Introduction

Reviews have been written, benchmarks run, and graphs plotted. The Ryzen 3000 series has lived up to the hype in almost every way. There is finally real competition in the mainstream CPU marketplace, and with competition comes greater consumer choice. One of the biggest debates that is still ongoing with this launch is which chipset to buy. Do you need X570?

Unlike Intel, AMD has made a commitment to supporting the AM4 socket over multiple CPU generations. So far, the team in red has held to that promise, and the new Zen 2 processors are widely supported on older-generation motherboards. While this is great for consumers, it also creates more complexity as more choice inevitably must. Do you need a new X570 motherboard? Due to the cost of the new chipset, the new generation of boards are more expensive feature for feature than the last two generations. This is largely due to PCIe 4.0, a costly and complex feature to implement.

In the graphics department, no card on the market has saturated even PCIe 3.0 yet, at least in the x16 configuration. The largest immediate benefit is with high-speed storage. NVMe drives in RAID configurations can and will take advantage of the extra bandwidth to push never before seen sequential read and write speeds. With your average game, even the switch from SATA to NVMe can be hard to notice, let alone to an even faster and more expensive RAID array. This is more relevant for content creation and media production, where high-speed storage can save significant time and therefore money, which is further bolstered by the near-HEDT core counts on the high-end Ryzen 3000 CPUs. Of course, graphics cards will eventually catch up as well, so for the discerning gamer who only upgrades every three to five years, the new standard could prove a good investment.

With the Gigabyte X570 AORUS Pro WiFi, Gigabyte is aiming for the middle ground between high-end mainstream and budget X570 offerings. The Gigabyte X570 AORUS Pro WiFi features the brand-new WiFi 6 (802.11ax), a sophisticated 14 phase VRM, an integrated rear I/O shield, and an elegant thermal solution. Has Gigabyte hit their mark? Is the Gigabyte X570 AORUS Pro WiFi competitive in this unprecedented wave of new AMD boards?

Specifications

Packaging and Contents

The front of the Gigabyte X570 AORUS Pro WiFi box features a dark background with a complex printed pattern. "X570 AORUS PRO WIFI Gaming Motherboard" is in the bottom-left corner with "AORUS" in the top left. The bottom-right corner has all the applicable brand badging.

The back of the box is exactly what I look for in motherboard packaging. There is a shot of the board in the top left, with a rear I/O diagram just below it and a spec sheet below that. On the right, two thirds are the individual features Gigabyte has highlighted for the Gigabyte X570 AORUS Pro WiFi, including WiFi 6 support and the 12 +2 phase VRM.

The box design is great overall; the texture of the printing gives the packaging a unique tactile feel.


Opening the box, the board sits in a cardboard tray, encased in an anti-static bag. The accessories are stored below the tray.


The accessories are fairly standard. Notably absent is any kind of rear I/O shield because the shield is integrated into the board. I am very happy with how often I have been seeing this feature lately, and props to Gigabyte for incorporating it into the Gigabyte X570 AORUS Pro WiFi.

The full list of accessories includes:

• Manual and support DVD
• Multilingual installation guide
• 4x SATA 6 Gb/s cables
• 1x LED extension cable
• 2x M.2 mounting screws
• G Connector
• AORUS badge

Board Layout

The Gigabyte X570 AORUS Pro WiFi features a very dark matte gray PCB with silver gray lines diagonally printed over it. The rear I/O cover is also matte black, with a silver accent, while the chipset heatsink is a brushed silver over black with the AORUS logo in polished silver. "X570 AORUS Pro WiFi" is printed on one of the M.2 heatsinks, while "Team Up Fight On" is stamped on to the silver accent of the rear I/O cover.


The CPU socket is open enough to accommodate most coolers, and the VRM heatsink looks quite capable.


There are two M.2 slots on the Gigabyte X570 AORUS Pro WiFi. The first sits just under the CPU socket and is run off CPU PCIe lanes, while the second is between the first and second PCIe 4.0 x16 slots and run off PCH lanes.


The M.2 sockets both feature heatsinks. Each heatsink utilizes only a single screw, which is itself captive, along with a slot in the metal-encased M.2 socket. This mounting system is much more elegant than most and far easier to work with as well.


The chipset fan is set under a brushed metal plate. The plate is stuck on with adhesive, which could make replacing the fan a little more work than on other designs.

The small fan is a blower style, and while loud at full speed, it was only on full RPM during the initial post. During testing, the chipset fan was only audible for brief periods, and I only noticed it because I was trying to listen for it.


The Gigabyte X570 AORUS Pro WiFi offers three PCI Express 4.0 x16 slots, the first two of which are encased in metal reinforcement, as well as three PCI Express 4.0 x1 slots. The board has a total of six SATA 6 Gb/s ports, and all are angled 90 degrees from the board.


The Gigabyte X570 AORUS Pro WiFi has a good rear I/O offering that includes a BIOS Flashback USB port and an optical S/PDIF out port. Everything is well labeled on the themed, integrated backplate. The full list includes:

• 1x HDMI port
• 2x WiFi antenna connectors
• 3x USB 3.1 Gen1 Type-A ports
• 2x USB 3.1 Gen2 Type-A ports
• 1x USB 3.1 Gen2 Type-C port
• 4x USB 2.0 ports
• 1x RJ-45 LAN port
• 1x Optical SPDIF out port
• 5x 3.5 mm audio jacks

Networking on the Gigabyte X570 AORUS Pro WiFi is handled by an Intel I211AT and an Intel 802.11ax WiFi adapter.