ASRock released one of the first sub USD100 socket LGA1151 motherboards with USB 3.1 ports – the Z170A-x1/3.1. This new ATX board is compatible with 6th generation Intel core “Skylake” processors, with support for up to 64 GB of dual-channel DDR4 memory, at speeds of up to DDR4-3400 MHz via overclocking. The board draws power from a combination of 24-pin ATX and 8-pin EPS power connectors and uses a simple phase VRM to condition it for the CPU.
The expansion slots on the Z170A-X1/3.1 include one PCI-Express 3.0 x16 wired to the CPU, a PCIe 3.0 x16 (electrical x4), wired to the Z170 PCH, and three other PCIe 3.0 x1 ports. Storage connectivity includes six SATA 6 Gb/s ports. The core of this board’s feature-set is its pair of 10 Gb/s USB 3.1 ports, including a type-A, and a type-C. There will be eight other USB 3.0 ports, six on the rear panel, two by headers. Besides that, the gigabit Ethernet is driven by an Intel-made controller, and 6-channel HD audio with ground-layer isolation, make for the rest of it.
The ASRock Z170A-x1/3.1 will be expected to price at sub-USD 100 price point.