Gigabyte x399 aorus xtreme review in Spanish (full analysis)

The AMD Ryzen Threadripper 2990WX and Threadripper 2920WX processors present high demands on socket power due to their high core count. To keep up with these chips, major motherboard manufacturers have announced some new motherboards designed for WX series chips. Gigabyte X399 Aorus Xtreme is one of these models, with an excellently cooled VRM and the best features.

We thank Gigabyte for the trust placed in lending us the product for analysis.

Gigabte X399 Aorus Extreme technical characteristics

Unboxing and design

Gigabte X399 Aorus Extreme is the company's new flagship motherboard for AMD's most powerful processors. The motherboard comes in a luxury presentation with a premium cardboard box and excellent full color printing.

Once we open the box we find the motherboard inside an antistatic bag to prevent damage during transport. Beneath it is a second apartment with all accessories included.

Gigabte X399 Aorus Extreme is a great motherboard with an E-ATX form factor, thanks to which it offers a large amount of space to place a multitude of elements. To get enough power for the second-generation Threadripper CPUs, Gigabyte uses an unusual PowIRStage rectifier, the IR3578, as the main element for the 10-phase VRM. To power the VRM, a 24-pin ATX connector and two 6 + 2-pin EPS connectors have been placed.

In this particular case, the IR3578 finishes off the assembly with an exposed metal cover to improve cooling. Gigabyte engineers have made good use of the exposed metal cap by placing a heatpipe directly over the CPU's VRM. That heat source transfers thermal energy to a high-density aluminum fin radiator.

This time, Gigabyte has placed the fins of the heatsink in a dark nickel or a similar material that results in a beautiful shine. Gigabyte also notes that it uses premium thermal pads with a capacity of 5 W / mK of conductance between the board's power circuits and the previous heat sink. Gigabyte has placed not one, but two 30mm fans under the heatsink cover. These fans activate only when the on-board VRM gets hot enough to demand it.

If we flip the motherboard we see a full coverage back plate. This plate is not only to improve the appearance and structural reinforcement. You are done with what Gigabyte calls a nano-carbon coating, which aims to improve thermal radiation from its surface. Gigabyte uses another heating pad between the board and the components on the back of the board to improve cooling.

We continue with four PCIe x16 slots, the first and third slot get 16 full lanes with their fitness factors. The second and fourth offer lanes of connectivity. It also includes a single PCIe 2.0 x1 slot. These slots are reinforced with metal but do not have RGB LED lighting, we are not in mourning for the omission in this regard.

Gigabyte includes six SATA III 6Gb / s ports to which three M.2 PCIe x 4 slots are attached. The three M.2 slots on the board support SATA and NVMe drives, and are covered with metallic heat sinks backed by thermal pads to improve heat transfer. The first and third M.2 slots support devices up to 110mm, while the center slot only supports 80mm models.

As for audio, Gigabyte takes advantage of Realtek's high-end ALC1220-VB audio codec, the output of which is run through an ESS 9118EQ DAC. The output from this integrated audio subsystem is nice, clean, and well balanced. In general, even the most demanding listeners should not be tempted to install a discreet sound card.

Gigabyte X399 Aorus Xtreme comes with the DualBIOS firmware chip pair to offer protection against overclocking or firmware update failures, and its main EEPROM chip is plugged in. In the event that your motherboard's firmware cannot be repaired, Gigabyte can simply send a pre-programmed EEPROM chip for easy replacement. The application. Q-Flash Plus allows you to update the firmware with nothing more than a USB flash drive and a power supply.

Gigabyte X399 Aorus Xtreme has eight DIMM slots to allow two DIMMs in each of the four memory channels of a Threadripper CPU. While Gigabyte says it can handle up to 128GB of RAM, AMD informally suggests that Threadripper's memory capacity is limited only by the density and number of DIMMs that can be included in the slots of an X399 board. Gigabyte X399 Aorus Xtreme supports unbuffered ECC DIMMs for those whose concern is more with data integrity than full speed.

We continue our examination with the group of ports and buttons on this board. First off, we see clear, LED-lit CMOS and power buttons on the rear panel for use on a test bench. The power button can also function as a reset button with the appropriate settings in the motherboard firmware.

Gigabyte uses two Intel Gigabit Ethernet NICs. The third 8P8C connector, molded in red, is connected to an Aquantia AQC107 10-Gigabit Ethernet controller . Support for that next-generation, high-speed networking standard is well received on a motherboard that is intended to serve the most advanced desktop systems. Gigabyte includes an Intel Wireless-AC 8265 controller on the back panel of the Aorus Extreme so you can navigate at full speed without the hassle of cables. There is also no lack of Bluetooth 4.2 technology to use a multitude of peripherals and accessories.

The Aorus X399 Extreme also has eight USB 3.1 Gen 1 ports on its I / O block, all from the Ryzen Threadripper SoC. The USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type-A and Type C ports come from the X399 chipset. In total we find the following ports on its rear panel:

1 x Power / Reset Button 1 x Clear CMOS Button 1 x USB Type-C Port, Compatible with USB 3.1 Gen 21 x USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type-A Port (Red) 8 x USB 3.1 Gen 13 Ports x RJ-452 Ports x Connectors SMA antenna (2T2R) 1 x optical S / PDIF out connector 5 x audio connectors

Test bench and tests

TESTING BENCH
Processor:	AMD Ryzen Threadripper 2990WX
Base plate:	Gigabyte X399 Aorus Xtreme
Memory:	G, 32 GB DDR4 Skill
Heatsink	Corsair H100i V2
HDD	Samsung 850 EVO 500 GB.
Graphic card	Nvidia GTX 1080 Ti
Power supply	Corsair AX860i.

To check the stability of the AMD Ryzen Threadripper 2990WX processor to stock values and the motherboard we have stressed with Prime 95 Custom and air cooling. The graphics we have used is an Nvidia GTX 1080 Ti, without further delay, let's see the results obtained in our tests with a 1920 x 1080 monitor.

BIOS

Gigabyte offers us a robust, stable BIOS with a good configuration capacity. Overclocking is simple, monitoring of the entire system is simple and the possibilities for customization are maximum. It seems to us a very well-kept BIOS and that we only miss a change of look. The current one is not as striking as that of other manufacturers.

Final words and conclusion about Gigabte X399 Aorus Xtreme

Gigabyte surprises us again with a very high-end motherboard. The Gigabyte X399 Aorus Xtreme comes to be one of the best options on the market for X399 motherboards. A robust design, tremendous component quality, good overclocking capability for the new AMD Threadripper processors, and very wide in connections.

In our performance tests we have found that the performance in games is good. Although the ideal resolution for this setup is 4K, it uses much more of the GPU than the CPU. Our 1080 tests are quite good, and obviously if you want your PC to play, opt for an Intel platform or an AMD Ryzen.

We recommend reading the best motherboards on the market

We really liked its connectivity features. It incorporates three Gigabit connections and a Wifi 802.11 AC connection ideal for connecting wirelessly at specific times.

Its price in online stores is 489 euros. Considering that the new revisions are driven by this prices and the new processors amount to between 900 and 1850 euros, we consider that you should have it among your three candidates for your new enthusiastic PC configuration.

ADVANTAGE	DISADVANTAGES
+ DESIGN	- THE PRICE IS HIGH, BUT IT IS IN THE MIDDLE OF THE HIGH RANGE.
+ EXCELLENT PERFORMANCE
+ VRM COOLING
+ CONNECTIVITY
+ OVERCLOCK CAPACITY TO THE NEW CPUS, ALTHOUGH IT DOESN'T GO UP TOO MUCH, IT IS ABLE TO HOLD ALL THE CONSUMPTION