Gigabyte X299 Aorus Master, Intel X299 Motherboard - Socket 2066 [X299 Aorus Master]

- 4 × PCIe (3.0) x16 (2 × x16 / 2 × x8)
- 2x USB 3.1 Type-C / 3x USB 3.1 Type-A / 10x USB 3.0, 4x USB 2.0
- 3 × M.2 (PCIe 3.0 × 4) / 8 × SATA 6G
- 8 × DIMM slots for DDR4 RAM (128 GB maximum with 28 or 44-lane CPU)
- Includes ac WiFi module & Aorus antenna
- Gigabyte RGB Fusion RGB LED lighting
- Gigabyte X299 Aorus Master: Predestined for Quad SLI and SSD RAID

The Gigabyte X299 Aorus Master is a high-quality enthusiast motherboard in E-ATX format, intended for power users who have opted for an X299 & Skylake-X or Kaby Lake-X team. The extremely stylish, black board has four PCIe x16 slots, two of which are connected to the chipset with full 16 lanes, while the other two are electrically connected to eight data lines. This allows NVIDIA 4-way SLI or AMD 4-way CrossFireX configurations when using a 28- or 44-lane CPU.

Equipped with a total of eight DIMM slots for DDR4 memory, a CPU with 28 or 44 data lines, all slots in quad-channel operation and up to a maximum capacity of 128 GB can be used. A 16-lane CPU supports dual-channel operation of four slots with a maximum capacity of 64 GB. Officially DDR4 modules with up to 2,400 MHz can be used, with clock rates of 4,000 MHz and more being possible after overclocking.

For data carriers, the board is extensively equipped with three M.2 slots for especially fast NVMe-M.2 SSDs and eight SATA-6G connections for 3.5-inch or 2.5-inch hard disks and SSDs ( including RAID support). The M.2 ports are connected to the chipset via four PCIe lanes in the 3.0 standard and, in combination with the NVMe protocol, enable a data transfer rate of almost 4 GB / s. This makes M.2 PCIe SSDs up to eight times faster than SATA 6G SSDs! In addition, the M.2 slots are equipped with so-called Thermal Guards, whereby the heat development is reduced on the modules and performance is thus not lost.
External connections
There are many useful ports on the I / O panel of this performance motherboard. In addition to a Type-C USB 3.1 port, which is particularly thin and can finally be plugged in on both sides, the board has a USB 3.1 port Type-A. The ASMedia 3142 USB 3.1 controller even achieves maximum speeds of up to 16 Gbps, which is more than three times faster than the six conventional USB 3.0 ports on the I / O panel.

For unrestricted network connectivity, the Aorus Master also features an Intel I219V LAN port, Realtek Gigabit LAN at up to 2,500 Mbps, and Intel's fast Wi-Fi 802.11ac at up to 867 Mbps for a lag-free gaming experience to allow. The Realtek ALC1220 codec and the six audio ports with gold-plated jack connections ensure decent sound.
Synchronize colored LED lighting with Gigabyte RGB Fusion

Among the special features of the Gigabyte X299 Aorus Master is a comprehensive RGB LED lighting based on Gigabytes RGB Fusion. In addition to numerous lighting zones directly on the board, several LED strips can also be connected and also perfectly controlled via the Fusion software. The fact that practically endless colors and numerous effects can be selected, is now almost a matter of course.

To increase the stability of the motherboard, it has a reliable Steel Armor for RAM and all PCIe slots. In times of increasingly heavy and growing graphics cards, CPU coolers and even RAM bars, these gains provide a much safer feel for the high-end components installed.

Technical details:
- Format:
- E-ATX form factor (30.5 x 26.9 cm)
- chipset:
- Intel X299 ("Lewisburg")
- Base:
- 2066 (for Intel CPUs of the Skylake-X and Kaby Lake-X generation)
- R.A.M:
- 8 × DDR4 (Skylake-X & Skylake-X Refresh: DDR4-2.666, up to 128 GB with a CPU with 44 or 28 lanes)
- 4 × DDR4 (Kaby Lake-X: DDR4-2.666, up to 64 GB with a 16-lane CPU)
- Quad-Channel (Skylake-X & Skylake-X Refresh, supports on CPUs with 44 or 28 lanes)
- Dual Channel (Kaby Lake-X, supports 16-lane CPUs)

Slots (physical):
- 2 × PCIe 3.0 x16
- 2 × PCIe 3.0 x16 (electric x8)
- Compatible multi-VGA configurations: 4-way SLI * (quad GPU), 4-way CrossFireX * (quad GPU)
- WLAN: Intel 802.11ac 2x2 Wi-Fi with AORUS antenna

Internal connections:
- 8 × SATA 6G
- 1 × M.2 (PCIe 3.0 x4, 2260/2280/22110)
- 1 × M.2 (PCIe 3.0 x4 & SATA, 2242/2260/2260/2280/22110)
- 1 × M.2 (PCIe 3.0 x4 & SATA, 2242/2260/2280/22110)
- 1 × USB 3.1 Type-C (a header)
- 2 × USB 3.0 (a header)
- 2 × USB 2.0 (a header)
- 1 × CPU fan (4-pin)
- 1 × water cooling / CPU fan (4-pin)
- 4 × system fan (4-pin)
- 2 × system fan / pump connection (4-pin)
- 1 × 3 A system fan / pump connection (4-pin)
- 2 × header for digital LED strip
- 2 × header for RGB LED strip
- 1 × front panel header
- 1 × front panel audio header
- 1 × Thunderbolt add-in card connector
- 1 × TPM header (Trusted Platform Module)
- 1 × Power Switch
- 1 × OC button

External connections:
- 1 × USB 3.1 (Type-C)
- 1 × USB 3.1 (Type-A; red)
- 6 × USB 3.0 (Type-A, blue, white)
- 1 × RJ45 LAN port (Intel i219-V)
- 1x RJ45 LAN port (Realtek Dragon 8125AG)
- 5 × Audio (Realtek ALC1220VB)
- 1x S / PDIF (Realteak ALC1220-VB)

Power supply:
- 1 × 24-pin ATX
- 2 × 8-pin ATX 12V