While it may seem like Intel's Z270 chipset has been on the market for a long time, it has just been six months, and today I'll be looking at a "refreshed" Z270 motherboard. Most manufacturers normally release two or three waves of each Intel chipset. The first wave usually includes a vast lineup ranging from low to high end, whereas the second wave is typically much smaller and focuses on each brand's primary competencies.

This includes ASUS' top-of-the-line ROG and workstation motherboards, of which I'll be looking at the Z270-WS today. The Z270-WS has four GPUs that may be used in SLI or CrossFireX, as well as a lot of USB 3.1 and the newest storage technologies. Now that NVIDIA has limited their top GPUs to 2-way SLI, you might be asking what the use of 4-way SLI support is. The answer is that mining is back. We've recently seen less well-known cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, which has recently rallied 2700 percent and is ASIC resistant, meaning you'll be making money with GPUs.

The Z270-WS's box displays all of the device's main features, and the packing is well-done to protect the inside components. The user manual, support DVD, six SATA6Gb/s cables, COM port bracket, SLI bridge, 4-way SLI bridge, 3-way SLI bridge, Q-Connector, IO shield, USB 3.0 port bracket, M.2 screws, CPU installation tool, and RGB extension cable are all included in the accessory package.

HDMI, DisplayPort, four USB 2.0 ports, four USB 3.0 ports, USB 3.1 Type-A, USB 3.1 type-C, BIOS FlashBack button, two Intel Gbit NICs, and 7.1 audio outputs with S/PDIF out are all available on the back IO panel. The central PCI-E x4 slot is linked to the PCH and does not share bandwidth with other slots or devices. There are four x16 PCI-E slots that operate at x16/x0/x16/x0, x16/x0/x8/x8, x8/x8/x16/x0, x8/x8/x16/x0, x8/x8/x16/x0, x8/x8/ Two M.2 x4 PCI-E 3.0 slots with SATA capability are available, and they share bandwidth with select SATA and U.2 connections. When all four slots are used, a 6-pin PCI-E power connector provides extra 12v power to the slows.

To the right of a U.2 port are six SATA 6Gb/s ports. Above the SATA connectors is a clear CMOS button. A U.2 port and a USB 3.0 internal header are located beneath the 24-pin connector. No matter what your current memory settings are, a MemOK button can be utilized to boot up. The XMP switch allows you to load XMP memory settings without having to enter the UEFI, and the RGB LED header, fan extension header, and front panel headers are all positioned near a USB 3.1 internal header.

A USB 2.0 internal header, a COM port header, a POST code display, a power button, and a reset button are also included on the motherboard. All of the heat sinks are screwed into the motherboard and establish good contact with the components. A heat pipe was added to transmit the excess heat from the PLX chip to another array of fins, and the PCH and PLX bridge share a heat sink.

The hardware of the Z270-WS is remarkable. This motherboard's VRM is a real 8+4 phase VRM. An International Rectifier IR3555 60A PowIRstage is used in each power stage, which combines the high-side MOSFET, low-side MOSFET, and driver into a single package. With 10K FP-CAPs, the filter components are likewise top-notch. An 8-phase digital PWM, most likely an IR35201, controls the primary VCore rail; it's designated ASP1405, which is ASUS's own numbering.

To boost overall audio quality, ASUS utilizes the Realtek ALC1220 with a custom EMI shield, Nichicon Gold series audio capacitors, and two Texas Instruments RC4580I amplifiers (perhaps in a multi-stage filter), and a physical partition of the audio section of the PCB. The Avago PLX PEX8747 supports x32 PCI-E 3.0 downstream from only x16 PCI-E 3.0, which means that if the CPU supports x16, the PEX8747 can support x32 for the GPUs. The increased latency is the price to pay, but you'll only see decreasing results if you only utilize one GPU.

Multi-GPU configurations should benefit, especially on the Z270 platform, the PEX8747 is the only method to enable 3-way and 4-way SLI. Multiple ASMedia ASM1480 quick switches shuffle about PCI-E bandwidth, and the motherboard has a second clock buffer to help with the PEX8747 implementation. While the i219v is generally found on Z270 motherboards, ASUS has included the Intel i219LM, which is the workstation version of the consumer Intel PHY supporting Gbit LAN. An i210AT standalone NIC powers the second Intel NIC.

To increase BCLK overclocking margins, an IDT6V41638B clock buffer is used. The Parade PS175HDM outputs HDMI 2.0 from the iGPU's digital video output. RGB LED control is provided by an ASUS AURA chip for the RGB LED header. Extra system monitoring and fan control are provided by the TPU chip. The Macro chip is responsible for the motherboard's specific keyboard macro functionalities. The nuvoTon NCT6793D is a SuperIO that offers fan control, system monitoring, and a variety of other system management functions.

Turbo LAN, ASUS's Dual Intelligent Processors 5 (DIP5), TPU, TurboApp, EPU, Fan Xpert 4, DIGI+ Power Control, PC Cleaner, EZ Update, KeyExpress, System Information, USB BIOS Flashback, FileTransfer, Version, and ASUS's AURA for RGB LED control are just a few of the software options available.

On-demand NVIDIA® GeForce® SLITM, NVIDIA Quadro® SLITM, and AMD® CrossFireXTM technology, as well as robust troubleshooting options, are available on the Intel Z270 chipset-based workstation motherboard.

The ASUS Z270-WS supports up to four dual-width graphics cards and four-way NVIDIA® GeForce® SLITM, AMD® CrossFireXTM, and two-way NVIDIA Quadro® SLITM configurations. This makes the Z270-WS a perfect choice for designers and other professionals who depend on powerful graphics and performance for jobs like design and modeling, processing-intensive simulation and 3D-rendering programs, or even gamers who want multi-screen gaming and live streaming.

With just one click, you can customize performance, efficiency, digital power, fan control, networking, and audio tuning.

ASUS 5-Way Optimization turns your PC into a smart machine. It dynamically optimizes critical parts of your system based on real-time usage, resulting in excellent CPU performance, daily energy savings, ultra-stable digital power, cool and quiet fans, and now networking and audio settings adapted to your programs. In a short, 5-Way ASUS Optimization makes your PC ideal for gaming, entertainment, and productivity!

With high-performance, priority bandwidth, and vivid sound, games and demanding programs run quickly and smoothly. For ordinary computing, fans are whisper quiet, yet during gaming, they offer high cooling efficiency. Even under severe load, the stutter is reduced for smooth-running apps. You save money by using energy-efficient design.

In the LGA1151 format, the ASUS Z270-WS motherboard supports Intel CoreTM i7/Core i5/Core i3/Pentium®/Celeron® CPUs from the 7th and 6th generations. Dedicated chipsets, two-channel (4-DIMM) DDR4 memory, and 16 PCI Express 3.0/2.0 lanes are all supported by integrated graphics, memory, and PCIe controllers, resulting in an excellent performance.

The ASUS Z270-WS is a workstation motherboard at its finest. Its professional theme is reflected in its no-nonsense looks. Although there is a header, there are no RGB LEDs, the heat sinks are more tactical than flashy, and the features (such as dual U.2) are more in line with what power users demand. With seven fan headers and an optional expansion header, 32 PCI-E lanes in four x16 slots, and component choices centered on lifespan, ASUS accomplishes the motherboard rather effectively.

My main gripe with the motherboard is the price; at over $400, it's prohibitively expensive, and you'd have to make use of the PEX8747 and extra PCI-E slots to justify it. Because of their long-standing reputation for reliability, ASUS's WS series of motherboards have a lot of buzzes, and the Z270-WS should be a crowd favorite.

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