One last time an Intel CPU based on the 14nm manufacturing process is supposed to grab the performance crown, but this time with fresh approaches to cores and memory controller, more power consumption but less cores, still with DDR4 but already close to DDR5 speeds. Intel’s Rocket Lake is undoubtedly a niche product, with its idiosyncrasies proving particularly attractive to the OC community.
So it fits like a glove that also for the “OC Formula” family a new member was introduced. In order to live up to the almost legendary claim, ASRock not only draws on their own technical experience, but also on the hands-on experience of Extreme Overclocker Nick Shih. All levers have been pulled to push Intel’s Rocket Lake CPUs higher and farther than ever before. But was this goal achieved?
No expense or effort was spared in PCB design, VRM layout and component selection. The combination of 16 90 A phases for the CPU core voltage alone, SMD DIMM slots for maximum signal integrity and onboard buttons for Safeboot, Retry and BCLK are virtually taken straight from the OC community’s wish list into reality. All of this is packaged with ASRock’s engineering and design expertise in an extravagant visual dress and on top of that, the board is also given a configurable OLED display and plenty of IO connectivity. If we look past the questionable VRM fans, the hardware couldn’t be better.
Which, of course, brings us to the software. A few usability issues around and in the BIOS unfortunately and unnecessarily cause a bit of frustration when using it. The Formula Drive software could be faster and some features, like the assignment of the onboard buttons, still have potential for expansion. But on the one hand, this is complaining on a high level and on the other hand, all these points of criticism could be fixed or improved over time with software updates. However, the most important components such as the BIOS with its menu navigation and the optimization for various RAM IC and PCB types already work pretty much flawlessly, which means that the overclocking potential can already be accessed almost effortlessly.
The elephant in the room yet to be addressed is, as so often these days, the availability and price of such a high-end PC component. And while motherboards are generally less affected by chip shortages than CPUs or GPUs, the Z590 OC Formula launch has also been delayed for similar reasons. As of 6/15/2021, the board is now available for purchase in the US at Newegg.com, and in fact, it’s still in stock and the $579 USD price is mostly stable. So one can hope. For comparison, the Asus Maximus XIII Apex is available from the same store for $599 USD. In Europe, we can expect the OCF to hit virtual shelves from the end of the current month, June 2021. Unfortunately, we do not have an MSRP in Euros yet.
In summary, the ASRock Z590 OC Formula offers more overlocking-focused features at a better price than the competition. Apart from that, the board is a real all-rounder with its connectivity and definitely belongs to the high-end segment in terms of quality and workmanship. For potential buyers of a board with such a feature set, it is a real alternative, whether as the heart of a gaming PC for hobby overclockers or as an OC weapon for extreme overlockers on the hunt for new records. So ASRock has achieved its goal, brought the “OC Formula” name to new heights and set a true challenge for other manufacturers!
The motherboard was provided to us by ASRock, without any requirements nor obligation to publish. Moreover, no influence on the tests and their results was exerted.
ASRock Z590 OC Formula (90-MXBFS0-A0UAYZ)
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