Gigabyte Z890 AORUS Master Motherboard Review – Strong Memory Support, Great Design

Gigabyte Z890 AORUS Master Unboxing & Close Up Inspection

The Gigabyte Z890 AORUS Master motherboard comes in a standard cardboard package. The front features a large AORUS "Eagle" logo. The packaging also lists down a few features such as LGA 1851 socket, PCIe 5, DDR5 support along with the Z890/Core Ultra Series 2 labels.

The backside of the package lists the specifications and special features of the motherboard such as the 18+1+2 phase Digital VRM & VRM Thermal Armor, a DIY Friendly design, Ultra Durable PCIe UD Slot X and WIFI 7 with WIFI EZ Plug support.

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

• 2 x SATA Data Cables
• 1 x WiFi Antenna
• 1 x ARGB Splitter Cable
• 2 x Thermistor Cables
• 1 x Case Stickers
• 1 x AORUS Badge
• 1 x Guide Book
• 1 x Support Book
• 1 x G-Connector
• 1 x Memory Fan

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

The Gigabyte Z890 AORUS Master motherboard is an ATX offering that measures 244 x 305 mm. The motherboard carries black and silver color schemes and with all Master series, we get to see a nice futuristic design. The Master is one of the most premium offerings in Gigabyte's AORUS lineup so expect it to offer high-end capabilities in terms of performance and features.

Gigabyte's Master motherboards are solid in terms of layout and design. They offer a lot of variety and capabilities to users who want to take their PC experiences to the next level. The designs have been made even better over the years with the addition of EZ DIY features and the Z890 doesn't compromise on these features at all.

The board uses the LGA 1851 socket to support Intel Core Ultra 200S "Arrow Lake" processors. At launch, the LGA 1851 socket will only support the Arrow Lake CPUs though we can expect a brand new family in the coming years.

Next to the socket are four DDR5 DIMM slots that can support up to 256 GB of dual-channel (24/48/64 GB modules) memory.

These slots are rated to support XMP profiles up to 9500 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. The motherboard supports 5600 MT/s natively and 6400 MT/s for Arrow Lake K CPUs. The 9500 MT/s apply to 1DCP (1 Rank) configurations.

The Gigabyte Z890 AORUS Master motherboard features a 24+2+1 (VCore/ VccGT/VccAUX)  phase SPS VRM power delivery that utilizes the Renesas RAA 229130 PWM controller, and R2209004 HBD (110A) stages for the VCore along with a set of ISL99380 (80A) and NCP81526C power stages. These are arranged in a 9+9 phase configuration. All capacitors are labeled at 20K "FP 27CG 561".

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The VRMs and power delivery solution are scattered around the LGA 1851 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 VRM Thermal Armor Advanced solution. These include the primary VRM heatsinks and small cooling vents on the IO bracket which the company claims to offer up to 7C lower temperatures.

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. Intel's Arrow Lake "Core Ultra 200S" Desktop CPUs can sip up to 250W of power by default.

Coming to the cooling solution, we first have the Premium VRM Thermal Armor 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.

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Expansion slots include three full-length PCI Express x16 (1 x Gen 5.0 x16 / 1 x Gen 4.0 x4 / 1 x Gen4.0 x1) and five M.2 slots.

CPU:

• - 1 x PCI Express x16 slot, supporting PCIe 5.0 and running at x16 (PCIEX16)
• * The PCIEX16 slot shares bandwidth with the M2D_CPU connector. The PCIEX16 slot operates at up to x8 mode when a device is installed in the M2D_CPU connector.

Chipset:

• - 1 x PCI Express x16 slot, supporting PCIe 4.0 and running at x4 (PCIEX4)
• - 1 x PCI Express x16 slot, supporting PCIe 4.0 and running at x1 (PCIEX1)

The motherboard utilizes a full metallic slot and comes with an ultra-durable PCIe armor on the back side to enhance the durability of the PCIe slot. These slots offer up to 58 KG of load-bearing capacity. The M.2 slot features an EZ-Latch design that makes it easy to remove graphics cards.

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The motherboard also has a vast array of M.2 slots, all of which are featured under dedicated M.2 Thermal Guard XL & Ext 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 dual-sided thermal pads. You need to remove the plastic sticker from the thermal pads before installing a new SSD for proper heat transfer. The slot comes with an EZ Release heatsink, making for a toolless design.

The primary M.2 Thermal Guard XL heatsink is the bigger one and provides better cooling to a Gen5 M.2 SSD. This has the same tooless EZ mechanism.

Following is the full list of M.2 ports and their details on the Gigabyte Z890 AORUS Master motherboard:

CPU:

• - 1 x M.2 connector (Socket 3, M key, type 25110/22110/2580/2280 PCIe 5.0 x4/x2 SSD support) (M2A_CPU)
• - 1 x M.2 connector (Socket 3, M key, type 22110/2280 PCIe 4.0 x4/x2 SSD support) (M2B_CPU)
• - 1 x M.2 connector (Socket 3, M key, type 22110/2280 PCIe 5.0 x4/x2 SSD support) (M2D_CPU)

Chipset:

• - 1 x M.2 connector (Socket 3, M key, type 2280 PCIe 4.0 x4/x2 SSD support) (M2P_SB)
• - 1 x M.2 connector (Socket 3, M key, type 2280 SATA and PCIe 4.0 x4/x2 SSD support) (M2M_SB)
• 4 x SATA3 6.0 Gb/s Connectors

The Z890 PCH is housed beneath a large heatsink with the AORUS Eagle logo. The PCH cover has a unique reflective coating which provides an nice visual detail on this premium motherboard.

The motherboard offers two RGB accent zones. First is the I/O cover which has the large AORUS logo, and the second LED array is featured underneath the PCH cover. These can be turned off or can be customized 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. There are also 3 USB 3.2 front panel connectors (4x Gen1 Type-A & 1x Gen2 Type-C). 2 USB 2.0 (four ports) front panel connectors are also included.

AORUS uses a 5.1 CH HD audio design with the latest Realtek ALC1220 CODEC and ESS 9118 DAC for rear panel audio with 5.1 channel support. 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.

• 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
• 4 x system fan/water cooling pump headers
• 4 x addressable RGB Gen2 LED strip headers
• 1 x RGB LED strip header
• 5 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/GC-TPM2.0 SPI 2.0/GC-TPM2.0 SPI V2 module only)
• 1 x HDMI port (Note)
• 1 x power button
• 1 x reset button
• 1 x reset jumper
• 1 x Clear CMOS jumper
• 2 x temperature sensor headers
• Voltage Measurement Points

AORUS is using the latest WIFI 7 Module to power wireless connectivity with a 320MHz channel bandwidth and Bluetooth 5.4. In terms of Ethernet, there is a single 10 GbE LAN port powered by the Marvell AQtion AQC113C chip.

The motherboard comes with the following I/O connectors:

• 1 x Q-Flash Plus button
• 1 x Clear CMOS button
• 2 x Intel Thunderbolt 4 connectors (USB Type-C ports)
• 6 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A ports (red)
• 4 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports
• 2 x USB 2.0/1.1 ports
• 1 x RJ-45 port
• 2 x antenna connectors (2T2R)
• 2 x audio jacks
• 1 x optical S/PDIF Out connector

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