Asrock Z390 Taichi Ultimate Quick Installation Guide

Version 1.0
Published July 2018
Copyright©2018 ASRock INC. All rights reserved.

Copyright Notice:

No part of this documentation may be reproduced, transcribed, transmitted, or
translated in any language, in any form or by any means, except duplication of
documentation by the purchaser for backup purpose, without written consent of
ASRock Inc.

Products and corporate names appearing in this documentation may or may not
be registered trademarks or copyrights of their respective companies, and are used
only for identication or explanation and to the owners’ benet, without intent to

infringe.

Disclaimer:

Specications and information contained in this documentation are furnished for
informational use only and subject to change without notice, and should not be
constructed as a commitment by ASRock. ASRock assumes no responsibility for
any errors or omissions that may appear in this documentation.

With respect to the contents of this documentation, ASRock does not provide
warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied, including but not limited to
the implied warranties or conditions of merchantability or tness for a particular
purpose.

In no event shall ASRock, its directors, ocers, employees, or agents be liable for
any indirect, special, incidental, or consequential damages (including damages for
loss of prots, loss of business, loss of data, interruption of business and the like),
even if ASRock has been advised of the possibility of such damages arising from any
defect or error in the documentation or product.

is device complies with Part 15 of the FCC Rules. Operation is subject to the following
two conditions:
(1) this device may not cause harmful interference, and
(2) this device must accept any interference received, including interference that

may cause undesired operation.

CALIFORNIA, USA ONLY

e Lithium battery adopted on this motherboard contains Perchlorate, a toxic substance
controlled in Perchlorate Best Management Practices (BMP) regulations passed by the
California Legislature. When you discard the Lithium battery in California, USA, please
follow the related regulations in advance.
“Perchlorate Material-special handling may apply, see www.dtsc.ca.gov/hazardouswaste/
perchlorate”

ASRock Website: http://www.asrock.com

AUSTRALIA ONLY

Our goods come with guarantees that cannot be excluded under the Australian
Consumer Law. You are entitled to a replacement or refund for a major failure and
compensation for any other reasonably foreseeable loss or damage caused by our
goods. You are also entitled to have the goods repaired or replaced if the goods fail
to be of acceptable quality and the failure does not amount to a major failure. If
you require assistance please call ASRock Tel : [phone] ext.123 (Standard
International call charges apply)

e terms HDMI® and HDMI High-Denition Multimedia Interface, and the HDMI
logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of HDMI Licensing LLC in the United
States and other countries.

Manufactured under license under U.S. Patent Nos: 5,956,674; 5,974,380; 6,487,535;
7,003,467 & other U.S. and worldwide patents issued & pending. DTS, the Symbol, &
DTS and the Symbol together is a registered trademark & DTS Connect, DTS Interactive,
DTS Neo:PC are trademarks of DTS, Inc. Product includes soware.
© DTS, Inc., All Rights Reserved.

CE Warning

is device complies with directive 2014/53/EU issued by the Commision of the European
Community.

is equipment complies with EU radiation exposure limits set forth for an uncontrolled
environment.
is equipment should be installed and operated with minimum distance 20cm between
the radiator & your body.

Operations in the 5.15-5.35GHz band are restricted to indoor usage only.

Radio transmit power per transceiver type

Function Frequency Maximum Output Power (EIRP)

2400-2483.5 MHz 18.5 + / -1.5 dbm

5150-5250 MHz 21.5 + / -1.5 dbm

WiFi

Bluetooth 2400-2483.5 MHz 8.5 + / -1.5 dbm

5250-5350 MHz

5470-5725 MHz

18.5 + / -1.5 dbm (no TPC)

21.5 + / -1.5 dbm (TPC)

25.5 + / -1.5 dbm (no TPC)

28.5 + / -1.5 dbm (TPC)

Motherboard Layout

Intel

Z390

DDR4 _A2 (64 bit, 288- pin modu le)

DDR4 _A1 (64 bit, 288- pin modu le)

DDR4 _B2 (64 bit, 288- pin modu le)

DDR4 _B1 (64 bit, 288- pin modu le)

ATX12V1

ATXP WR 1

PCI E2

Top:
LAN1

(IntelI 211AT)

Top:

Central/Bass

Center:

REAR S PK

Top:

LINE I N

Center:

FRONT

Bottom:

Optical

SPDIF

Bottom:

MIC IN

PCI E4

HDLED RESET

PLED PWRBTN

PANEL1

1

1

SPK_PLED1

1

HD_AUDI O1

PCI E5

PCI E1

USB_1_2

1

CLRBTN1

PS2

Keybo ard

/Mous e

CMOS

Batt ery

TB1

1

CPU_FAN1

1

TPMS1

1

M2_WI FI1

HDMI1

DISPL AYI_1

Dr.

Debu g

BIOS_A1

BIOS_B1

BIOS_A_LED1

BIOS
ROM

BIOS_B_LED1

BIOS
ROM

PM_OC

1

CHA_FAN1/ WP

Ultr a M. 2

PCIe Ge n3 x4

RoH S

SATA3_2_3

SATA3_4_5

SATA3_A1_ A2

SATA3_0_1

PCI E3

CLRMOS1

1

1

USB 3.1 Gen1

T:US B3_1

B: USB3_2

USB 3.1 Gen2
T:US B31_TA1
B: USB31_TA 2

USB3_7_ 8

USB31_TC_ 2

Z3 90 Taic hi Ult im at e

ATX12V2

CHA_FAN4/ WP

CHA_FAN6/ WP

M2_1

M2_2

M2_3

CHA_FAN5 /WP

CPU_FAN2 /WP

ADDR_LED 1

1

RGB_LED11RGB_LED2

1

CHA_FAN2/ WP

USB3

1

CHA_FAN3/ WP

PWRBTN1

RSTBTN1

1

USB3_5_ 6

Top:
LAN2

(Intel I219V)

USB 3.1 Gen2
T:US B31_TA_3
B: USB31_T C_1

Top:
10GLAN

(AQUANTIA
AQC107)

USB 3.1 Gen1
T:US B3_3
B: USB3_4

Z390 Taichi Ultimate

English

1

English

No. Description

1 ATX 12V Power Connector (ATX12V2)

2 ATX 12V Power Connector (ATX12V1)

3 CPU Fan Connector (CPU_FAN1)

4 CPU Fan / Waterpump Fan Connector (CPU_FAN2/WP)

5 2 x 288-pin DDR4 DIMM Slots (DDR4_A1, DDR4_B1)

6 2 x 288-pin DDR4 DIMM Slots (DDR4_A2, DDR4_B2)

7 Chassis Fan / Waterpump Fan Connector (CHA_FAN5/WP)

8 ATX Power Connector (ATXPWR1)

9 USB 3.1 Gen1 Header (USB3_7_8)

10 USB 3.1 Gen1 Header (USB3_5_6)

11 Chassis Fan / Waterpump Fan Connector (CHA_FAN6/WP)

12 Front Panel Type C USB 3.1 Gen2 Header (USB31_TC_2)

13 SATA3 Connectors (SATA3_0_1)

14 SATA3 Connectors (SATA3_2_3)

15 SATA3 Connectors (SATA3_4_5)

16 SATA3 Connectors (SATA3_A1_A2)

17 Reset Button with LED (RSTBTN1)

18 Power Button with LED (PWRBTN1)

19 Performance Mode / Easy OC Header (PM_OC)

20 Chassis Fan / Waterpump Fan Connector (CHA_FAN3/WP)

21 System Panel Header (PANEL1)

22 Power LED and Speaker Header (SPK_PLED1)

23 Clear CMOS Jumper (CLRMOS1)

24 USB 2.0 Header (USB_1_2)

25 USB 2.0 Header (USB3)

26 TPM Header (TPMS1)

27 Chassis Fan / Waterpump Fan Connector (CHA_FAN2/WP)

28 underbolt AIC Header (TB1)

29 RGB LED Header (RGB_LED2)

30 RGB LED Header (RGB_LED1)

31 Addressable LED Header (ADDR_LED1)

32 Front Panel Audio Header (HD_AUDIO1)

33 Chassis Fan / Waterpump Fan Connector (CHA_FAN4/WP)

34 Chassis Fan / Waterpump Fan Connector (CHA_FAN1/WP)

2

I/O Panel

Z390 Taichi Ultimate

1

17 1619

18

2

3

15

4

14

5

13

8

769

101112

No. Description No. Description

1 PS/2 Mouse/Keyboard Port 11 Optical SPDIF Out Port

2 DisplayPort 1.2 12 USB 3.1 Gen2 Type-A Port (USB31_TA_3)

3 10G LAN RJ-45 Port (AQUANTIA® AQC107)* 13 USB 3.1 Gen2 Type-C Port (USB31_TC_1)

4 LAN RJ-45 Port (Intel® I211AT)** 14 USB 3.1 Gen2 Type-A Ports (USB31_TA_12)

5 LAN RJ-45 Port (Intel® I219V)** 15 USB 3.1 Gen1 Ports (USB3_3_4)****

6 Central / Bass (Orange) 16 HDMI Port

7 Rear Speaker (Black) 17 USB 3.1 Gen1 Ports (USB3_12)

8 Line In (Light Blue) 18 Antenna Ports

9 Front Speaker (Lime)*** 19 Clear CMOS Button

10 Microphone (Pink)

* ere are two LEDs on each LAN port. Please refer to the table below for the LAN port LED indications.

ACT/LINK L ED

SPEED LE D

LAN Por t

Activity / Link LED Speed LED

Status Description Status Description

O No Link

Blinking Data Activity

Orange

10Mbps/100Mbps/1Gbps/2.5Gbps

/5Gbps connection

On Link Green 10Gbps connection

English

3

** ere are two LEDs on each LAN port. Please refer to the table below for the LAN port LED indications.

ACT/LINK L ED

SPEED LE D

LAN Por t

Activity / Link LED Speed LED

Status Description Status Description

O No Link O 10Mbps connection
Blinking Data Activity Orange 100Mbps connection
On Link Green 1Gbps connection

*** If you use a 2-channel speaker, please connect the speaker’s plug into “Front Speaker Jack”. See the table below
for connection d etails in accordance w ith the type of speaker you use.

English

4

Audio Output

Channels

Front Speaker

(No. 9)

Rear Speaker

(No. 7)

Central / Bass

(No. 6)

2 V -- -- --
4 V V -- --
6 V V V --
8 V V V V

**** Please note that the USB3_ 3_4 do not support USB Keyboard & mouse S3/S4 /S5 Wakeup.

Line In

(No. 8)

Z390 Taichi Ultimate

WiFi-802.11ac Module and ASRock WiFi 2.4/5 GHz Antenna

WiFi-802.11ac + BT Module

is motherboard comes with an exclusive WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac + BT v5.0
module (pre-installed on the rear I/O panel) that oers support for WiFi 802.11 a/b/
g/n/ac connectivity standards and Bluetooth v5.0. WiFi + BT module is an easy-to­use wireless local area network (WLAN) adapter to support WiFi + BT. Bluetooth
v5.0 standard features Smart Ready technology that adds a whole new class of
functionality into the mobile devices. BT 5.0 also includes Low Energy Technology
and ensures extraordinary low power consumption for PCs. e 2T2R WiFi
solution sets a WiFi high speed standard and oers max link rate up to 1733Mbps.
* e transmission speed may vary according to the environment.

ASRock WiFi 2.4/5 GHz Antenna

English

5

Chapter 1 Introduction

ank you for purchasing ASRock Z390 Taichi Ultimate motherboard, a reliable
motherboard produced under ASRock’s consistently stringent quality control.
It delivers excellent performance with robust design conforming to ASRock’s
commitment to quality and endurance.

Becau se the motherboard specications and the BIOS soware might be updated, the
content of this documentation will be subject to change without notice. In case any
modications of this documentation occur, the updated version will be available on
ASRock’s website without further notice. If you require technical support related to
this motherboard, please vi sit our website for s pecic information about the model
you are using. You may nd the l atest VGA cards and CPU suppor t list on ASRock’s
website a s well. ASRock website http://www.a srock.com.

1.1 Package Contents

ASRock Z390 Taichi Ultimate Motherboard (ATX Form Factor)

•

ASRock Z390 Taichi Ultimate Quick Installation Guide

•

ASRock Z390 Taichi Ultimate Support CD

•

4 x Serial ATA (SATA) Data Cables (Optional)

•

1 x ASRock SLI_HB_Bridge_2S Card (Optional)

•

1 x ASRock WiFi 2.4/5 GHz Antenna (Optional)

•

3 x Screws for M.2 Sockets (Optional)

•

1 x I/O Panel Shield

•

English

6

1.2 Specications

Platform

CPU

Chipset

Memory

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

* Please refer to Memory Support List on ASRock's website for
more information. (http://www.asrock.com/)

•

•

•

•

Z390 Taichi Ultimate

ATX Form Factor

Supports 9th and 8th Gen Intel® CoreTM Processors (Socket

1151)
IR Digital PWM
12 Power Phase design
Supports Intel® Turbo Boost 2.0 Technology
Supports Intel® K-Series unlocked CPUs
Supports ASRock BCLK Full-range Overclocking
Supports ASRock Hyper BCLK Engine II

Intel® Z390

Dual Channel DDR4 Memory Technology
4 x DDR4 DIMM Slots
Supports DDR4 4200+(OC)*/4133(OC)/4000(OC)/3866
(OC)/3800(OC)/3733(OC)/3600(OC)/3200(OC)/2933
(OC)/2800 (OC)/2666/2400/2133 non-ECC, un-buered
memory

Supports ECC UDIMM memory modules (operate in non­ECC mode)
Max. capacity of system memory: 64GB
Supports Intel® Extreme Memory Prole (XMP) 2.0
15μ Gold Contact in DIMM Slots

Expansion
Slot

3 x PCI Express 3.0 x16 Slots (PCIE2/PCIE4/PCIE5: single

•

at x16 (PCIE2); dual at x8 (PCIE2) / x8 (PCIE4); triple at x8
(PCIE2) / x4 (PCIE4) / x4 (PCIE5))*

* Supports NVMe SSD as boot disks

2 x PCI Express 3.0 x1 Slots (Flexible PCIe)

•

Supports AMD Quad CrossFireXTM, 3-Way CrossFireXTM

•

and CrossFireXTM
Supports NVIDIA® Quad SLITM and SLI

•

Supports NVIDIA® NVLinkTM with dual NVIDIA® GeForce®

•

RTX series graphics cards
* NVIDIA NVLink Bridge does not come with the package.
Please purchase it from NVIDIA® if necessary.

TM

English

7

1 x Vertical M.2 Socket (Key E) with the bundled WiFi-

•

802.11ac module (on the rear I/O)
15μ Gold Contact in VGA PCIe Slot (PCIE2)

•

Graphics

* Intel® UHD Graphics Built-in Visuals and the VGA outputs
can be supported only with processors which are GPU
integrated.

Supports Intel® UHD Graphics Built-in Visuals : Intel® Quick

•

Sync Video with AVC, MVC (S3D) and MPEG-2 Full HW
Encode1,
Intel® InTruTM 3D, Intel® Clear Video HD Technology, Intel®

•

InsiderTM, Intel® UHD Graphics
DirectX 12

•

HWAEncode/Decode: AVC/H.264, HEVC/H.265 8-bit,

•

HEVC/H.265 10-bit, VP8, VP9 8-bit, VP9 10-bit (Decode
only), MPEG2, MJPEG, VC-1 (Decode only)
Dual graphics output: Support HDMI and DisplayPort 1.2

•

ports by independent display controllers
Supports HDMI 1.4 with max. resolution up to 4K x 2K

•

(4096x2160) @ 30Hz
Supports DisplayPort 1.2 with max. resolution up to 4K x 2K

•

(4096x2304) @ 60Hz
Supports Auto Lip Sync, Deep Color (12bpc), xvYCC and

•

HBR (High Bit Rate Audio) with HDMI 1.4 Port (Compliant
HDMI monitor is required)
Supports HDCP 2.2 with HDMI 1.4 and DisplayPort 1.2

•

Ports
Supports 4K Ultra HD (UHD) playback with HDMI 1.4 and

•

DisplayPort 1.2 Ports

English

8

Audio

7.1 CH HD Audio with Content Protection (Realtek

•

ALC1220 Audio Codec)
Premium Blu-ray Audio support

•

Supports Surge Protection

•

Supports Purity SoundTM 4

•

- Nichicon Fine Gold Series Audio Caps

- 120dB SNR DAC with Dierential Amplier

- NE5532 Premium Headset Amplier for Front Panel
Audio Connector (Supports up to 600 Ohm headsets)

- Pure Power-In

- Direct Drive Technology

- PCB Isolate Shielding

- Impedance Sensing on Front Out port

-

Individual PCB Layers for R/L Audio Channel

-

RGB LED

- Gold Audio Jacks

- 15μ Gold Audio Connector

Supports DTS Connect

•

Z390 Taichi Ultimate

LAN

Wireless
LAN

Rear Panel
I/O

1 x 10 Gigabit LAN 10/100/1000/2500/5000/10000 Mb/s

(AQUANTIA® AQC107):

Supports Wake-On-LAN

•

Supports Lightning/ESD Protection

•

Supports PXE

•

2 x Gigabit LAN 10/100/1000 Mb/s (1 x Intel® I219V, 1 x Intel®

I211AT):

Supports Wake-On-LAN

•

Supports Lightning/ESD Protection

•

Supports Dual LAN with Teaming*

•

* Teaming is supported on Windows® 10 RS2 and above.

Supports Energy Ecient Ethernet 802.3az

•

Supports PXE

•

Intel® 802.11ac WiFi Module

•

Supports IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n/ac

•

Supports Dual-Band (2.4/5 GHz)

•

Supports high speed wireless connections up to 1733Mbps

•

2 antennas to support 2 (Transmit) x 2 (Receive) diversity

•

technology

Supports Bluetooth 5.0 + High speed class II

•

Supports MU-MIMO

•

2 x Antenna Ports

•

1 x PS/2 Mouse/Keyboard Port

•

1 x HDMI Port

•

1 x DisplayPort 1.2

•

1 x Optical SPDIF Out Port

•

3 x USB 3.1 Gen2 Type-A Ports (10 Gb/s) (ReDriver)

•

(Supports ESD Protection)

1 x USB 3.1 Gen2 Type-C Port (10 Gb/s) (ReDriver) (Supports

•

ESD Protection)

4 x USB 3.1 Gen1 Ports (Intel® Z390) (Supports ESD

•

Protection)

English

9

Storage

* Please note that the USB3_3_4 do not support USB Keyboard
& mouse S3/S4/S5 Wakeup.

3 x RJ-45 LAN Ports with LED (ACT/LINK LED and SPEED

•

LED)
1 x Clear CMOS Button

•

HD Audio Jacks: Rear Speaker / Central / Bass / Line in /

•

Front Speaker / Microphone (Gold Audio Jacks)

6 x SATA3 6.0 Gb/s Connectors, support RAID (RAID 0,

•

RAID 1, RAID 5, RAID 10, Intel Rapid Storage Technology

16), NCQ, AHCI and Hot Plug*
2 x SATA3 6.0 Gb/s Connectors by ASMedia ASM1061, sup-

•

port NCQ, AHCI and Hot Plug
* M2_1, SATA3_0 and SATA3_1 share lanes. If either one of
them is in use, the others will be disabled.
* If M2_2 is occupied by a SATA-type M.2 device, SATA3_3
will be disabled.
* M2_3, SATA3_4 and SATA3_5 share lanes. If either one of
them is in use, the others will be disabled.

1 x Ultra M.2 Socket (M2_1), support M Key type

•

2230/2242/2260/2280 M.2 SATA3 6.0 Gb/s module and M.2

PCI Express module up to Gen3 x4 (32 Gb/s)**

2 x Ultra M.2 Sockets (M2_2 and M2_3), support M Key

•

type 2230/2242/2260/2280/22110 M.2 SATA3 6.0 Gb/s mod-

ule and M.2 PCI Express module up to Gen3 x4 (32 Gb/s)**
** Supports Intel® OptaneTM Technology
** Supports NVMe SSD as boot disks
** Supports ASRock U.2 Kit

English

10

Connector

1 x TPM Header

•

1 x Power LED and Speaker Header

•

2 x RGB LED Headers

•

* Support in total up to 12V/3A, 36W LED Strip

1 x Addressable LED Header

•

* Supports in total up to 5V/3A, 15W LED Strip

1 x CPU Fan Connector (4-pin)

•

* e CPU Fan Connector supports the CPU fan of maximum
1A (12W) fan power.

1 x CPU/Water Pump Fan Connector (4-pin) (Smart Fan

•

Speed Control)

Z390 Taichi Ultimate

* e CPU/Water Pump Fan supports the water cooler fan of
maximum 2A (24W) fan power.

6 x Chassis/Water Pump Fan Connectors (4-pin) (Smart Fan

•

Speed Control)
* e Chassis/Water Pump Fan supports the water cooler fan of
maximum 2A (24W) fan power.
* CPU_FAN2/WP, CHA_FAN1~6/WP can auto detect if 3-pin
or 4-pin fan is in use.

1 x 24 pin ATX Power Connector (Hi-Density Power Con-

•

nector)

1 x 8 pin 12V Power Connector (Hi-Density Power Connec-

•

tor)

1 x 4 pin 12V Power Connector (Hi-Density Power Connec-

•

tor)

1 x Front Panel Audio Connector (15μ Gold Audio Connec-

•

tor)

1 x underbolt AIC Connector (5-pin)

•

2 x USB 2.0 Headers (Support 3 USB 2.0 ports) (Intel® Z390)

•

(Supports ESD Protection)

2 x USB 3.1 Gen1 Headers (Support 4 USB 3.1 Gen1 ports)

•

(ASMedia ASM1074 hub) (Supports ESD Protection)

1 x Front Panel Type C USB 3.1 Gen2 Header (ASMedia

•

ASM1562 Retimer)

1 x Performance Mode / Easy OC Header

•

1 x Dr. Debug with LED

•

1 x Power Button with LED

•

1 x Reset Button with LED

•

BIOS
Feature

2 x AMI UEFI Legal BIOS with multilingual GUI support (1

•

x Main BIOS and 1 x Backup BIOS)

Supports Secure Backup UEFI Technology

•

ACPI 6.0 Compliant wake up events

•

SMBIOS 2.7 Support

•

CPU Core/Cache, GT Core/Cache, DRAM, VTT DDR, PCH

•

1.0V, VCCIO, CPU PLL 2, VCCSA, VCCPLL, CPU Cold Bug

Killer, CPU PLL 1, CLK VDD, DMI, CPU Internal PLL, GT

PLL, Ring PLL, System Agent PLL, Memory Controller PLL

Voltage Multi-adjustment

English

11

Temperature Sensing: CPU, CPU/Water Pump, Chassis/Wa-

Hardware
Monitor

•

ter Pump Fans
Fan Tachometer: CPU, CPU/Water Pump, Chassis/Water

•

Pump Fans
Quiet Fan (Auto adjust chassis fan speed by CPU tempera-

•

ture): CPU, CPU/Water Pump, Chassis/Water Pump Fans
Fan Multi-Speed Control: CPU, CPU/Water Pump, Chassis/

•

Water Pump Fans
Voltage monitoring: +12V, +5V, +3.3V, CPU Vcore, DRAM,

•

PCH 1.0V, VCCIO, DRAM VPP, VCCSA, VCCST, DMI,
CPU Cold Bug Killer

Microso® Windows® 10 64-bit

OS

Certica­tions

* For detailed product information, please visit our website: http://ww w.asrock.com

Please realize that the re is a certain risk involved with overclocking, including
adjusting the setting in the BIOS, applying Untied Overclocking Technology, or using
third-party overclocking tool s. Overclocking may aect your system’s stability, or
even cause damage to the components and devices of your system. It should be done
at your own risk and expense. We are not responsible for possible damage caused by
overclocking.

•

FCC, CE

•

ErP/EuP ready (ErP/EuP ready power supply is required)

•

English

12

Z390 Taichi Ultimate

Chapter 2 Installation

is is an ATX form factor motherboard. Before you install the motherboard, study
the conguration of your chassis to ensure that the motherboard ts into it.

Pre-installation Precautions

Take note of the following precautions before you install motherboard components
or change any motherboard settings.

Make sure to unplug the power cord before installing or removing the motherboard

•

components. Failure to do so may cause physical injuries and damages to motherboard
components.
In order to avoid damage from static electricity to the motherboard’s components,

•

NEVER place your motherboard directly on a carpet. Also remember to use a grounded
wrist strap or touch a safety grounded object before you handle the components.
Hold components by the edges and do not touch the ICs.

•

Whenever you uninstall any components, place them on a grounded anti-static pad or

•

in the bag that comes with the components.
When placing screws to secure the motherboard to the chassis, please do not over-

•

tighten the screws! Doing so may damage the motherboard.

13

English

2.1 Installing the CPU

1. Before you insert the 1151-Pin CPU into the socket, please check if the PnP c ap
is on the socket, if the CPU sur face is unclean, or if there are any b ent pins in the
socket. Do not force to insert the CPU into the socket if above situation is found.
Other wise, the CPU will be seriously d amaged.

2. Unplug all power cables be fore installing the CPU.

1

2

A

B

English

14

Z390 Taichi Ultimate

3

4

5

English

15

Please save and replace the cover if the processor i s removed. e cover must be
placed if you wish to return the motherboard for aer service.

English

16

2.2 Installing the CPU Fan and Heatsink

1 2

Z390 Taichi Ultimate

FAN

CPU_

English

17

2.3 Installing Memory Modules (DIMM)

is motherboard provides four 288-pin DDR4 (Double Data Rate 4) DIMM slots,
and supports Dual Channel Memory Technology.

1. For dual channel conguration, you always need to install identical (the same
brand, speed , size and chip-type) DDR4 DIMM pairs.

2. It is unable to activate Dual Channel Memor y Technology with only one or three
memory module installed.

3. It is not allowed to install a DDR, DDR2 or DDR3 memory module into a DDR4
slot; otherwise, this motherboard and DIMM may be damaged.

Dual Channel Memory Conguration

Priority DDR4_ A1 DDR4_A2 DDR4_B1 DDR4_B2

1 Populated Populated
2 Populated Populated Populated Populated

e DIMM only ts in one correct orientation. It will cause permanent damage to
the mothe rboard and the DIMM if you force the DIMM into the slot at incor rect
orientation.

English

18

Z390 Taichi Ultimate

1

2

3

English

19

2.4 Expansion Slots (PCI Express Slots)

ere are 5 PCI Express slots on the motherboard.

Before installing an ex pansion card, please make sure that the power supply is
switched o or the power cord is unplugged. Plea se read the documentation of the
expan sion card and make necessary hardware settings for the card before you start
the installation.

PCIe slots:

PCIE1 (PCIe 3.0 x1 slot) is used for PCI Express x1 lane width cards.
PCIE2 (PCIe 3.0 x16 slot) is used for PCI Express x16 lane width graphics cards.
PCIE3 (PCIe 3.0 x1 slot) is used for PCI Express x1 lane width cards.
PCIE4 (PCIe 3.0 x16 slot) is used for PCI Express x8 lane width graphics cards.

PCIE5 (PCIe 3.0 x16 slot) is used for PCI Express x4 lane width graphics cards.

PCIe Slot Congurations

PCIE2 PCIE4 PCIE5

Single Graphics Card x16 N/A N/A

Two Graphics Cards in

CrossFireXTM or SLITM

Mode

x8 x8 N/A

English

20

ree Graphics Cards in

3-Way CrossFireXTM Mode

For a better ther mal environment, please connect a chassi s fan to the motherboard’s
chassis fan connector (CHA_ FAN1~6/WP) when u sing multiple graphics cards.

x8 x4 x4

Z390 Taichi Ultimate

2.5 Jumpers Setup

e illustration shows how jumpers are setup. When the jumper cap is placed on
the pins, the jumper is “Short”. If no jumper cap is placed on the pins, the jumper is
“Open”.

Clear CMOS Jumper
(CLRMOS1)
(see p.1, No. 23)

CLRMOS1 allows you to clear the data in CMOS. e data in CMOS includes
system setup information such as system password, date, time, and system setup
parameters. To clear and reset the system parameters to default setup, please turn
o the computer and unplug the power cord, then use a jumper cap to short the
pins on CLRMOS1 for 3 seconds. Please remember to remove the jumper cap aer
clearing the CMOS. If you need to clear the CMOS when you just nish updating
the BIOS, you must boot up the system rst, and then shut it down before you do
the clear-CMOS action.

e Clear CMOS Button has the same function as the Clear CMOS jumper.

2-pin Jumper

Short: Clear CMOS
Open: Default

21

English

2.6 Onboard Headers and Connectors

Onboard headers and connectors are NOT jumpers. Do NOT place jumper caps over
these headers and connectors. Placing jumper caps over the headers and connectors
will cause permanent damage to the motherboard.

System Panel Header
(9-pin PANEL1)
(see p.1, No. 21)

PWRBTN (Power Button):

Connec t to the power button on the chassi s front panel. You may congure the way
to turn o your system using the powe r button.

RESET (Reset Button):

Connec t to the reset button on the chassi s front panel. Press the reset button to
restar t the computer if the computer freezes and fails to perform a nor mal restart.

PLED (Syste m Power LED):

Connec t to the power status indicator on the chassis front panel. e LED i s on when
the system is ope rating. e LED keeps blinking when the system i s in S1/S3 sleep
state. e LED is o when the system is in S4 sleep state or powered o (S5).

HDLED (Ha rd Drive Activity LED):

Connec t to the hard drive activity LED on the chassis front panel. e LED is on
when the hard drive i s reading or writing data.

e front panel design may dier by chassis. A front panel module mainly consists
of power button, reset button, power LED, hard drive activity LED, speaker and etc.
When connecting your chassis front panel module to this head er, make sure the wire
assig nments and the pin assig nments are matched correctly.

1

PLE D+

PLE D-

HDL ED-

HDL ED+

PWR BTN #

GND

RES ET#

GND

GND

Connect the power
button, reset button and
system status indicator on
the chassis to this header
according to the pin
assignments below. Note
the positive and negative
pins before connecting
the cables.

English

22

Z390 Taichi Ultimate

PLE D-

Power LED and Speaker
Header
(7-pin SPK_PLED1)
(see p.1, No. 22)

Serial ATA3 Connectors
(SATA3_0_1:
see p.1, No. 13)
(SATA3_2_3:
see p.1, No. 14)
(SATA3_4_5:
see p.1, No. 15)
(SATA3_A1_A2:
see p.1, No. 16)

DUM MY
+5V

1

PLE D+

SATA3_0SATA3_2

SATA3_A1 SATA3_4

SPE AK ER

DUM MY

PLE D+

Please connect the
chassis power LED and
the chassis speaker to this
header.

ese eight SATA3
connectors support SATA
data cables for internal

SATA3_1SATA3_3

storage devices with up to

6.0 Gb/s data transfer rate.
* M2_1, SATA3_0 and
SATA3_1 share lanes. If
either one of them is in
use, the others will be

SATA3_5SATA3_A2

disabled.
* If M2_2 is occupied by
a SATA-type M.2 device,
SATA3_3 will be disabled.
* M2_3, SATA3_4 and
SATA3_5 share lanes. If
either one of them is in
use, the others will be
disabled.

To minimize the boot
time, use Intel® Z390 SATA
ports (SATA3_0) for your
bootable devices.

English

23

USB 2.0 Headers
(9-pin USB_1_2)
(see p.1, No. 24)

(4-pin USB3)
(see p.1, No. 25)

USB _PW R

1

USB _PW R

P-

P+

GND

DUM MY

GND

P+

P-

ere are two USB

2.0 headers on this
motherboard.

English

USB 3.1 Gen1 Headers
(19-pin USB3_5_6)
(see p.1, No. 9)

(19-pin USB3_7_8)
(see p.1, No. 10)

Front Panel Type C USB

3.1 Gen2 Header
(20-pin USB31_TC_2)
(see p.1, No. 12)

Front Panel Audio Header
(9-pin HD_AUDIO1)
(see p.1, No. 32)

Dumm y

IntA _PB_ D+

IntA _PB_ D-

IntA _PB_ SSTX +

IntA _PB_ SSTX -

IntA _PB_ SSRX +

IntA _PB_ SSRX -

IntA _PA_S SRX-

IntA _PA_S SRX+

IntA _PA_S STX-

IntA _PA_S STX+

IntA _PA_D -

IntA _PA_D +

GND

1

MIC 2_L

1

GND

GND

Vbus

Vbus

GND

GND

PRE SEN CE#

MIC _RE T

OUT 2_R

MIC 2_R

IntA _PA_D +

IntA _PA_D -

GND

IntA _PA_S STX+

IntA _PA_S STX-

GND

IntA _PA_S SRX+

IntA _PA_S SRX-

Vbus

VbusVbus

IntA _PB_ SSRX -

IntA _PB_ SSRX +

GND

IntA _PB_ SSTX -

IntA _PB_ SSTX +

GND

IntA _PB_ D-

IntA _PB_ D+

Dumm y

1

OUT _RE T

OUT 2_L

J_S ENS E

ere are two headers on
this motherboard. Each
USB 3.1 Gen1 header can
support two ports.

ere is one Front
Panel Type C USB 3.1
Gen2 Header on this
motherboard. is header
is used for connecting a
USB 3.1 Gen2 module for
additional USB 3.1 Gen2
ports.

is header is for
connecting audio devices
to the front audio panel.

24

Z390 Taichi Ultimate

GND

FAN_V OLTAGE _CO NTRO L

FAN_S PEE D

FAN_S PEE D_CO NTR OL

GND

FAN_V OLTAGE _CO NTRO L

FAN_S PEE D

FAN_S PEE D_CO NTR OL

1. High Denition Audio supports Jack Sensing, but the panel wire on the chassis
must support HDA to function correctly. Please follow the instructions in our
manual and chassis manual to install your system.

2. If you use an AC’97 audio panel, please install it to the front panel audio heade r by
the steps below:
A. Connect Mic_IN (MIC) to MIC2_ L.
B. Conne ct Audio_R (RIN) to OUT2_R and Audio_ L (LIN) to OUT2_ L.
C. Connect Ground (GND) to Ground (GND).
D. MIC_ RET and OUT_RET are for the HD audio panel only. You don’t need to
connect them for the AC’97 audio panel.
E. To activate the front mic, go to the “FrontMic” Tab in the Realtek Control panel
and adju st “Recording Volume”.

Chassis/Water Pump Fan
Connectors
(4-pin CHA_FAN1/WP)
(see p.1, No. 34)
(4-pin CHA_FAN2/WP)
(see p.1, No. 27)
(4-pin CHA_FAN3/WP)
(see p.1, No. 20)
(4-pin CHA_FAN4/WP)
(see p.1, No. 33)
(4-pin CHA_FAN5/WP)
(see p.1, No. 7)

(4-pin CHA_FAN6/WP)
(see p.1, No. 11)

CPU Fan Connector
(4-pin CPU_FAN1)
(see p.1, No. 3)

FAN _SP EED _C ONT ROL

CHA _FA N_S PE ED

FAN _VO LT AGE

GND

is motherboard
provides six 4-Pin water
cooling

chassis

fan
connectors. If you plan to
connect a 3-Pin

chassis
water cooler fan, please
connect it to Pin 1-3.

4
3
2
1

is motherboard pro­vides a 4-Pin CPU fan
(Quiet Fan) connector.
If you plan to connect a
3-Pin CPU fan, please
connect it to Pin 1-3.

English

25

CPU/Water Pump Fan

8 5

Connector
(4-pin CPU_FAN2/WP)
(see p.1, No. 4)

ATX Power Connector
(24-pin ATXPWR1)
(see p.1, No. 8)

FAN _SP EED _C ONT ROL

CHA _FA N_S PE ED

FAN _VO LT AGE

GND

12

1

is motherboard

4
3

provides a 4-Pin water

2
1

cooling CPU fan
connector. If you plan
to connect a 3-Pin CPU
water cooler fan, please
connect it to Pin 1-3.

24

is motherboard
provides a 24-pin ATX
power connector. To use a
20-pin ATX power supply,
please plug it along Pin 1

13

and Pin 13.

English

ATX 12V Power
Connector
(8-pin ATX12V1)
(see p.1, No. 2)

ATX 12V Power
Connector
(4-pin ATX12V2)
(see p.1, No. 1)

TPM Header
(17-pin TPMS1)
(see p.1, No. 26)

4 1

GN D

LAD 0

+3V S B

D

GN

GN D

SER IRQ #

S_P WRDW N #

is motherboard
provides an 8-pin ATX
12V power connector. To
use a 4-pin ATX power
supply, please plug it along
Pin 1 and Pin 5.

Please connect an ATX
12V power supply to this
connector.

*e power supply plug
ts into this connector in
only one orientation.

is connector supports Trusted
Platform Module (TPM) system,

PC ICL K

LAD 3

+3 V

PC IRS T #

FRA M E

1

which can securely store keys,
digital certicates, passwords,

GN D

LAD 1

LAD 2

and data. A TPM system also
helps enhance network security,

SMB _CLK _MA IN

SMB _DAT A_M AIN

protects digital identities, and
ensures platform integrity.

26