The ROG Maximus Z790 Hero from ASUS might not be cheap, but it's certainly the best Z790 motherboard to build your Raptor-Lake-based system around. This board has everything you need to forge the ultimate gaming PC, from capable 20-phase, 90A VRMs that can push the new Intel Core i9-13900K to its limits to a full PCIe 5.0 design and DDR5 memory support.

DDR5 support is here, and you’re able to use some mighty fast kits, surpassing even what AMD currently offers on AM5. You’ll be limited to only 64GB of RAM and two separate slots, however. This is due to the board’s diminutive size. We figure that’s more than fine for a gaming build, and technically two RAM slots often offer more stability and performance compared to four. You want an exceptional feature set: The ROG Maximus Z790 HERO has support for 2 PCIe 5.0 x16 slots parallel to a PCIe 5.0 M.2 card slot, a feat that even most high-end motherboards fail to achieve. Don’t Buy It If: Rights Granted by the Entrant: By entering this content (e.g., photo, video, text, etc.), You understand and agree that the Sponsor and anyone acting on behalf of the Sponsor or its respective licensees, successors, and assigns, shall have the right, where permitted by law, to print, publish, broadcast, distribute, and use in any media now known or hereafter developed, in perpetuity and throughout the World, without limitation, your entry, name, portrait, picture, voice, likeness, image, statements about the Campaign, and biographical information for news, publicity, information, trade, advertising, public relations, and promotional purposes without any further compensation, notice, review, or consent. By entering this content, you represent and warrant that your entry is an original work of authorship, and does not violate any third party’s proprietary or intellectual property rights. If your entry infringes upon the intellectual property right of another, you will be disqualified at the sole discretion of the Sponsor. If the content of your entry is claimed to constitute infringement of any proprietary or intellectual proprietary rights of any third party, you shall, at your sole expense, defend or settle against such claims. You shall indemnify, defend, and hold harmless ROG from and against any suit, proceeding, claims, liability, loss, damage, costs or expense, which ROG may incur, suffer, or be required to pay arising out of such infringement or suspected infringement of any third party’s right. BIOS (Basic Input/Output System): The BIOS is a firmware program that is stored on a chip on the motherboard. It is responsible for booting up the computer and initializing the hardware. The BIOS also provides a user interface for configuring the system settings. Instant 6GHz: A BIOS setting that lets you run your i9-13900K, i9-13900KF, i7-13700K, or i7-13700KF at 6GHz and beyond.Starting in the left corner, we see the required 8-pin EPS connector just above the heatpipe connecting the two VRM heatsinks. The left VRM bank has three slots cut out at the top to help get fresh air over the tiny fan hidden below. The fan makes noise when under heavy loads by default, but you can adjust the BIOS to mitigate that potential concern.

Features and Connectivity:I found the storage selection of the MSI MPG Z790 Carbon Wi-Fi to be quite impressive; the motherboard comes with 5x M.2 slots and 6x SATA 6G, with one of the five M.2 slots being PCIe 5.0. The impressive theme follows as we move towards USB ports, as in total, you get 10x rear and 7x front USB ports, with 3x Type-C ports. Buy It If: MSI MPG Z790 Carbon WiFi ASUS Z790 motherboards are equipped with up to two PCIe 5.0 slots ideal for video cards. Select models even feature an onboard PCIe 5.0 M.2 slot, a bundled ROG Hyper M.2 card or a PCIe 5.0 M.2 Card, putting you on the cutting edge of GPU and storage device technology. The N7 Z790 allows for a great look without sacrificing the build experience with an integrated rear I/O and optimally placed headers.If you're considering a compact build but want more connectivity options, this micro ATX motherboard from ASUS is an excellent option. It's more affordable than most Z790 motherboards and still offers DDR5 and PCIe 5.0 support. It also features more USB ports, RAM slots, and PCIe expansion slots than ITX boards, which is great if you want to upgrade your PC down the road. Abundant Connectivity: Two Thunderbolt ™ 4 ports, USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 Type-C ® rear I/O port and front-panel connector, four additional USB 3.2 Gen 2 and Gen 1 ports, PCIe 5.0 x16 SafeSlot, and HDMI ® 2.1 For the money, this is an exceptionally well-rounded motherboard. It offers a decent set of features and a clean industrial aesthetic that will go well with any build. Also, it comes with a DDR4 option, if that’s something you’d like. Now, AEMP II offers even more flexibility. With the latest firmware update, AEMP II allows users to optimize the performance of a four-DIMM DDR5 RAM configuration, even with a mixture of different brands and dies. Increasing the memory capacity of your build by adding additional DIMMs has never been easier — with AEMP II, you can get optimized memory performance even when all four memory modules are not an exact match, provided that all four DIMMs have the same capacity. * Results may vary according to the capabilities of your CPU and memory modules.