ASRock Z77 OC Formula Motherboard

Voltage Regulator

The CPU voltage regulator circuit of the ASRock Z77 OC Formula has 12 phases for the CPU main voltage (Vcc a.k.a. Vcore), two for the CPU VSA voltage (memory controller), and two for the CPU VTT voltage (PCI Express and DMI interfaces). Therefore, it uses a “12+2+2” configuration, which is incorrectly advertised by the manufacturer as “12+4.” The voltage regulator is controlled by a CHiL8328 integrated circuit, using a digital design, which is superior to the hybrid design usually seen on motherboards from ASRock.

Figure 12: Voltage regulator circuit

The ASRock Z77 OC Formula uses three different kinds of capacitors in its voltage regulator circuit. Each kind of capacitor has a different frequency response that better filters the voltage that will be applied on the CPU.

Figure 13: Three kinds of capacitors

Electrolytic capacitors used on the rest of the motherboard are solid, and coils on this motherboard are ferrite-core models, which can provide up to 20% improvement in efficiency.

If you want to learn more about the voltage regulator circuit, please read our tutorial on the subject.

The portrayed motherboard has one EPS12V connector and one ATX12V connector, which can be used at the same time to increase the current capacity that can be pulled by the CPU.

Another highlight is that the heatsink of the voltage regulator circuit supports, out of the box, liquid cooling. See Figure 14.

Figure 14: Support for liquid cooling