PC Enthusiasts love more affordable motherboards that support the latest AMD CPUs, but the obvious snag is that moving down the product stack usually means you miss out on features. With the Gigabyte X870E Aorus Elite WiFi7 we have a solid VRM, support for three Gen 5 M.2 SSDs (and a Gen 4), a decent array of USB ports including 2x USB4, WiFi7 and a price under £300.

Timestamps

00:00 Start
00:43 Pricing?
01:20 How? Accessories
02:40 Stripping the board
04:10 Rear I/O and headers
04:50 WiFi 7
05:17 Vented I/O panel
05:40 Board layout
06:40 Hardware for the testing
07:28 BIOS and Software
08:04 USB 4 performance
08:59 Geekbench 6 multicore
09:13 Cinebench R23 multicore
09:21 AIDA 64 memory bandwidth
09:32 3DMark CPU Profile
09:41 3DMark Time Spy
09:55 Far Cry 6
10:06 Avatar Frontiers of Pandora
10:18 Assassin’s Creed Mirage
10:25 Cyberpunk 2077
10:33 Total War Pharaoh
10:54 Leo’s performance analysis and AI Snatch
11:37 Other features
12:08 VRM details
12:51 Closing thoughts

Features:

• AMD Socket AM5：Supports AMD Ryzen 9000 / 8000 / 7000 Series Processors
• Digital twin 16+2+2 phases VRM solution
• Dual Channel DDR5：4x DIMMs with AMD EXPO Memory Module Support
• WIFI EZ-Plug: Quick and easy design for Wi-Fi antenna installation
• EZ-Latch Plus：PCIe and M.2 slots with Quick Release & Screwless Design
• EZ-Latch Click：M.2 heatsinks with screwless design
• Sensor Panel Link：Onboard video port for hassle-free in-chassis panel setup
• Friendly UI: Multi-Theme, AIO Fan Control, and Q-Flash Auto Scan in BIOS and SW
• Ultra-Fast Storage：4x M.2 slots, including 3x PCIe 5.0 x4
• Efficient Thermal：VRM Thermal Armour Advanced & M.2 Thermal Guard L
• Fast Networking：2.5GbE LAN & Wi-Fi 7 with directional Ultra-high gain antennae
• Extended Connectivity：Dual USB4 Type-C with DP-Alt, HDMI
• Reliable Audio：Realtek ALC1220 HD Audio & Audiophile Grade Capacitors
• Ultra Durable PCIe Armour : The metal back plate of PCIe x16 slot for enhanced durability
• PCIe UD Slot X：PCIe 5.0 x16 slot with 10X strength for graphics card

Specifications:

• Chipset: AMD X870E
• CPU Support: AMD Ryzen 9000/8000/7000 desktop processors.
• VRMs: 16 x60A +2+2 Phases Digital VRM with DrMOS
• RT3678BE controller with doublers
• Memory support:
  • 4 DIMMs, Dual Channel DDR5,
  • Maximum Memory Capacity 256GB
• Expansion slots:
  • 1x PCIe Gen 5.0 x16 slot
  • 1x PCIe Gen 4.0 x4 slot
  • 1x PCIe Gen 3.0 x2 slot
• Storage:
  • 3x M.2 Gen 5.0 x4
  • 1x M.2 Gen 4.0 x4
  • 4x SATA 6Gbps
• USB support:
  • 2x USB4 40Gbps Type-C (Rear)
  • 1x USB 20Gbps Type-C (Front)
  • 2x USB 10Gbps Type-A (Rear)
  • 4x USB 5Gbps Type-A (Rear)
  • 2x USB 5Gbps Type-A (Front)
  • 4x USB 2.0 (Rear)
  • 4x USB 2.0 (Front)
• Graphics output: HDMI 2.1
• Ethernet: Realtek 8125 2.5Gbps LAN
• Wireless: MediaTek MT7925 Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.3
• Audio: Realtek ALC1220 7.1-Channel Audio
• Form Factor: ATX 305mm x 244mm

Test system

• CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 9700X
• Graphics Card: Gigabyte GeForce RTX 4080 Gaming OC 16GB
• Memory: 32 GB G.Skill Trident Z5 Royal Neo DDR5-8000
• Storage: 1TB Crucial T700 PCIe Gen5 NVMe M.2 SSD
• CPU Cooler: Phanteks Glacier One 360D30
• Power Supply: Seasonic Focus ATX3.1 GX-1000 Gold
• Operating System: Windows 11

We found the board for £289.99 from CCL HERE.

Pros:

• Support for four M.2 SSDs, three of them Gen 5.
• Wi-Fi 7 with improved EZ-Plug antennae.
• Good value for money.

Cons:

• PCIe expansion slots below graphics are rather basic.
• The micro buttons are a bit fiddly.

KitGuru Says: Gigabyte X870E Aorus Elite WiFi7 delivers decent performance and a fine array of features.

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