With the Z77X-UD5H-WB WiFi, Gigabyte has a very well equipped motherboard in its portfolio. This allrounder board offers many features like for example WiFi support, a powerful powerdesign and there is even a complete set of overclocking features. This board really brings everything that is needed to become a convincing product. 
On the following pages we're going to show you if Gigabyte succeeding in convincing us with their brand new Z77X-UD5H-WB Wifi regarding layout and design.
| Page 1 - Introduction | Page 4 - Connectors and I/O |
| Page 2 - Specifications / Delivery | Page 5 - Conclusion |
| Page 3 - Layout |
Discuss this article in the forums
[pagebreak]
Specifications / Delivery
| CPU | Intel Socket 1155 |
| Chipset | Intel Z77 |
| Memory | 4 x DIMM max 32 GB, DDR3 2400 (OC) / 1600 / 1333 /
1066 MHz Dual Channel |
| Multi-GPU | NVIDIA 2-Way (16x, 8x) SLI AMD 2-Way (16x, 8x) CorssFireX |
| Slots | 1 x PCI-Express 3.0/2.0 x16 @ x16 1 x PCI-Express 3.0/2.0 x16 @ x8 1 x PCI-Express 3.0/2.0 x16 @ x4 3 x PCI-Express 2.0 x1 1 x PCI |
| Audio | Realtek ALC 898 8-Channel |
| Storage | 2 x SATA3 6.0 Gb/s (Intel Chipset, RAID 0, 1, 5, 0+1) 4 x SATA2 3.0 Gb/s 1 x mSATA2 3.0 Gb/s (The fifth SATA2 connector will become unavailable when a mSATA device is installed) 3 x SATA 6.0 Gb/s (2x Marvell 88SE9172, RAID 0, 1) 1 x eSATA 6Gb/s |
| LAN | 1 x Qualcomm Atheros LAN chip (10/100/1000 Mbit) (LAN1) 1 x Intel GbE LAN (10/100/1000 Mbit) (LAN2) |
| I/O internal | |
| I/O Back Panel | |
| Bundle | |
| Formfactor | ATX (30.5cm x 24.4 cm) |
| Warranty | 5 years |
| On Manufacturer's Website | Gigabyte Z77X-UD5H-WB WiFi |
| BIOS | 2 x Bios (64 Mbit flash ROM, EFI AMI BIOS) |
Uboxing the Z77X-UD5H-WB WiFi shows a lot of accessories. Next to a set of SATA cables one will find an SLI bridge as well as a 3.5 inch front mount panel with two USB 3.0 ports. Furhtermore there are the different manuals, the wireless LAN and bluetooth expansion card as well as software and drivers on DVD.
Features
| 3D Power | Meanwhile Gigabyte also makes use of digital power designs on their motherboards. What it does is that it controls the flow of power to both CPU and memory. Gigabyte in this case promises maximum stability. |
| 3D BIOS | With their X79 motherboards Gigabyte introduced their interpretation of a UEFI-BIOS. With the Z77 boards you get the same 3D BIOS. Using a new Gigabyte board you can choose from a 3D Mode or the Advanced Mode. In 3D Mode one can see a picture of the board in BIOS. If you hover over the different areas you can select them and afterwards change the related settings. On the other hand there is the more standard advanced mode which come with a well-known tab based user interface. |
| PCI Epxress 3.0 | The Z77X-UD5H already has PCI-Express 3.0 Support onboard. Therefore this board is ready for upcoming GPU generations that need even more bandwidth. |
| Bluetooth 4.0 and WiFi | The motherboard also includes an exclusive PCIe expansion card that offers support for the latest Bluetooth 4.0 and IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n Wi-Fi connectivity. The Bluetooth 4.0 standard includes Smart Ready technology that is debuting on mobile devices including the Apple iPhone 4s. This means that transferring important content from your smart phone or tablet is easier and faster than ever. |
| Page 1 - Introduction | Page 4 - Connectors and I/O |
| Page 2 - Specifications / Delivery | Page 5 - Conclusion |
| Page 3 - Layout |
Discuss this article in the forums
[pagebreak]
Layout
The Gigabyte Z77X-UD5H-WB comes on a black PCB with the blue coolers and black expansion slots. The layout itself has been well thought and there is for example plenty of space around the CPU socket to install even todays largest CPU coolers. There also are angled SATA connectors which let you install oversized graphics cards easily.
Gigabyte equipped the Gigabyte Z77X-UD5H-WB WiFi with a 15 (6x2 + 2 + 1) phase power design for the processor. In fact there are six times two phases for vcore, two phases for IGP (Integrated Graphic Processor) and finally one phase for IMC (Integrated Memory Controller)/VTT. As for the other components, the memory benefits power from two phases, the PCH - also known as southbridge - is powered by one single phase. Futhermore there is the additional PLX chip which gets another phase and the last phase in charge of the power deliviery to the I/O components.
Totally you'll find four DIMM-slots on the Gigabyte Z77X-UD5H-WB WiFi. Officially supported are the following clock speeds: 2400 / 1600 / 1333 / 1066 MHz. There is also enough space between the DIMM-slots and the CPU socket which means that you won't encounter compatibility issues with tower coolers even when you choose to install RAM with big heatspreaders. Meanwhile with a double tower cooler you may find some incompatibility issues with high end memory that ships with huge heatspreaders.
On the Gigabyte Z77X-UD5H-WB WiFi southbridge as well as VRM are being cooled via passive cooling blocks that are connected to eachother via heatpipes. The coolers for the VRM are well positioned and also around the DIMM slots there is plenty of space. Therefore no cooler will collide with one of the onboard components.
| Page 1 - Introduction | Page 4 - Connectors and I/O |
| Page 2 - Specifications / Delivery | Page 5 - Conclusion |
| Page 3 - Layout |
Discuss this article in the forums
[pagebreak]
Connectors and I/O
Totally Gigabyte equipped the Z77X with eight
angled SATA ports on one straight port, located at the bottom edge of the board.
This is enough for every office PC, gaming rig or overclocking setup.
Furthremore you can see the audio area, which has been separated from the the
main PCB to avoid noise signals.
At the top right corner of the motherboard we were happy to find a useful clear
CMOS button as well as a reset and power button. Also located in the same area
you will find the LED debug display that is very practical if you experience any
hardware issues. There are even voltage reading points in this area, which are
useful for us extreme overclockers. As for the bottom part of the motherboard
you will be able to find additional connectors and a bios switch as
well.
Totally you'll find five fan headers on the Gigabyte Z77X-UD5H-WB WiFi which is more than enough to provide an overclocking rig or even a high-end gaming machine with plenty of fresh air. The fan headers are located around the CPU and their also spread over the entire board which makes it easy to access from any position in an enclosure.
Looking at the external connectors directly at the back-panel Gigabyte equipped the Z77X-UD5H with four USB 3.0 ports, two USB 2.0 ports, two RJ45 connectors, an optical out as well as an analogue audio panel. Furhtermore you'll also find video connectors like VGA, DVI, HDMI and DisplayPort connectors.
| Page 1 - Introduction | Page 4 - Connectors and I/O |
| Page 2 - Specifications / Delivery | Page 5 - Conclusion |
| Page 3 - Layout |
Discuss this article in the forums
[pagebreak]
Conclusion
| Allgemein | + | - | |
| The Gigabyte Z77X-UD5H-WB WiFi leaves a good impression and so far we really like it. Opening the box shows a good delivery. There really is everything you need. With the WiFi card there even is a nice addition which enables wireless connectivity. Generally this is a nice looking board which also comes with many overclocking features. There are for example voltage readout point, power, reset and CLR COMS button. Overall this is a really versatile board. | - Layout - Bundle - Design |
||
| Layout | + | - | |
|
Generally the Gigabyte Z77X-UD5H-WB WiFi has been very well thought lyout. You will find everything that is practical and useful like for example reset/power/clear_cmos buttons as well as a BIOS switch, voltage reading points, a Debug LED Post Code display. Once more practical are also the angled SATA connectors and finally one legacy PCI slot which can still be very useful nowadays. Furthermore we found two PCI Express x1 slots below the first full size PCI Express slot. If you should think about an SLI or CrossFire setup the cards will be well ventilated. |
- SLI/CrossFireX - Onboard buttons - Debug LED Post Code - Voltage reading points - Legacy PCI |
||
| Page 1 - Introduction | Page 4 - Connectors and I/O |
| Page 2 - Specifications / Delivery | Page 5 - Conclusion |
| Page 3 - Layout |
Discuss this article in the forums