Pros: I did a crazy amount of research before buying an X99 board. I looked at all of the brands, reviews, benchmarks, and forums I could find. Reliable hardware means a lot to me. My last build was Asus, but their quality control on the X99 lineup is suspicious. ASRock has a decent showing all around and after literally dozens of hours of reading (while I saved and amassed the build parts), I settled on the OCF 3.1.

Functionally this board is amazing. Installed Win 7 Pro and everything runs like lightning. Running a SLI Titan X gaming build with a 5960x and got a stable 4.5 OC in just an hour or so of fiddling with the settings. Drivers and BIOS are clean and easy to work with. Temps are very manageable and post and boot times are quick and smooth. ASRock doesn't pile on the needless installers and hardware management software. If you're "driver only" focused like me, this is a great board.

Works without issue with a Soundblaster ZxR setup, which some boards seem to have issues with 3rd party sound.

After the RMA, was able to set the new board up with the BIOS settings I had saved to a usb stick and get back up and running with no issues at all on the first attempt!

Cons: COIL WHINE. Yeah, it's the motherboard. Sound comes from the area under the X99 heat sink. Tried one VGA card at a time, switched out PSUs, tried the components in another system with no problems, borrowed and tried a third VGA card, changed out and rearranged the ram sticks, disconnected the optional things like fan controller from the PSU. No change. Gave up, RMA'd the board. RMA took @2 weeks. Received another board with the EXACT SAME ISSUE. It seems to be a design flaw, not just a bad board. If you have one with Win 7 installed, run the Windows Experience Index test, that's when it was loudest and hardest to miss, even outside the case. During gaming was audible if you listened for it. It's 2016 and this should be a thing of the past. This would be minus one egg if it wasn't bad but it's so loud I'm taking off two.

Otherwise the RAM I got was on the QVL list (Kingston 3000, 32gb) but wouldn't boot at 3000. Runs perfectly fine at XMP of 2666 with lower latency than the 3000 XMP, so it's all good.

Also the Nick Shih preset OC profiles are nonsense. They're okay as a starting point for a more efficient OC, but on their own will run hot. Also one turned off the intel network port, not sure why, but I had to alter the profile with it re-enabled.

Other Thoughts: I did not use the 3.1 card. I tried it but it dropped my 2nd card to x8 bandwidth, which didn't seem worth it.

Manufacturer Response:

Dear Michael,

We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused you.
For the coil whine issue, please unplug the power, clear the CMOS (remove the battery for 5 minutes).
Load the BIOS setting default.
Remove all components, only keep CPU, cooler and PSU to check if it still whine.
Populate the component one by one to verify the caused.

If you have any technical support inquiry, please contact us at http://www.ASRock.com/Support/tsd.asp
We will assist you shortly.

Thank you

ASRock Support
Tech Support Email: http://www.ASRock.com/Support/tsd.asp

Pros: not many, it fits nicely into the case

Cons: locks up with windows 10 even with the newest drivers
when populating all memory slots it won't boot up, when populating all but one slot it works ok
used the Intel Core i7-5960X Haswell-E 8-Core 3.0 GHz in it and it is slower than my machine with a lesser cpu

Other Thoughts: I would never recommend this and would choose a different product, probably a gigabyte product as they seem to be solid

Manufacturer Response:

Dear Randy,

We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused you.
For the freeze issue, please check the CPU is not over heating.
Update the latest BIOS at UEFI/BIOS, Tools, Internet Flash (required internet connection).
Load the BIOS setting default.
For the memory, due to Intel CPU spec definition, please install the first 4 x memory to A1, B1, C1 and D1.
Reseat the CPU and cooler.
Test each memory on A1 slot to verify all memory are working individually.
Populate the memory to slots one by one if all memory are working.

If you have any technical support inquiry, please contact us at http://www.ASRock.com/Support/tsd.asp
We will assist you shortly.

Thank you

ASRock Support
Tech Support Email: http://www.ASRock.com/Support/tsd.asp

Pros: - Well built
- TONS of features
- PCIe lane distribution
- Dual m.2
- USB 3.0 everywhere!
- Looks good

Cons: - Could use a couple more fan headers

Other Thoughts: I've build a few workstations on the X99 WS and its a nice board, but frankly lacks some features for the price. This board is only a few dollars more and blows it away!

Dual on-board USB 3.0 headers PLUS a type-A connector, which I needed inside actually. Granted you can get an adapter that goes in to a typical on-board header and splits to 2 x type As but having it there is awesome.

Its a good looking board. Its much more "gold" than the "yellow" it comes across in the pics.

I love the way ASRock cuts up PCIe lanes on their boards. They give you great support if you're running a 5820K (8x8x4x8, and slot 3, the x4, shares with the on-board m.2 for a PCIe drive). Its like this for the X99 WS, OC formula and Fatal1ty pro. NO other mobo is giving you 4 capable PCIe connections with a 5820K like this.

I'm actually not OC'ing on this board but it was certainly built for it. I suggest reading elsewhere on why as there are many features here geared toward it (additional CPU power connector, LN2 capabilities, etc).

The dual NICs ARE teamable. Wasn't sure before getting it but Intel's ANS did pick up the Qualcomm and does allow it to be teamed.

I'm a big fan of PCIe on/off switches for t-shooting, especially when using a RAID card. Can help the SLI/Crossfire guys out too for sure.

ASRock's BIOS is very nice. No complaints. They're up to v2.0 for this board (as of 6/15) where their other models are at 1.x.

The back only has 2 x USB2.0 connectors, then 6 x 3.0. This board was clearly built around 3.0 but I wouldn't mind having 2 more 2.0s personally.

All in all, if I were to build myself a rig on X99, this would probably be the board I'd go with (or the Pro). The pro is basically the same board so if you dig the red vs the gold, its an easy call.

Pros: After striking out with a DOA ASRock X-99 WS-E and then an ASUS X99-E WS that only booted half the time, my smile was huge when, using the same 32GB G.Skill 2133 RAM, i7-5960X, Intel 750 PCIe SSD, etc., the ASRock OC Formula POSTed first try, then loaded Win 8.1 x64 from USB stick in less than 4 min. A ProTools 12 build, using the ASRock TB2 AIC.

Cons: None.

Other Thoughts: Had to load the Intel 750 drivers from USB stick, even though NVMe support is supposed to be native in Win 8.1 x64. Disable traditional BIOS to make sure Win install medium only sees UEFI, otherwise Win will throw an error and balk the install.

Pros: This is a beautiful board. The color is unique which is what i was looking for, unfortunatly it is more goldish in certain light (which for me is bad i hate gold i think its tacky) but it really looks stunning. The board itself is chalk full of features, it has 10 tempature sensors built in which can also be used to control the fans. the heat sink styling is slightly dated, chunks of colored aluminum is slightly dated and we see gigabyte/asus using newer and more modern styling but i just wasnt thrilled with any of their boards and again the yellow really caught my eyes. The bios is great and again is packed with many useful features, is very clear and easy to use, and has all the extras a higher end board should have. it has the ultra m.2 slot (a big reason i turned down the UD gigabyte boards). again there are many great things about the board, all covered in reviews on anatech etc. But for the price this is a fantastic looking/performing board!

Cons: When i was installing the RAM (G.Skill 3000 kit) the second the Ram started to make contact with the slot it made this HORRIBLE crunching sound. I had it all lined up, i was inserting it perfectly perpecdicular to the slots, ans even the slightest pressure caused it to make this sound that resembled sand and glass crunching. There is no visible damage, and everything works fine but i will never have peace of mind about the sound it made and i have no idea why it sounded like that.
If anyone reads this and thinks i should RMA it despite it working flawlessly let me know lol. I cannot for he life of me figure out what caused it.

ALSO a ton of Dr.Debug codes come up and flash by quickly whenever i turn the PC on, none of them stay up and again, everything works fine so i didnt think much of it. I assume they are just negligible? otherwise they would stay on screen?

Other Thoughts: This board is fantastic, has all the bells and whistles for a low price and OC my 5930k and ram without a hitch. Just wish it didnt sound like i was grinding glass bits while i was installing the RAM.

Pros: After running the board for several months I have to say this is one stable motherboard. Good job ASRock! I use photoshop and maya and a few other pain in the rear programs, that require a lot from a computer. I am happy to say my ASRock X99 OC Formula and other components I have choosen can handle anything I can throw at it..

Cons: none

Other Thoughts: ADATA XPG Z1 32GB (4 x 8GB) 288-Pin DDR4 SDRAM DDR4 2800
Intel Core i7-5930K Haswell-E 6-Core
Intel 750 Series
Crucial MX200 CT500MX200SSD4 M.2
be quiet! Dark Power Pro 11 1000W
HP 1-port Thunderbolt Adapter with DisplayPort Input
ASUS POSEIDON-GTX980

Pros: - 8 Memory Slots
- 2 M.2 Slots
- Super easy to overclock and tweak w/ multi-BIOS modes
- On/Off switches on the board
- 6 USB 3.0's on board (and a header for more!)

Cons: - Disappointing support from ASRock
- Motherboard software tries to "sneak" Google Chrome and Toolbar on the system

Other Thoughts: First x99 purchased was DOA, and support from ASRock was nearly non-existent, with them asking me to check everything that I already clearly provided that I had, but never providing any idea or answer why the board wouldn't turn on. NewEgg was awesome to swap it out without issue.

Second board arrived and worked like a champ! Burn-in tests show this board is rock solid. Incredibly happy with this board.

Burn in tests show with CPU blazing, it's running at a cool 20°C -- even the motherboard is only showing 26°C!

Only minor complaint is the area for the CPU mount. If, you're like me, and have loaded down all 8-bays full of memory, trying to add a larger liquid cooler and get it mounted around the heatsinks/memory can be difficult. The cooler that was ultimately used had a larger height heatsink, making this process much easier.

***********************
System Specs:

- Intel Core i7-5820K Haswell-E 6-Core 3.3GHz
- DEEPCOOL Gamer Storm CAPTAIN 240 CPU Liquid Cooler
- G.SKILL Ripjaws 4 32GB (8 x 4GB) DDR4 3000 (PC4-24000)
- EVGA GeForce GTX 960
- SAMSUNG 850 EVO MZ-N5E250BW M.2 250GB (Primary)
- SAMSUNG 850 EVO MZ-75E500B/AM 2.5" 500GB SSD (Secondary)
- CORSAIR AX1500i 1500W Titanium Power Supply

Manufacturer Response:

Dear Valued ASRock Customer

Thank you for your purchase and review. We always do our best to Support customers. Unfortunately, it does not meet your needs.
However, we do reply both email and phone promptly except on week-end and holidays.
If you have any technical issues or warranty questions please contact us at 909-590-8308 or http://www.ASRock.com/Support/tsd.asp
We will assist you shortly.

Thank you

ASRock SUPPORT
Tech Support Email: http://www.ASRock.com/Support/tsd.asp

Pros: This is a great board with mega features. This is my second ASRock board and it is wonderful. One of the best features, ASRock didn't drink the SATA Express Kool-aid. Almost every board I looked at for the past 6 months have SATA Express ports. Where are the SATA Express drives? NON EXISTENT! They did build in two M2 ports. One is SATA and the other is PCIe. Supports 4-way SLI and 3-way Crossfire. Has 2 USB 3.0 headers for 4 front ports.

Cons: First flaw, the #1 PCIe slot is just a bit to close to the CPU. I installed a Thermaltake Nic F4 cooler, but not the fans until it was mounted. I was going to install the fans last, but had to remove the top GPU because it blocked the fan springs for the cooler. In the UEFI, it has a "boot manager". DON'T USE IT. The boot manager was the only first boot issue I had. It would ask what device I wanted to boot from, I would select it, and black screen. I once waited 15 minutes and still only a black screen. Disabled the boot manager, selected the device manually and it booted right up. Another issue and this is one with 90% of the boards out there. It only comes with the bridges for SLI. Why not Crossfire? These minor flaws would only take down half an egg, but you can't do half eggs.

Other Thoughts: ******************************************************
System Specs
i7 5930K
32GB ADATA 2800 memory
2X Sapphire Toxic R9 270 GPU's
Kingston Hyper X 480GB SSD
2X 4TB in RAID 1
2X 1.5 TB not in raid
2X LG Blu-ray burners
Antec 1100 Illusion Super mid tower
Rosewill Lightening 1000watt PSU

Pros: Top quality. Had it up and running since 4/2/2015. This is my second build with a AsRock OC Foormula. The other being a Z77AsRock OC Foormula. Which atfer 3 years of almost non stop Cad Designing. Is now being used by a designer I hired. He said it the best compter he ever designed with! I am a Fire Sprinkler Designer for Industrial and Commercial Buildings. The 3D Autosprink Design program I use will bring most top of the line computer to their knees. I work 12 to 16 hour a day almost everyday. Have three 27'' monitors. I had Autocad , PDF , and online all going at the same time, not miss a beat. Turned on all cores that are in sleep mode in windows 7. Love this setup!

Cons: None so far and do not think there will be!

Other Thoughts: Go with the

Intel Core i7-5930K Haswell-E 6-Core 3.5GHz LGA 2011-v3 140W Desktop Processor

Samsung SM951 256GB AHCI MZHPV256HDGL-00000 M.2 80mm PCIe 3.0 x4 SSD - OEM
Sold by: RamCity (amazom)

NZXT Kraken X60 RL-KRX60-01 Ultra Performance Water/Liquid CPU Cooler 280MM

G.SKILL Ripjaws 4 series 16GB (4 x 4GB) 288-Pin DDR4 SDRAM DDR4 2800 (PC4-22400) Desktop Memory Model F4-2800C16Q-16GRK

GIGABYTE GV-N760OC-4GD REV2.0 GeForce GTX 760 4GB 256-Bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 ATX Gaming Graphics Card

CORSAIR HX Series HX750 750W ATX12V 2.3 / EPS12V 2.91 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS GOLD Certified Modular

NZXT Phantom 630 Windowed Edition Matte Black Steel / Plastic ATX Full Tower Computer Case

Pros: I have had this motherboard since last year when I decided to upgrade and went with the Core i7-5930K (6-Core). If you plan on running SLI I would go nothing less than 6 core and go with the X99 platform. The performance I have seen with x16 SLI is much more than I saw with only 8x on previous platforms (which did surprise me a little bit).

I have typically gone with ASUS, but I decided to go with ASRock for the first time ever and I must admit I may never go back! The features and stability of this board is amazing (especially for the price). The color is more of a gold instead of yellow and actually looks really nice if you enjoy the visibility factor of a computer. I managed to get 4.7Ghz on my 5930K with this motherboard on a stand alone water cooler for the CPU and could probably go higher if I really decided to push it.

You will not be disappointed with purchasing this board!

Cons: No cons, amazing price for X99 and has all the features most gamers and over clockers would want!

Other Thoughts: System Specs:
============================================
- 2x GeForce GTX 770 SLI 16X 4GB (Currently @ 1240MHz Core / 7112MHz Memory)
- Intel Core i7-5930K Haswell-E 6-Core LGA 2011-v3 @ 4.7Ghz (Water Cooled)
- ASRock X99 OC Formula LGA 2011-v3 (p1.40 BIOS)
- QUAD Channel G.SKILL Ripjaws 4 series 16GB (4 x 4GB) 288-Pin DDR4 2800 (14-14-14-30 @ 1T)
- Sound Blaster Sound Core 3D
- Samsung SSD 840 EVO Series 500GB SSD (Primary Drive)
- Western Digital Black Edition 7200RPM 4TB (Archive Drive)