Finding ROG Maximus Z790 Apex Encore at a fair cost is tough.
Finding ROG Maximus Z790 Apex Encore at a fair cost is tough.
This particular board remains difficult to locate at a fair cost from reputable sources. On Newegg it appears priced at $1365, but the seller isn’t affiliated with Newegg, which raises concerns. Amazon doesn’t carry it, and Ebay offers similar listings around $700-750, though quality varies. Prices have stayed between $800 and $1000 recently. It seems uncertain whether prices will drop or if you’ll need to wait for a better offer. There might be alternative options available that could work better.
I suggest against this approach for several reasons. First, most applications won’t utilize the RAM effectively at those speeds. Second, even in rare cases where there’s a benefit, it’ll likely offer less than a 1% improvement. Third, if you were to swap out your CPU and board, a genuine upgrade would be better—consider a Ryzen 9800X3D or 9950X depending on your needs.
The board line has ended. Originally limited in quantity, now only older stock or used units remain, making prices tricky to navigate. Why are you pursuing this path? Purchasing a 14900KS today doesn't make sense. With unlimited funds, aim for the 285k memory overclock if you wish, or opt for the 9800X3D for ultimate gaming performance—both can support high memory speeds like an X870E Apex. However, these are last-generation models that cost a lot and offer little real benefit compared to modern alternatives.
I understand your perspective, but my workloads differ from most people's. This discussion isn't about whether I should purchase it. I enjoy gaming and using apps where input speed and response time are more important than high frame rates. The 14900KS offers better CPU performance with a monolithic core compared to the 9800X3D, making it ideal for my needs until another option emerges. Performance on AMD systems tends to drop significantly during heavy I/O operations in games, as shown online.
Looking at this from a playful angle, aiming for the 265k/285k range makes sense since those chips should comfortably reach above 10,000 in gear 4 or around 9,000 in gear 2. I guess you're not really into overclocking, right? Still good luck with DDR5—those processors can’t just dump a lot of VCCSA and clock it without specific games or apps. AMD’s monolithic APUs like the 8600G and B650M HDV are way more affordable than an Apex Encore while still hitting that 10,000 mark. Just keep in mind these APUs can vary a lot by model, so you might need to sort through different configurations for stability above 9,000.
I mainly play a variety of esports, classic titles, and precise platformers at 1080p with ultra high refresh rates. I’ll likely upgrade to an ASUS monitor at 540Hz soon, making it even more important. For newer visual-centric games, it doesn’t matter much since I run them in 4K with capped frames at 60 or 120/144, which modern CPUs can handle.
It seems the older titles are likely to perform well with the 8600G when tuned correctly, though clock accuracy may vary. Intel processors can reach around 6GHz, so turning them off and disabling the ECOs and HTC clocks should help. For truly vintage games, consider using a 14700K with the ECOs and HTC clocks disabled to hit close to 6GHz, or opt for an ITCX board if available.