EK Intros New VRM Bridge and Upgrade Kit for ASUS Maximus Z790 Formula

[GFreeman]

EK, the leading liquid cooling gear manufacturer, is ready to support the new enthusiast-favorite ROG MAXIMUS Z790 FORMULA motherboard with a unique, patented liquid distribution VRM Bridge. The EK-Quantum Momentum² VRM Bridge ROG Maximus Z790 Formula D-RGB is a purpose-engineered connection piece that bridges the integrated ASUS HyperChill III VRM cooling on the motherboard and EK-Quantum Velocity² 1700 CPU water block into a single entity.

And for those with the last-gen Z690 VRM Bridge, EK has an upgrade kit with a two-fold use. It can convert EK-Quantum Momentum² VRM Bridge ROG Maximus Z690 Formula to feature a white stand-out piece that fits its color scheme. It also allows you to use the existing Z690 bridge with the new ROG MAXIMUS Z790 FORMULA motherboard. It is confirmed that the integrated ASUS HyperChill III VRM Z790 Formula water block is copper-based and poses no issues for custom loop liquid cooling. The use of purpose-made PC liquid cooling coolant is still mandatory to avoid corrosion issues. All the users who encountered issues with the VRM water block on the Z690 Formula should contact ASUS directly to get the issue resolved.



EK-Quantum Momentum² VRM Bridge for ROG Maximus Z790 Formula
The EK-Quantum Momentum² VRM Bridge is the only off-the-shelf solution bridging multiple liquid cooling components with a unique mounting mechanism. It is made exclusively for the ROG Maximus Z790 Formula, to which you attach any existing Intel LGA 1700-socket-compatible EK-Quantum Velocity² CPU water blocks, after which this VRM bridge binds them together.

The Z790 VRM Bridge Is Not Compatible With Z690 Formula Motherboards!

The new EK-Quantum Momentum VRM Bridge will replace the standard approach to connecting the integrated ASUS HyperChill III with the liquid cooling loop. Instead of using several angled and four tubing fittings, you only need EK's VRM Bridge (plus two fittings that would be used on the CPU block anyway). The Bridge acts as a single entity, channeling coolant through the CPU water block and VRM cooling block with two connection points.

EK-Quantum Momentum² VRM Bridge ROG Maximus Z690 Formula White Upgrade Kit
This upgrade kit is designed for the Z690 Formula VRM Bridge. It allows the user to convert it to white color, matching the aesthetic of the motherboard and its color scheme. At the same time, it comes with new push-in fittings that allow users to also use it on the ROG Maximus Z790 Formula without needing to purchase a new VRM bridge in case they upgraded their motherboard to the latest generation.

The voltage regulating module cooler of the Formula motherboard has two operating regimes - the ASUS HyperChill III lets you cool the VRM with either air or water. Water cooling will provide lower temperatures and, in doing so, improve stability during high overclock frequencies. The new VRM Bridge solution is engineered with a nickel cooling channel that's incredibly effective at removing heat.

Patented EK Design
A unique mounting and locking solution has been developed exclusively for the EK-Quantum Momentum² VRM Bridge. EK always takes great care of design, form, and functionality, which led to the development of this patented mounting mechanism. The user-friendly locking system is operated in just a few simple steps. This allows for the CPU water block and the integrated ROG Maximus Z790 Formula VRM cooling block to be connected in a few minutes. There is no need to mount several angled fittings, cut tubes to size, and then connect all of them together - the EK Bridge solution simplifies the whole process.

The EK-Quantum Momentum VRM Bridge ROG Maximus Z790 Formula D-RGB is CNC-milled from a single piece of high-grade glass-like cast acrylic top cover. The entire VRM Bridge slides onto special nickel-plated barb push-in fittings, while the 2 mm thick stainless steel base plate acts as the locking mechanism that latches to the barb fittings.

EK-Matrix7 Compatibility
The good news for all liquid cooling enthusiasts is that EK-Quantum Momentum² VRM Bridge ROG Maximus Z790 Formula D-RGB upgrades the Velocity², which is an EK-Matrix7 compatible product, into a full EK-Matrix7 Foundation product. This means the ports are perfectly aligned with every EK-Quantum Reflection² distribution plate, requiring no offset adapters.

The EK-Matrix7 product raster sets a new standard across the liquid-cooling landscape. With it, the EK is adding a new dimension to PC liquid cooling, where the height of products and the distance between ports are managed by increments of 7 mm. This improves product alignment and reduces the time spent planning the loop and bending tubes - ultimately making the building process easier and more user-friendly.

RGB Lighting on EK-Quantum Momentum² VRM Bridge ROG Maximus Z790 Formula D-RGB - White
This product is compatible with ASUS Aura RGB control software. The arrow marking on the 3-pin LED connector is to be aligned with the +5V marking on the Aura Gen 2 header.

This monoblock bridge solution is only compatible with the ROG Maximus Z790 Formula motherboard and EK-Quantum Velocity² 1700 CPU water blocks.

Availability and Pricing
The EK-Quantum Momentum VRM Bridge ROG Maximus Z790 Formula and the Z690 Upgrade Kit are made in Slovenia, Europe, and are available for pre-order through the EK Webshop and Partner Reseller Network. These products are expected to ship out in early February 2024, at the latest. In the table below, you can see the manufacturer's suggested retail price (MSRP), VAT included.



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[FoulOnWhite]

Wow it is fugly. I guess as long as it does the job though. Price is pretty good for what it is.

 

[Dammeron]

Wow it is fugly. I guess as long as it does the job though. Price is pretty good for what it is.

It's job is to look good, so if You say it's fugly, than it mostly failed...

 

[mechtech]

I wouldn't mind if TPU did a VRM heatsink review.

Stock - with and without forced air cooling
Liquid
Pin fin - with and without forced air cooling

50w Length Width 200*55mm And Height 100mm Black Anodizing Rectangle Led Light Aluminum Pin Fin Forged Heatsink - Buy Forged Heatsink heatsink Led 50w extruded Aluminum Profiles Heatsink Product on Alibaba.com

50w Length Width 200*55mm And Height 100mm Black Anodizing Rectangle Led Light Aluminum Pin Fin Forged Heatsink - Buy Forged Heatsink heatsink Led 50w extruded Aluminum Profiles Heatsink Product on Alibaba.com

www.alibaba.com

pin fin like that ^ and cut to suit

 

[Jism]

I wouldn't mind if TPU did a VRM heatsink review.

Stock - with and without forced air cooling
Liquid
Pin fin - with and without forced air cooling

50w Length Width 200*55mm And Height 100mm Black Anodizing Rectangle Led Light Aluminum Pin Fin Forged Heatsink - Buy Forged Heatsink heatsink Led 50w extruded Aluminum Profiles Heatsink Product on Alibaba.com

50w Length Width 200*55mm And Height 100mm Black Anodizing Rectangle Led Light Aluminum Pin Fin Forged Heatsink - Buy Forged Heatsink heatsink Led 50w extruded Aluminum Profiles Heatsink Product on Alibaba.com

www.alibaba.com

pin fin like that ^ and cut to suit

And then? VRM's can run up to 100 degrees with no sweat. Surrounding components like capacitors don't like that but generally, "VRM cooling" is overblown.

 

[Vya Domus]

I wouldn't mind if TPU did a VRM heatsink review.

What do you mean by VRM heatsinks ? Like waterblocks ? There is such a minuscule portion of consumers that would even buy this, VRM blocks aren't needed, they're more or of a "might as well if I have this much disposable income" type of thing.

 

[mechtech]

What do you mean by VRM heatsinks ? Like waterblocks ? There is such a minuscule portion of consumers that would even buy this, VRM blocks aren't needed, they're more or of a "might as well if I have this much disposable income" type of thing.

Exactly my point.........a review to prove there really isnt a point.

Business motherboards typically have nothing on the VRMs

Pro B550M-C/CSM｜Motherboards｜ASUS Canada

The ASUS Corporate Stable Model (CSM) program is designed to provide stable motherboards to any scale of businesses with up to 36-month supply, EOL notice & ECN control, and IT management software – ASUS Control Center Express.

www.asus.com

And then? VRM's can run up to 100 degrees with no sweat. Surrounding components like capacitors don't like that but generally, "VRM cooling" is overblown.

exactly

 

[Jism]

VRMs used to have bad reputation, because some motherboard makers did not follow for example AMD's specs with the AM3+. The result is that you had boards that where unable to drive a 5Ghz FX 9590 and often chrashed when big loads where applied. Today it's different, because even a 40$ motherboard is perfectly capable of driving a 5950X CPU and even in overclocked condition. Mind you we're talking about boards with only 4 phase vrm's and no cooling. Moral of the story: it worked perfectly fine.

Server boards have CPU's with TDP's of up to 350W - and often only have 4 phase VRM. Any electrical engineer would agree that consumer boards with 8, 10, 12, 16 or even 20 phase VRM is completely overblown and unneeded. Yes it might influence a "little" bit your OC but we're talking a few Mhz here. It's not like OC'ing these days is useful knowing how much heat and extra power it will bring. A VRM's job is simply convert the incoming DC12V to 0.8V ~ 1.6V with huge amps. In this conversion, there's some loss that's put to heat and that's where heat of the VRM's comes from.

But you can safely run VRM's in the 100 to even 110 degree (celcius) mark because they are made for that. I do agree that running a GPU with stock fan profile might heat up the whole card and in particular the memory chips, in such situation is where you want to have a tad better cooling. But it's OK. Things are designed to be warm and run continuously. Above video is a perfect demonstration when a motherboard maker is'nt following AMD's specs thus leading in short and causing a fire.

I owned a AM3+ FX8320 at 4.8Ghz for around 1.5 year. If your board supports it those things work perfectly fine.

 

[AnarchoPrimitiv]

VRMs used to have bad reputation, because some motherboard makers did not follow for example AMD's specs with the AM3+. The result is that you had boards that where unable to drive a 5Ghz FX 9590 and often chrashed when big loads where applied. Today it's different, because even a 40$ motherboard is perfectly capable of driving a 5950X CPU and even in overclocked condition. Mind you we're talking about boards with only 4 phase vrm's and no cooling. Moral of the story: it worked perfectly fine.

Server boards have CPU's with TDP's of up to 350W - and often only have 4 phase VRM. Any electrical engineer would agree that consumer boards with 8, 10, 12, 16 or even 20 phase VRM is completely overblown and unneeded. Yes it might influence a "little" bit your OC but we're talking a few Mhz here. It's not like OC'ing these days is useful knowing how much heat and extra power it will bring. A VRM's job is simply convert the incoming DC12V to 0.8V ~ 1.6V with huge amps. In this conversion, there's some loss that's put to heat and that's where heat of the VRM's comes from.

But you can safely run VRM's in the 100 to even 110 degree (celcius) mark because they are made for that. I do agree that running a GPU with stock fan profile might heat up the whole card and in particular the memory chips, in such situation is where you want to have a tad better cooling. But it's OK. Things are designed to be warm and run continuously. Above video is a perfect demonstration when a motherboard maker is'nt following AMD's specs thus leading in short and causing a fire.

I owned a AM3+ FX8320 at 4.8Ghz for around 1.5 year. If your board supports it those things work perfectly fine.

Yeah, I've always felt that consumer motherboards have gotten too ridiculous....these overbuilt boards should just be a few halo instances, but it seems like they're becoming the norm and the affordable options are being squeezed out.

 

[Jism]

Really, it is. People believe the more "Fatter" a board looks the better it is. But such setups only excel if you know what you do. Otherwise any 50$ motherboard will suit your needs or application(s). Ive experimented with various things in terms of voltage(s) in the past. Things like VRM switching frequency (the higher the "cleaner" the voltage, thus costing efficiency of the VRM's) can be beneficial in OC's. The best i got out of it was upping the frequency while lowering the voltage of the CPU and thus putting less heat out.

A big VRM will help with high (spike) loads too - but with today's boards it's unneeded since both Intel and AMD have very specific rules that motherboard makers need to stick to. It's nearly impossible to buy a board these days that will not work with your latest high end CPU.

 

[ir_cow]

And then? VRM's can run up to 100 degrees with no sweat. Surrounding components like capacitors don't like that but generally, "VRM cooling" is overblown.

Efficiency goes down the hotter it runs. Also the lifespan of the part. Cooling is important

 

[HueSplat]

The cheaper the motherboard, the bigger the need for VRM cooling. Sure, people will argue that is not true in every situation, may not be needed for stock speeds with some kind of airflow etc.

Quite a few times in my life I have got a cheap budget board and increased VRM cooling by adding or modifying heatsinks, fans directed over the area, etc.
Pairing with either the top spec CPU or a mid to low end, overclocking in both situations.

I like the old days of overclocking, where you got budget or the absolutet cheapest components running close to OR better than the top spec.

Overall, I have had more fun modding, messing with and pushing the cheapest hardware than I have using high end.

I draw the line at watercooled VRMs… it’s a bit much, UNLESS it’s some ghetto DIY xoc setup using budget component and a chiller or something, I’d be into that.