Gigabyte Z490 AORUS PRO AX Motherboard Review

I know many of our readers will want to see the performance of the AORUS XTREME or even the flagships from ASUS, MSI and others. However, in the real world, very few people actually buy those motherboards. They’re epic, but they’re expensive and overkill for most. The Z490 AORUS Pro is like the entry-level model of a supercar. The cheapest Ferrari is still a Ferrari. It gives you 90%+ of the thrills of the most extreme motherboard at a much more sensible price point. With that in mind, the Pro AX is one of the boards I’m looking forward to the most.

Gigabyte Z490 AORUS Pro AX Motherboard

It may not be the flagship, but it’s hardly sparsely equipped. It comes with a 12 Phases Digital VRM running 55A chokes. There is both armour and shielding on all the major components and slots, as well as their fantastic Fins-Array II and Heatpipe II cooling systems. You’ve got ultra-fast WiFi, 2.5 GbE networking, and RGB. Connectivity does look particularly good though, with Optane, triple M.2 mounts, and even ALC1220-VB audio outputs too.

Features

• Supports 10th Gen Intel^® Core™ Series Processors
• Dual Channel Non-ECC Unbuffered DDR4, 4 DIMMs
• Intel^® Optane™ Memory Ready
• Direct 12 Phases Digital VRM Solution with 55A DrMOS
• Shielded Memory Routing for Better Memory Overclocking
• Fins-Array II Heatsink and Direct Touch Heatpipe II
• Onboard Intel^® WiFi 6 802.11ax 2T2R & BT5 with AORUS Antenna
• AMP-UP Audio with ALC1220-VB and WIMA for Rear 120dB SNR
• Blazing Fast Intel^® 2.5GbE LAN with cFosSpeed
• Dual Ultra-Fast NVMe PCIe 3.0 x4 M.2 with Thermal Guards
• RGB FUSION 2.0 with Multi-Zone Addressable LED Light Show Design, Support Addressable LED & RGB LED Strips
• Smart Fan 5 Features Multiple Temperature Sensors, Hybrid Fan Headers with FAN STOP
• Q-Flash Plus Update BIOS without Installing the CPU, Memory and Graphics Card

What AORUS Had to Say

Z490 AORUS PRO AX motherboard uses a 12+1 phases digital CPU power design which includes both digital PWM Controller and DrMOS. These 100% digital controller and additional 8+4 Solid-pin CPU Power Connectors offer incredible precision in delivering power to the motherboard’s most power-hungry and energy-sensitive components, allowing enthusiasts to get the absolute maximum performance from the new Intel 10-core CPU. – AORUS

Z490 Motherboard Reviews

Of course, today is the launch of the new Z490 motherboards as well as the new 10th Gen CPUs from Intel. Check out all of our Z490 reviews below.