GIGABYTE X99-Gaming 5 (Intel X99) Motherboard Review

Temperature and Power Consumption

System power usage is measured at the AC/DC PSU (the Corsair AX1200i) which I have connected to another system to measure the test system and as a backup I have a wall meter to verify. The CPU power is measured through the 8-pin connect which is hooked up to a hall effect IC which measures current and puts out a voltage in proportion to the current. That voltage is logged by a National Instruments ADC which logs the DC voltage level, which I then convert into current.

Note on Thermal Images: In the temperature section we use our Seek thermal imaging camera to capture the surface temperatures of major components on the board; I look at the VRM and then all other things that light up the screen. If there is something to worry about then I will state it, otherwise I will just show the hotter running parts of the board for fun. Unless some component is over 80-90C then there really isn't anything to worry about.

All systems will act differently, so I will look for commonalities, such as how far from the VRM the heat spreads through the PCB and the difference in temperature between the PCB and the chokes. Keep in mind that the majority of the heat from the VRM goes into the PCB as it is a giant soldered on copper heat sink.

These were taken at stock speeds, on the left while idle and on the right while loaded.

These images are during full load at stock clocks. Heat is aimed at the center of the small 6 phase VRM, yet things don't get too hot. Temperature on top is 1C above the temperature on the back of the PCB.

These are the images of the VRM up close in idle conditions at a 4.5GHz OC, the system isn't being loaded, but EIST is disabled. The top of the VRM is hotter than the underside, meaning that the heat is being moved away and dissipated before it moves to the back of the PCB.

These pictures were taken at 4.5GHz full load. 53C/50C are pretty good temperatures for such a tiny VRM with such a high current draw. The temperature difference means that the heat sink is picking up a lot of the heat and moving it away from the components.