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M.2 connector
We use Plextor‘s fast M6e 256GB M.2 SSD to test the speed of a motherboard's M.2 connector. We reviewed the 512GB Plextor M6e (and its PCIe x2 adapter card) HERE. Unfortunately we do not have access to a PCIe 3.0-based SSD to fully test the M.2 connector's performance limits.
ASRock's 32Gbps-capable Ultra M.2 connector has no problem delivering sufficient bandwidth to Plextor's PCIe 2.0 x2 M6e SSD.
The motherboard's four-lane PCIe 3.0 Ultra M.2 connector is future-proofed for even faster SSDs that may be released in coming months and years.
SATA
For SATA 6Gb/s testing we use a Kingston HyperX 3K (SandForce SF-2281) SSD.
SATA 6Gbps speeds are in line with what we would expect from a motherboard sporting Intel's X99 chipset.
USB 3.0
We tested USB 3.0 performance using the Kingston HyperX 3K SSD connected to a SATA 6Gb/s to USB 3.0 adapter powered by an ASMedia ASM1053 controller.
ASRock's USB 3.0 implementation is faster than many of its competitors' applications of the X99-fed SuperSpeed ports. Still, without a valid UASP-activating tool for Windows 7 users, the ASRock ports cannot match the sequential transfer rates set by Asus' solutions and their accompanying USB 3.0 Boost (UASP) software.
For Windows 8.1 users, the speed differences between each vendor's USB 3.0 solution are likely to be less defined, provided the ports derive from the same controller.
Audio
We use RightMark Audio Analyzer (RMAA) to analyse the performance of the motherboard’s onboard audio solution. A sampling mode of 24-bit, 192 kHz was tested.
ASRock's Purity Sound 2 audio system is based around the Realtek ALC1150 codec. Nichicon Fine Gold series capacitors smooth the audio signal while a pair of Texas Instruments NE5532 amplifiers cater for high impedance headphones. A dedicated cover for the codec and a segregated audio path aim to minimise the level of EMI.
According to RMAA, the Purity Sound 2 solution on ASRock's Fatal1ty X99M Killer delivers Very Good general performance. The dynamic range and signal segregation performance are particularly strong, however the Total Harmonic Distribution (THD) levels could be better.
Did you ever get the RAM issue with reboots with high speeds sorted? I am having the same issue, although when my PC reboots it doesn’t fail to start up, but with tight timings on my current 16GB set (CL12@2666) or high speed (CL14@3200Mhz) I can’t get the PC to stay turned off, but other than that the RAM runs fine for day to day use if I keep the computer turned on. I am on the latest 3.30 BIOS revision as well.
Thanks
You’d probably be better off with the newer USB 3.1 revision of the board, it has the OC Socket with extra pins and is way better for RAM, especially overclocking.
Thanks for the reply! I may look into that, but not really in a position to replace the motherboard. It’s been a little over a year since buying. Wonder if they could offer some form of trade-in for this issue since it does look like a BIOS bug/glitch? Or I would probably assume this would fall under a clause of, “Not officially supported RAM, so nothing we can do”. Anyone have any experience working with ASRock on these kind of issues?
I bought exactly the same setup 2 years ago. The the Asrock F-Streaming overclocking software could not get a stable result. Not even at 4.0ghz. Read the article and emulated your 4.6ghz settings at 1.36v. Stable as a rock. Ended up at 1.33v. Below that it becomes unstable. Aircooled (noctua NH-D14) never get’s above 60c under load and idles around 25-30c. Was thinking about getting a 7700k but there’s no need for that now. Thanks.