Possibly knowing a thing or two by now, ASRock have cable tied the motherboard to the super protective backing foam. This isn’t going to move around in the box and be damaged.
The PCB is a nice matte black with copper highlights. It is very nice in the flesh, though the plastic mouldings are a little plasticy!
You will have space for three graphics cards and there is an M.2 slot included as well. We tested our recent Crucial MX200 500Gb SSD Storage review using the ASRock Z170 Extreme4, be sure to have a look, there is a little more in depth storage testing using RAID 0.
The ASRock Z170 Extreme4 motherboard supports Purity Sound 3, and is supposed to satisfy even the pickiest audiophiles. It’s got the mid to high end feature, PCB Isolate Shielding, some Nichicon Fine Gold Series Audio Caps and a TI NE5532 Premium Headset Amplifier (Supports up to 600 Ohm headsets)
SATA Express is supported, and though high end, we are not really fans. It’s not the most accessible technology for the average user. It also supports Ultra M.2 (PCIe Gen3 x4 & SATA3) however, which is accessible.
ASRock Z170 Extreme4 Motherboard Review
Package - 7.5
Performance - 6.5
Price - 8
Consumer Experience - 8
7.5
We are a little disappointed with the ASRock Z170 Extreme4 motherboard in the performance stakes. The rest of the motherboard is very good for looks, features, presentation and connectivity. We just cannot get past the odd graphics and storage performance.
