Asrock Introduces Z690 Aqua and Aqua OC Motherboards to Get the Most Out of the i9-12900KS

Manufacturers never cease to amaze us with high-end products, and it is ASRock’s turn as it is expanding its offer of Z690 chipset motherboards with two models, the ASRock Z690 Aqua OC and Z690 Aqua. The two will have a limited number of 500 units, true collector’s items.

Motherboards are optimized for the i9-12900KS with the Intel Enhanced Thermal Velocity Boost option.

Visually, they are a show for those who like to admire hardware. Both models have a liquid cooling system that covers almost the entire board. ASRock also included a digital liquid leak detector. The 12-layer PCB ensures durability and is also covered by a backplate, making these motherboards practically completely covered on both sides.

The ASRock Z690 Aqua OC and Z690 Aqua offer a VRM configuration of 105A and 19 + 1 phases, allowing overclocking for any unlocked Intel Core Alder Lake. ASRock Aqua motherboards feature two PCIe 5.0 slots operating in x16 / x0 or x8 / x8 modes, plus one PCIe 4.0 x16 slot and one PCIe 3.0 x1 slot. As for M.2 connections, ASRock offers three PCIe 4.0 x4 M.2 slots. The cover of one of these slots has a small OLED screen, although for now ASRock has not released details about the function.

The biggest difference between the two models is the number of DDR5 memory slots. The OC version has two, which allows a much better RAM memory overlock. Another difference between the two is that the “normal” version has two more USB 3.2 ports on the rear panel, while the OC model has one PS / 2 port. The same goes for the SATA ports, the OC version has an additional power connector instead of two SATA ports.

Apart from these differences, the two boards offer the best in connections, such as Thunderbolt 4, 10Gbps Ethernet, Wi-Fi 6E and USB 3.2 ports that offer speeds of 10Gbps and 20Gbps, in addition to DisplayPort ports.

There is no information on availability and prices yet.