ASRock Z97 Extreme6 Motherboard Review

Table of Contents

Today brings another offering boasting Intel’s new Z97 chipset. This new series of motherboards bring compatibility with future Broadwell CPUs, M.2 SSDs, and SATA Express, along with other smaller changes. ASRock has released multiple boards based on the Z97 chipset from their OC, Extreme, and Fatal1ty lines. This motherboard, as you can guess, is part of the Extreme series. Even though it isn’t part of the OC series, this board has plenty of overclocking features that tend to target the more “average” user.

Specifications and Features

Taking a quick look at the specifications of the Z97 Extreme6, there are a few things that really jump out. Among those is the 12 phase power section, 3200 MHz DDR3 Dual-Channel support, and Ultra M.2 (32 Gb/s) slot. The board supports SLI/Crossfire in PCI-E 3.0 x8/x8 configuration, has ten USB 3.0 ports (4 front/6 rear), and five USB 2.0 ports (4 front/1 internal-vertical).

ASRock Z97 Extreme6
CPU	– Socket 1150
Chipset	– Intel Z97 Express Chipset
Memory	– Dual Channel DDR3 Memory Technology – 4 x DDR3 DIMM Slots- Supports DDR3 3200+(OC)/2933(OC)/2800(OC)/ 2400(OC)/2133(OC)/1866(OC)/1600/1333/1066 non-ECC, un-buffered memory – Max. capacity of system memory: 32GB* – Supports Intel® Extreme Memory Profile (XMP) 1.3 / 1.2 – 15μ Gold Contact in DIMM Slots
Slots	– 2 x PCI Express 3.0 x16 Slots (PCIE2/PCIE4: single at x16 (PCIE2); dual at x8 (PCIE2) / x8 (PCIE4)) – 1 x PCI Express 2.0 x16 slot (PCIE5: x2 mode) – 2 x PCI Express 2.0 x1 Slots – 1 x mini-PCI Express Slot – 15μ Gold Contact in VGA PCIe Slot (PCIE2)
Graphics	– Supports Intel® HD Graphics Built-in Visuals : Intel® Quick Sync Video with AVC, MVC (S3D) and MPEG-2 Full HW Encode1, Intel® InTru™ 3D, Intel® Clear Video HD Technology, Intel® Insider™, Intel® HD Graphics 4400/4600 – Pixel Shader 5.0, DirectX 11.1 – Max. shared memory 1792MB – Three graphics output options: DVI-I, HDMI and DisplayPort 1.2 – Supports Triple Monitor – Supports HDMI with max. resolution up to 4K x 2K (4096×2304) @ 24Hz – Supports DVI-I with max. resolution up to 1920×1200 @ 60Hz – Supports DisplayPort 1.2 with max. resolution up to 4K x 2K (4096×2304) @ 24Hz or 4K x 2K (3840×2160) @ 60Hz – Supports Auto Lip Sync, Deep Color (12bpc), xvYCC and HBR (High Bit Rate Audio) with HDMI Port (Compliant HDMI monitor is required) – Supports HDCP with DVI-I, HDMI and DisplayPort 1.2 Ports – Supports Full HD 1080p Blu-ray (BD) playback with DVI-I, HDMI and DisplayPort 1.2 Ports
On-Board SATA/M.2	– 6 x SATA3 6.0 Gb/s Connectors by Intel® Z97, support RAID (RAID 0, RAID 1, RAID 5, RAID 10, Intel® Rapid Storage Technology 13 and Intel® Smart Response Technology), NCQ, AHCI, Hot Plug and ASRock HDD Saver Technology – 4 x SATA3 6.0 Gb/s Connectors by ASMedia ASM1061, support NCQ, AHCI, Hot Plug and ASRock HDD Saver Technology (SATA3_A4 connector is shared with the eSATA port) – 1 x SATA Express 10 Gb/s Connector (shared with SATA3_4, SATA3_5 and M.2 Socket (M2_2))* – 1 x eSATA Connector by ASMedia ASM1061, supports NCQ, AHCI and Hot Plug – 1 x Ultra M.2 Socket (M2_1), supports M.2 PCI Express module up to Gen3 x4 (32 Gb/s) – 1 x M.2_SSD (NGFF) Socket 3 (M2_2), supports M.2 SATA3 6.0 Gb/s module and M.2 PCI Express module up to Gen2 x2 (10 Gb/s)
USB	USB 3.0 – 4x Front – 6x RearUSB 2.0 – 4x Front – 1x Internal Vertical Type A
Audio	Rear – 5x 2.5mm – 1x SPDIFFront – 1x Front Panel Connector
LAN	– 2x RJ-45 Gigabit LAN Ports
Multi-GPU	– Supports AMD Quad CrossFireX™ and CrossFireX™ – Supports NVIDIA® Quad SLI™ and SLI™
Form Factor	– 12 in. x 9.6 in. (30.5 cm x 24.4 cm) ATX

The next table lists the feature set of the Z97 Extreme6. All images and descriptions provided by ASRock.

	XXL Aluminum Alloy Heatsink Design – The extra-large aluminum alloy heatsinks take away heat dramatically. As the MOSFETs and chipsets areas are well covered by these heatsinks to protect them from overheating, MOSFET and chipsets can perform with lower temperature, and your motherboard and system will be more stable and reliable.
	Premium Alloy Choke – The new generation alloy chokes effectively increase up to 90% saturation current and feature a highly magnetic and heat resistant design, making the motherboard more efficient, stable and reliable.
	Dual-Stack MOSFET for CPU Power – Dual-Stack MOSFET (DSM) is another innovative MOSFETs design by ASRock. The silicon die area is increased by stacking two dies into one MOSFET. The larger the die area, the lower RDS(on). Compared to traditional discrete MOSFET, DSM with larger die area provides extreme lower RDS(on) 1.2 mΩ, so the power supply for the CPU Vcore is more efficient.
	NexFET MOSFET for Memory Power – The next generation NexFET MOSFETs control the power supply to DRAM slots more efficiently. They provide lower RDS(on) 2.9 mΩ, delivering higher efficiency and lower temperature.
	Nichicon 12K Platinum Caps – Supreme 12K platinum capacitors with lifespans of at least 12,000 hours. Compared to other counterparts on high-end motherboards that merely have lifespans of around 10,000 hours, ASRock applied Nichicon 12K Platinum Caps that offer 20% longer lifespans and provide more stability and reliability.* Tested under industry standard 105 degree Celsius ambient temperature.
	Sapphire Black PCB – ASRock does not overlook any details, even those tiny ones. With pure black PCB appearance, the new Sapphire Black PCB represents rock-solid quality and gives the motherboard a more mysterious touch.
	Ultra M.2 (PCIe Gen3 x4) – The World’s Fastest M.2 Socket – PCIe Gen3 x4The onboard M.2 socket is a new interface for connecting Next Generation Form Factor (NGFF) SSDs or other devices. ASRock is the first in the world to implement PCIe Gen3 x4 M.2 socket on motherboards. The ultimate Ultra M.2 interface pushes the speed up to 32Gb/s which is 6X faster compared to other M.2 Gen2 x1 solutions that are limited to 5Gb/s.
	M.2 Socket (PCIe Gen2 x2/SATA) – ASRock supports M.2 SATA3 6Gb/s modules and M.2 PCI Express modules up to Gen2 x2 10Gb/s, which is 2X faster compared to other M.2 Gen2 x1 solutions that are limited to 5Gb/s.
	Purity Sound™ 2 – Purity Sound™ 2 includes 7.1 CH HD audio with Realtek ALC1150 audio codec, 115dB SNR DAC with Differential Amplifier, TI® NE5532 Premium Headset Amplifier, cap less Direct Drive technology, EMI shielding cover, PCB isolate shielding and DTS Connect. As Nichicon audio capacitors are what every audiophile has been longing for on a PC, ASRock applied these high quality capacitors for Purity Sound™ 2.

Retail Packaging

The retail packaging is exactly what you would expect for a higher tier motherboard. You get a slick design on the front, a full feature set listed on the back, and a handle to hold it all with ease.

Retail Package - Front — Retail Package – Front

Retail Packaging - Rear — Retail Packaging – Rear

Accessories

The Extreme6 comes with your standard accessory package including a SLI Bridge, 4x SATA Cables, Manual, Driver CD, I/O Shield, and a handful of screws. This should be all you need to get the board running!

The ASRock Z97 Extreme6

Looking at the motherboard, the first thing noticed is the new color scheme when compared to the last generation. ASRock went for a blue and black color scheme on this board with simplistic styling. The Purity Sound 2 section of the board is separated from the rest of the PCB to provide better quality audio from its Realtek ALC1150 CODEC. Flipping to the back of the board we see… solder! Actually, it is seen that the first PCI-E x16 slot is an electrical x16 connection, while the second is an electrical x8 connection. There are also screws used to attach all the heatsinks on the board, nice touch there ASRock.

Motherboard – Front	Motherboard – Rear
Motherboard – Alternate View

A Closer Look

Starting at the bottom right corner of the board, we see all of the SATA ports, USB headers, debug display, BIOS switch, swappable BIOS chips, and power/reset buttons. These features are good for your average user, but great for an overclocking enthusiast. Moving over to the bottom left corner of the board, the Purity Sound 2 audio section can be seen along with the front panel audio connection. Other connectors in this corner include the supplementary PCI-E power connector, Thunderbolt connector, and fan connector.

Motherboard - Lower Right — Motherboard – Lower Right

Take half a move back and we arrive at the PCI-E section of the board. Here we see the three full-size PCI-E x16 slots and two PCI-E x1 slots. The Ultra M.2, M.2, and mPCI-E slots are all located in this area as well. The first two full-size PCI-E slots have a 3-slot spacing to help with cooling a SLI or Crossfire setup. Hop up to the DIMM area of the board, and you’ll find four DDR3 slots (supporting up to 3200 MHz) with a 32 GB maximum capacity. There’s also another USB 3.0 header and the 24-pin ATX power connection.

Motherboard - PCIe Area — Motherboard – PCI-E Area

Motherboard - DIMM Area — Motherboard – DIMM Area

Looking at the back of the board, we see a jam-packed I/O area. You have the typical USB, display, and audio connectors here. Some “extra” features include the SPDIF output, dual Gigabit Ethernet, and BIOS reset button (be careful with that one). Last but not least, we arrive at the CPU socket area of the motherboard. Here we can see the 12 Phase Digi Power section that can handle any overclocking you throw at it, especially in ambient conditions. The other feature of this section is the beefy heatsinks keeping the power delivery section cool. There isn’t much clutter around the socket, making insulation for sub-zero operation easier.

Motherboard - I/O Ports — Motherboard – I/O Ports

Motherboard - Socket Area — Motherboard – Socket Area

All in all, this board looks amazing and has a feature set to impress the average user or even the hardcore overclocker. The vast amount of SATA ports and dual Gigabit Ethernet mean it could easily be re-purposed to a home storage server as it gathers a few years of use.

UEFI BIOS and Overclocking Software

For this motherboard, ASRock absolutely nailed the UEFI layout. It is simple, easy to read and navigate, but still loaded with features. The UEFI is easy to use for people who prefer the mouse or the keyboard, which is a nice change from some other manufacturer’s layouts. The Main tab shows some quick system specs, UEFI version, and a folder to add your favorite settings to. Continuing to the OC Tweaker tab we find all the CPU, DRAM, and Voltage options related to overclocking the system. Within this tab is the DRAM Configuration page where all the DRAM timings and sub-timings can be set manually.