Gigabyte X870E AERO X3D Wood Motherboard Review – All The X3D Goodies In A Exquisite And White Design

It's been three years since the AMD AM5 motherboard platform and the 600-series motherboards launched. Since its launch, the platform has seen the launch of several CPUs in the Ryzen 7000, Ryzen 8000, and Ryzen 9000 families. While the 600-series motherboards provide great features & compatibility with newer Zen 5 CPUs, motherboard makers are always looking to enhance user experiences through the latest technologies, so AMD has introduced a new chipset line called the 800-series.

Now, AMD has introduced both X870 and B850 series chipsets for high-end and mainstream AM5 motherboards. Both of these chips provide brand-new designs and brand-new features that are sure to entice new AMD builders and older AM4 users into investing in a new motherboard for their gaming and content creation needs.

We received a load of motherboards from various manufacturers, so let's start by taking a look at these updated designs. For this review, we will be testing out Gigabyte's brand-new X870E AERO X3D WOOD motherboard, which features stunning wooden textures and all the X3D goodies that Gigabyte has rolled out in its refreshed lineup. The motherboard is priced at $499 US.

The AMD AM5 Platform

The AMD AM4 platform has been the longest-running modern-day platform to date, which was first introduced in 2017 &  is very much alive and kicking in 2025. The company just recently launched new chips for the platform, and it looks like it will stick around for another year till 2025.

AMD is now launching its 2nd Generation AM5 platform under the new 800-series family. The lineup will initially target the high-end enthusiasts with the X870E and X870 chipsets. These chipsets are designed to offer better features, IO memory support, and additional OC features for Ryzen CPUs such as the Zen 5-based Ryzen 9000 "Granite Ridge" family and future Ryzen launches.

Certain aspects that have been upgraded on the AMD X870E & X870 motherboards include:

• USB 4.0 standard on all X870/X870E motherboards
• PCIe Gen5 on Graphics & NVME on all X870/X870E motherboards
• Higher EXPO memory clock support on X870/X870E motherboards

AMD did disclose that there would be new PBO and CO algorithms introduced with Ryzen 9000 CPUs, and these new motherboards will fully support them out of the box. In addition to the X870E and X870 motherboards, the company also plans to introduce its B850 & B840 chipsets, which will serve the mainstream segment. The following is what the chipset lineup will look like:

• X870E (Promontory 21 x2)
• X870 (Promontory 21 x1)
• B650 (Promonotory 21 x1)
• B840 (Promontory 19 x1)

So in terms of what each chipset offers, the X870E series will use two Promontory 21 dies on the motherboards with support for USB4 & both Gen5 GPU/SSD support. X870 (Non-E) will feature just 1 of the dies but retain the same support in terms of I/O. Just the lanes will be fewer.

AMD Chipset Features and Specifications:

Wccftech	X870E	X870	X670E/X670	B650E/B650	A620
CrossfireX/SLI	2-Way CFX	2-Way CFX	2-Way CFX	2-Way CFX	N/A
CPU Lanes (Usable)	24 Gen 5 (with Ryzen 7000 CPUs & above)	24 Gen 5 (with Ryzen 7000 CPUs & above)	24 Gen 5 (with Ryzen 7000 CPUs & above)	24 Gen 5 (with Ryzen 7000 CPUs & above) 24 Gen 4 for B650	24 Gen 4 (with Ryzen 7000 CPUs & above)
PCH Lanes (Usable)	8 Gen4 12 Gen3	4 Gen4 8 Gen3	12 Gen4 8 Gen3	8 Gen4 4 Gen3	8 Gen 3
USB4	Standard	Standard	Optional	Optional	Optional
USB 3.1/3.2 Gen2	2	1	2	1	0
USB 3.1/3.2 Gen1	12	6	12	6	2
USB 2.0	8	8	8	6	6
SATA 6Gb/s	8	8	8	4	4
DDR5 DIMMs	4	4	4	4	4
DDR4 DIMMs	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Overclocking Support	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	N/A
XFR2 Enhanced	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	N/A
Precision Boost Overdrive	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	N/A
NVMe	Yes (Gen 5.0)	Yes (Gen 5.0)	Yes (Gen 5.0)	Yes (Gen 5.0)	N/A
Form Factor	ATX/ITX	ATX/mATX/ITX	ATX/mATX/ITX	ATX/mATX/ITX	mATX/ITX

The motherboards will feature support for DDR5-5600 MT/s memory speeds natively and over 8000 MT/s transfer rates on some of the high-end motherboards that we will be getting by the July timeframe.

The AMD B850 motherboards will feature the same Promontory 21 die, minus the native USB4 support. They will carry Gen5 GPU support, but Gen5 M.2 support will be optional. The B840 will be the entry-level option within the series, with the older Promontory 19 die, which means you will get just Gen4 GPU/SSD support, no CPU overclocking, and only memory overclock support. The B840 motherboards are going to be very affordable in terms of pricing, so that will be competitive against sub-$200 US options from Intel.

AMD will also have the A620/A620A series continuing its role to serve the entry-level segment. There are plans to offer even more price adjustments, making them a viable option for ODMs and system builders to attract more customers.

AMD AM5 Chipset Comparisons:

Chipset Name	PCIe Lanes Gen (PCH)	USB Support (Max)	Overclocking Support	Graphics Configs
X870E	Gen5 (GPU & NVMe)	USB4	CPU+Memory	1x16, 2x8
X670E	Gen5 (GPU & NVMe)	USB 3.2 (20 Gbps) USB4 (Optional)	CPU+Memory	1x16, 2x8
X870	Gen5 (GPU & NVMe)	USB4	CPU+Memory	1x16, 2x8
X670	Gen5 (NVMe) Gen4 (GPU)	USB 3.2 (20 Gbps) USB4 (Optional)	CPU+Memory	1x16, 2x8
B850	Gen5 (NVMe / GPU Opt) Gen4 (GPU)	USB 3.2 (20 Gbps)	CPU+Memory	1x16, 2x8
B650E	Gen5 (NVMe / GPU)	USB 3.2 (20 Gbps) USB4 (Optional)	CPU+Memory	1x16, 2x8
B650	Gen5 (NVMe) Gen4 (GPU)	USB 3.2 (20 Gbps) USB4 (Optional)	CPU+Memory	1x16, 2x8
B840	Gen3 (NVMe / GPU)	USB 3.2 (10 Gbps)	Memory Only	1x16
A620	Gen4 (NVMe / GPU)	USB3.2 (10 Gbps) USB4 (Optional)	Memory Only	1x16

Meet The LGA 1718 Socket - How Long Will This One Last?

As mentioned earlier, AM4's reign is finally over, and the AM5 socket is here now. The new socket moves from a PGA (Pin-Grid-Array) design to an LGA (Land-Grid-Array) layout. The new LGA 1718 socket offers more pin connections to the CPU, allowing for more communication channels with the board itself and enabling support for enhanced features that the new platform has to offer.

As for longevity, AMD has committed to a 2027+ plan for its latest AM5 socket. The AM4 platform is a testament to AMD's support for its consumers, and while the newer 500-series lineup was locked out initially, the company and its partners worked towards extending support for older processors on the newer chipsets and newer CPUs on older motherboards. The AM4 platform continues to be the best seller in the Ryzen lineup, but that would change with the introduction of more budget and feature-rich designs for the AM5 socket, like the 800-series.

Cooler Compatibility With AM5 Socket

The AMD Ryzen 7000/8000/9000 Desktop CPUs will feature a perfect square shape (45x45mm), but will house a very chunky integrated heat spreader or IHS. The CPUs will be the same length, width, and height as the existing Ryzen Desktop CPUs and are sealed across the sides, so applying thermal paste won't fill the interior of the IHS with TIM. That's also why current coolers will be fully compatible with the latest Ryzen CPUs.

The Gigabyte X870E AERO X3D Wood motherboard comes in a standard cardboard package. The front features the AERO logo, and it is essentially a simple cardboard package; nothing fancy is going on over here. The packaging also lists down a few features such as support for PCIe 5.0 (GPU/NVMe), DDR5 & Ryzen CPUs.

The backside of the package lists the specifications and special features of the motherboard, such as the X3D Turbo Mode 2 BIOS technologies, Driver BIOS, M.2 EZ Flex design, DIY-Friendly Design, & support for WIFI7.

Inside the package is another box that contains the accessories and is located right below the box holder for the board itself. You get a Quick Installation Guide, a WIFI EZ Plug Antenna, a few M.2 standoffs, the ever-useful G-connector, and two SATA Cables.

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

The Gigabyte X870E AERO X3D Wood motherboard is a standard ATX offering that measures 30.5 x 24.4 cm. The motherboard carries the standard Tomahawk and MAG series theme with an all-black color scheme.

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Although Gigabyte's AERO series has been in the family for quite some time, the Wood series makes for a more elegant design with wood textures and leather materials used on the board itself. These premium elements make the AERO Wood stand out from the rest. With that said, this is a very high-end AERO AM5 offering, as we will detail in our close-up below.

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 256 GB of dual-channel memory.

These slots are rated to support XMP profiles up to 9000 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 memory slots feature a shielded memory routing surface for enhanced and clear memory signaling. The full QVL list can be found here.

The Gigabyte X870E AERO X3D Wood motherboard features a 16+2+2 60A (VCore/ VccGT/VccAUX) VRM design with the core VRMs being an 8+8 "parallel power phase" configuration. The motherboard makes use of a 2x copper PCB and embeds premium chokes & capacitors.

The VRMs and power delivery solution are scattered around the AM5 socket. The board uses an 8-layer NPG-170D server-grade PCB with 2oz thickened copper.

The VRMs receive ample cooling from a "Premium VRM Thermal Armor" solution. This includes a larger surface area per heatsink and more. 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 heatsink solution, we first have the two VRM heatsinks with direct-touch heatpipes and a 10x larger surface area for enhanced heat dissipation.

Underneath the VRM heatsink are 7W/mK Thermal pads, which transfer heat from the VRMs to the heatsink.

Expansion slots include three PCI Express x16 (1 x Gen 5.0 x16/8 / 1x Gen 5.0 x8 / 1x Gen 4.0x4) and four M.2 slots. The first and second Gen5 slots share bandwidth with the second M.2 slot, so keep that in mind when installing a Gen5 SSD into the slot.

• 1 x PCI Express x16 slot (PCIEX16), integrated in the CPU:
  AMD Ryzen 9000/7000 Series Processors support PCIe 5.0 x16 mode
  AMD Ryzen 8000 Series-Phoenix 1 Processors support PCIe 4.0 x8 mode
  AMD Ryzen 8000 Series-Phoenix 2 Processors support PCIe 4.0 x4 mode
  * The PCIEX8 slot shares bandwidth with the PCIEX16 slot. When the PCIEX8 slot is populated, the PCIEX16 slot operates at up to x8 mode.
  * The PCIEX16 and PCIEX8 slots can only support a graphics card or an NVMe SSD. If only one graphics card is to be installed, be sure to install it in the PCIEX16 slot.
  
• 1 x PCI Express x16 slot (PCIEX8), integrated in the CPU:
  AMD Ryzen 9000/7000 Series Processors support PCIe 5.0 x8 mode
  * The PCIEX8 slot becomes unavailable when an AMD Ryzen 8000 Series-Phoenix 1/Phoenix 2 processor is used.
  
• Chipset:
  - 1 x PCI Express x16 slot, supporting PCIe 4.0 and running at x4 (PCIEX4)

The motherboard utilizes a full metallic slot called the PCIe UD Slot X, which is part of Gigabyte's long-running Ultra Durable features. This slot can sustain 10 times the load-bearing capacity, and comes with an inner lining rubber strip and is made out of Zinc Alloy metal.

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

All of the heatsinks are easy to remove thanks to the EZ M.2 mechanism. The latching mechanism is easy to work with, and with the new M.2 EZ Flex baseplate, users can expect 12 °C lower temperatures versus a standard M.2 heatsink.

The primary M.2 Thermal Guard L heatsink is the bigger one and provides better cooling to a Gen5 M.2 SSD. You can simply pull the leather material to remove the heatsink, and it can be installed back easily too.

Following is the full list of M.2 ports and their details on the Gigabyte X870E AERO X3D Wood motherboard:

• 1 x M.2 connector (M2A_CPU), integrated in the CPU, supporting Socket 3, M key, type 2580/2280 SSDs:
  AMD Ryzen 9000/7000 Series Processors support PCIe 5.0 x4/x2 SSDs
  AMD Ryzen 8000 Series-Phoenix 1 Processors support PCIe 4.0 x4/x2 SSDs
  AMD Ryzen 8000 Series-Phoenix 2 Processors support PCIe 4.0 x4/x2 SSDs
• 1 x M.2 connector (M2B_CPU), integrated in the CPU, supporting Socket 3, M key, type 22110/2280 SSDs:
  AMD Ryzen 9000/7000 Series Processors support PCIe 5.0 x4/x2 SSDs
  * The M2B_CPU connector shares bandwidth with the ASMedia USB4® controller. When a device is installed in theM2B_CPU connector, both theM2B_CPU connector and the USB4 port supported by the ASMedia USB4® controller operate at up to x2 bandwidth. When using an AMD Ryzen 8000 Series-Phoenix 1 or Phoenix 2 processor, the USB4 port supported by the ASMedia USB4® controller operates at up to x2 bandwidth, and the M2B_CPU connector becomes unavailable.
• 2 x M.2 connectors (M2C_SB, M2D_SB), integrated in the Chipset, supporting Socket 3, M key, type 22110/2280 PCIe 4.0 x4/x2 SSDs

The X870E PCH is housed beneath a large heatsink with the Gigabyte logo etched over it.

The motherboard has no RGB LEDs on its own but comes with 3 ARGB and 1 RGB LED connectors for users to personalize their PCs using Gigabyte's RGB Fusion software.

Storage options include four SATA III ports rated to operate at 6 GB/s. These can support 4 different storage devices at once. For the front IO, you get 1 USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type-C header, 2 USB 3.2 Gen1 headers, and 2 USB 2.0/1.1 headers.

Gigabyte uses a 7.1 CH HD audio design with the latest Realtek ALC 1220 CODEC.

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There is a large selection of connectors on the motherboard. The full list of connectors on the motherboard is listed as follows.

• 1 x 24-pin ATX main power connector
• 2 x 8-pin ATX 12V power connectors
• 1 x CPU fan header
• 1 x CPU fan/water cooling pump header
• 4 x system fan headers
• 2 x system fan/water cooling pump headers
• 3 x addressable RGB Gen2 LED strip headers
• 1 x RGB LED strip header
• 4 x M.2 Socket 3 connectors
• 4 x SATA 6Gb/s connectors
• 1 x front panel header
• 1 x front panel audio header
• 1 x USB Type-C header, with USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 support
• 2 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 headers
• 2 x USB 2.0/1.1 headers
• 1 x noise detection header
• 1 x Trusted Platform Module header (For the GC-TPM2.0 SPI V2 module only)
• 1 x HDMI port (Note)
• 1 x reset jumper
• 1 x Clear CMOS jumper
• 2 x temperature sensor headers

Gigabyte is using the latest WIFI 7 Module to power wireless connectivity and Bluetooth 5.4. In terms of Ethernet, there are two Realtek 5GbE LAN ports.

The motherboard comes with the following I/O connectors:

• 1 x Q-Flash Plus button
• 1 x Clear CMOS button
• 1 x power button
• 1 x reset button
• 1 x HDMI port (Note)
• 2 x USB4® USB Type-C ports (DisplayPorts (Note))
• 1 x USB Type-C port, with USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 support
• 5 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A ports (red)
• 3 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports
• 2 x RJ-45 ports
• 2 x antenna connectors (2T2R)
• 2 x audio jacks
• 1 x optical S/PDIF Out connector

For testing, I used the Ryzen 9 9950X3D CPU, which was sent to us by AMD, on a range of X870E and X870 motherboards.

AMD 800-series "AM5" Motherboard Test Platform:

Processors	AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D
Motherboard	MSI MPG X870E Carbon MAX WIFI (7E49v2A10) Gigabyte X870E AERO X3D Wood (13F7) MSI MEG X870E ACE MAX (7E85v1A20) ASRock X870E Taichi OCF (v1.03) MSI MAG X870E Tomahawk MAX WIFI (7E84v1A10) Gigabyte X870E AORUS Master X3D ICE (F4) ASRock X870 Taichi Creator (3.40) ASRock PG X870 Nova WIFI (3.30) ASRock X870 Livemixer WIFI (3.31) Colorful CVN X870 ARK Frozen V14 (BIOS 1011) MSI MAG X870E Tomahawk WIFI (7E51v1A24) MSI MAG X870 Tomahawk WIFI (7E59v2A3) MSI MPG X870E EDGE TI WIFI (7E59v1A2) MSI MPG X870E Carbon WIFI (7E49v1A12 AGESA 1.2.0.2) ASRock X870E Taichi (3.08 AGESA 1.2.0.2) ASRock X870E Taichi LITE (3.08 AGESA 1.2.0.2) ASRock X870 Steel Legend WiFi (3.08 AGESA 1.2.0.2) AORUS X870 ELITE WIFI7 ICE (F3B AGESA 1.2.0.2)
Power Supply	FSP Hydro G 1200W PSU
Solid State Drive	Crucial T700 2 TB Gen5 SSD
Memory	T-Force Delta RGB DDR5-7200 (CL34 2 x 16 GB)
Video Cards	NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 Founders Edition
Cooling Solutions	Arctic Liquid Freezer III 420mm AIO
OS	Windows 11 64-bit

Our test rig includes the Crucial T700 2 TB Gen5 SSD that boots up our main OS. In addition to these, we are running an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 Founders Edition graphics card and an FSP Hydro G 1200W PSU. For this specific review, we used the T-Force  Delta RGB DDR5-7200 memory kit running at CL34 timings.

All X870E/X870 Motherboards Memory Support (Official Rating)

The AMD X870E/X870 motherboards are listed with some of the highest-listed DDR5 memory support out of the box. Following is how each of the motherboards we tested stacks up in terms of maximum frequency support:

3DMark CPU Profile Benchmark

Instead of producing a single number, the 3DMark CPU Profile shows you how your CPU's performance changes and scales with the number of cores and threads used. The 3DMark CPU Profile has six tests that help you benchmark and compare CPU performance for gaming and other activities.

Blender

Blender is a free and open-source 3D creation suite. It supports the entirety of the 3D pipeline—modeling, rigging, animation, simulation, rendering, compositing, motion tracking, and even video editing and game creation.

Cinebench 2024

Cinebench 2024 utilizes the power of Redshift, Cinema 4D's default rendering engine, to evaluate your computer's CPU and GPU capabilities. Cinebench 2024 is designed to accommodate a broad range of hardware configurations, while it seamlessly supports x86/64 architecture (Intel/AMD) on Windows and macOS.

Cinebench R23

Cinebench is a real-world cross-platform test suite that evaluates your computer’s hardware capabilities. Improvements to Cinebench Release 20 reflect the overall advancements to CPU and rendering technology in recent years, providing a more accurate measurement of Cinema 4D’s ability to take advantage of multiple CPU cores and modern processor features available to the average user.

CPU-Z

CPUz is a freeware that gathers information on some of the main devices of your system, such as the Processor name and number, codename, process, package, cache levels, Mainboard, chipset, Memory type, size, timings, and module specifications (SPD), and Real-time measurement of each core's internal frequency and memory frequency.

Geekbench 6

Geekbench 6 is a cross-platform benchmark that measures your system's performance with the press of a button.

HandBrake

HandBrake is a tool for converting video from nearly any format to a selection of modern, widely supported codecs.

PCMark 10

PCMark 10 is a complete PC benchmarking solution for Windows 10. It includes several tests that combine individual workloads covering storage, computation, image and video manipulation, web browsing, and gaming. Specifically designed for the full range of PC hardware from netbooks and tablets to notebooks and desktops, PCMark 10 offers complete Windows PC performance testing for home and business use.

POV-Ray

The POV-Ray package includes detailed instructions on using the ray tracer and creating scenes. Many stunning scenes are included with POV-Ray, so you can start creating images immediately when you get the package.

SuperPI

Super PI is used by many overclockers to test the performance and stability of their computers. In the overclocking community, the standard program provides a benchmark for enthusiasts to compare “world record” pi calculation times and demonstrate their overclocking abilities. The program can also be used to test the stability of a certain overclock speed.

WinRAR

WinRAR is a powerful archive manager. It can back up your data and reduce the size of email attachments, decompress RAR, ZIP, and other files downloaded from the Internet, and create new archives in RAR and ZIP file formats.

V-Ray Render Benchmark

V-Ray  Benchmark is a free, standalone application to test how fast your system renders. Three custom-built test scenes are also included to put each V-Ray 6 render engine through its paces.

Battlefield V

Battlefield V brings back the action of the World War 2 shooter genre. Using the latest Frostbite tech, the game does a good job of looking gorgeous in all ways possible. From the open-world environments to the intense and gun-blazing action, this multiplayer and single-player FPS title is one of the best-looking Battlefield titles to date. The game was tested at max settings at 1440p.

DOOM Eternal

DOOM Eternal brings hell to Earth with the Vulkan-powered idTech 7.  We test this game using the Ultra Nightmare Preset and follow our in-game benchmarking to stay as consistent as possible.

GTA V

GTA V is one handsomely optimized title for the PC audience. It's scalable across various PC configurations and delivers an impressive frame rate. Rockstar did an amazing job with the PC build of GTA V, and it comes with a large array of settings that can be configured by PC gamers. We tested the title at 1440P with everything set to Ultra and 4x MSAA.

Metro Exodus

Metro Exodus continues the journey of Artyom through the nuclear wasteland of Russia and its surroundings. This time, you are set over the Metro, going through various regions and different environments. The game is one of the premier titles to feature NVIDIA’s RTX technology and does well in showcasing the ray-tracing effects in all corners. The game was tested at Ultra settings with RTX settings turned off at 1440p.

Shadow of The Tomb Raider

Sequel to The Rise of the Tomb Raider, Shadow of the Tomb Raider is visually enhanced with an updated Foundation Engine that delivers realistic facial animations and the most gorgeous environments ever seen in a Tomb Raider Game. The game is a technical marvel and shows the power of its graphics engine in the latest title.

The AMD Ryzen 9000 CPUs come in the same two or three chiplet configurations as the Ryzen 7000 series, with one or two of which are the aforementioned AMD Zen 4 CCDs fabricated on the 4nm process node. Then we have the larger die around the center, the IOD, based on a 6nm process node. The AMD Ryzen 9000 CCD measures a die size of 70.6mm2 and features a total of 8.6 billion transistors per CCD. The IOD has a die size of 122m2 and features 3.4 billion transistors.

Scattered around the package are several SMDs (capacitors/resistors) that usually sit under the package substrate if we consider Intel's CPUs. AMD is instead featuring them on the top layer, and as such, they had to design a new kind of IHS, which is internally referred to as the Octopus.

AMD's Ryzen 9000 Desktop CPUs utilize a brand new Zen 5 core architecture that is built on the 4nm process node; as such, these chips are designed to be extremely efficient. The chips feature gold-plated IHS for efficient thermal transfer.

Gigabyte's refreshed X3D motherboard lineup has one feature that's the talk of the town, and that's X3D Turbo Mode 2. This is an enhanced version of the original X3D Turbo Mode, which the company launched with its previous AM5 offerings. This time, the solution is not only better, but Gigabyte has made it much more useful through BIOS and software-side revamps. In our tests, the CPU sees an average 10% uplift in app and around 10-20% improvement in games using the Ryzen 9 9950X3D CPU. That's a strong uplift & you get to see improvements on both fronts, which is great. Furthermore, the 110A 20 Phase VRM with 18 phases from the CPU is solid enough, and DDR5-9000 memory support is top-tier.

In terms of design, the premium wood textures and leather materials make for a unique approach. They look super fancy on an AERO-tier motherboard. This is the most pricey AERO motherboard we've tested to date, but the features it has to offer make it a premium offering. The white color scheme looks great, too.

Four M.2 slots and three PCIe slots, of which two (each) are Gen5, are great. The EZ-Latch design on the PCIe slots and M.2 slots is DIY Friendly. WIFI7+BT5.4, along with dual 5GbE LAN ports, enable strong connectivity, while the full list of USB (20 in total) options includes:

• CPU+ASMedia USB4 controller:
  - 2 x USB4 USB Type-C ports on the back panel
  CPU:
  - 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A port (red) on the back panel
  
• Chipset+USB 3.2 Gen 1 Hub:
  - 4 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports available through the internal USB headers
  
• Chipset:
  - 2 x USB Type-C ports, with USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 support (1 port on the back panel, 1 port available through the internal USB header)
  - 4 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A ports (red) on the back panel
  - 3 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports on the back panel
  - 4 x USB 2.0/1.1 ports available through the internal USB headers

The 64 MB BIOS also ensures that users not only have enough firmware flash storage for future AGESA BIOS updates, but it also comes packed with built-in drivers for WIFI, which means that you don't have to worry about installing WIFI drivers to get internet working when building a new PC.

• X3D Turbo Mode 2 delivers boosted gaming and app performance
• Tuned BIOS with new features and tons of tuning options
• AERO Wood with premium white design plus wood/leather materials
• Solid 16+2+2 VRM
• 256 GB DDR5 support & up To 9000 MT/s Speeds
• 64 MB BIOS (Ready For Current / Next-Gen Ryzen CPUs) & includes WIFI drivers
• Four M.2 slots with Thermal Guard M.2 heatsinks
• Dual Gen5 M.2 Slots
• Dual Gen 5 x16 Slots
• EZ-Latch Mechanism on M.2 Gen5
• 20 USB ports
• Dual 5 GbE LAN + WIFI 7 + BT 5.4 for connectivity
• EZ WiFi Plug
• Lots of Fan headers, ARGB+RGB headers

Gigabyte has another solid and high-end motherboard for AM5 builders in the $500 US bracket. The X870E AERO X3D Wood looks spectacular, offers great performance and overclocking capabilities, the DDR5-9000 support is solid too, and with tons of features in an elegant fashion, the new AERO Wood offering is another one of our top picks for X3D Ryzen CPUs.

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