A Closer Look
This motherboard has an ATX form factor, measuring at 305 x 214mm. Although it is a bit narrower than a full ATX motherboard, that did not stop the GIGABYTE engineers from giving the Z97X-SLI an extremely well thoughtout layout and design. This socket 1150 motherboard also has a nice well-rounded color scheme as well. At first glance, one would think that the PCB is black; in-fact the color is a very dark brown. This should not bother anyone and will still look great in your favorite chassis. The VRM and chipset heatsinks are red and contrast very well with the rest of the color scheme. I am glad to see that GIGABYTE chose the “less is more route” here with regards to the color scheme; and certainly this is one of the better looking sub-$130 USD motherboards out there.
All of the motherboards expansion slots and connectivity ports are neatly organized to make installation a breeze. The six SATA ports (as well as the SATA Express port) are installed at ninety degree angles in order to face the front of your chassis and aid with cable management. This will help to make your finished installation look as clean as possible. The USB 3.0 front panel header is also located near the front edge of the motherboard which is also a bonus, making cable management much easier. The CMOS battery is also in an ideal location, allowing for desirable access, even if a dual graphics solution is installed.
Speaking of graphics cards, PCIe x16 slots have also been properly placed to accomodate larger cooling solutions whilst in SLI or Crossfire mode alike. Another point for the smart design is the placement of the first PCIe slot with an ample amount of space between said slot and the four DDR3 memory slots. This definitely helps when swapping out memory as the latching mechanisms are not cramped in the slightest. This placement also helps with the installation of an M.2 storage solution, which like the SATA Express interface, offers up to 10Gb/s performance! It is really nice to see these new technologies incorporated into such a wonderfully priced motherboard!
The area around the CPU socket may seem a bit cramped, however I do not forsee any issues with even large CPU coolers as all of the components nearby, including the VRM heatsinks are of a low-profile nature. And looking at said VRM heatsinks, you will notice that there is a “G1” hidden in there, even though this motherboard is not officially part of the “G1” Series. Hopefully we will find some similar performance here! Also of note for the overall layout is the fact that the Z97X-SLI has a total of five fan headers that are thoughtfully placed around the motherboard.
The Z97X-SLI supports GIGABYTE’s patented DualBIOS (UEFI), which has always been a wonderful feature that helps to avoid frustrating crashes; and definitely helps the user when experimenting with overclocking. Notice here the seperate soldered BIOS chips; one designated as the Main and the other as Backup, of course. There is no CMOS clear button installed on the motherboard, however there is the usual header for completing such a task, when the need arises. We also find that the front panel header is color-coded to speed up the installation of your chassis available front panel features. Also located in this section of the motherboard are three USB 2.0 connectors, an LPT and a COM port connector as well as the front panel audio connector.
In these next set of pictures we can get a better look at the M.2 connector with a layout that supports 42, 60, and 80mm lengths. Installation of these types of storage components could not have been made easier to access and install, or vice versa. Well done, GIGABYTE! You will notice an additional fan header near the memory slots which is ideally placed for either a memory cooler or a case fan mounted to the front of your chassis. Even though the model nomenclature suggests SLI, Crossfire is definitely supported as advertised near the CMOS battery. As part of the Ultra Durable brand, this motherboard is loaded with only solid-state capacitors. Even though there are many components installed onto this motherboard, it still manages a very clean look!
The rear I/O connectivity options include two USB 2.0 ports, four USB 3.0 ports, 8 Channel High Definition Audio, the Intel GbE LAN port, and a PS2 port (for those of you hanging on to your older input devices!). Video output includes a D-Sub VGA port, a DVI-D port, and an HDMI port. Depending on your CPU, 4K display support is provided here. The audio chipset, which by the way is the Realtek ALC1150, should account for some serious oomph; featuring a built-in rear audio amplifier and a 115dB SNR. The audio on this motherboard also features a separate analog and digital ground to protect against Electromagnetic Interference (EMI).
So how about installing some components onto this motherboard and firing it up for the first time? My thoughts, exactly!
