Waterblock Unboxing and Closer Look

ASUS collaborated with EKWB to make a monoblock specifically for the Z690 Extreme Glacial. ASUS has named this monoblock the EK Ultrablock on the website. Besides the name, the main difference from a normal monoblock is this one has active cooling for the entire motherboard and not just the CPU and VRM.

ASUS packages everything well with form padding for maximum protection. Even though it is a huge chunk of metal and acrylic that will be hard to break just from moving it, the goal here to avoid any scratches and scuff marks during the shipping progress. It also comes with hard tube fittings. The assumption for including these fittings is if you're already willing to spend a lot of money, soft tubing is probably not in the build plans. Hard tubing always looks fantastic. It does take a bit more craftsmanship and planning to do, but the visual payoff is worth the time invested when it comes to high end computer builds.


Once the monoblock is removed, we can get a better look at the active cooling and design layout. Unlike other aftermarket monoblocks you can buy for different motherboards, none of them integrate the I/O section into the waterblock. Not only is the CPU and VRM section cooled with this EK Ultrablock, but the 10 Gb LAN, PCH and M.2 sockets all have active cooling as well.


Included is instructions, thermal pads and screws for the monoblock installation. The process was straightforward and easy to follow the illustrated guide. Word of advice, the order of screws in important. The four behind the socket first, followed by everything else!


Here is a perspective shot to illustrate how thick the acrylic is. The Ultrablock is heavy and this is partly why.


ASUS collaboration with EKWB shows off each talented team's abilities. ASUS provides the motherboard, while EKWB designs a waterblock designed specifically for it. A leak detection system is in place that monitors the pressure and if water starts to come out of the threads making contact with the outer ring. Either trigger should kick in the leak detection and immediately turn off the system. This was actually a problem when the system was first turned on. After some investigation, the waterblock held the 1-bar of pressure on its own leaving me confused at first. It turned out to unrelated to the fittings or waterblock, rather the lid of the water reservoir was not tightened down, causing pressure to drop and kick in the leak protection.


If you are like me and didn't see a leak and can't wait to properly diagnose the problem, you can disable the monoblock communication by unplugging the top cable. Not the smartest idea and definitely not suggested, but it works nonetheless if you are in a pinch. As for the 2" OLED and AniMe Matrix LED display, those have two separate cables that connect near the M.2 Gen5 socket. They are thin and easily damaged if pulled on. I would have liked to see ASUS take a page from Gigabyte Xtreme Waterforce and route everything though a single internal USB-C header. Maybe the next edition ASUS?