Gigabyte z170x soc force review

We have had one of the most performance motherboards in previous generations, the Gigabyte Z170X SOC FORCE. Based on the recent Intel Z170 chipset offering compatibility with Intel Skylake processors from the LGA1151 socket. It also includes new storage technologies like M.2, SATA Express and Eye… A total of 22 power phases!

Do you want to know more about its overclock and features? Don't miss our review !

We thank Gigabyte Spain for trusting the product for its analysis:

Gigabyte Z170X SOC FORCE technical specifications

Gigabyte Z170X SOC FORCE in pictures

The Gigabyte Z170X SOC makes us a Premium presentation where they exist. We find a minimalist cover where the corporate colors of the SOC series predominate: orange and black. While in the rear area we have all the most important features and improvements.

Once we open the box we find a very complete bundle:

Gigabyte Z170X SOC Force motherboard, back plate, instruction manual and quick guide, CD with drivers, SATA cables, adapter for benchtable mounting, SLI bridge.

The Gigabyte Z170X SOC Force is an E-ATX format motherboard with dimensions of 30.5cm x 26.4cm, make sure that it fits in your box because it slightly exceeds normal measurements. Gigabyte offers a very sporty design with a black PCB and orange accents on all expansion ports.

On cooling, it has two passive heatsinks in charge of keeping the 22 supply phases and the Z170 chipset cool. The heatsink of the supply phases also serves as a block for liquid cooling by counting two outlets for fittings.

Incorporates Ultra Durable technology with custom components like 10K Chemi-Con capacitors and Turbo B-Clock technology that allows 5% more overclocking. It also features a custom socket with gold plated pins that increases processor performance and stability. In addition to an auxiliary 8 + 4 EPS connection.

It has 4 64 GB compatible DDR4 RAM memory sockets and speeds of up to 3866 Mhz (overclocking) and XMP 2.0 profile. It also incorporates the OC Touch panel that allows us to carry out any monitoring with a digital voltmeter, apply an overclock, etc… A complete pass from a single panel!

Among its expansion connections we find 4 x16 slots with PCI Express 3.0 bus and compatible with Nvidia's 4 Way SLI technology and AMD's CrossFireX. These come with a metallic reinforcement that better cushions the weight of heavy graphics cards. It is complemented with up to 3 PCI Express x1 connections.

We detail the possible multi card configurations that we can install. Keep in mind that we have a PLX chip that allows us this configuration, which does not allow the Z170 chipset as standard:

1 graphics card: x16.2 graphics cards: 16x / 0x / 16x / 0x, 3 graphics cards: 16x / 0x / 8x / 8x or 8x / 8x / 16x / 0x. 4 graphics cards: 8x / 8x / 8x / 8x

It has the Sound Core 3D chip that includes AMP-UP Audio technology with support for 7.1 channels and OP-AMPs. The latter allows us to customize the sound quality depending on personal preferences with removable chips. Obviously we found an impressive improvement in sound quality with dynamic audio and greater clarity.

As we speak, it is vital to tell you about the USB DAC-UP that offers a clean, noise-free power delivery to the digital-to-analog converter. DAC (Digital-to-Analog Converter) can be sensitive to fluctuations in the power supply of other USB ports, and for this reason the GIGABYTE USB DAC-UP takes advantage of an isolated power supply that minimizes possible fluctuations and ensures the best experience audio possible.

The Gigabyte Z170X SOC FORCE includes only 8 SATA III 6 GB / s connections that share up to three SATA Express 10 GB / s. Where 6 of the SATA IIIs are shared with the Z170 chipset and the remaining two with the ASMedia ASM1061 controller. As you can see on the left side we have an extra 6-pin PCIe power connection to give more power in Multi-GPU systems and two USB 2.0 connections to connect a USB stick to the overclockers.

It is the first motherboard I see with three M.2 connections. with a bandwidth of 32 GB / s. For me it is a reference, since this connection gives a lot of play when playing with SATA connections. Very good difference for the Gigabyte Z170X SOC FORCE !

Finally I detail the complete rear connections:

2 x USB 2.0.4 x USB 3.1. (Red) Type C.1 x USB 3.1 (Small) Type A.1 x USB 3.1 Type C (Red).USB Q-Flash Plus. 1 x Gigabit LAN. 1 x DVI1 x HDMI. 1 x Displayport mini. Button SOC Link Digital audio output.

Test bench and tests

TESTING BENCH
Processor:	Intel i5-6600k.
Base plate:	Gigabyte Z170X-SOC FORCE
Memory:	2 × 8 16GB DDR4 @ 3000 MHZ Kingston Savage
Heatsink	Corsair H100i GTX.
HDD	Samsung 840 EVO 250GB.
Graphic card	Nvidia GTX 780.
Power supply	EVGA SuperNOVA 750 G2

To check the stability of the processor and motherboard, we've overclocked up to 4, 600mhz with Prime 95 Custom and air cooling. The graphics we have used is an Nvidia GTX780, without further delay, let's see the results obtained in our tests with a 1920 × 1080 monitor.

WE RECOMMEND YOU How to know that I have a very good processor for overclocking

BIOS

Like the Socket 1150 Gigabyte, it has released a very stable BIOS with a large overclocking capacity. Screen freezing or peripheral locking no longer appear. It still maintains all its benefits: fan control, temperature sensor, excellent overclocking ability and customize any parameter to our liking.

As expected Gigabyte maintains the Q-Flash PLUS technology that it used on its X99 motherboards. This application allows us to update our equipment to the latest BIOS without the need to mount a processor or RAM memory. Gigabyte has used the ITE EC 8951E controller, which sends the signal to an LED next to the EC controller, which will notify us that the process has finished and the system can now be started normally.

Final words and conclusion

The Gigabyte Z170X SOC FORCE is one of the best motherboards on the market for its Ultra Durable components and its 22 power phases. Among its strongest points we find three M2 connections at 32 GB / s, 4 PCI Express to x16 expansion slots compatible with Nvidia SLI and AMD CrossFireX 4Way thanks to the PLX- signed chipset salt system and a passive cooling system with the option of expanding it with a custom liquid cooling.

In our tests we have been able to raise the i5-6600k processor to stable 4, 600 Mhz and the results have been fantastic. But we wanted to go a little further and we have kept the 4800 Mhz with a voltage of 1.35v.

This series of motherboards (Super Overclock = SOC) is always characterized by having a very exclusive audience. But this time it is closer to the user who is looking for the best in overclocking and gaming with the addition of the AMP-UP sound card.

Currently you can find the Gigabyte Z170X SOC FORCE in online stores for a price of 266 euros. Compared to its most direct rivals, it is positioned as one of the top range most affordable for all budgets.

ADVANTAGE	DISADVANTAGES
+ AESTHETICS.	- NONE.
+ ULTRA DURABLE COMPONENTS.
+ 22 FEEDING PHASES.
+ CHIP PLX FOR GRAPHICS CARDS AND DEDICATED SOUND.
+ STABLE BIOS.
+ WE WILL OFFER ONE OF THE BEST OVERCLOCK ON THE MARKET FOR LESS THAN 270 EUROS.