ASRock X99 WS Motherboard Review

Final Thoughts
The ASRock X99 WS is definitely one of the more high-end X99 motherboards that we have taken a look at. Being a workstation motherboard ASRock definitely has a specific user in mind when they designed this motherboard. There are many features on this motherboard you just won’t find on other X99 motherboards.

There are not many motherboards that can support 3 or more graphics cards, but since this is a workstation motherboard you are covered. You have five PCI-Express 3.0 slots and have the ability to run four cards at x8 speed. This of course means that this motherboard has support for 4-way SLI and CrossFireX setups. Not only does this motherboard support Intel’s Haswell-E HEDT processors, but full-fledged Xeon processors as well. This is definitely an attractive feature for professionals who may not want to break the bank on a server board. Talking about server use this has dual Intel Gigabit LAN ports that have a teaming function. As we have talked about before the X99 platform is the first consumer platform to support DDR4 memory, but on top of that this board supports ECC memory with Xeon CPU use. This again is very important to the professional and for server use.

We already talked about the five PCI-Express 3.0 slots, but you also have another PCI-Express 2.0 slot, Ultra M.2 slot and ten SATA 6GB/s ports. The Ultra M.2 is capable of speeds of up to 32 Gb/s as compared to the traditional M.2 slots that have speeds of 10 Gb/s. This motherboard also has ASRock’s new HDD saver technology that allows you to power on and off specific drives in your system via software.

ASRock has built this motherboard with quality components including premium 60A power chokes, premium memory alloy chokes, Ultra Dual-N MOSFETs (UDM), and Nichicon 12K Platinum caps. Compared to traditional chokes, ASRock’s new-gen premium power chokes effectively increase up to 3 times better saturation current, providing enhanced and improved Vcore voltage to the motherboard. The memory alloy chokes feature a highly magnetic and heat resistant design, thus delivering more stable and reliable power to the motherboard. Combining with two silicon dies into one MOSFET, Ultra Dual-N MOSFET provides larger die area and lower Rds(on), so the power supply for the CPU Vcore is more efficient. 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. So as you can see ASRock has selected components that make the motherboard stable, efficient, and to ensure the motherboard lasts a long time.

As far as overclocking goes like all other X99 motherboards I was able to take the Intel Core i7-5960X from its stock 3.0 GHz all the way up to 4.4 GHz. This seems like the max this processor will go on my setup. Overclocking was made very easy by the set overclocks in the BIOS and the A-Tuning software. You can also auto-tune your system using the A-Tuning software. Talking about the BIOS it was extremely easy to navigate and worked quite well.

All in all I think this motherboard has something for everyone, but more importantly many features that serious professionals want and need. Right now you can find the X99 WS online for about $323, which for all of the features it offers is a great price. Overall ThinkComputers gives the ASRock X99 WS Motherboard a 10 out of 10 score and our Recommended Award.

rating10 10 small TC award recommended small

Pros:
– Support for 4-way SLI and CrossFireX setups
– Support for Xeon Processors and ECC memory
– Made with quality materials
– Power and Reset buttons on board
– Ultra M.2 slot
– Dual Intel Gigabit LAN
– Easy to use BIOS and software

Cons:
– E-ATX form factor might not fit in all cases

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