GIGABYTE Z490 Aorus Master DDR4 Intel Motherboard

The Gigabyte Z490 Aorus Master is a full-size ATX motherboard (30.5 cm × 24.4 cm) built on the Intel Z490 Express Chipset with an LGA1200 socket. It supports 10th Generation Intel Core processors — from Celeron and Pentium up through Core i9 — and pairs them with a robust 14+1 phase digital VRM featuring 90 A Smart Power Stages, Tantalum Polymer Capacitors, and dual 8-pin ATX 12 V solid-pin power connectors. This power delivery architecture is designed to supply stable, precise voltage to demanding processors during sustained workloads and overclocking sessions. Memory support spans four DDR4 DIMM slots in dual-channel configuration, accommodating up to 128 GB total (32 GB per DIMM). Core i9 and i7 platforms can run XMP profiles reaching DDR4-5000 (O.C.), while Core i5, i3, Pentium, and Celeron platforms operate at up to DDR4-2666. Shielded memory routing traces help maintain signal integrity for high-frequency operation. Storage is handled by three M.2 Socket 3 connectors (supporting 2242/2260/2280/22110 form factors via PCIe 3.0 x4 or SATA), each covered by Thermal Guards II heatsinks to reduce throttling under load. Six SATA 6 Gb/s ports round out internal storage, with RAID 0, 1, 5, and 10 support across the SATA array. Networking uses an Intel Wi-Fi 6 AX201 module supporting 802.11a/b/g/n/ac/ax on 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz dual-band — with 160 MHz channel width and up to 2.4 Gbps theoretical throughput — plus Bluetooth 5.0, and a dedicated Intel 2.5GbE wired LAN controller. The onboard audio subsystem combines a Realtek ALC1220-VB codec with an ESS ES9118EQ DAC chip, DTS:X Ultra support, and S/PDIF optical output. Three PCIe 3.0 slots are provided: one x16, one x8 (sharing bandwidth with the x16 slot), and one x4. SLI and CrossFire multi-GPU configurations are supported. The back panel carries one USB Type-C (USB 3.2 Gen 2), three USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A, two USB 3.2 Gen 1, and four USB 2.0/1.1 ports alongside an HDMI 1.4 output, optical S/PDIF, five audio jacks, and an RJ-45 LAN port. Internally, Q-Flash Plus allows BIOS updates without a CPU, memory, or GPU installed. DualBIOS provides a secondary BIOS chip for recovery. RGB Fusion 2.0 drives onboard and header-connected addressable and standard RGB LED strips. Key Specifications: • Socket: LGA1200 | Chipset: Intel Z490 Express • Form Factor: ATX — 30.5 cm × 24.4 cm • CPU Support: 10th Gen Intel Core i9/i7/i5/i3, Pentium, Celeron • Memory: 4 × DDR4 DIMM, up to 128 GB; DDR4-5000 O.C. (i9/i7) • VRM: 14+1 phase, 90 A Smart Power Stages • Storage: 3 × M.2 PCIe 3.0 x4 (with Thermal Guards II), 6 × SATA 6 Gb/s, RAID 0/1/5/10 • Wireless: Intel Wi-Fi 6 AX201 (802.11ax, 160 MHz, 2.4 Gbps), BT 5.0 • LAN: Intel 2.5GbE • Audio: Realtek ALC1220-VB + ESS ES9118EQ DAC, DTS:X Ultra, S/PDIF Out • PCIe: 3 × PCIe 3.0 (x16/x8/x4) • USB Back Panel: 1 × USB-C 3.2 Gen 2, 3 × USB-A 3.2 Gen 2, 2 × USB 3.2 Gen 1, 4 × USB 2.0 • BIOS: AMI UEFI, DualBIOS, Q-Flash Plus • Warranty: 3 Years