Biostar X870E Valkyrie Motherboard Review – It’s Got Wings!

Biostar X870E Valkyrie Unboxing & Close Up Inspection

The Biostar X870E Valyrie motherboard comes in a standard cardboard package. The front features a large Valkyrie. The packaging also lists a few features such as support for PCIe 5 (GPU/NVMe), and DDR5.

The backside of the package lists the specifications and special features of the motherboard.

Inside the package is another box that contains the accessories and is located right below the box holder for the board itself. You get:

• 4 x SATA Cable
• 1 x Quick Guide
• 1 x Smart Connector

With all the accessories done, it's time to put that box aside and take the motherboard out of its package.

The Biostar X870E Valyrie motherboard is an ATX offering that measures 244 x 305 mm. The motherboard carries a black color scheme with a few gold accents on the heatsink. This is a very premium design that continues on the foundation of previous Valkyrie offerings.

Biostar's X870E Valyrie is the flagship motherboard within the manufacturer's 800-series "AM5" line and the appearance and visual design agree with this. It's a really good-looking motherboard which looks very premium all around.

The board uses the LGA 1718 socket to support AMD Ryzen "AM5" processors. The socket works with Ryzen 7000, Ryzen 8000G, and Ryzen 9000 CPUs and will also support future generations of AM5 Ryzen chips that are supported by the platform.

Next to the socket are four DDR5 DIMM slots that can support up to 192 GB of dual-channel (24/48 GB modules) memory.

These slots are rated to support XMP profiles up to 8000 MT/s (OC Plus). Each slot is labeled, making it easier to install DIMMs in the proper orientation. DDR5 memory comes with a different latch position so forcing a DDR4 module into a DDR5 slot will cause permanent damage. Each slot is also combined with a reinforced design to make sure signal integrity remains good while keeping the slots durable for long-term usage.

The full QVL list can be found here. There are at least 9 memory kits rated at DDR5-8000 which are supported by the motherboard. The motherboard fully supports XMP & EXPO profiles.

The Biostar X870E Valkyrie motherboard features an 18+2+2 (VCore/ VccGT/VccAUX)  phase SPS VRM power delivery that utilizes the Renesas RAA 229628 PWM controller with a mix of RENESAS R2209004HB0 (110A) & ISL 99360 (110A) stages for the VCore. All capacitors are labeled with 10K ratings. The

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The VRMs and power delivery solution are scattered around the AM5 socket. The board uses an 8-layer server-grade PCB with 2oz Thickened copper in a low-loss design, retaining signal integrity for stable CPU and memory operations.

The VRMs receive ample cooling from the Armor Gear VRM heatsink solution.

The CPU is supplied power through an 8+8 pin power connector configuration. This will feed the CPU with up to 300 Watts of power. The AMD Ryzen 9000 CPUs are very power-hungry with the maximum target power going above 220W for the flagship Ryzen 9 9950X CPU.

Coming to the cooling solution, we first have the Armor Gear VRM heatsink which makes use of two aluminum blocks with a series of fins that are stacked together. The heatsink features a heat pipe solution that connects the heatsinks, offering a larger surface for thermal dissipation.

Underneath the VRM heatsink are 7W/mK Thermal pads which transfer heat from the VRMs to the heatsink. The large VRM heatsink also features a single cable to power the RGB LEDs for the cover over the IO plate.

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Expansion slots include three PCI Express x16 (2 x Gen 5.0 x16 / 1 x Gen 4.0 x4) and four M.2 slots.

CPU:

• 1 x PCIe 5.0 x16 Slot (x16 or x8/x8 mode)
• 1 x PCIe 5.0 x16 Slot (x8 mode)
• When you use both, PCIEX16_1 and PCIEX16_2 will run in x8 mode.

Chipset:

• 1 x PCIe 4.0 x16 Slot (x4 mode)
• 6 x SATA3 6.0 Gb/s Connectors

The motherboard utilizes a full metallic slot for all three PCIe connector slots.

The motherboard also has a vast array of M.2 slots, all of which are featured under dedicated M.2 heatsinks.

One of the larger heatsinks also works as a cover plate for the motherboard's lower portion. It has a matte black finish and underneath, you can find single -sided thermal pads. You need to remove the plastic sticker from the thermal pads before installing a new SSD for proper heat transfer.

Following is the full list of M.2 ports and their details on the Biostar X870E Valkyrie motherboard:

CPU:

• 1 x M.2 (Key M) Socket (M2M_CPU): Gen5x4

Chipset:

• 3 x M.2 (Key M) Socket (M2M_CPU): Gen4x4
• 6 x SATA III Connector (6Gb/s)

The X870E PCH is housed beneath a large heatsink with the Valyrie logo engraved on top of it.

The motherboard offers a single RGB accent zone on the I/O cover which has the Valkyrie label etched over it.

Storage options include six SATA III ports rated to operate at 6 GB/s. These can support 6 different storage devices at once. There are also 3 USB 3.2 front panel connectors (1 x Gen 2x2 + 2 x Gen 2). 4 USB 2.0 front panel connectors are also included.

Biostar uses a 5.1 CH HD audio design with the latest Realtek ALC1220-VB2 CODEC that offers a 7.1 channel audio configuration. There is a large selection of connectors on the motherboard such as the Power On/Off, Reset buttons, a DEBUG LED, and more.

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The full list of connectors on the motherboard is listed as follows.

• 6 x SATA III Connector (6Gb/s)
• 1 x M.2 (E Key) Socket: Supports 2230 type Wi-Fi & Bluetooth module
• 1 x USB 3.2 (Gen2x2) Type-C Port
  (each header supports 1 USB 3.2 (Gen2x2) Type-C port)
• 1 x USB 3.2 (Gen2) Header
  (each header supports 2 USB 3.2 (Gen2) ports)
• 2 x USB 2.0 Header
  (each header supports 2 USB 2.0 ports)
• 2 x 8-pin Power Connector
• 1 x 24-pin Power Connector
• 1 x CPU Fan Connector
• 1 x CPU water cooling connector (CPU_OPT)
• 4 x System Fan Connector
• 1 x Front Panel Header
• 1 x Front Audio Header
• 1 x Internal Stereo Speaker Header
• 1 x Clear CMOS Switch Button
• 1 x Power Switch Button
• 1 x Reset Switch Button
• 1 x COM Port Header
• 1 x TPM Header
• 1 x Thunderbolt Header
• 4 x LED Header (5V)
• 1 x LED Header (12V)
• 1 x IO LED Header
• * M.2 (E Key) Wi-Fi card is not provided

While there are Wi-Fi antennas on the rear IO, the motherboard doesn't feature any WIFI functionality due to a non-bundled WiFi card, it has to be purchased separately. In terms of Ethernet, there is a single LAN port powered by the 2.5 GbE RTL8125D controller.

The motherboard comes with the following I/O connectors:

• 2 x WiFi Antenna Ports
• 1 x HDMI Port (HDMI2.1 FRL 2.1 FRL mode)
• 1 x DP Port (DP1.4)
• 2 x USB 4.0/Thunderbolt Type-C Port with (DP)
• 8 x USB 3.2 (Gen2) Ports
• 1 x 2.5 Gigabit LAN port
• 5 x Audio Jack
• 1 x S/PDIF_Out
• 1 x SMART BIOS UPDATE Button
• 1 x SMART BIOS USB Port

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