ASRock Z690 Steel Legend WiFi 6E Overview
January 26, 2022ASRock Z690 Steel Legend WiFi 6E, as its name suggests, is the WiFi model in the ASRock Z690 motherboard lineup. It picks up where the Z590 Steel Legend WiFi 6 left off, retaining the DDR4 support, and adding in some improvements and current generation features such as support for higher memory frequency and PCIE 5.0.
Aside from having the pre-installed WiFi module, there aren’t any more notable differences between the ASRock Z690 Steel Legend WiFi 6E and the regular Z690 Steel Legend motherboard. In fact, you’ll find three m.2 slots capable of handling high-speed data storage devices like NVMe SSDs on both models. Two of the said m.2 slots are equipped with M.2 Armor that enhances its cooling capability. However, the other m.2 slot relies on chassis air flow for cooling.
ASRock Steel Legend WiFi 6E: A closer look
The ASRock Z690 Steel Legend WiFi 6E uses a six layer PCB that has an inner layer with 2oz of copper. It enables the motherboard to deliver constant signal and power to the components. This allows the motherboard to have stable memory overclocks.
Both are ATX models that are built with three PCIe x16 slots and two PCIe x1 slots. Just like in the previous iterations, there is a reinforced steel enveloping the main x16 slot of the Z690 Steel Legend WiFi 6E and Z690 Steel Legend, which prevents GPU sagging. Additionally, both motherboards come with a graphics card holder that secures and supports any behemoth graphics cards.
A new addition to this generation’s platform is the SMT (Surface Mount Tech) type PCIe slot. The SMT improves signal flow and stability of the PCIe lane, enabling a stable link for high-speed data transfers. This new hardware update enables the Z690 Steel Legend WiFi 6E, and the regular model, to support upcoming devices that will take advantage of the PCIe 5.0 standard.
Still the same, just faster than ever
While there’s a new memory standard available to consumers now, the support for the previous DDR4 memory on the Steel Legend lineup welcomes the early adopters who are still on the fence because of the DDR5 price.
As the new Intel processors support higher memory frequencies, ASRock enables its Z690 Steel Legend lineup to support DDR4 memories with frequencies up to 5000+ MHz. But aside from that, it doesn’t have any other notable differences from its predecessor, the Z590 Steel Legend. You’ll still get Intel XMP 2.0 and Dual Channel Memory Technology on the Z690 Steel Legend lineup. And its DDR4 DIMM slots can still support up to 128GB memory capacity.
ASRock Z690 Steel Legend WiFi 6E: High-Speed Networking, Wired or Not
Along with the high-speed memory support, ASRock’s Z690 Steel Legend offerings also have interface components that can support high-bandwidth networking and storage devices. Its on-board Dragon LAN is capable of up to 2.5Gbps, while its WiFi 6E offers faster wireless speeds and lower latencies, providing users with fast and uncompromised networking performance.
Ready for the modern chassis
Aside from having a stable and fast networking interface, the Z690 Steel Legend WiFi 6E also boasts a modern and speedy front USB header (USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type-C) that allows data transfer speeds of up to 20Gbps. It enables your system to support the fast data transfer rates of modern devices such as portable storage drives, digital cameras, mobile phones, etc.,. In addition, ASRock also equips the Z690 Steel Legend WiFi 6E with a couple of onboard USB 3.2 Gen2 that you’ll find on the back I/O.
No wasted time
ASRock preinstalls the LAN driver on both the Steel Legend WiFi 6E and the regular Steel Legend motherboard. With that and the Auto Driver Installer, driver installation will be a walk in the park, as it will automatically detect your system’s missing drivers.
Pricing and Availability
The ASRock Z690 Steel Legend WiFi 6E is now available and carries a price tag of $269.99. The regular Z690 Steel Legend motherboard comes in at $249.99.
