Performance: Storage and Network
First, we will check how the most interesting devices work, so NVMe SSD.
Above, there are results from PCMark 10 storage tests made on Patriot Viper VPR 1TB RGB SSD, and below the same drive in CrystalDiskMark. There are some fantastic results in random operations.
Maximum bandwidth is, sadly, the same as in previous Intel chipsets, and SuperO can’t really improve that. As fas as single drive surpassed our expectations, then RAID 0 result (below) is a bit disappointing because of chipset limitations. The result was made on two Samsung 970 EVO 250GB SSD, so it’s still good as write bandwidth is doubled.
SATA SSD results are as high as they should be. This is only for confirmation as the SATA controller is the same without changes for a couple of years.
USB 3.2 is performing well. We were able to achieve over 1GB/s on a drive, which is specified for a bit less. Pretty nice bandwidth.
Now maybe a couple of words about the network performance as there was various news about problems with Intel NIC on the new motherboards. SuperO used two LAN NICs but not those that were confirmed to cause issues. The first is from Intel, and it’s an i219-v chip (not the faulty i225), and the second is 10Gb from Aquantia. Below are our results.
Above is the Aquantia LAN on the 1Gb connection. The current test setup doesn’t have any higher bandwidth, but we are working to provide a higher network in future reviews. On the other hand, we can directly compare it to the 1Gb Intel NIC (below).
As we can see, Aquantia is a bit faster on the same server connection.
During WiFi tests, the router was located a floor above the test rig. I know that if we set it closer, then the bandwidth would be better, but our results are quite interesting. Even without installed antennas, we could see quite good connection quality. If we used antennas, then it was constantly at maximum. At the same time, the latency was really low, which gives an excellent base for gaming on the WiFi connection.
Our results are showing that we can count on everything between results that are matching last chipset generation to some improvements, which may affect gaming or more demanding work. For sure, improvements bring the 10-core CPU support, which helps a lot in rendering. The 10900K CPU also helps in games that love high CPU frequency as there is nothing better on the gaming market than this CPU. Either way, the SuperO C9Z490-PGW delivers a well-performing base for daily gaming challenges.
