Board Layout

As I lamented in my very first TPU review, then of the Biostar Racing Z370GT6, the large rainbow "R" prominently displayed on the box is not indicative of the board itself. I am not as disappointed as I was then. The Biostar Racing X470GTN keeps its looks simple—a black PCB with black heatsinks finished in a carbon fiber graphic. The VRM heatsink has a white stripe that hides the RGB LEDs, and the board is otherwise completely black. The back of the Biostar Racing X470GTN is also black, with no graphic to speak of. Biostar packed a lot into this tiny board and it shows. The board is crowded with components, both front and back.


The socket on the Biostar Racing X470GTN has enough space to fit most coolers, which is a real achievement for a board this small. The DIMM slots, which sit just right of the CPU socket, run almost the full length of the board, really showcasing just how small the form factor is. Also, there are just two of them.


There is just one M.2 slot on the Biostar Racing X470GTN, and it is located on the back of the board, just under the backplate for the CPU cooler. The placement of the slot means that you will almost certainly have to take the board out to change the M.2 drive. While that is an inconvenience, and an extra step for us all to forget and remember after everything is built, it's necessary as there is nowhere at all to fit an M.2 slot on the front of the very crowded Biostar Racing X470GTN. The board is so crowded that the CMOS battery is stuck to the side of the RJ-45 port housing and connected to the board with a lead cable.


The Biostar Racing X470GTN just has one PCI slot, a metal-reinforced PCIe 3.0 X16 slot along the board's bottom edge. The SATA ports are split into two pairs, one pair just above the PCI slot and another more traditionally located along the right edge, about a quarter of the way up the board. I don't mind the split, but think the pair on the right edge would have benefited from a 90 degree angle.


The Biostar Racing X470GTN has a solid rear I/O offering, if not an overly generous one. The inclusion of five 3.5 mm audio jacks and an S/PDIF out port are a welcome surprise on a board this small. The full complement includes:

• 1x PS/2 keyboard and mouse combo connector
• 1x DVI-D
• 1x HDMI port
• 4x USB 3.1 Gen1 ports
• 1x RJ-45 LAN ports
• 1x USB 3.1 Gen2 Type-A port
• 1x USB 3.1 Gen2 Type-C port
• 1x Optical SPDIF out port
• 5x 3.5 mm audio jacks

The LAN on the Biostar Racing X470GTN is controlled by a Realtek RTL 8118AS.