ASRock Z390 Phantom Gaming 9
October, 2018Type
MotherboardPrice
$268.99 USConclusion - Out Goes The FATAL1TY, In Comes The Phantom
The Z390 Phantom Gaming 9 is ASRock's ultimate gaming solution, hitting the higher spectrum of pricing at $268.99 US. It's cost adjusted when compared to the $299.99 US Z390 Taichi Ultimate but the best part is that you don't lose any feature set of ASRock's flagship offering with the Z390 Phantom Gaming 9.
It’s 12 Phase power delivery is the most stable system and remains consistent in overall stability and overclocking tests. The ASRock Z390 Phantom Gaming series is built for high-tier memory support and DDR4-4200 is just a fraction of what’s possible. I was able to booth up the Trident Z RGB memory kit fine at it’s rated speed of 3600 MHz (CL18) but given that there are higher clocked memory kits out in the market, they won’t be an issue for this motherboard at all.
The whole feature set for this motherboard such as Realtek ALC1220 audio codec, a ton of USB 3.1 (Gen 1 / Gen 2) ports, dual M.2 ports and one with an M.2 heatsink is all a user would ever want. In terms of storage, you’d find 8 SATA III ports which are good enough for enthusiasts in addition to the PCIe based storage connectivity. The wireless dongle on the motherboard provides good WiFi coverage over a large distance while the Dragon AIC 2.5G LAN offers great and fast networking experience although the software support could use a more modern update.
Aside from that, there are lots of connectivity options such as the expanded storage options which are available on the board. The Phantom Gaming lineup really does put itself aside from ASRock's standard Taichi and Extreme offerings, delivering best more bang for the buck and retaining the high quality and feature set of the more costly motherboards. If you are going to build a new 8th or 9th Gen Intel-based PC, the ASRock Phantom Gaming 9 delivers you flagship features and performance for a slightly lower price which is impressive.
Contents
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If you are going to build a new 8th or 9th Gen Intel-based PC, the ASRock Phantom Gaming 9 delivers you flagship features and performance for a slightly lower price which is impressive.
- Enthusiast Grade Motherboard Design
- Full Support For 8 Core Intel CPUs
- Excellent Design and Build Quality
- Excellent VRM Cooling With XXL Design
- Excellent Overclocking Performance
- High-Quality Components With 12 Phase IRDigital PWM
- Phantom Gaming 2.5G LAN and WiFI + BT5.0 Capabilities
- Triple M.2 slots (One with full coverage heatsink)
- Dual USB 3.1 (Type-A + Type-C) Ports
- Lots of USB 3.1 Gen 1 Ports
- Polychrome RGB LEDs System Looks Stunning
- Creative Sound Blaster 5 Audio (ALC1220 Codec)
- PCIe Steel Slots
Pros
- High Price ($268.99 US)
- Software and bundled applications aren't much of use
Cons
About the author: A Software Engineer by training and a PC enthusiast by passion, Hassan Mujtaba serves as Wccftech's Senior Editor for hardware section. With years of experience in the industry, he specializes in deep-dive technical analysis of next-generation CPU and GPU architectures, motherboards, and cooling solutions. His work involves not only breaking news on upcoming technologies but also extensive hands-on reviews and benchmarking.
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