Z790 Aorus Pro X Motherboard Review

How Much Does It Cost?

The Aorus motherboards are rarely “cheap” and the new Gigabyte Z790 Aorus Pro X is no exception at £419.99. However, it’s worth pointing out that this is still one of the more affordable high-end Aorus motherboards, with the flagships costing nearer £1000. For those wanting to push their CPU harder, and to get great connectivity, this motherboard certainly has some appeal, but perhaps not so appealing for those building a gaming PC right now.

Overview

This motherboard did two things that I simply did not expect. First the bad, it just didn’t deliver the gaming performance I was expecting, and hey, sometimes that’s just the way to cookie crumbles. It’s not a bad gaming motherboard, but there are better options for around the same money that are more gaming-focused, and certainly, many of those options reside in the Gigabyte/Aorus product range too.

However, when it comes to CPU performance, it’s a rocketship, delivering CPU performance that actually beat out the more expensive Gigabyte Z790 Aorus Master X. Given the Master X is nearly £150 more expensive, you would think it would be the fastest of the two, but in fact, a lot of that extra investment goes towards increased I/O capabilities. That being said, the Pro X is hardly lacking, and for many content creators, faster CPU performance is the real winner here.

You do still get plenty of connectivity though, and with 5 GbE LAN and WiFi 7, networking is swift and versatile. While the inclusion of front and back panel USB Type-C 20 Gb/s is likely more than enough for most people, if it’s not, then you’re looking to spend £150+ to get 10 Gb/s LAN and 40 GB/s Type-C on a higher model.

In terms of build quality and design, Aorus has done a great job, as this motherboard is heavily reinforced and cooled in all the right areas, meaning it stays cool and stable even under extended heavy loads, making it well-suited for content creation, video editing, and other CPU intensive use cases. However, all that armour and cooling also looks great, with this being a very pretty motherboard, and the lighter white and monochrome aesthetic is sure to look great in lighter-themed builds.

Should I Buy One?

If you’re just looking for a gaming motherboard, this isn’t it, but if you want lots of fast storage, blisteringly fast CPU performance, and reliable hardware that can take the punishing workloads of hours of video rendering without overheating, then you’re in luck. There’s room for improvement here, but when it comes to getting the bang for your buck for the latest connectivity and pushing your CPU to its max, it ticks the right boxes.