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Introduction
Our review today is evaluating a brand new motherboard release from GIGABYTE. The X870E AORUS ELITE X3D is considered one of five boards that comprise a brand new “X3D” offering. The GIGABYTE X870E AORUS ELITE X3D uses the AMD AM5 X870E platform and has added a bit more connectivity, upgraded the thermals and voltage regulation, added a backplate, and, within the BIOS software, introduces X3D Turbo Mode 2.0. The UEFI/BIOS has also been reworked to make it more user-friendly and simplified.
This release brings attention to AI-centric enhancements to each performance-driven desktop tasks and gaming via the brand new X3D Turbo Mode 2.0. This software looks to leverage the performance of the newest AMD 9000 series X3D class of processors, squeezing much more performance out of the very fashionable gaming-centric CPUs.
Also in the brand new lineup are the X870E AORUS MASTER X3D ICE, X870E AORUS PRO X3D ICE, X870E AORUS ELITE X3D ICE, and X870 AORUS ELITE X3D ICE. As you would possibly expect the “ICE” moniker indicates the boards are primarily white in color. Our review board is the one all black version on this release. After all, the boards will vary in price based on options and accessories, with the “MASTER” in the highest slot.
GIGABYTE has placed emphasis on the thermal construct of this motherboard with the inclusion of a big backplate, direct heatpipe VRM heatsinks, and thick brushed aluminum M.2 heatsinks. As well as could be very complete connectivity back and front, a front-mounted HDMI port, and a digital debug readout. The extra emphasis, as we stated above, is a newly reworked UEFI/BIOS menu and the namesake “X3D Turbo Mode 2.0” software.
We are going to discuss a bit in regards to the recent desktop software and UEFI/BIOS management, after which we’re going to point out you a number of graphs as we examine the performance of the X3D Turbo Mode 2 in each synthetic and gaming benchmarks. We’re looking forward to putting the claims of increased performance to the test. This GIGABYTE X870E AORUS ELITE X3D retails for $379, and the warranty is 3 years.
GIGABYTE X870E AORUS ELITE X3D AMD AM5 ATX Motherboard
Highlights of the GIGABYTE X870E AORUS ELITE X3D Motherboard
Tips on how to Enable X3D Turbo Mode 2
Above you see the slides which show find out how to enable the UEFI/BIOS feature that’s the namesake of this motherboard. GIGABYTE has three BIOS options to pick from: “Standard or default”, “Maximum Performance”, and “Extreme Gaming”. GIGABYTE has a downloadable software that lets you enable these selections from the desktop in the event you wish, relatively than going into the BIOS. The software is known as “On-Fly X3D” and is downloaded from the utilities section within the support menu for the motherboard. We are going to fully discuss this software and BIOS function as we undergo the review.
First things first, irrespective of the way you enable the X3D Turbo Mode 2, the board would require a restart, so “on-the-fly” is a bit misleading. Secondly, please be reminded that “X3D Turbo Mode 2” will only function at this current time with AMD 9000 series X3D processors, ie, 9950X3D, 9900X3D, and 9800X3D. Gigabyte has touted the X3D Turbo Mode 2 to extend desktop performance by 10-14% and gaming performance by as much as 25% under certain conditions.
Packaging and Contents
We received this motherboard directly from GIGABYTE; it’s a full retail version. The very first thing you notice if you remove this box from the shipping packaging is the burden. This board is heavy. The cardboard panels did a pleasant job of protecting the board. GIGABYTE adds one extra inner topless box to the combo for extra protection. The board was wrapped in the same old thick anti-static bag. At the underside of the box, under yet one more layer of cardboard, are a number of accessories. There isn’t much included here: two manuals, two SATA cables, two packs of rubber M.2 mounts, the WiFi antenna, and a fast mount front panel connector.
