dealing with an audio controller from Creative , but instead it is the software Sound BlasterX 720 layered on top of the hardware that makes it come to life .
This may seem as if GIGABYTE has gone backwards and maybe it has in some ways ( depending on what it is exactly you liked about the audio properties of the previous chips ), but from what I heard , you ’ ll not be missing anything at all . It is one of the best audio solutions you can find on this generation of motherboards and I ’ d even go so far as to say it is the best you can find on any Z370 . What the Sound BlasterX 720 software drives is the familiar ALC1220 codec , that ’ s been paired with the ESS ESS9018Q2C DAC . WIMA and Nichicon capacitors and an LME49720 Op-amp . In addition to that GIGABYTE has installed a TXC oscillator for “ precise time triggers to DAC ’ s ”. Don ’ t brush this off as marketing speak because in some rare cases where boards use the ALC1220 without this oscillator ( note , this is not to say the ALC1220 is the cause of this !), you could experience some popping and jitter . It ’ s not a guarantee you ’ ll have it but it is something I ’ ve experienced before and it can be rather annoying . Kudos to GIGABYTE for making sure that
the odds of this are significantly lowered , via this hardware solution .
Finally , we come to the UEFI . There ’ s not much to say here as it has not changed much for a number of years . The progress is easy to see , but many of the core concerns about naming conventions and presentation still plague the board . Luckily this isn ’ t an overclocking board and one is unlikely to have to spend any significant amount of time here . There are also no meaningful profiles so the only thing that as a gamer one should be doing is loading the X . M . P profile , perhaps setting the CPU overclock and calling it a day . For the more advanced users , you can tweak the DRAM sub-timings and optimize the system performance further . Again , given the context and target audience , it is an adequate UEFI despite its short comings .
Overall , the GAMING 7 does represent the premier Z370 gaming motherboard from GIGABYTE . If the price is too high for you , could consider the GAMING 5 instead , but I don ’ t ’ believe it is that much cheaper to make a meaningful difference . You may however , consider the Z370 AORUS GAMING WIFI if only because you will have WIF support and get the Sound Core
3D processor . That ’ s pretty much it for the GIGABYTE AORUS Z370 GAMING 7 . It ’ s a solid offering which ticks all the right boxes and delivers exactly what it promises , nothing more – nothing less .
[ The OverClocker ]
SUMMARY
The AORUS line of boards and products are designed for and targeting gamers of all types . The Z370 GAMING 7 speaks to this in an obvious way with LEDs up to wazoo , dual GIGABIT LAN ( whatever that does ) and of course a great audio system . It ’ s unfortunate there ’ s no WIFI connectivity but , that isn ’ t anything a USB dongle can ’ t fix . Performance is rock solid as to be expected and the price low for a high-end board . At $ 250 you ’ d be hard pressed to find such an attractive package anywhere else , truly great value .
WOULD YOU BUY IT ? YES !
Issue 43 | 2018 The OverClocker 27