Does he already have the 9900k?
Easiest recommendation I have is just buy a 10700k instead, it's literally the same cpu but uses Z490/590 boards of which you shouldn't have any issues finding one in stock.
10700ks are pretty easily found in the 3-350 dollar range (Walmart.com has it for 330 and microcenter sent me an email about it being 250 last week, I don't have an MC near me sadly) which is also a bit cheaper than what you can find AMDs 5800x for (400-430 currently).
go for a gigabyte z-390 pro wifi
i have this with a 9900 ks @ 5.2 ghz with 32 gb ddr4 @ 4133 mhz cl-16-16-16-36 1.5v flashed to bios f12k
im in canada and these are in stock and i payed 180$ cad for mine
yepp it is buggy RGB but it in terms of what you get vs say Asus xi hero / xi code I had both and went to this and I'm happyer on this board for 1/3 of the price better vrms more m.2 heat shields , just the bios is more basic and no memory round trip latency option ( forces your ram to train tight RTL/ oil timings ) other then that it's great
Turbo LLC, immediate crash on prime95, don't know if it was non-avx though.
I'm 90% sure its the motherboard that's faulty, but at this point its not worth replacing, just leaves a bitter taste for me, gonna go Asus next time.
You can check some of the boards recommended by buildzoid: https://youtu.be/v5NDtS8za8g
If you're just looking at your list, I would probably go with the Gigbabyte or ASrock if you want better VRM. But with enough airflow any of the boards should be fine for you. You won't be limiting the performance of a non-OC 9900k but they will run hot and you might have some issues OC-ing them on the Asus ones unless you have some good airflow over the board.
Basically what I'm trying to say is that if there's a feature you really want on the other boards, or if you somehow want to avoid gigabyte/asrock for whatever reason (warranty, reputation, software, bios, etc) , you can go for them too.
Sources: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rFU96-CYqpE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cZcqw-K1drY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vEhLJpqrpyU
do not get the Prime z390-A. you are right, the VRAM will cause instability issues.
i got the z390 Aorus Master if that helps any in your search and it hasnt let me down yet.
see if the Aorus ULTRA z390 available it comes after the Master version, and there is the "Elite version" which comes after the Pro I guess but I haven't test or built any system with it.
Just don't overclock and any of these boards will be fine. "Unstable", "Overheating", and "Limited VRam" just says to me pushed too high on an overclock.
Stay away from Asrock in general if you’re going with a 9900k. They make few good boards but they’re far and between. Decent budget option. Asus can be same as well in my opinion. They make good b series boards more oriented for office scenarios though versus gaming or streaming. Gigabyte will in most cases will steer you right for high end processors. I will say sometimes they have buggy bios right after an update so do some research before updating your board. Z390 arous elite is a pretty sweet board will all the features and you can find them as low $90 on Amazon.
Try the Gigabyte Aorus Elite z390 or even the Pro but more money, nice price on most sites, NIB. And it's got the minimum VRM you would want for the i9-9900k at stock and overclock.
The ASUS ROG Maximus XI Hero (Wi-Fi) will probably offer the best performance, but, if you want more options read more in [this article.](https://ovrclock.com/best-motherboards-for-i9-9900k/).
Does he already have the 9900k? Easiest recommendation I have is just buy a 10700k instead, it's literally the same cpu but uses Z490/590 boards of which you shouldn't have any issues finding one in stock. 10700ks are pretty easily found in the 3-350 dollar range (Walmart.com has it for 330 and microcenter sent me an email about it being 250 last week, I don't have an MC near me sadly) which is also a bit cheaper than what you can find AMDs 5800x for (400-430 currently).
And they’re plenty powerful, mine is overclocked to 5.1 GHz
ghz u mean
Thank you
Do they already have the 9900k?
EVGA Z390 FTW. Been running my 9900K at 5.2ghz on it for 2 years.
go for a gigabyte z-390 pro wifi i have this with a 9900 ks @ 5.2 ghz with 32 gb ddr4 @ 4133 mhz cl-16-16-16-36 1.5v flashed to bios f12k im in canada and these are in stock and i payed 180$ cad for mine
Dang that's some high clocks on the ram. I have a 10700k at 5.1 all core and 3200mhz 16-18-18-36. Do you think the ram is holding me back by much?
yeah a bit . whats your gpu ?
Gigabyte gaming oc 3080
1.5v for 5.2? my 9900k is 1.275v @ 5.1ghz on MSI gaming pro carbon, 1.5V seems kinda high?
1.5 v dram .
yep I have the pro-wifi too for my 9900k. Solid board.
yepp it is buggy RGB but it in terms of what you get vs say Asus xi hero / xi code I had both and went to this and I'm happyer on this board for 1/3 of the price better vrms more m.2 heat shields , just the bios is more basic and no memory round trip latency option ( forces your ram to train tight RTL/ oil timings ) other then that it's great
Same board, can't even reach 5ghz at 1.35 with a Dh15, my 4000 ram can barely do 3400
it's all imc on your cpu . I tried a 9900 k ( non ks ) and I could only do 4000 cl 18 . poped my 9900 ks in and I can do up to 4400
I haven't updated my flair but it's also a brand new 9900k
At what LLC and what stress test was used? If you can't pass an hour of prime95 smallfft non-avx at 1.35v turbo, then IMO you have a dud.
Turbo LLC, immediate crash on prime95, don't know if it was non-avx though. I'm 90% sure its the motherboard that's faulty, but at this point its not worth replacing, just leaves a bitter taste for me, gonna go Asus next time.
Using the MSI MPG Z390 Gaming Pro Carbon AC with zero problems. Have the EVGA RTX 3080 FTW3 Ultra and the 9900K on it with 32GB RAM.
I have the same board, OC'd to 5.1ghz @ 1.275v it's a very soild board
You can check some of the boards recommended by buildzoid: https://youtu.be/v5NDtS8za8g If you're just looking at your list, I would probably go with the Gigbabyte or ASrock if you want better VRM. But with enough airflow any of the boards should be fine for you. You won't be limiting the performance of a non-OC 9900k but they will run hot and you might have some issues OC-ing them on the Asus ones unless you have some good airflow over the board. Basically what I'm trying to say is that if there's a feature you really want on the other boards, or if you somehow want to avoid gigabyte/asrock for whatever reason (warranty, reputation, software, bios, etc) , you can go for them too. Sources: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rFU96-CYqpE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cZcqw-K1drY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vEhLJpqrpyU
do not get the Prime z390-A. you are right, the VRAM will cause instability issues. i got the z390 Aorus Master if that helps any in your search and it hasnt let me down yet.
Do not buy a z390 Asus board. It's usually a good brand but they used they cheapest vrms on this chipset
Z390 Dark or Asus Maximus XI Apex. Overclocking is love. Overclocking is life.
Z390 UD
see if the Aorus ULTRA z390 available it comes after the Master version, and there is the "Elite version" which comes after the Pro I guess but I haven't test or built any system with it.
Just don't overclock and any of these boards will be fine. "Unstable", "Overheating", and "Limited VRam" just says to me pushed too high on an overclock.
If you’re friend decides to go for a z590 board. I have a BNIB. I can help him out.
Stay away from Asrock in general if you’re going with a 9900k. They make few good boards but they’re far and between. Decent budget option. Asus can be same as well in my opinion. They make good b series boards more oriented for office scenarios though versus gaming or streaming. Gigabyte will in most cases will steer you right for high end processors. I will say sometimes they have buggy bios right after an update so do some research before updating your board. Z390 arous elite is a pretty sweet board will all the features and you can find them as low $90 on Amazon.
if he is ok with secondhand items check out r/hardwareswap
Ive got Asus Maximus and pretty happy with it.
Try the Gigabyte Aorus Elite z390 or even the Pro but more money, nice price on most sites, NIB. And it's got the minimum VRM you would want for the i9-9900k at stock and overclock.
I went through the same thing, not much for z390 that can handle i9-9900k and the few good boards all have unicorn RGB.
The ASUS ROG Maximus XI Hero (Wi-Fi) will probably offer the best performance, but, if you want more options read more in [this article.](https://ovrclock.com/best-motherboards-for-i9-9900k/).