of these components one component at a time.

ASRock Phantom Gaming Tuning is a major application software that allows users to control the performance of the system. Operation Mode is loaded by default. It has three modes listing:

• Performance Mode
• Standard Mode
• Power Saving

Selecting a mode will load its default settings.

OC Tweaker says it all. You can practically do anything here that you can do on the OC Tweaker page in BIOS.

The System Info page shows various voltage read-outs, frequencies, temperatures, and fan speeds.

The FAN-Tastic Tuning gives users advanced control over fans. You can define a custom fan curve here.

There is only one option here. If the user selects Auto Run at the Windows Startup, then this utility will load at windows startup and over-rides BIOS settings.

The powerful algorithms ensure the best noise-free conversation, giving a constant vocal level no matter the distance from your mic. Not only that, but the Nahimic audio engine dynamically clears the sound and removes interference noise, and lowers the voice variation. As a result, there is better comprehension and less fatigue.

• Static Noise Suppression
• Echo Cancellation
• Lateral Sound Cancellation
• Voice Stabilizer

The Sound Tracker is a visual indicator that points out the directions from which predominant sounds are coming. Each sound is properly positioned at 360° on the radar for full immersion during the game.

Now that we have covered the UEFI/BIOS and Software, It is time for actual testing of the ASRock Z790 PG Riptide motherboard and results.

Test Setup

We have used this configuration to measure the performance of the motherboard:

• Intel Core i7-13700K [Auto, Stock]
• ARCTIC Liquid Freezer – II 420 [Fans and Pump at full speed]
• Alphacool Sub-Zero Thermal Paste
• XPG Lancer RGB 32GB @ 6000MHz, CL40 DDR5
• Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus 2TB PCIe 4 NVMe SSD
• Samsung 840 EVO 1 TB SSD for the Games
• Sabrent Rocket NANO 2TB USB 3.2 Gen2 External Drive
• Sabrent Rocket NANO V2 2TB USB 3.2 Gen2x2 External Drive
• MSI GeForce RTX 3090 Gaming X Trio 24G
• be quiet! Straight Power 11 850W Platinum
• Thermaltake Core P6 TG Snow Edition in an open frame layout

Microsoft Windows 11 x64 Pro 22H2 is used for all the testing. Nvidia 528.02 drivers are used for graphics card testing. HWInfo64 is used to monitor sensors during testing.

The above is a run from CPU-Z software.

We have categorized testing into 4 groups:

• Overall Performance
  • PCMark10
  • Performance Test
  • User Benchmark
• CPU and Memory Tests
  • Rendering Tests
  • Compression Tests
  • Encoding Tests
• Storage Tests
  • Synthetic Tests
  • Real-World Test
• PCIe Tests
  • Synthetic Performance
  • Gaming Performance

Details of test software are as under:

• Storage Tests
  • ATTO
  • Crystal Disk Mark
  • TxBench
  • 3DMARK Storage Test
  • DiskBench
• CPU Tests
  • Cinebench R23
  • GeekBench 5
  • Blender Benchmark 1.02b and 3.4.0
  • 7-Zip
  • X264 HD Benchmark 5.0
  • Super-Pi
  • AIDA64 Engineer – Memory
  • AIDA64 Engineer – CPU AES
  • AIDA64 Engineer – CPU Queen
• Overall Performance
  •  PCMark10
  • Performance Test
  • User Benchmark
• Gaming Tests
  • 3DMark – Fire Strike Ultra
  • 3DMark – Time Spy Extreme
  • Red Dead Redemption 2
  • Cyberpunk
  • Forza Horizon 5
  • Assassin’s Creed Valhalla
  • Far Cry 6
• Test Results
  • This section will show the results of the various test suites and gaming benchmarks that we have run on this motherboard.

Overall System Performance

Let’s look at the overall performance scores that I got on various testing software:

 

CPU and Memory Performance

Below are the CPU and memory performance specs that I got on my test setup:

 

Storage Performance

We have tested storage performance using PCIe Gen4 NVMe SSD, USB 3.2 Gen2 (10Gbps), and USB 3.2 Gen2x2 (20 Gbps) drives. Yes, we have measured the USB performance as well. We also tested Thunderbolt performance, but we don’t have an ASRock TB Add-In card, so this testing was not done. Also, take note that this motherboard does not have a USB 3.2 Gen2 port. Hence USB3.2 Gen2 drive was operating at USB3.2 Gen1 (5 Gbps).

 

Real-World Storage Performance

Now it is time to take a look at how these drives actually perform with real-world data. A folder of size 210GB with mixed files and folders, including a massive 100GB compressed file, was read and written on the drives one by one. How they performed? Let’s see.

PCIe/Gaming Performance

Let’s now look at the gaming performance of the Riptide:

All games were tested on three resolutions (1080P, 1440P, and 2160P) using their maxed-out graphics settings:

We have a good gaming performance from the CPU and graphics card from this system.

Lightning Gaming USB Ports

We have mentioned in the design section that this motherboard has 2x USB ports on the rear IO panel, which are specifically designed to reduce input lag and latency of the connected peripherals. The idea behind these ports is that connecting high-speed or full-speed peripherals (mouse and keyboard) on USB ports driven by the same controller may stress out that controller resulting in more jitter and input lag. ASRock has implemented two separate controllers for these two USB ports. This would reduce stress on the controller and would help fight jitter and latency or input lag.

We are using Drevo Falcon RGB Mouse and XPG Summoner Keyboard. We tested the functionality of these ports by using mouse track software which also plots the graph.

The peripherals were connected to USB 2.0 ports on the rear IO panel. We can that dots are more scattered from the center line except for a middle portion of that line.

These peripherals were connected to Lightning Ports on the rear IO panel, and the test was repeated. We have a more linear flow this time.

Clocks Behavior

P-Cores on Intel Core i7 13700k have a base clock of 3.40GHz and a boost clock of 5.30GHz. E-Cores have a base clock of 2.50GHz with a maximum boost clock of 4.2GHz. The Maximum Turbo Frequency is 5.40GHz (on any core or two cores), depending on the load type. We needed to see if this CPU maintains these clocks on ASRock Z790 PG Riptide.

Power Consumption and Thermals

We have left all the settings in the UEFI/BIOS on auto and stock. We only set the Fans and pump speed to run at 100% all the time. The XMP 3.0 profile is loaded on XPG Lancer RGB 32GB Kit running at 6000MHz with CL40. We still set Memory Frequency and Primary timings manually. I can’t help since I am a creature of habit. Power mode was set to Balanced in the Windows setting. The system was left idle for 15 minutes with HWInfo64 running in the background, recording values.

The ambient temperature was 12.7°C to 14°C.

	CPU Core Temperature	RAM	NVMe SSD	Graphics Card
Idle Temperature	16°C	25.8°C	24°C	35.6°C
Idle Power Draw	2.651W	0.500W	N/A	10.828

 

Next, we run the Cinebench R23.2 System Stability test for 30 minutes. We also ran a 220GB consecutive read and write operation on the NVMe drive 5 times and monitored the thermal sensor. Time Spy Extreme stress test was run to monitor the maximum temperature and power draw of a graphics card.

	CPU Core Temperature	RAM	NVMe SSD	Graphics Card
Load Temperature	74°C	30.3°C	52°C	78°C
Load Power Draw	224.348W	1.750W	N/A	380W

 

Next, we overclocked the CPU to 5.6GHz on P-Cores and 4.4GHz on E-Cores. Ran CINEBENCH R23 System Stability test for 30 minutes.

The maximum temperature was 85°C on Core Temperatures. The package power draw was 258.003W.

Thermal Imaging

We have used Hti HT18 Thermal camera to record the thermals of the VRM area of the motherboard under load using a blender benchmark with overclocked CPU.

The MOSFETs were operating at around 55.4°C at an ambient of 12°C.

Should You Buy It?

Buy It If:

You Want Value For Money: Priced under $250, I think the ASRock Z790 PG Riptide provides good value for all of its features.

You Want Good Power Delivery: The ASRock Z790 PG Riptide has a double-digit, i.e., 16-phase VRM which makes it suitable for tasks requiring robust power delivery.

Don’t Buy It If:

You Want Superb Audio Quality: The audio in this motherboard is powered by RealTek ALC897 which does not provide top of the line quality.

You Want Wireless Connectivity: Unlike many modern motherboards, this one lacks the wireless connectivity options which might be necessary for some buyers.

Conclusion

During Intel’s 13th generation platform launch, I tested the ASRock Z790 PG Riptide motherboard. This board targets both budget and mid-range markets, featuring Intel LGA1700 socket compatibility and DDR4 support. It offers 4x DIMM DDR5 slots, maxing out at 128GB, and supports speeds up to 7200MHz with a BIOS update. The motherboard has 3x PCIe slots, USB 3.2 Gen2x2 and Gen1 Type-C ports, 8x independent SATA ports, and 6x M.2 ports, with space limitations allowing the use of 4 at a time.

Connectivity includes an Intel 2.5GbE Killer E3100G NIC, 4x troubleshooting LEDs, but no Debug LED. VRM/MOSFET cooling is well-designed, keeping temperatures under control. Audio is powered by RealTek ALC897, and there are 6 fan headers, with 5 suitable for water pumps.

The motherboard’s power delivery employs a 14+1+1 design with RICHTEK’s digital PWM controller RT3628AE and 50A SM4337 MOSFETs. In testing, it performed well, though some benchmarks showed it falling behind competitors. It’s a strong choice for budget and mid-range users, excelling in MOSFET cooling, storage, and gaming performance, but it lacks wireless connectivity, and its audio is average. The motherboard is priced at $229 and comes with a 3-year warranty.

The ASRock Z790 PG Riptide received following tech4gamer awards:

• Best Value Z790 Motherboard
• Best Value Motherboard For i9-13900KS