Z790 chipset motherboards has been around for a while but Gigabyte has decided to unveils its refreshed Z790 chipset motherboards, the Z790 AORUS Master X and Z790 AORUS XTREME X at Computex 2023. Both the new motherboards can be seen at Gigabyte’s private suite showcase but they never specifically mention if the refreshed model is a preparation for the upcoming Intel Raptor Lake S refresh.
Z790 AORUS Master X
Staring off with the Z790 AORUS Master X, while the overall design is still very similar to the Z790 AORUS Master, we can see that Gigabyte has revamped the features and design quite a bit.
On top of the core features the Z790 AORUS Master has, the Wi-Fi connectivity has been upgraded to Wi-Fi 7. The Wi-Fi antenna has also been upgraded to a dual antenna design, which the top antenna can be pointed to the direction of your Wi-Fi router for the best signal strength while the bottom antenna is an omni-directional design for receiving signals from various directions.
Since graphics cards designs is getting bigger and heavier by each generations, Gigabyte decided to further strengthen the PCIe x16 slot and ensure its longevity by having another outer armour design that is secured to the motherboard backplate.
Gigabyte also revamped the SSD heatsink design with an easy release latch so users can remove the heatsink without the use of any tools. It’s definitely a good effort from Gigabyte but I think the latch design can still be improved to make the unlock process easier, as I find the current latch design aren’t exactly that easy to remove at first try.
Z790 AORUS XTREME X
Up next is the Z790 AORUS Xtreme X, which is similar to what we can see on the Z790 AORUS Master X. its design is very close to the Z790 AORUS Xtreme but with some changes to the design, notable the replacement of the virtually unusable PCIe slots after a big graphics cards is installed to more M.2 slots.
Just like the Z790 AORUS Master X, the Z790 AORUS Xtreme X is equipped with Wi-Fi 7 and the same antenna design, reinforced PCIe x16 slot design, and the quick release latch for the M.2 heatsink. Though unlike the Z790 AORUS Master X, I find to be a bit harder to remove still due to its design that makes the latch harder to access.
The most significant differences you can find on the Z790 AORUS Xtreme X is the Gen5 SSD heatsink that is almost double the size of the heatsink you’ll find on the Z790 AORUS Xtreme, and the LCD display that shows the temperatures and other informations of the sensors on the motherboard.
As per our visit to the booth, Gigabyte has yet to reveal information on the launch date for these two motherboards but based on the recent rumours on Intel’s upcoming Raptor Lake S refresh, we might be able to see these board probably later in Q3 2023.
