Asus PRIME Z690-A Motherboard – PRIME-Z690-A

Intel® Z690 (LGA 1700) ATX motherboard with PCIe® 5.0, four M.2 slots, 16+1 DrMOS power stages, DDR5, HDMI®, DisplayPort™, Intel 2.5 Gb Ethernet, USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 Type-C®, front USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C®, Thunderbolt™ 4 support and Aura Sync RGB lighting

• Intel® LGA 1700 socket: Ready for 12th Gen Intel processors
• Enhanced power solution: 16+1 DrMOS, ProCool sockets, alloy chokes and durable capacitors for stable power delivery
• AI Overclocking: Optimizes performance based on CPU and cooler loads to achieve results that are extremely close to manual tuning by experts
• AI Cooling: Manages and controls all motherboard fans, automatically optimizing settings based on current system load and temperature
• Two-Way AI Noise-Cancelation: Reduces background noise from the microphone and audio output for crystal-clear communication in games or video conferences
• Comprehensive cooling: Large VRM heatsinks, M.2 heatsinks, M.2 backplate with Q-Latch, hybrid fan headers and Fan Xpert 4
• Next-gen connectivity: DDR5 memory, PCIe® 5.0, Intel 2.5 Gb Ethernet, USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type-C®, front panel USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C®, Thunderbolt™ 4 header support, 4 PCIe® 4.0 M.2

ASUS Prime series motherboards are expertly engineered to unleash the full potential of 12th Generation Intel® processors. Boasting a robust power design, comprehensive cooling solutions and intelligent tuning options, Prime Z690-A provides users and PC DIY builders a range of performance tuning options via intuitive software and firmware features.

ASUS Prime Z690-A offers a sleek, futuristic-looking build with a black and white finish, space-shuttle-inspired design elements, metallic nameplate and PCB cover.

FLEXIBILITY

Comprehensive controls form the foundation of the ASUS Prime series. The Prime Z690 motherboard packs flexible tools to tune every aspect of your system, enabling performance tweaks to perfectly match the way you work to maximize productivity.

5-Way Opitmization

ASUS 5-Way Optimization makes your PC smart. Along with taking care of complex tuning and dynamically optimizing essential aspects of your system, it provides overclocking profiles that are tailored for your rig.

• Easy Optimization is an automated tuning utility that enhances overclocking and cooling profiles for your unique system configuration.
• A stress test feature allows you to optimize and overclock for CPU- or memory-centric workloads.

ASUS AI Overclocking

ASUS AI Overclocking is an intelligent utility that helps you get the most out of your build by automatically profiling your CPU and cooling system to predict optimal voltage and frequency settings.

Accessible via the AI Suite software in Windows or directly through the UEFI, the intuitive AI Overclocking user interface enables users of all levels. A range of customizable settings are available for seasoned overclockers, and an auto-tuning option is available for beginners.

AI Cooling

ASUS AI Cooling function will automatically manage and control motherboard-connected fans to ensure optimal settings based on current system load and temperature.

UEFI BIOS

The renowned ASUS UEFI BIOS provides everything you need to configure, tweak and tune your system. It offers intelligently simplified options for PC DIY beginners, as well as comprehensive features for seasoned veterans.

COOLING

Prime Z690 series is engineered with multiple onboard heatsinks and an array of hybrid fan headers to ensure your rig stays cool and stable under intense workloads.

M.2 Heatsink

Two M.2 heatsinks take care of the three M.2 slots, warding off throttling that can occur with M.2 storage during sustained transfers.

VRM Heatsink and Thermal Pads

The two VRM heatsinks on Prime Z690-A are significantly larger than those found on earlier Z590 motherboards. Together with the thermal pads, they improve heat transfer from the MOSFETs and chokes for better cooling performance.

M.2 Backplate

An M.2 backplate helps ensure that high-performance drives deliver peak performance, even when airflow is restricted. The backplate includes the Q-Latch mechanism to allow you to secure or remove an M.2 SSD without the need for traditional screws.

Cooler by Design

Prime Z690 series features comprehensive cooling controls that are configurable via Fan Xpert 4 software or via the UEFI BIOS.

PERFORMANCE

Prime Z690 series is built to handle the additional cores and increased bandwidth of 12th Generation Intel® processors. ASUS Z690 motherboards provide all the fundamentals to boost daily productivity, so your system will be ready for action with stable power, intuitive cooling and flexible transfer options.

Robust Power Design

Stable power is essential to extract every last bit of performance out of 12th Generation Intel processors. Prime Z690-A is geared to cater to the demands of these high-core-count CPUs.

DDR5 Performance Enhancement

Prime Z690-A enhances DDR5 performance by providing overclocking options for not only high-speed kits, but even entry-level memory modules that have a locked power management IC (PMIC).

• A dedicated circuit on the motherboard safely circumvents DDR5 memory PMIC restrictions, allowing you to step past the default 1.1-volt limit and push frequency and timings to the max.
• Ordinarily, a restricted PMIC that has been unlocked requires the system to be fully power-cycled each time memory voltage is adjusted. Prime Z690-A leverages onboard hardware and firmware to cleverly work around this irksome limitation, enabling voltage adjustments to be applied through the same soft system-reset process employed for previous generations of DDR memory.

For users new to memory overclocking, Prime Z690-A includes the exclusive ASUS Enhanced Memory Profile (AEMP) firmware feature for PMIC-restricted memory modules. AEMP automatically detects the memory chips on your kit and then presents optimized frequency, timing and voltage profiles that you can effortlessly apply to unleash performance.

ASUS OptiMem II

Revisions to the motherboard’s trace routing provide the latest Intel processors with unrestricted access to memory bandwidth. ASUS OptiMem II technology carefully maps memory signal pathways across different PCB layers to reduce vias and adds shielding zones that significantly reduce crosstalk.

Benefits of ASUS OptiMem II:

• Improved memory stability and compatibility
• Allows lower memory latencies at equivalent voltages
• Improved memory frequency margin

Storage

Four M.2 slots (up to 64 Gbps)

Prime Z690-A offers a total of four M.2 slots that support data-transfer speeds of up to 64 Gbps via PCIe® 4.0, enabling quicker boot-up and app load times with OS or application drives.

LANGuard

ASUS LANGuard is a hardware-level network protection feature that integrates advanced signal-coupling technology and premium anti-EMI surface-mounted capacitors to improve throughput and ensure a more reliable connection.