Conclusion
Two boards for the same price but with different approach. After reviewing the key elements of their layouts and examining fan control options, you can look forward to a large portion of temperature and consumption comparisons. Let’s find out which one of these AMD Ryzen boards fulfills your expectations better.
Conclusion
Asus ROG Strix X370-F Gaming excels in lower VRM temperature. With the same consumption, they heat less than those on the Gigabyte board. With default settings and without heatsink, we measured a difference of 14 °C (70.4 vs. 84.6 °C) directly from the voltage regulator casing. In the same mode, just with heatsinks this time, the temperature of the heatsink surface was 41 °C, which is 8 °C less than on the opponent board. After overclocking, the difference was already 15 °C. This means that Asus’s cooling of the circuit works well and also that somewhat overdimensioned (and more expensive) regulators are justified.
We have slight reservations about the chipset heatsink. Temperatures were low in the case with optimal air circulation, but technically the design of the heatsink could be more efficient. Even with less material, just a bit more “branched“ block would do.
We praise the compatibility with older cooler assembly kits (from AM2 to AM3 +), excellent fan control options, and also a well-accessible three PWM connectors that are ready for processor coolers. In this case, it looks like the mainstream AIO liquid coolers were taken into consideration.
Among the non-cooling things, we enjoyed particularly scot-free “doping“ in form of a rare possibility of RAM overclocking (the limit is 3.6 GHz), but also readiness for multimedia computers with Bristol Ridge (DisplayPort included), and the futuristic 10Gb USB 3.1 header.
Asus ROG Strix X370-F Gaming |
+ well-balanced composition of used components |
+ over-standard overclocking possibilities. Including RAM |
+ acceptable price considering equipment |
+ top-notch fan control |
+ seven connectors (PWM) for fans |
+ a generously dimensioned 60A VRM CPU with the Digi + controller |
+ decent heatsinks of the power supply circuit |
+ exceptional quality of configuration of parts |
+ internal USB 3.1 connector gen 2 |
+ HDMI and DisplayPort |
+ compatibility with AM2(+)/AM3(+) coolers |
+ advanced settings for overclockers (more advanced than Gigabyte) |
– the first PCIe × 16 slot is relatively close to the CPU socket, which makes it difficult to disassemble the graphics card if you use a big CPU cooler) |
– chipset heatsink could be more efficient |
– does not have a backup BIOS |
Gigabyte has decided to use MOSFETs with a 30% lower current throughput, which are, however, heating more intensively with similar processor settings. And yet they have (paradoxically) lighter/smaller heatsinks than those on the Asus board. A typical “domestic overclocking” with the recommended voltage will not be limited by it in any way. The VRM do not throttle even with Vcore 1.45 V, but we cannot guarantee the long-term operation of this board with such settings.
For more aggressive overclocking with a more powerful CPU cooler, Asus would be probably a better choice. Overclocked R7 1800X to 3.95 GHz demanded 1.325 V, which is a step higher than 1.3185 V, and which was enough for the Gigabyte circuit. Consumption with these setting was the same. Aorus AX370 had a slightly higher consumption only with default settings. We mean 1.5 – 3.5 W, which can be caused also just by LED (off/on).
This board earned a small plus for several things: dual-BIOS, control panel with basic buttons, a highly efficient heatsink design, and a pair of temperature and VRM sensors included in the package. You can control the fan speed regulation with it in a nicely optimized interface.
Also, extra value is a pair of audio chips (each for one channel) and two Ethernet ports. However, HDMI 1.4, which is the only video output for APU, won’t let you have fun with 60 Hz in 4K.
Gigabyte Aorus AX370 Gaming 5 |
+ well-balanced composition of used components |
+ overclocking possibilities, enough for casual OC |
+ acceptable price considering equipment |
+ top-notch fan control |
+ eight connectors (PWM) for fans |
+ decent heatsinks of the power supply circuit |
+ efficient chipset heatsink design |
+ extra features for tuners (extra buttons, BIOS switches, POST display) |
+ dual-BIOS, really invaluable sometimes... |
+ 2 × RJ-45, U.2 interface and "thermocouples" in the package |
+ the first PCIe × 16 is further away from the CPU socket |
+ exceptional audio equipment (two sound chips, decent operating amplifier and gold-plated connectors) |
– only one video output - HDMI (DP is missing) |
– higher heating of the power supply circuit. It cannot handle aggressive OC or higher ambient air temperatures |
– poorer settings for overclocking than Asus |
– qualitatively worse overall fitting of power supply components compared to the Strix X370-F |
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- Contents
- Parameters and details
- Fan control options
- Test procedures
- Reports from internal sensors (chipset, VRM, ...)
- Power supply circuit heating – stock + same OC
- Gallery of thermal images
- Consumption – stock + same OC
- Conclusion