The new 13th Gen Intel Core processors were launched together with the new Intel Z790 platform, featuring more PCIe 4.0 lanes and USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 ports. Now, you can still use Raptor Lake with the last-gen Intel 600 series motherboards, but if you are setting up an all-new build, why not go for the latest and greatest? Since you are here, I think you agree as well, so here are the prices and specs on the Z790 boards available in Malaysia.
You can check out the visual above to quickly identify the differences between Intel Z790 and Intel Z690.
ASUS Z790 – from RM1,119
Nine motherboards are available from ASUS to choose from. Out of this stack, I believe the ROG Strix Z790-I Gaming WiFi is quite worthy of highlighting with its unique ROG Strix Hive and ROG FPS-II Card design, intended to maximize connectivity in the constraints of the ITX form factor. The ROG Maximus Z790 Extreme obviously comes with the latest and greatest in every aspect, but the lofty price tag does lower its desirability, given that the LGA1700 socket is on its way out…
For those who don’t require such a fancy board, you can also look at ASUS’ other offerings, like the ROG Strix Z790-A Gaming WiFi D4, for those of you out there who fancy white setups. It is also worth mentioning that it supports DDR4, taking advantage of Alder Lake and Raptor Lake’s support for the last-gen memory standard. The TUF Gaming Z790-PLUS WiFi D4 is yet another option for gamers who do not want to splurge on DDR5 memory.
Last but not least, we have the affordable Prime series, that are intended towards enterprise deployments. These are a part of ASUS’ Corporate Stable Model (CSM) program, which means that these are supported for at least 36 months. They will also come with the ASUS Control Center Express management software, which is perfect for fleet deployments. With that said, the Prime Z790-A WiFi-CSM won’t look out of place in a gaming build, with a space-inspired design that I do think goes quite well, especially if you carry a Zenbook 14X OLED Space Edition, like me.
ASUS Z790 Motherboards Specs and Price in Malaysia
| ROG MAXIMUS Z790 Extreme | ROG Maximus Z790 Hero | ASUS ROG Strix Z790-E Gaming WiFi | ASUS ROG Strix Z790-I Gaming WiFi | ASUS ROG Strix Z790-A Gaming WiFi D4 | ASUS TUF Gaming Z790-PLUS WiFi D4 | ASUS Prime Z790-A WiFi-CSM | ASUS Prime Z790-P WiFi-CSM | ASUS Prime Z790M-PLUS D4-CSM | |
| Chipset | Intel Z790 | Intel Z790 | Intel Z790 | Intel Z790 | Intel Z790 | Intel Z790 | Intel Z790 | Intel Z790 | Intel Z790 |
| Power delivery | 24+1 Teamed (105A Smart Power Stage) | 20+1 Teamed (90A Smart Power Stage) | 18+1 Teamed (90A Smart Power Stage) | 10+1 Teamed (105A Smart Power Stage) | 16+1 Teamed (70A Smart Power Stage) | 16+1 Teamed (60A DrMOS) | 16+1 Teamed (60A DrMOS) | 14+1 Teamed (50A DrMOS) | 10+1 Teamed (50A DrMOS) |
| DDR5 support | Up to DDR5-7800+ | Up to DDR5-7800+ | Up to DDR5-7800+ | Up to DDR5-7600 | Up to DDR4-5333 | Up to DDR4-5333 | Up to DDR5-7200+ | Up to DDR5-7200+ | Up to DDR4-5333 |
| PCIe/M.2 slots | CPU 2 x PCIe 5.0 x16 (x16 or x8/x8) 1 x M.2 PCIe 5.0 x4 1 x M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4 Chipset 1 x PCIe 4.0 x4 1 x M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4 2 x M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4 (via DIMM.2) | CPU 2 x PCIe 5.0 x16 (x16 or x8/x8) 1 x M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4 Chipset 1 x PCIe 4.0 x16 (x4 or x4/x4) 2 x M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4 2 x M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4 (via ROG Hyper M.2 card) | CPU 1 x PCIe 5.0 x16 1 x M.2 PCIe 5.0 x4 1 x M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4 Chipset 2 x PCIe 4.0 x4 1 x PCIe 3.0 x1 3 x M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4 | CPU 1 x PCIe 5.0 x16 1 x M.2 PCIe 5.0 x4 1 x M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4 Chipset 1 x M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4 (when first M.2 slot is in PCIe 4.0 mode) | CPU 1 x PCIe 5.0 x16 1 x M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4 Chipset 2 x PCIe 4.0 x4 3 x M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4 | CPU 1 x PCIe 5.0 x16 1 x M.2 PCIe 5.0 x4 1 x M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4 Chipset 2 x PCIe 4.0 x4 2 x PCIe 3.0 x1 3 x M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4 | CPU 1 x PCIe 5.0 x16 1 x M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4 Chipset 2 x PCIe 3.0 x4 2 x PCIe 3.0 x1 3 x M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4 | CPU 1 x PCIe 5.0 x16 1 x M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4 Chipset 3 x PCIe 4.0 x4 1 x PCIe 3.0 x1 2 x M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4 | CPU 1 x PCIe 5.0 x16 1 x M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4 Chipset 1 x PCIe 4.0 x4 2 x PCIe 4.0 x1 2 x M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4 |
| Additional features | AniMe Matrix LED LiveDash Color OLED AI Overclocking ROG True Voltician PCIe Q-Release M.2 Q-Latch 2 x Thunderbolt 4 (one front panel) ESS ES9218 Quad DAC USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 front panel + 60W USB-PD Marvell AQtion 10GbE LAN 2.5GbE Intel LAN WiFi 6E | Polymo Lighting AI Overclocking PCIe Q-Release M.2 Q-Latch 2 x Thunderbolt 4 ESS ES9218 Quad DAC USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 front panel + 60W USB-PD 2.5GbE Intel LAN WiFi 6E | AI Overclocking PCIe Q-Release M.2 Q-Latch USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 front panel + 30W USB-PD 2.5GbE Intel LAN WiFi 6E | AI Overclocking ROG Strix Hive ROG FPS-II Card PCIe Q-Release M.2 Q-Latch 2 x Thunderbolt 4 2.5GbE Intel LAN WiFi 6E | AI Overclocking PCIe Q-Release M.2 Q-Latch USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 front panel + 30W USB-PD 2.5GbE Intel LAN WiFi 6E | PCIe Q-Release M.2 Q-Latch 2.5GbE Intel LAN WiFi 6 | ASUS Control Center Express 2.5GbE Intel LAN WiFi 6E COM Port header | ASUS Control Center Express 2.5GbE Realtek LAN WiFi 6 COM Port header | ASUS Control Center Express 1GbE Intel LAN COM Port header |
| Form Factor | eATX (305 x 260 mm) | ATX (305 x 244 mm) | ATX (305 x 244 mm) | mITX (170 x 170 mm) | ATX (305 x 244 mm) | ATX (305 x 244 mm) | ATX (305 x 244 mm) | ATX (305 x 244 mm) | mATX (244 x 244 mm) |
| Price | RM5,269 | RM3,489 | RM2,639 | RM2,499 | RM2,039 | RM1,569 | RM1,629 | RM1,339 | RM1,119 |
GIGABYTE Z790 – from RM1,313
GIGABYTE brings in five Intel Z790 boards for Malaysians, with a slightly higher starting price than ASUS, but also doesn’t quite go as far. With that said, GIGABYTE still packed their boards with very competitive features like support for up to DDR5-8000, EZ-Latch Plus and also 10 Gigabit LAN. One thing worth noting is the relatively clean aesthetics of GIGABYTE’s boards, with them playing it safe in terms of design. Creators might also want to consider the GIGABYTE Z790 AERO G for its unique VisionLINK feature.
GIGABYTE Z790 Motherboards Specs and Price in Malaysia
| GIGABYTE Z790 AORUS MASTER | GIGABYTE Z790 AERO G | GIGABYTE Z790 AORUS ELITE AX | GIGABYTE Z790 AORUS ELITE AX DDR4 | GIGABYTE Z790 UD AX | |
| Chipset | Intel Z790 | Intel Z790 | Intel Z790 | Intel Z790 | Intel Z790 |
| Power delivery | 20+1+2 Direct Digital (105A Smart Power Stage) | 16+1+2 Twin Digital (70A Smart Power Stage) | 16+1+2 Twin Digital (70A Smart Power Stage) | 16+1+2 Twin Digital (60A Smart Power Stage) | 16+1+1 Twin Hybrid (60A DrMOS) |
| DDR5 support | Up to DDR5-8000 | Up to DDR5-7600 | Up to DDR5-7600 | Up to DDR4-5333 | Up to DDR5-7600 |
| PCIe/M.2 slots | CPU 1 x PCIe 5.0 x16 1 x M.2 PCIe 5.0 x4 1 x M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4 Chipset 1 x PCIe 3.0 x4 1 x PCIe 3.0 x1 3 x M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4 | CPU 1 x PCIe 5.0 x16 1 x M.2 PCIe 5.0 x4 1 x M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4 Chipset 2 x PCIe 4.0 x4 3 x M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4 | CPU 1 x PCIe 5.0 x16 1 x M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4 Chipset 2 x PCIe 4.0 x4 3 x M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4 | CPU 1 x PCIe 5.0 x16 1 x M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4 Chipset 2 x PCIe 4.0 x4 3 x M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4 | CPU 1 x PCIe 5.0 x16 1 x M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4 Chipset 1 x PCIe 4.0 x4 2 x PCIe 3.0 x1 2 x M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4 |
| Additional features | EZ-Latch Plus Marvell AQtion 10GbE LAN Intel Killer WiFi 6E AX1690 | EZ-Latch Intel 2.5GbE LAN Intel WiFi 6E AX211 VisionLINK DisplayPort In | EZ-Latch Realtek 2.5GbE LAN Intel WiFi 6E AX211 | EZ-Latch Realtek 2.5GbE LAN Intel WiFi 6E AX211 | EZ-Latch Realtek 2.5GbE LAN AMD WiFi 6E RZ616 (MTK) |
| Form Factor | eATX (305 x 260 mm) | ATX (305 x 244 mm) | ATX (305 x 244 mm) | ATX (305 x 244 mm) | ATX (305 x 244 mm) |
| Price | RM3,031 | RM1,803 | RM1,585 | RM1,482 | RM1,313 |
We will be updating this article as we find out more about the other Intel Z790 offerings that are available in Malaysia! Stay tuned! If you want to pair your new Intel Z790 board with a new GeForce RTX 4090, check out this list of GeForce RTX 4090 cards available in Malaysia. Alternatively, if you want to take a look at what the red camp has to offer, we have also curated a list of the AMD AM5 boards available in Malaysia, and their prices.