MSI MEG Z690 Godlike Schematics Reveal A Monster-Sized Alder Lake Motherboard
Ever wonder what kind of motherboard Zeus would build a PC around? If he opted for an Alder Lake rig, he would probably go for MSI's upcoming MEG Z690 Godlike, a massive slab of silicon traces that qualifies as the biggest motherboard the company has ever built, if some leaked schematics and measurements end up being true.
MSI goes all-out on its Godlike boards, which it constructs around the Extended ATX (E-ATX) form factor. Officially, its most current model is the MEG Z590 Godlike for Rocket Lake, a gorgeous motherboard that measures around 305 x 277 mm. It is a big board packed with high-tech goodies, and the MEG Z690 Godlike is apparently even bigger.
How big? The folks at WCCFTech managed to get their paws on purportedly the first PCG schematics of the upcoming flagship motherboard, as shown up top (click to enlarge). It takes on more of a square shape than previous Godlike motherboards, and is said to measure 305 x 310 mm. If so, that would not only make it MSI's biggest consumer board to date, but also the largest flagship PCB for Alder Lake from any company so far.
Here's how it compares...
- MSI MEG Z690 Godlike: 305 x 310 mm
- ASUS ROG Maximus Z690 Extreme: 305 x 277 mm
- Gigabyte Z690 Aorus Xtreme: 305 x 285 mm
Built for enthusiasts and overclockers, the MEG Z690 Godlike looks like it features a meat 22-phase VRM (if not more) for the CPU. We can also make out four DDR5 DIMM slots that are said to support up to 128GB of DDR5-6666+ memory to take full advantage of kits like G.Skill's recently announced 32GB DDR5-6800 Trident Z5 RAM.
Just the above the DIMM slots you can see a pair of 8-pin EPS connectors. The board will suck in power from those and of course the 24-pin main ATX power connector located on edge to the right of the memory slots.
Other features include three PCI Express slots, including a pair of Gen 5 slots (x16 and x8) and a Gen 4 slot (x8), and half a dozen M.2 slots for storage. In addition, the board is said to come bundled with an actively cooled Gen 5 PCI Express card with a maximum bandwidth of 128GB/s.
There's no mention of when the MEG Z690 Godlike as pictured will ship or how much it will cost. Don't expect it to be cheap, though. As a point of reference, the MEG Z590 Godlike commands $889.99 on Amazon.
