The ROG Crosshair X870E Glacial:
ASUS has once again expanded its range of AMD Crosshair motherboards with two new models: the ROG Crosshair X870E Dark Hero and the ROG Crosshair X870E Glacial. As a reminder, we’ve already had the opportunity to review two other models: the ROG Crosshair X870E Hero and the ROG Crosshair X870E Apex.
Until now, the “Glacial” series has been confined to Intel chipsets, but this is the first motherboard to be built around an AMD chipset! ASUS thus proves the current appeal of AMD motherboards with the popularity of the AMD Ryzen 9000X3D processor series. And if further proof were needed, ASUS has also, for the first time, offered its “Apex” series on an AMD chipset, with the ROG Crosshair X870E Apex.
Architecture:
This new ROG Crosshair X870E Glacial, announced at CES 2026, is architected around the new X870E chipset. It was unveiled at the launch of the new AMD Ryzen 9000 processors. As you may have guessed, the X870E chipset, which powers our sample of the day, is of course AMD’s top-of-the-range model.
The bundle:
The box takes up a design that we’re already familiar with, and which doesn’t deviate from what we’re used to seeing for motherboards in the ROG ” Republic Of Gamers ” series. The front panel features a white finish with some of the lettering in glossy black, giving it a raised, premium look.
The box is opened from the top to reveal this ROG Crosshair X870E Glacial. Two imposing foam blocks protect it from shifting during transport.
As soon as the box is opened, ROG highlights the new technologies on board the PCB of this Crosshair X870E Glacial: “M.2 Q-Release”, “M.2 Q-slide”, “M.2 Q-Latch” and “Q-Release”. ASUS has simplified the installation of NVMe drives with these features. These innovations allow the NVMe and its heatsink to be clipped in without the need for screws. This eliminates the difficulty of positioning heatsinks on screw threads. We’ll look at these technologies in more detail later in this article.
A slight change in the bundle ‘s location . It’s a drawer under the motherboard that you’ll have to pull out to reveal the various zones that house the accessories. And there are plenty of them! Let’s take a look at what we think are the most unusual in a motherboard bundle.
ROG has included a ROG Hyper M.2 card in its Glacial bundle, which can accommodate two M.2 Gen 5 SSDs that can operate at maximum specification without having to do without certain GPU channels. This card has already been included in some of ROG’s accessories, but only on Extreme versions.
As usual, ROG also offers a Q-DIMM 2 module with two M.2 Gen 4 SSD slots, each with its own dedicated slot right next to the four memory slots. Finally, and this is a new feature, there’s a fan to keep your memory kit cool, with no need for a power cable. We’ll explain everything a little further down.
The AM5 socket is still present:
There’s no change as far as the AM5 socket is concerned: AMD is continuing to use it, and has announced that it will remain compatible until at least 2027. Farewell to the AM4 PGA(Pin Grid Array) socket into which you used to clip your processor, and make way for the LGA(Land Grid Array) socket. This change has taken place since the AMD Ryzen 7000 processors, due to the larger number of pins on the Ryzen 7000 (1718).
AMD, with socket AM5, retains a backplate already present for socket AM4. The 4 external holes that hold the retention system to secure your cooling system are still present. The center-to-center distance between these four holes is identical to that of socket AM4, so you’ll still be able to use your cooling system.
AMD goes one step further and adds four additional holes to hold socket AM5 in place, but also to hold the backplate in place. This means that the backplate can no longer be removed, as was the case with the previous generation. The locking mechanism features a reinforcement frame, a force frame and a latch. Once your Ryzen 7000/9000 has been positioned correctly, simply close the latch to hold it in place.
A new connector can be seen to the right of the socket. This will be combined with your AIO to drastically reduce the number of cables. Please note that only one kit is currently compatible with this “AIO Q-Connector” technology: the ROG Strix LC IV.
The different heat sinks :
The board dimensions are 305 mm x 330 mm, corresponding to the E-ATX format. The dominant color on the PCB is white, with touches of silver. The presence of an “armor” on the rear of the PCB, whose purpose is to optimize cooling with thermal pads placed in particular at the level of the power supply stage.
Let’s begin the owner’s tour with the radiators, of which there are three!
First of all, the two radiators located on the top of the motherboard and covering the power supply stage. These two heat sinks are connected by not one, but two heat pipes. The cover features a five-inch color LCD screen, the largest we’ve seen to date. It can slide to the right so as not to be “hidden” if you have a fan on the back of your case.
You can customize the rendering via the “Aura Sync” application. We’re talking here about an entirely passive system, i.e. one that uses no pre-installed fans on the motherboard.
And it’s from this point on that you’ll understand the whole design of this ROG Crosshair X870E Glacial. You won’t need a screwdriver, as it features numerous magnetized panels that can be easily removed. Below, you can see the cover that has been removed to reveal the two CPU power connectors, the voltage measurement points and the fan connectors.
The third heat sink is the one that covers the two chipsets and some SSD slots. A first plate embossed with the ROG logo covers this heatsink, giving you access to the PCIe port at the same time. The height is low, simply to accommodate graphics cards. The following photos and the video on the first page will give you a better understanding of the principle.
DDR5 support and higher frequencies :
While DDR5 support has been assured since the arrival of the AM5 motherboards, it’s now getting better: thanks to the new BIOS, ROG has announced support for memory kits of up to 8,600 MT/s (OC) for the Ryzen 8000 and up to 192 GB. We’ll have a chance to evaluate this in our tests. The Crosshair X870E Dark Hero features four memory slots that benefit from the new “Nitropath DRAM” technology. This technology involves a physical modification of the RAM slot. The gold pins are shorter than those traditionally used, reducing signal noise on the slots. According to ASUS, this modification enables a 400 MHz gain in RAM overclocking. It would also considerably increase slot resistance during repeated RAM module changes.
We had already seen the arrival of “EXPO” technology on the previous generation. This is an alternative to the XMP profile on INTEL models. As a reminder, this profile allows you, via the BIOS, to automatically activate the characteristics of your memory kit: frequency, timings and voltage.
We were talking about the fan available in the bundle. To use it, all you have to do is remove the magnetic plate and clip it on. Based on the same principle as the “AIO Q-Connector” for powering the AIO ROG Strix LC IV, it will automatically be operational when the motherboard is powered up. It can be set either via BIOS or ROG software.
PCIe 5.0 support and three M.2 SSD slots :
Let’s start with the first memory slot, which benefits from “M.2 Q-Release” technology, enabling the heatsink to be removed with just a touch of the finger. Beneath this is the first slot for a PCIe 5.0 x4-compatible M.2 SSD, type 2242/2260/2280. The heatsink is very imposing, with an integrated 3D steam chamber.
If you’re a keen observer, you’ll have noticed that no PCIe slot is visible. In fact, you’ll have to remove the main magnet plate to reveal the first of the two available ports. These are wired in PCIe 5.0 x16 (x16 or x8/x8) and compatible with the Q-Release Switch.
This “switch” lets you lock and unlock the graphics card in its slot. It’s located right next to the memory fan slot. The central position is the locking position, while the other two allow you to release the PCIe slot into which your graphics card is inserted.
To discover the rest, let’s remove the second plate, which can also be removed with a simple press of the fingers. It reveals the second PCIe port, the two chipsets and two new storage slots.
The two M.2 SSD ports are 2242/2260/2280 PCIe 4.0 x4 compatible. As you can see, ROG has pushed the detail right down to the design of the two imposing heat sinks responsible for keeping the chipsets cool.
