GIGABYTE Z490 Gaming X (Intel LGA1200/Z490/ATX/2xM.2/Realtek ALC892/Intel LAN/SATA 6Gb/s/USB 3.2 Gen 2/HDMI/Gaming Motherboard)

Originally I was going to purchase a B460 for my i7-10700 (non-K). However, I saw this on sale at Amazon Warehouse for $100. It was listed as "Used - Very Good", but I have heard great things about Amazon Warehouse, so I decided to try my luck. Later, it was discounted to $80, which is absolutely insane for a Z490 board. Unfortunately, Amazon doesn't do price-matching with itself anymore, so I had to buy it again at the lower price and return the first one, but Amazon's return process through Kohl's is very easy and straightforward.When I opened the package, which was beat but not really damaged, the motherboard actually looked brand new to me. I don't think the anti-static packaging was ever opened, so the motherboard itself seemed to be in pristine condition: not a single scratch or fingerprint, and the CPU socket protector seems to have been untouched. All the accessories were included as well. If you told me that it was brand new, I would have absolutely believed you. If you've bought used hardware before, this is NOT what second-hand hardware looks like, no matter how well you clean it.Now onto the board itself. It is an entry-level Z490 board, so you should have your expectations in place.It's a solid budget board. The VRMs are pretty good, according to Hardware Unboxed. It does what a budget board does best, which is to be reliable and not get in the way of what you want to do. As it says in the specs, it has 4 RAM slots and Intel Gbe, which are both pretty good. It's got two PCIe x16 slots if you want to run dual graphics cards in 2021 for some reason. It has debug LEDs which is helpful in figuring out boot errors.There is only a single CPU fan header, although in the BIOS it seems that you can configure SYSFAN headers to be controlled by CPU temp, effectively making it a CPU header if you have a dual fan CPU cooler with no Y-splitter. Finally, I couldn't get it to boot with the first PCIe x16 slot, and needed to use integrated graphics for the first boot for some reason. I'm not sure why this is, but if you have an -F suffix CPU, this might be a problem (although I am not totally sure why this was an issue on my board in the first place).

I needed an inexpensive board for my mining rig and this gets the job done! Im able to plug 7 graphic cards into this board! (2 of them being with the help of m2 to pci adapters) Ive been running my rig for months with no problems from the board. Got this for 100 for Amazaon warehouse.....great deal!Forgot to add, if your using this for mining. The very top m.2 slot does not work with the m.2 to pcie adapter! I knew this from reading a review before my purchase so i wasnt surprised. You can use the bottom to m.2 spaces for the adapter. Also you do not need to use the sata cable that comes with the m.2 to pcie adapter to power them. It powers itself. I love this board because i never had to do any real bios configuration. I bought it, updated bios, turned power to Always on and its been great with mining ever since. If i ever set up another rig ill def look for this board.Im using a 13-10100 cpu, 8 gb 3200mhz memory, evga gold 450 watt psu to power the board and hard drive. My cards are powered by server power supplies and chain linked with the evga psu for synchronization. So i cant speak on how this board performs for gaming or anything else, but for mining its perfect. Especially if you grab one of those amazon marketplace deals!

The GIGABYTE Z490 Gaming X is a high-performance motherboard designed for gaming enthusiasts. It comes with a robust Intel LGA1200 socket that supports 10th Gen Intel Core processors, ensuring maximum processing power for high-end games and demanding applications. With two M.2 slots, the motherboard offers super-fast storage options for games, applications, and other data. It also features Realtek ALC892 audio and Intel LAN for high-quality audio and stable network connectivity. The motherboard supports USB 3.2 Gen 2 and HDMI ports, making it highly compatible with modern peripherals. Overall, the GIGABYTE Z490 Gaming X is an excellent choice for gamers who want a reliable and feature-packed motherboard that delivers top-notch performance.

Great motherboard. It is a little pricey however easy to setup and does the job well. With this model you do not have to install an i/o shield as it is already pre-installed and you just simply plug-in play.Not really sure why there are so many "CPU" power ports at the top left, I used what the psu had and it worked fine. I think there are a lot of ports you won't used because it supports so many different countries and versions of things. Well worth the purchase. Running like a champ.