Introduction
Rear connector motherboards still account for a tiny fraction of current manufacturers’ product ranges and even fewer are found in sub ATX form factors. Case compatibility is growing, though, with several models we’ve looked at in the least few weeks offering the necessary motherboard tray cut-outs for models such as the Gigabyte B850M Aorus Stealth Ice we’re looking at today.
As its name suggests, though, the latest Project Stealth Socket AM5 motherboard (Gigabyte’s name for rear connector, like ASUS is BTF) is microATX, offering the company’s rear-connector design in a smaller form factor. If you’re new to rear connector motherboards, cases that offer rear connector support are compatible with all rear connector motherboard models, but manufacturers, such as Gigabyte, have decided to call rear connector ranges by different names.
This adds another precious option to consider if you want rear connectors with AMD Socket AM5 compatibility, but even more so in the microATX form factor, where you can use it with cases such as the NZXT H3 Flow and Jonsbo D32 STD. On an important side note, if you end up using a microATX rear connector motherboard in a rear connector ATX case, you’ll need to check specifications tables as some ATX rear connector cases do not support microATX rear connector motherboards. Thankfully, on paper, the B850M Aorus Stealth Ice seems to benefit from all the latest features from Wi-Fi 7, full PCIe Gen 5 support and a 512 Mbit (64 MB) BIOS so let’s see how it performs.
SpecificationsSpecificationsCPU Support:AMD Socket AM5 Ryzen 7000, 9000Power Design: CPU Power: 8-phase/Onsemi NCP302155R/60 A
SOC Power: 2-phase/Onsemi NCP302155R/60 A
MISC Power: 2-phase/Onsemi 4C10N/46 A Chipset:AMD B850Integrated Graphics: Supported
1× HDMI 2.1
1× DisplayPort 1.4 Memory: 4× DIMM, Support up to 256 GB
DDR5-8200 (OC) BIOS:512 Mbit (64 MB) AMI UEFIExpansion Slots: 1× PCIe Gen 5 x16 slot (x16, x8/x8, x8/x4/x4, x4/x4/x4/x4)
1× PCIe Gen 4 x16 slot (x4) Storage: 2× SATA 6 Gb/s
1× M.2 (PCIe Gen 5 x4)
2× M.2 (PCIe Gen 4 x4) Networking: 1× Realtek RTL8126 5 Gbps Ethernet
1× Realtek RTL8922AE Wi-Fi 7 Rear Ports: BIOS Flashback button
Clear CMOS button
Power button
Reset button
1× 5 Gbps Ethernet
1× HDMI 2.1
1x DisplayPort 1.4
1× USB 3.2 Gen 2 10 Gbps (Type-C)
1× USB 3.2 Gen 2 10 Gbps (Type-A)
4× USB 3.0 (Type-A)
4× USB 2.0 (Type-A)
1× Wi-Fi antenna connectors
2× Audio jacks
1× Optical S/PDIF Out port Audio:1× Realtek ALC1220 CodecFan / Thermistor headers:4× 4-pin/0× 2-pinForm Factor: microATX Form Factor
10.5 × 10.5 in./24.4 × 24.4 cm Exclusive Features:Wi-Fi EZ PlugM.2 EZ-Latch PlusM.2 EZ-Latch ClickPCIe EZ Latch PlusM.2 EZ-Flex Design