We started our look at AMD’s X670E platform at the ~£330 entry point, but now we’re switching gears to the top of the stack with GIGABYTE’s top-end model thus far. So the question is, just what does £400 more get you in this hugely wide field that has more competitors every month.

In terms of features it’s certainly starting strong. There’s an awful lot here for enthusiast overclockers and gamers alike, but with more of a bias towards the former compared to strictly ‘gaming’ designs. That said, key aspects such as the logical layout and connectivity options will suit anyone, while one never knows when troubleshooting aids will be valuable. Hopefully never, but still…

It should also be said that while a £330 entry-point to a platform is pricey, a £700 flagship hasn’t been unheard of in prior generations. GIGABYTE and their competitors have all dabbled in designs at this price point, particularly in the now defunct HEDT market, so the price likely has less of a sting for those already accustomed to designs this expensive.

Two features that aren’t altogether common among X670E designs are 10GbE ethernet and support for up-to four PCIe 5.0 NVMe M.2 SSDs. Typically 2.5GbE and two PCIe 5.0 slots are what you’ll see in X670E models, so some users will undoubtedly be on board for this particular offering.

In terms of benchmarks, performance is strong across the board. Only in the SiSoft Sandra File System bandwidth test write result does the X670E XTREME fall a little short, potentially due to signalling issues caused by supporting four M.2 slots at PCIe 5.0 speeds. This is something that might be cleared up through further BIOS revisions however, and shouldn’t markedly affect an end-user’s actual experience.


VRM temperatures are good despite our reservations over the heatsink, but it should be noted that power draw is high at load. In fact, at 345W it’s the highest of the X670E boards we’ve tested thus far but isn’t reflected in better benchmark scores.

In terms of more qualitative observations, the X670E XTREME’s build quality is excellent, and makes actually using the motherboard for more than one install a really pleasant experience despite its size. The addition of panelling that adds rigidity helps whether you’re installing in a case or on a test bench, and makes it much less hassle to replace components such as the cooler. Oh, and all motherboard manufacturers should add something like GIGABYTE’s EZ Latch to their designs now that high-end GPUs are becoming unwieldy. It just makes sense.

Closing things out, the included accessory collection is great without being exceptional, and lighting options are comprehensive if you’re adding aftermarket RGB but a little underwhelming out of the box if that’s something you value.

We should also note that EK Waterblocks have a design for a socket AM5 waterblock specifically for this motherboard on pre-order at the time of writing, which will be critically important for water cooling enthusiasts.

GIGABYTE’s AORUS X670E XTREME is a premium motherboard that lives up to its billing, offering advanced features that overclocking enthusiasts and gamers would both value. Build quality is impressive, performance is very good, and general user satisfaction should be extremely high if they’re lucky enough to own this model. The core reservation is of course price, but if you’re in the market for a flagship £700 to support high-end overclocking on the latest AMD Ryzen processors then this design has to be near the top of your short lists.