Intel’s next desktop chipsets are starting to look like hotter, leaner plumbing for Nova Lake motherboards.
LC Leaks has found fresh details for Intel’s upcoming Z990 and Z970 chipsets, which are expected to power next-generation LGA 1954 motherboards. The parts are still several months from launch, but early boards have already been seen at Computex 2026. Motherboard makers are expected to have designs ready before Nova Lake desktop chips formally turn up.
The latest leak claims Z990 is smaller than Z890, despite carrying more chipset-side capability. LC Tech Leaks shared the first pictures of the Z990 chipset, which looks broadly similar to Z890 at a glance.
Leaker Jaykihn chipped in with package and die measurements. Z990 is said to use a 25mm by 24mm package, giving it a 600mm² footprint. The die reportedly measures 11.15mm by 6.5mm, or 72.5mm². By comparison, Z890 uses a 28mm by 23.5mm package, or 658mm², with a die measuring 11.15mm by 8.33mm, or 93mm².
That makes Z990’s package 8.8 per cent smaller and its die 22 per cent smaller than Z890. The Z970 chipset is expected to keep the same package and die as Z990, but with some functions switched off.
The reason seems to be a shift in priorities. Z990 carries more PCIe Gen5 I/O than Z890, while cutting back Gen4 lanes for M.2 slots. That explains why several Computex boards appeared with full Gen5 M.2 and PCIe slot layouts. Gen4 is not gone from Z990, but Chipzilla is clearly aiming the posh end of the stack at Gen5 everything.
The new chipsets are expected to draw more power. Z970 is said to have a 6.4W base power rating, while Z990 rises to 7.9W. Z890 sits at 6W, so the base jump is not enormous. However, Jaykihn claims Z990 can reach 14W when all Gen5 capabilities are fully used.
That is more than twice Z890’s base power, which should make motherboard heatsink designers perk up a bit. In normal systems, most users will run one graphics card and a couple of M.2 drives rather than hammering every lane.
The thermal threshold is reportedly rising to 113°C for both Z990 and Z970, compared with 108°C on Z890. Board makers apparently reckon the chipsets will not need active cooling, which is handy for anyone who remembers tiny chipset fans whining like angry insects.
The I/O changes are the more interesting bit. Z990 is expected to move DMI to Gen5x4, while Z970 moves to Gen5x2. That replaces Z890’s Gen4x8 link and should provide similar bandwidth between the CPU and platform controller hub, just with a leaner setup.
For M.2, Z890 offered three Gen4x4 lanes from the chipset. The leak claims this drops to a single Gen4x4 link on Z970, while Z990 gets Gen5x4. USB 3 Gen2x2 support apparently stays the same. USB 2.0 support is said to be removed from the 900-series chipsets, which will annoy the sort of legacy peripheral that refuses to die.
An updated CNVi setup is expected through an add-on CRF card supported by the new chipsets.
Z990 is tipped to offer 12 Gen5 lanes and will be the choice for higher-end Nova Lake desktop chips with overclocking support. Some boards are expected to use triple 8-pin power connectors.
Thunderbolt 5 is expected to play a larger role, with Intel’s 900-series among the first desktop platforms to support the newer I/O standard.
According to Jaykihn, Z990 and W980 will offer 48 total PCIe lanes, while Q970 gets 44. Z970 and B960 will land at 34 lanes. Z990, W980 and Q970 are listed with four DMI Gen5 lanes. Z970 and B960 get two.
PCH PCIe 5.0 lanes are listed as 12 for Z990 and W980, eight for Q970, and none for Z970 or B960. PCH PCIe 4.0 lanes are listed as 12 on Z990, W980 and Q970, rising to 14 on Z970 and B960.
SATA 3.0 support is eight lanes on Z990, W980 and Q970, falling to four on Z970 and B960. USB 3.2 20G ports are listed as five on Z990 and W980, four on Q970 and two on Z970 and B960. Z990 is the only listed chipset with both IA overclocking and BCLK overclocking. Z970 gets IA overclocking but no BCLK overclocking, while B960 keeps memory overclocking only.
W980 is the workstation oddity, with ECC support and memory overclocking, but no IA or BCLK overclocking. Z990, Z970 and B960 skip ECC. All five chipsets are listed as supporting four displays.
The current expectation is that Intel 900-series motherboards will appear at CES 2027 alongside the first Nova Lake-S desktop CPU details. A formal launch would follow a few weeks later, assuming Chipzilla’s roadmap behaves itself.
