AMD’s latest Ryzen 7000 CPUs are finally here – and here at PremiumBuilds, we have spent some time with the new mid-range Ryzen 5 7600X – the next newest Ryzen 5 CPU offering from AMD based on their Zen 4 architecture.

If you’re looking to build a system with the Ryzen 5 7600X, or any new Ryzen 7000 CPU for that matter, you’re going to need to heavily upgrade or spend a pretty penny on a new system as these new CPUs are are based on their AM5 platform. This new platform brings a plethora of new trick features – including DDR5 and PCIe 5.0 support.

In this guide, we’re going to take you through some of the best motherboards for the Ryzen 5 7600X – including options for the best overall, budget, mid-range, high-end and overclocking motherboards to pair with the Ryzen 5 7600X.

In addition, we’ll take you through some of the key factors and considerations to take in mind when picking a motherboard for the Ryzen 5 7600X – so if your specific requirements are a little bit more bespoke, you’ll be able to do the research and knowledge to find the perfect motherboard for your new Ryzen 5 7600X system.

With that said, here are the best motherboards for AMD’s Ryzen 5 7600X for 2023.

Best Motherboards for Ryzen 5 7600X – Our Recommendations

1. Best Overall Motherboard for Ryzen 5 7600X – Asus Prime X670-Pro WiFi

Starting with our overall favorite motherboard to pair with the 7600X comes from Asus, with their Prime X670-Pro WiFi. Being a X670 chipset, this motherboard comes in the lower price point than some of its MSI rivals (>$1000!) but comes with plenty of features that will handle everything the Ryzen 5 7600X will throw at it. With a 14+2 Phase 70A VRM with an impressive heatsink for thermal dissipation, this motherboard is perfect for overclocking the Ryzen 5 7600X. Other features include an extensive I/O with USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type-C support, WiFi 6E, 4 DIMM slots as well as 6 SATA slots. This is a great AM5 motherboard that doesn’t break the bank but offers plenty of performance and connectivity for any Ryzen 5 7600X system.

2. Best Budget Motherboard for Ryzen 5 7600X – ASRock B650M PG Riptide

This is the cheapest motherboard you can use to build a Ryzen 5 7600X system, and boy does it perform for the money. This newest B650 chipset motherboard packs a punch in its micro-ATX form factor and has an impressive 12+2+1 phase VRM, with support up to 6200MHz DDR5, dual PCIe 4.0 support. We’re not happy about the presence of the ALC897 codec, but we think this is outweighed by the solid VRM performance and features making this great for any budget Ryzen 5 7600X system.

3. Best Mid-Range Motherboard for Ryzen 5 7600X – MSI B650 Tomahawk WiFi

If you’re looking for a mid-range motherboard to pair with the Ryzen 5 7600X, the MSI B650 Tomahawk WiFi is the best current option to go for from the AM5 offerings. With most B650 motherboards, you’re really able to build an overkill system but its easy to overspend with these new AM5 motherboards with the price nudging up with each generation. With the B650 Tomahawk WiFi – you get a solid range of features, a overkill 14+2+1 phase VRM design with a oversized VRM heatsink to match. The only downside is that this motherboard doesn’t have support for M2 Gen5 support – so if you’re looking to build a system with this, look for another alternative!

4. Best High-End Motherboard for Ryzen 5 7600X – Asus ROG Strix X670E-E Gaming

When building a high-end system for the Ryzen 5 7600X – we have strong recommendations for pairing this CPU with the Asus ROG Strix X670E-E Gaming. This motherboard is perfect for overclocking with its unmatched 18+2 VRM design with 110A power stages and decent capacitors – kept cool with 2 oversized VRM heatsinks and dissipation features. With support up to PCIe Gen 5 on 2 slots and 3 M2 Gen5 – this motherboard for the 7600X is not short of storage performance. 13 rear ports on the I/O and a S1220A codec and ALC4080 codec help round off this motherboard to be one of the best all-round and high-end picks when picking a high-end motherboard for the Ryzen 5 7600X

5. Best ITX Motherboard for Ryzen 5 7600X – Asus ROG B650E-I Gaming WiFi

If you’re lucky to get your hands on one of these, then we recommend building a ITX 7600X system with the Asus B650-I Gaming WiFi. Whilst the ASRock ITX counterpart has a better VRM design compared to the Asus’ 10-stage 70A VRM, this motherboard is packed with great rear I/O connectivity, DDR5 support up to 6400 MT/s+ and overall feature set is why it gets our pick for the best ITX motherboard for the Ryzen 5 7600X

The post 5 Best Motherboards for the Ryzen 5 7600X appeared first on PremiumBuilds.

The Ryzen 3000 series of CPUs can still offer competitive performance for the budget-conscious builder. The Ryzen 5 3600 is a 6 core 12 thread processor that boasts clock speeds ranging from 3.6GHz all of the way up to 4.2GHz with some tweaking and simple overclocking. With a rock-bottom TDP of 65W, this fast CPU can deliver high frames and speedy workstation performance without spiking your internal case temperature. That low power draw makes this previous generation CPU an alluring buy for those looking to get enough power out of an SFF (small form factor) build or those looking to save additional cost on their PSU. 

Enthusiasts can take further advantage of this powerful little processor with new generation motherboards that can support the newer PCIe 4.0 technology. While those differences may be minimal at this price and performance bracket, builders will find the Ryzen 5 3600’s vast compatibility options and robust feature set a solid pairing with new generation B550 and previous generation B450 motherboards. This guide lays out the four best motherboards for the budget, enthusiast, mini-ITX, and micro-ATX builds with the Ryzen 5 3600.

Related: List of AM4 Motherboards with USB BIOS Flashback (for Zen 2 compatibility)

Best Motherboards for Ryzen 5 3600 – Our Recommendations

Award	Model	Design	VRM
Best Entry-Level Motherboard for Ryzen 5 3600	MSI B450 Tomahawk		6 Phase (4+2)
Best High-Performance Motherboard for Ryzen 5 3600	MSI MPG X570 Gaming Pro Carbon Wi-Fi		12 Phase (10+2)
Best mini-ITX Motherboard for Ryzen 5 3600	ASRock B550M-ITX		8 Phase (6+2)
Best micro-ATX Motherboard for Ryzen 5 3600	ASRock B550M PRO 4		8 Phase (6+2)

Best Entry-Level Motherboard for Ryzen 5 3600

The MSI B450 Tomahawk; this board offers excellent price-to-performance, at just under $100, given its range of features, connectivity, and best-in-class VRM quality.

MSI has nailed their B450 lineup, with the B450 Tomahawk leading its price bracket with the best VRM cooling of any B450 motherboard out there – which makes it ideal for overclocking the Ryzen 5 3600 on a budget. Only its bigger brother, the MSI B450 Gaming Pro Carbon AC, has better VRM cooling than the B450 Tomahawk. Still, considering the low TDP of the Ryzen 5 3600 and 3600X, either of these motherboards is almost overkill.

Connectivity-wise, the B450 Tomahawk has USB Type C, 6 SATA ports, and 4 DIMM slots supporting up to 128GB of 3466MHz memory.

Drawbacks here are small but present nonetheless, with no VCore offset function, and only a single M.2 slot where most other B450 ATX motherboards have at least two.

Best High-Performance Motherboard for Ryzen 5 3600

It’s not necessary to take the leap directly from a B450 board up to a premium board with an X570 chipset like the MSI MPG X570 Gaming Pro Carbon Wi-Fi. However, this board comes with a premium feature list that sets it well above the other contenders on this list. Not only does this full ATX motherboard support PCIe 4.0 technology, but it can also deliver exceptional LAN and Wi-Fi speeds with both Wi-Fi 6 and 2.5G networking built-in. 

This premium-class board supports GPU SLI, custom water cooling, dual Gen 4 M.2 drives, up to 128 GB of DDR4 memory, and it has a jam-packed I/O with all of the connectors an enthusiast needs. The I/O has five USB 3.2 ports, a USB C port, high-definition audio connectors, a handy BIOS flash button, and a couple of additional USB 2.0 ports. This board is equipped with Mystic Sync RGB that can, as the name implies, sync with any other RBG device or fans you may have in your rig. The extended heatsink and onboard “Frozr” fan ensure that your components operate at optimal temperatures. With a steep price set at right around $179, this premium board is meant for only the most serious gamers and professionals out there.

Best mini-ITX Motherboard for Ryzen 5 3600

Building a small form factor machine doesn’t mean that you can’t take advantage of the same premium features that come with full-sized ATX boards. Well, unless you plan to rig up a GPU SLI configuration, but that technology is on the way out in terms of support anyway. ASRock’s B550M-ITX motherboard offers an impressive feature set in a compact size. The B550 chipset means that this motherboard can take full advantage of PCIe 4.0 as well as run the newer 5000 series CPUs with a simple BIOS flash for those that plan to upgrade down the line. 

With form factor in mind, this board offers dual-band 802.11ac Wi-Fi and gigabit LAN, which makes it easy to pick the system up and take it on the go. This B550 board even supports Gen 4 Hyper M.2 and has an included heatsink. Those features are often seen on higher-end X570 boards, so having those features on this B550 board is luxury. 

The I/O has six USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports, a rear type-C port, and ports for 7.1 CH HD audio. While it may lack some of the more expansive features that full ATX boards offer, the ASRock B550M-ITX packs a lot of punch at the low price point of $129.

Related: Best mini ITX cases for Small Form Factor builds

Best mATX Motherboard for Ryzen 5 3600

ASRock knows how to make a high-quality and affordable small form factor board. The ASRock B550M PRO 4 supports PCIe 4.0, Zen 2 & 3 Ryzen CPUs, SLI GPU configurations, and it has four DIMM slots capable of handling DDR4 memory with speeds over 4700MHz. Packing all of those features into an mATX board was no easy feat. The sleek white and black metal finish will make this board look at home in any micro-build. 

Unfortunately, this board does lack Wi-Fi. It has speedy gigabit LAN built-in, but enthusiasts on the go will want to pick up an external Wi-Fi card. Thankfully, this board has plenty of room for those expansions with the additional PCIe connection. 

The ASRock B550M PRO 4 also supports dual 4.0 M.2s that can be kept running fast and cool with the included heatsinks. Builders will be able to enjoy Nahimic audio with optional HDMI output, Polychrome RBG, and an impressive array of I/O connections. You get 2 USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports, a USB C port, and a solid array of eight USB 3.2 GEN 1 ports. This board has plenty of options for expandability despite its small size and even smaller price point at just $109.

Summary

The Ryzen 5 3600 is a bit of a game-changer, as it opens the door for a lot more users to 6c/12t processors than ever before. With this level of price-to-performance supported by platforms that are just as feature-filled and low-cost as the unit that drives them, it’s hard to say “no,” to Team Red these days.

Best Entry-Level: MSI B450 Tomahawk – Excellent VRM and feature-set at an extremely modest price.

Best High-Performance: MSI MPG X570 Gaming PRO Carbon Wi-Fi – One of the most robust VRM solutions in the X570 lineup, coupled with a comprehensive feature set and USB Type C support – this is a great motherboard pairing for the Ryzen 5 3600 in high-end builds.

Best mini-ITX: ASRock B550M-ITX – this ITX B550 motherboard packs a lot of punch at just $129 – with a decent feature set, VRM, BIOS flash inbuilt as well as type-C support.

Best mATX: ASRock B550M Pro4 – A great feature-set micro-ATX motherboard for the Ryzen 5 3600. Plenty of expansion options, RGB, a decent I/O – this board has plenty of options despite its small size and even smaller price point.

Have you recently built a system with the Ryzen 5 3600? Let us know in the comments below, and thanks for reading!

• Related: Best CPU Coolers for the Ryzen 5 3600
• Related: Best Graphics Cards to Pair with the Ryzen 5 3600
• Related: Best RTX 2060 Super Aftermarket Cards

The post Best Motherboards for Ryzen 5 3600 Builds appeared first on PremiumBuilds.

To put things bluntly, Intel should be pretty shook by the upcoming Zen 3 processors from AMD, especially considering the Ryzen 7 5800X. There’s still no telling if Zen 3 will have any worthwhile overclocking headroom to speak of, but even if the eight-core/sixteen thread 5800X is flat out incapable of boosting past 4.7GHz, it spells trouble for Intel’s current flagship 10900K.

AMD has boasted roughly 20% instructions per clock (IPC) improvement for Zen 3 over Zen 2 thanks to their new architecture and L3 cache restructure. This means that, despite the 5800X having fewer cores and slower clock speeds than the 10900K, it may not matter in the face of superior technology on a smaller process. Worst of all, for Intel, the 5800X will be nearly $100 cheaper than the 10900K.

Even though we’re due for an announcement of Intel’s 11^th Generation CPUs, the fact that they’re still stuck on 14nm, compared to AMD on 7nm, there’s no guarantee that Intel will be able to maintain their last bastion: gaming performance. AMD isn’t pulling any punches, and they may very well end up with another crown.

Of course, we will have to wait until Zen 3 and Rocket Lake are both out (and Intel is holding off until next year) to see how they truly stack up. Regardless, the 5800X might not be the guaranteed best bet, but it’s guaranteed to be a damn good one. So if you’re placing that bet, today we’re going to help you also place your order for the best motherboards depending on your preferred style of build.

Best Motherboards for Ryzen 7 5800X – Our Recommendations

Award	Motherboard	Design	VRM	Price
Best Entry-Level Motherboard for Ryzen 7 5800X	Gigabyte B550 Aorus Pro AC		50A 14 Phase (12+2)	$180
Best Overall Motherboard for Ryzen 7 5800X	Asus ROG STRIX X570-E Gaming		60A 16 Phase (12+4)	$300
Best High-Performance Motherboard for Ryzen 7 5800X	MSI MEG X570 Ace		60A 15 Phase (12+2+1)	$360
Best mATX Motherboard for Ryzen 7 5800X	Asus TUF Gaming B550M-Plus (Wi-Fi)		50A 10 Phase (8+2)	$175
Best mini-ITX Motherboard for Ryzen 7 5800X	Asus ROG STRIX X570-I Gaming		70A 10 Phase (8+2)	$250

Best Entry-Level Motherboard for Ryzen 7 5800X

Perhaps you’re not only eyeing a brand new 5800X, but you’re interested in a brand-new chipset as well. Thanks to B550, builders have the option to save a bit of money (or opt-out of the slightly more extensive PCIe 4.0 and connectivity support) they’d potentially waste on an X570 platform. That is where the Gigabyte B550 Aorus Pro AC comes in!

B550 motherboards are somewhat restrictive due to having only a PCIe 3.0 link between the CPU and chipset, where X570 has PCIe 4.0. While you still get PCIe 4.0 lanes from your CPU, the lower bandwidth PCIe 3.0 chipset link forces motherboard manufacturers to sacrifice some features in favor of others, chief among them being rear I/O USB connectivity. Some B550 motherboards only have a total of 5 USB ports on their rear I/O, with maybe a couple of USB 3.2 Gen 2 or Gen 1 ports. However, a handful of B550 boards prioritize the rear I/O, especially the B550 Aorus Pro AC, which is usually the deciding factor when determining the best B550 options.

Featured on the B550 Aorus Pro AC are 50A Power Stages, a direct 14 Phase VRM (12+2), support for up to 128GB DDR4-5200MHz memory, 2x M.2 slots (1x PCIe 4.0 x4), Intel AC 3168 Wi-Fi + Bluetooth 4.2, Realtek 2.5G LAN + ALC1220-VB Audio CODEC, 3x USB 3.2 Gen 2 (1 is Type-C), 3x USB 3.2 Gen 1 + 6x USB 2.0 ports, 6x SATA III 6Gb/s ports, an internal USB 3.2 Gen 1 header, and BIOS Flashback.

At $190, the B550 Aorus Pro AC manages to pack some impressive connectivity options, on top of a real finned VRM heatsink and integrated I/O shield, into a package that lives up to the stellar design and build quality of the Aorus name. If you’re looking for a reliable platform to get the job done in gaming and light productivity work, the B550 Aorus Pro AC won’t disappoint.

Best Overall Motherboard for Ryzen 7 5800X

The 5800X, if the 3800X was any indicator, should be a powerhouse in workstation tasks but should also be exceptional for gaming, and one of the best overall homes for it is the Asus ROG STRIX X570-E Gaming for $300.

The X570-E Gaming is another remarkable entry to Asus’s ever-popular ROG STRIX series. ROG/STRIX components have always offered top-tier features and performance and some of the best proprietary software solutions, user interfaces, and build quality, all complimented by strong design language.

The X570-E Gaming offers 60A Power Stages, a 16 Phase VRM (12+4), support for up to 128GB DDR4-4400MHz memory, 2x PCIe 4.0 M.2 slots, Intel Gigabit LAN + AX200 Wi-Fi 6 + Bluetooth 5.0, Realtek 2.5G LAN, SupremeFX S1220A Audio CODEC, 8x USB 3.2 Gen 2 (1 is Type-C) ports, 8x SATA III 6Gb/s ports, 1x USB 3.2 Gen 2 + 1x USB 3.2 Gen 1 internal headers, BIOS Flashback, and a POST code readout.

Asus has been one of the most popular and premier PC hardware manufacturers for what seems like an eternity for one main reason; consistency. Of course, every company makes mistakes or missteps here and there, but it’s no coincidence Asus controlled at least 45% of the market share in the motherboard market (2017-2019). You’re always going to find rock-solid motherboard options in nearly any Asus lineup, and the X570-E Gaming is one of the best overall X570 motherboards available for the 5800X.

If you’re not fond of Asus for some reason, or if you’re specifically looking for features like onboard Power/Reset and Clear CMOS buttons, check out the MSI MEG X570 Unify for the same price!

Best High-Performance Motherboard for Ryzen 7 5800X

When it comes to enthusiast-class X570 motherboards, at least ones that won’t cost you a month’s worth of utility bills, you have only a few options, all with relatively similar features and pricing. Today, our award for the best high-performance motherboard for the Ryzen 7 5800X goes to the MSI MEG X570 Ace. The X570 Ace certainly isn’t the king of the hill over the Gigabyte X570 Aorus Xtreme regarding VRM thermals, but that board costs $700. Further, if you want that highest tier VRM for AMD with a cheaper price tag by opting for their B550 Aorus Master, you end up losing out on the bandwidth/connectivity of an X570 chipset. Hence our decision, because MSI’s X570 Ace is one of the most popular, well-reviewed, and well-rounded enthusiast X570 motherboards ($350-$700) with arguably the best balance of features, build quality, and aesthetic design.

Here, $370 nets you 60A Power Stages, a 15 Phase VRM (12+2+1), support for up to 128GB DDR4-5000MHz memory, 3x PCIe 4.0 M.2 slots, Intel Gigabit LAN + AX200 Wi-Fi 6 + Bluetooth 5.0, Realtek 2.5G LAN + ALC1220 Audio CODEC, 4x USB 3.2 Gen 2 (1 is Type-C) + 2x USB 3.2 Gen 1 + 2x USB 2.0 ports, 4x SATA III 6Gb/s ports, an internal USB 3.2 Gen 2 header, onboard Power/Reset buttons, Clear CMOS + BIOS Flashback buttons, and a POST code readout.

The X570 Ace is one of only two platforms MSI didn’t decide neglect after the release of X570 about a year ago. Many of the options priced under the Ace at the time, like the Gaming Edge Carbon and Gaming Edge (Wi-Fi), had worrisome issues with thermal throttling, even for some Zen 2 chips! However, MSI eventually addressed those issues and, as a response, released their MEG X570 Unify, which is essentially a slightly more affordable, blacked-out version of the Ace. If you want one of the sleekest and most potent X570 motherboards on the market, though, consider MSI with their “ace in the hole” .

Best mATX Motherboard for Ryzen 7 5800X

mATX motherboards are overlooked and underappreciated. It’s a disservice and a tragedy that we don’t see as many high-end mATX options as we should. Until recently, there was only one mATX option for the X570 chipset from ASRock, and it was mediocre at best. Thankfully, with the release of the new B550 chipset, we now have access to several mATX Ryzen motherboards with great VRMs, and the best of the bunch is the $180 Asus TUF Gaming B550M-Plus (Wi-Fi).

The B550M-Plus (Wi-Fi) comes with 50A Power Stages, a 10 Phase VRM (8+2), support for up to 128GB DDR4-4600MHz memory, 2x M.2 slots (1x PCIe 4.0 x4), Intel AX200 Wi-Fi 6 + Bluetooth 5.0, Realtek 2.5G LAN + ALC S1200A Audio CODEC, 2x USB 3.2 Gen 2 (1 is Type-C) + 4x USB 3.2 Gen 1 + 2x USB 2.0 ports, 4x SATA III 6Gb/s ports, and BIOS Flashback.

Despite the general disinterest in mATX compared to full-sized ATX and mini-ITX PCs, mATX can offer the best of both worlds. You can reduce your rig’s overall size from standard ATX while avoiding much of the hassle associated with the extensive hardware compatibility research and tedious build process required for most mini-ITX systems. Now, thanks to Asus and their ubiquitous TUF Gaming series, we have a spectacular mATX motherboard that’s capable of driving even a 5950X. However, it may not keep up with any serious overclocking if Zen 3 turns out to have some headroom to play with, which Zen 2 essentially didn’t, so keep that in mind. But, if you’re itching to shrink your footprint and you don’t want a shoebox PC, the B550M-Plus (Wi-Fi) offers some of the best mATX VRM quality and USB connectivity for Ryzen CPUs to date, making it the clear winner for those looking at the 5800X.

Best mini-ITX Motherboard for Ryzen 7 5800X

While we may not ever experience the same sort of droughts for mini-ITX motherboards that we do for mATX, there’s quite often one option to choose from each of the major manufacturers. Today, we’ve chosen the Asus ROG STRIX X570-I Gaming for $250.

Asus has managed to cram an impressive feature-set onto this little guy with; 70A Power Stages, a 10 Phase VRM (8+2) with active cooling, support for up to 64GB of DDR4-4800MHz memory, 2x PCIe 4.0 M.2 slots, Intel Gigabit LAN + AX200 Wi-Fi 6 + Bluetooth 5.0, SupremeFX S1220A Audio CODEC, 4x USB 3.2 Gen 2 (1 is Type-C) + 4x USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports, and 4x SATA III 6Gb/s ports.

Not only does the STRIX X570-I have competitive VRM performance for ITX AM4 motherboards overall, but it also sports some of the best rear I/O USB connectivity and memory overclocking support. Builders who want the best possible SFF (small form factor) PC for high-end Ryzen CPUs like the 5800X, you cannot go wrong with the X570-I Gaming.

Summary

AMD continues to dominate the CPU market with Zen 3, and based on their consistent and dramatic improvements, things might start to get tense in the GPU market later this year when Big Navi finally drops. Even though Zen 3 brought a price hike, the performance improvements more than justify an additional $50 on top of what was already a reasonable ask for each tier of Ryzen. However you feel about any PC hardware company, competition is almost always a marvelous thing. We have tons of crazy developments headed our way for at least the next few years because of it.

Best Entry-Level: Gigabyte B550 Aorus Pro AC – This is the best option under $200 for builders looking to leverage PCIe 4.0 with a 5800X who may not want to “waste” features like support for multiple Gen4 M.2 NVMe SSDs on the more expensive X570. The B550 Aorus Pro AC also prioritizes rear I/O USB connectivity more than most other available B550 options.

Best Overall: Asus ROG STRIX X570-E Gaming – Consistency, quality, and reliability are typically the hallmarks of ROG STRIX products, and the X570-E Gaming is no different. With a rock-solid VRM, plenty of USB 3.2 and SATA III ports, and a POST code readout, Asus has one of the most well-rounded high-end X570 boards perfectly suited for the 5800X. If you’re not a fan of Asus, or you specifically require onboard Power/Reset and Clear CMOS buttons, check out the MSI MEG X570 Unify for the same price instead.

Best High-Performance: MSI MEG X570 Ace – For $370, the X570 Ace is one of the best enthusiast-class motherboards with a competent high-end VRM, gorgeous design, and similar features to even $700 boards like the MEG X570 Godlike or Gigabyte’s $700 X570 Aorus Xtreme.

Best mATX: Asus TUF Gaming B550M-Plus (Wi-Fi) –  The TUF Gaming series continues to deliver with its digital camouflage aesthetic, excellent build quality, and best-in-class USB connectivity for $180.

Best mini-ITX: Asus ROG STRIX X570-I Gaming – Competitive VRM design for X570 ITX and massive USB connectivity on the rear I/O. If you’re thinking of grabbing a 5800X, there is no better option for SFF systems on the market!

The post 5 Best Motherboards for the Ryzen 7 5800X appeared first on PremiumBuilds.

The MSI Tomahawk brand gained a huge reputation with its B450 AMD offering, at the time a good value motherboard that supported high-end Ryzen CPUs at a lower cost. Each iteration since has grown in both price and features, and today we have the Z690 Tomahawk DDR4 Wifi. This board makes the most of the Z690 platforms innate strengths with a wide range of connectivity, storage options and expansion slots, as well as a good foundation specification. But it’s $300 and that’s a lot of anyone’s money.

We’ve used this board throughout our evaluation of the Intel i7-12700K, giving us insight into the performance and features of this motherboard, so let’s discover whether it’s the right board for your Intel 12th generation PC build.

Features and specification

The MSI Tomahawk sits right in the middle of the Z690 specification. Overall this is a ‘high end’ chipset, and most boards have four M.2 slots at PCIe 4.0, six SATA ports, plenty of USB connectivity, and strong Voltage delivery circuitry.

The MSI Tomahawk is unremarkable in this regard, including all the features you’d expect to find.

There is a pleasing lack of conflicts, all M.2 Slots and SATA slots can be utilised at the same time. Whilst the additional PCIe slots do not boast the fastest specification, they also do not conflict with any other ports or slots. Whilst this Motherboard is not suited to multiple GPU setups (Except in rendering or non-bandwidth intensive applications where the PCIe 3.0 X4 slot is no hindrance to performance), for all common usage including gaming, production and general workloads it’s well configured and well-appointed.

The features notably missing really relate to more focussed overclocking usage: There’s a Flash BIOS button, but no Clear CMOS, power or reset buttons. A simple array of LEDs indicate boot problems (which we did not encounter at any stage) rather than a more informative segmented display. As for looks, there’s no RGB at all on this motherboard, although there is a handy switch to enable or disable attached RGB devices. Really these are features you wouldn’t expect to find on a mainstream board but at $300 we are looking for places MSI could have offered more value.

Our other slight criticism is the lack of USB ports at the rear and the fact that only a handful of them are high speed. Ideally on a board at this price point, we’d like to have seen a couple more USB A ports there.

Layout

The Tomahawk is pretty well laid out, maximising your ability to fit a wide range of additional cards and storage options into it.

The second main PCIe slot is 3 slots below the primary GPU slot, meaning it’s still accessible even with one of the larger latest GPUs fitted. The PCIe X1 slot does get obscured by any GPU larger than pure 2 slots though. And that lowest PCIe Slot is handily placed for an audio or network interface card, but be aware it is just at PCIe 3.0 X1 bandwidth, so it’s not suitable for high bitrate capture cards, for example.
Our one misgiving is the slightly awkward SATA port placement, four of them are at 90 degrees to the board and down in the lower corner. Whilst it’s not a deal-breaker, it’s not the tidiest of solutions. We prefer to see them flat along the edge of the board.

Everything else is conventionally and conveniently laid out with no major oversights or issues.

BIOS

MSI use the ‘Click BIOS 5’ which is a relatively intuitive segmented BIOS with both ‘easy’ and ‘advanced’ modes. There’s not much to say here apart from that the BIOS is functional, practical, and depending on your affinity and familiarity, you’ll be able to do what needs to be done here without too much searching around. That said, the Alder lake CPU is complex, and there are a lot of options listed out and not all of them are intuitively titled. MSI claim a useful ‘legacy gaming mode’ which allows disabling of E-cores by using Scroll Lock. This can help in running some titles when anti-cheat or DRM software sees the unequal cores of Alderlake as two separate systems and refuse to run. However, we were unable to get this feature working within Windows 10. 

We also noted that after setting XMP the board likes to boot cycle once, before coming back up for a second boot with the settings and presumably memory training applied. This could be disconcerting for new builders but did not interfere with applying an XMP profile. Fan control is well laid out and easy to tweak. Memory overclocking is straight forwards and assisted by a number of saveable presets. Whilst these can be backed up to USB, sadly they get wiped in a CMOS Reset, which is a common occurrence during Memory overclocking. At least once you’ve settled on a set-up, it can be saved and applied as you please.

Overall, amongst BIOSes, MSI is still the one we get on best with, but we acknowledge that this is likely down to familiarity with the layout and settings on offer.

No BIOS update or tweaking of TPM, GTP, Boot modes or anything else was required to build this PC and in install and boot windows. Note that BIOS updates in future are likely to disable the ability to enable AVX512 following Intel’s mandate that this ‘quirk’ be erased in future BIOSes. 

Performance

Performance was tested as stock, without enhancement or ‘game boost’ mode applied. This board adheres to Intels Power limit specification of 190W PL1 for long term power limits, and the CPU performs accordingly. That is to say it’s bang on the performance of this CPU in any other board, including the more expensive MSI Z690 Carbon. Power limits can be removed entirely although the CPU itself will limit power draw. 

CPU overclocking was intuitive, and relatively successful, with a 5.0GHz all P- core clock easily applied along with a 50mV undervolt. This raised CineBench performance about 1,000 points to 23,000 and there was no detriment to stability.

We spent considerably more time exploring memory overclocking and found this board a flexible and stable platform to tune our Samsung B-die test kit. 4000MHZ CL16-16-16-36 was easily obtainable in Gear 1, without adjusting Memory or IMC voltages. The features and flexibility of this motherboard, and Alderlake, impressed us and with fast RAM being a big performance modifier it’s nice to be able to optimise with ease.

Overall, we had absolutely no concerns over the performance of this motherboard. It’s an excellent pairing with an i7-12700K, it has the power headroom to run an i9-12900K, and there’s plenty of latitude for some overclocking too. 

Value

This motherboard is available in both DDR4 and DDR5 formats. It retails at $300 in the US, Around 300€ in Europe, and a more attractive £249 in the UK at present. The DDR5 version ruins any sense of value by requiring RAM kits that currently retail for at least the same amount again, and confer no real performance advantage vs the DDR4 version with well-specified and readily available RAM.

We feel that this board marks a watershed price point for Z690. With the high performing and versatile i7-12700K costing $400, moving towards that price point for a motherboard does not feel like a sensible allocation of budget. From $200 upwards boards like the MSI Pro Z690-A, and Gigabyte UD or Gaming X provide a rock-solid platform for an i5 or i7 K series CPU.

As we approach $400, not only do boards add a few features besides Thunderbolt connectivity that seems worthy of the price, they also require DDR5 RAM. By that point, we’re looking at a $400 or more premium for very little return in performance or functionality. 

Therefore, given the feature set of the MSI Tomahawk, we feel that $300 marks the absolute threshold price for this motherboard. If it’s more expensive, look at better value alternatives. If it’s closer to $250 in bundles, deals or sales, then it represents good value.

Competition

In terms of MSI’s own products, the notable competitors are the MSI Z690-A Pro which sacrifices the Audio codec to an ALC 897, has a slightly weaker but still capable 14 phase VRM design, and makes do with fewer high-speed USB ports, but otherwise offers the same performance and feature set at around $80 less. The MSI Gaming Edge WiFi is $20 or so more and has a slightly more jazzy aesthetic, along with some onboard RGB and two of the rear panel USB ports are upgraded to the faster 10gbs spec. Otherwise, again, it’s identical.

The ASUS TUF Z690 Gaming offers a slightly reduced specification, with key features on par with the MSI Z690-A PRO. There’s a 14 phase VRM, Four M.2 Slots, Just 4 SATA slots, and an array of PCIe Slots consisting of two full length, two single length, and one X4 length slot. It’s got just 6 rear USB A ports and one USB C, and decently specified Realtek Audio. It’s a little light on fan headers for a board in this price range, with just 3 Chassis fans in addition to the CPU and pump fan headers. It’s a decent board and offers everything you need, but we feel the price point is more $250 than the $300 current asking price. The Gigabyte Aorus Elite is better specified and lower-priced, and the Tomahawk is better specified at the same money.

Gigabyte Z690 Aorus Elite AX DDR4 –This board is MSRP at $269 and offers a very well rounded specification. The VRM is on a par with the MSI Tomahawk, And it boards 2 more USB 2.0 Ports at the rear. It has an ALC 1220 Codec and a cut down 3 port rear audio output configuration. There’s some subtle RGB. Whilst early boards had some issues caused by the pre-release BIOS, these have now been rectified with the ‘F6’ BIOS update, and there’s a BIOS Q-flash function to allow easy updates. At a $30 saving over the Tomahawk, it’s a compelling motherboard for a PC built around the i7-12700K CPU. 

Conclusion

Overall then, there’s a lot to like about the MSI Z690 Tomahawk. It gets most things right, is a great pairing with the i7-12700K, and makes full use of the most attractive features of the Z690 chipset. The question really comes about value, and whether you’re better off with a cheaper board with near-identical features and specifications like the Gigabyte Z690 Aorus Elite DDR4, Or perhaps even the Gaming X or MSI’s own Z690-A. Those are the boards we’d choose to pair with the i5-12600K in order to get maximum value. The Tomahawk meanwhile makes the most sense with an i7-12700 or as a cost-effective platform for an i9-12900K.

Pros:

• All the features and connectivity offered by the Z690 Platform
• Discrete looks
• Excellent power delivery and performance
• Plenty of headroom for overclocking and tweaking memory settings.
• Well rounded overall specification and connectivity

Cons:

• Feels slightly expensive at $300
• No RGB
• Slightly compromised USB options at rear panel.

The post MSI Z690 Tomahawk WiFi DDR4 Review: The Definitive Mid-Range Z690 Motherboard? appeared first on PremiumBuilds.

The B550 chipset represents the current sweet spot for PC builders looking to maximise the Ryzen 5 5600X and 7 5800X CPUs. It offers a full-featured and cost-effective basis for a high-performance PC for gaming or general use.

We’ve rounded up a selection of some of the best B550 motherboards on offer, going into 2022. We’re going to take a look at them to find out their features, any weak points or flaws, and use this information to make recommendations to you as to the best options for your Ryzen-based PC build. We’ll break our recommendations out into a separate article, so this one isn’t too cluttered with too much information. 

At the lower end, we’re testing the MSI Pro VDH WiFi and the Gigabyte Aorus Elite. These are both mATX boards at or close to the $100 price point.

In the mid-range selection of B550 motherboards, we’ve got the Asus TUF Gaming B550M-Plus WiFi and the MSI B550M Mortar Wifi. 

And to look at the higher end we’ve got the Asus ROG STRIX B550-F Wifi and the ASRock B550 PG Velocita. These boards are a little more expensive and take different approaches to offer you value, so we were interested in finding out what they offer over more budget-friendly B550 options. 

We’ll take a look at performance overall, then dive into each B550 motherboard to investigates its strengths and weaknesses.

B550 Motherboard Performance Testing:

We’ve conducted our testing with a Ryzen 7 5800X in the knowledge that if these boards handle that CPU well, there will be no problems with the less demanding 5600X. The Test system consisted of a 650W Gold-rated PSU, RTX 3060 Ti (not relevant to testing), and G.Skill 3600Mhz CL16 RAM set to XMP and 1:1 Infinity Fabric and Memory clock ratio. A 240mm AIO was used to maximise CPU performance without thermal throttling. 

B550 Motherboard Benchmark Comparisons

1. Cinebench R20 and R23

In this test we ran both single and multi-core workloads, to ensure that the Motherboard allowed the CPU to boost correctly and also didn’t limit the CPU with power draw. You can see that the boards behaved almost identically.

2. 3D Mark Testing: Fire Strike & Time Spy

We also ran Time Spy and Firestrike CPU tests. These show a little more variance in results but looking at CPU metrics we couldn’t identify any substantial change in CPU performance; This is likely down to variables such as cooler fitment or even ambient temperatures of the test and we don’t consider it anything of concern.

The long story short here is that we could not find any discernible difference in performance between any of these B550 motherboards. In single and multi-core tests they all performed remarkably closely, within a margin of error. In fact, if we normalise the scores and average them for each board we find a total variance of less than 0.2% – That’s well within the margin of error. They all held up well to longer duration testing, with no drop in performance after a 30-minute work loop. 

RAM Compatibility

We also checked RAM Compatibility, although it’s not possible to really test this exhaustively. All the boards worked flawlessly with our 3600Mhz Cl16 G.Skill RAM kit, as you’d expect. They were also all capable of running ‘known good’ overclock settings of 4000MHz CL 16-16-16-32 at 1:1 infinity fabric and memory clock on our Samsung B-die test kit, which represents the upper end of Zen 3 RAM speed optimisation. All of these boards have identical RAM overclocking and CPU overclocking settings available in BIOS, and whilst we wouldn’t choose them for dedicated overclockers, they all run RAM stably at acceptably fast speeds.

So, the good news on performance is that across the range of B550 motherboards we’ve tested we’re confident that you’ll be able to extract the maximum potential from a Ryzen 5600X or 5800X as well as reasonably fast RAM, to optimise your system’s performance. 

The ‘Best’ B550 Motherboards, Reviewed

So, with performance covered let’s look into each board. We won’t list specs as they’re actually very similar across all of these motherboards, and you can look them up yourselves. Instead, I’ll point out the most important features or omissions, the things we think you’d most want to know before buying any of these B550 motherboards. 

1. MSI B550M Pro-VDH WiFi – Entry Level Board

The MSI B550M Pro-VDH WiFi is a full-featured and good value B550 motherboard currently retailing at about $110.

Pros:

• Great value
• Understated looks with RGB switch.
• Inbuilt Wi-Fi
• Simple BIOS Flashback
• Internal USB C (USB 3.2 Gen 2) header
• 6 USB rear outputs
• 5 fan headers in total – 3 system, one CPU fan, one AIO pump header. 

Cons:

• Only One full length PCIe slot for a GPU. No 4X slots.
• Basic Audio – ALC 892 and 3 rear audio outputs. 
• No rear USB C – make sure your case has usb C if you require it, to make use of the internal header. 
• MATX so it might not look great in an ATX case.

Conclusions: 

Overall we were really impressed with this B550 motherboard. Whilst it has a ‘no-frills approach, MSI has made sensible decisions over what to include. Performance is great, on a par with motherboards that cost twice as much. We’d really just advise that you ensure you won’t need more than that single PCIe x16 slot as the 2 single length slots could limit your ability to add expansion cards down the line. The USB specification also isn’t the best, so make sure you’ll have adequate connectivity between the rear I/O of this board and any case you choose. Overall though for an understated and great value option, we heartily recommend the MSI B550M Pro-VDH WiFi.

2. Gigabyte B550M Aorus Elite – Entry Level Board

The Gigabyte B550M Aorus Elite is the most affordable AORUS motherboard in Gigabyte’s B550 lineup and is available at just $105.

Pros: 

• Good Value and a good looking board with Aorus branded heatsinking.
• Equivalent performance to the more expensive boards on test.
• BIOS Q-Flash.
• Inbuilt I/O shield helps with installation.
• Lower First PCIe slot position – can fit large air coolers.
• 8 USB ports on the rear.

Cons:

• Second full length PCIe slot is blocked by any GPU larger than 2 slots. 
• No Internal USB 3.2 gen 2 header and no USB C on the rear IO.
• No Diagnostic LEDs – can frustrate when troubleshooting boot issues.
• Only 3 fan headers in total – 1 CPU and 2 System. You will likely need fan splitters. 
• No M.2 Heat sinking – not vitally important but helps with a consistent look. 
• No RGB on board.
• Awkward SATA socket location: Using 90 degree cables blocks other SATA ports, large GPUs may block SATA ports. Flush mount SATA ports would have solved this issue. 

Conclusions: 

Overall this is a good value B550 motherboard that gets the job done for the Ryzen Zen 3 builds. However, in terms of value, it loses out to the MSI B550M Pro-VDH which includes USB 3.2 gen 2 and WiFi for just $5 more. The price-cutting on this motherboard with limited fan headers, awkward SATA ports, lack of any boot diagnostic LEDs and slightly awkward PCIe slot placement all means that in all but the most basic PC builds this board is likely to frustrate. In particular, if you want WiFi or any additional add-in PCIe card you need to ensure that your GPU is no more than 2 slots thick – and many are nowadays with most designs intruding on the third PCIe slot beneath them. If your GPU is long you may have issues connecting SATA cables to some or all of the ports.

At the right price, the B550M Aorus Elite is still a good motherboard, but we’d consider that price to be around $90 to compensate for the shortcomings here. We recommend the MSI B550 Pro VDH Wifi over this for the additional features and fewer compromises of that board. 

3. Asus TUF Gaming B550M-Plus WiFi – Mid-Range Board

Moving into the mid-range selections, we have the ASUS TUF Gaming B550M Plus WiFi. The TUF lineup offers some really good products and this B550 board is no exception, but at the moment it’s retailing at $160 which is pretty steep for a B550 motherboard.

Pros:

• Great looking with hefty heatsinking and nice RGB highlights. 
• Inbuilt WiFi 6
• Asus BIOS Flashback functionality
• USB C on the rear and 7 USB A ports of various speeds.
• Higher quality Audio CODEC – Realtec S1200A
• Strong VRM – easily capable of running a 5900X.

Cons:

• Expensive
• Slightly awkward SATA socket positioning. Not as bad as the Aorus Elite, but still annoying.
• Limited Fan headers – 2 System, 1 CPU fan, 1 AIO pump optional header. 
• No internal USB 3.2 Gen 2 header. 
• Second PCIe slot blocked by a larger GPU in the first, but the 1x slot is mounted high to keep it accessible. 
• RGB may be obscured by a GPU

Conclusions:

Overall we like this B550 motherboard but not the price. At $130-$140, it’s a good buy but it has enough compromises to make us look elsewhere at $150-$160. Little things like the number of fan headers and lack of an internal USB 3.2 header are the sort of detail you’d expect a board like this to get right. However, it performs well and looks great, so if you find it at the right price there’s no reason not to buy it. Just make sure the compromises this board makes won’t interfere with your planned build. 

4. MSI MAG B550M Mortar WiFi – Mid-Range Board

The MSI B550M Mortar Wifi is the B550 motherboard we’re most familiar with in this test, we’ve actually been using it for about nine months on our test bench. It’s a good mid-range option but let’s see how it stacks up against the competition.

Pros: 

• USB 3.2 Gen 2 internal header plus USB C on the rear I/O panel.
• Plenty of fan headers: 3 system fan headers, 1 CPU, one AIO.
• Full length PCIe slots are 3 slots apart – you can fit 2 GPUs into this motherboard without conflict.
• BIOS flashback
• Inbuilt IO shield
• Inbuilt WiFi 6: A non WiFi option available with a darker colour scheme.
• 6 SATA slots (most mATX have 4)

Cons:

• Expensive at the moment – $170
• Only 5 USB A sockets on the rear.
• mATX form factor may look strange in ATX builds.

Conclusions:

This mid-range B550 motherboard does a lot of things right. The layout is good and it has a good range of internal connectors. The main weakness is the slight lack of USB A options on the rear IO. Subjectively, the silver aesthetic of this WiFi version matches white or silver themed builds nicely, and also somewhat subjectively we find the MSI bios one of the more intuitive to navigate and tweak. There’s a non WiFi version also available at about $155. Overall, this is a great board and we can heartily recommend it, but just be cautious on pricing. 

5. ASUS ROG STRIX B550-F Gaming WiFi – High-End Board

Now we move up to the higher end of B550 motherboards with the Asus ROG Strix B550-F Gaming WiFi. This full ATX board adds some more PCIe slots and USB connectivity to the mix, as well as some higher-end components like a strong VRM configuration and a good quality Audio Codec.

Pros:

• Full ATX with plenty of well-spaced PCIe slots.
• Great looking board with RGB and solid heatsinking, including both M.2 slots.
• Lots of Fan headers, with AIO pump, CPU, CPU Optional and 3 chassis fan headers for 6 total.
• High end S1220A Codec for audio. 
• BIOS Flashback
• Six SATA slots.
• Strong VRM

Cons:

• Still only 2 M.2 slots
• No internal USB 3.2 gen 2 header.
• Hard to see the value at near $200

Conclusions:

Moving up to the higher end and a full ATX B550 motherboard, we come to the Asus B550-F ROG Strix Gaming. There’s a lot to like about this motherboard, not least the looks. However, we think it’s hard to find the value on offer here when you compare the specification to, for example, the MSI B550M Mortar you don’t really gain much. Multiple X1 PCIe slots are of limited value on a board that has WiFi inbuilt anyway. There’s still just 2 M.2 slots, and no internal USB 3.2 Gen 2. On the plus side, you get loads of Fan and RGB control options, heavy heatsinking, a great VRM – but remember you’re not buying any more performance with this board, every board here performs the same with a 5600X or 5800X. Overall, if you like the looks and features, and don’t mind the ROG Strix tax or slight compromises in the specification, this is a solid option and we’d recommend it for a showy 5600X or 5800X gaming build. 

6. ASRock B550 PG Velocita – High-End Board

The ASRock B550 PG Velocita is a B550 chipset motherboard with a lot of features aimed at overclockers, but one glaring omission, so let’s take a closer look.

Pros:

• Full ATX format with good PCIe slot layout.
• Seven Fan/Pump headers, giving extensive cooling options
• Really nice LED highlights.
• Very strong VRM with 14 phase set up. You can maximise any Zen 3 CPU on this without concern.
• Excellent heatsinking with a heat pipe to spread heat load.
• Internal USB 3.2 gen 2 header. 
• Good USB connectivity on rear I/O
• Wifi compatible M.2 slot and pre cut I/O plate antenna holes – you can add Wifi without using a PCIe or M.2 storage slot. 

Mixed:

• Power and reset buttons – we found them helpful on our test bench, but how much are you really going to use them in a built PC?
• Fault code display could be a nice touch, but the code index is so generic and unhelpful that it’s really no more use than simple LED lights.
• Love it or hate it styling with red and grey accents. 

Cons:

•  No BIOS Flashback! An unforgivable sin, and this is the only board that required us to swap to a compatible CPU to update the BIOS and get it working with Ryzen 5000 CPUs. 
• Only two storage M.2 slots. 
• Expensive
• You’re not buying any extra performance

Conclusions:

This ASRock B550 PG Velocita is the B550 motherboard in this review that sparks the most mixed feelings for us. We really WANT to love it, but the overall impression is of a board that hasn’t been designed with actual use in mind. The most glaring issue is the lack of any means to perform a BIOS flash without an existing CPU. We bought this board at the start of summer 2021 and it wasn’t Ryzen 5000 ready – forcing us to use our Ryzen 3600 to update the BIOS. For a board aimed at enthusiasts, and when it’s available on boards at literally half the price, it’s just not acceptable not to include this feature. 

The other ‘overclocking’ features really feel like they’ve been added for marketing, not with functionality in mind. The Power and reset buttons were nice whilst we tested this board, but useless if you intend on actually building a PC in a traditional case. Likewise the Numeric LED Fault code display COULD be really useful, but the codes are so cryptic and poorly explained in the manual or online that actually, they’re no more helpful than simple diagnostic LED’s pointing at a problem with the CPU or RAM for example. On the plus side, it’s got great water cooling and system fan flexibility, a good range of connectors, and a hugely capable VRM. That said, you’re not getting extra performance from an overkill VRM, and short of exotic cooling methods you won’t need the VRM on offer here even for a 5950X – the overclocking headroom just doesn’t exist. It’s also, in our opinion, a great looking board with some really nice RGB highlights around the IO panel heatsink. If you’re aware of the shortcomings, have a plan to get around the BIOS flash issue, and find this board at the right price (say under $200) then it makes a solid basis for a high-end B550 based PC build. Otherwise, we’d recommend the Asus B550-F ROG Strix Gaming WiFi which has more features at a lower price and doesn’t feel as quirky as the ASRock PG Velocita. 

Closing Thoughts:

I hope you’ve found this article useful and that it has helped you decide which board is right for you. The nice thing with B550 Motherboards is that there are very few products to avoid – so long as you’re not shopping at the bargain basement they offer the same basic features and functionality as well as equivalent performance. When you’re looking to buy just ensure that the board has BIOS flashback functionality, and adequate slots and I/O for your needs. Also ensure that between the case and the motherboard, you’ve got the USB 3.2 Gen 2 connectivity that matches up, so you’re not left with dead USB-C slots on your case. Consider these points and you’ll have the foundation of a great system using the Ryzen 5600X or 5800X CPUs.

The B550 chipset represents the current sweet spot for PC builders looking to maximise the Ryzen 5 5600X and 7 5800X CPUs. It offers a full-featured and cost-effective basis for a high-performance PC for gaming or general use.

We’ve rounded up a selection of some of the best B550 motherboards on offer, going into 2022. We’re going to take a look at them to find out their features, any weak points or flaws, and use this information to make recommendations to you as to the best options for your Ryzen-based PC build. We’ll break our recommendations out into a separate article, so this one isn’t too cluttered with too much information. 

At the lower end, we’re testing the MSI Pro VDH WiFi and the Gigabyte Aorus Elite. These are both mATX boards at or close to the $100 price point.

In the mid-range selection of B550 motherboards, we’ve got the Asus TUF Gaming B550M-Plus WiFi and the MSI B550M Mortar Wifi. 

And to look at the higher end we’ve got the Asus ROG STRIX B550-F Wifi and the ASRock B550 PG Velocita. These boards are a little more expensive and take different approaches to offer you value, so we were interested in finding out what they offer over more budget-friendly B550 options. 

We’ll take a look at performance overall, then dive into each B550 motherboard to investigates its strengths and weaknesses.

B550 Motherboard Performance Testing:

We’ve conducted our testing with a Ryzen 7 5800X in the knowledge that if these boards handle that CPU well, there will be no problems with the less demanding 5600X. The Test system consisted of a 650W Gold-rated PSU, RTX 3060 Ti (not relevant to testing), and G.Skill 3600Mhz CL16 RAM set to XMP and 1:1 Infinity Fabric and Memory clock ratio. A 240mm AIO was used to maximise CPU performance without thermal throttling. 

B550 Motherboard Benchmark Comparisons

1. Cinebench R20 and R23

In this test we ran both single and multi-core workloads, to ensure that the Motherboard allowed the CPU to boost correctly and also didn’t limit the CPU with power draw. You can see that the boards behaved almost identically.

2. 3D Mark Testing: Fire Strike & Time Spy

We also ran Time Spy and Firestrike CPU tests. These show a little more variance in results but looking at CPU metrics we couldn’t identify any substantial change in CPU performance; This is likely down to variables such as cooler fitment or even ambient temperatures of the test and we don’t consider it anything of concern.

The long story short here is that we could not find any discernible difference in performance between any of these B550 motherboards. In single and multi-core tests they all performed remarkably closely, within a margin of error. In fact, if we normalise the scores and average them for each board we find a total variance of less than 0.2% – That’s well within the margin of error. They all held up well to longer duration testing, with no drop in performance after a 30-minute work loop. 

RAM Compatibility

We also checked RAM Compatibility, although it’s not possible to really test this exhaustively. All the boards worked flawlessly with our 3600Mhz Cl16 G.Skill RAM kit, as you’d expect. They were also all capable of running ‘known good’ overclock settings of 4000MHz CL 16-16-16-32 at 1:1 infinity fabric and memory clock on our Samsung B-die test kit, which represents the upper end of Zen 3 RAM speed optimisation. All of these boards have identical RAM overclocking and CPU overclocking settings available in BIOS, and whilst we wouldn’t choose them for dedicated overclockers, they all run RAM stably at acceptably fast speeds.

So, the good news on performance is that across the range of B550 motherboards we’ve tested we’re confident that you’ll be able to extract the maximum potential from a Ryzen 5600X or 5800X as well as reasonably fast RAM, to optimise your system’s performance. 

The ‘Best’ B550 Motherboards, Reviewed

So, with performance covered let’s look into each board. We won’t list specs as they’re actually very similar across all of these motherboards, and you can look them up yourselves. Instead, I’ll point out the most important features or omissions, the things we think you’d most want to know before buying any of these B550 motherboards. 

1. MSI B550M Pro-VDH WiFi – Entry Level Board

The MSI B550M Pro-VDH WiFi is a full-featured and good value B550 motherboard currently retailing at about $110.

Pros:

• Great value
• Understated looks with RGB switch.
• Inbuilt Wi-Fi
• Simple BIOS Flashback
• Internal USB C (USB 3.2 Gen 2) header
• 6 USB rear outputs
• 5 fan headers in total – 3 system, one CPU fan, one AIO pump header. 

Cons:

• Only One full length PCIe slot for a GPU. No 4X slots.
• Basic Audio – ALC 892 and 3 rear audio outputs. 
• No rear USB C – make sure your case has usb C if you require it, to make use of the internal header. 
• MATX so it might not look great in an ATX case.

Conclusions: 

Overall we were really impressed with this B550 motherboard. Whilst it has a ‘no-frills approach, MSI has made sensible decisions over what to include. Performance is great, on a par with motherboards that cost twice as much. We’d really just advise that you ensure you won’t need more than that single PCIe x16 slot as the 2 single length slots could limit your ability to add expansion cards down the line. The USB specification also isn’t the best, so make sure you’ll have adequate connectivity between the rear I/O of this board and any case you choose. Overall though for an understated and great value option, we heartily recommend the MSI B550M Pro-VDH WiFi.

2. Gigabyte B550M Aorus Elite – Entry Level Board

The Gigabyte B550M Aorus Elite is the most affordable AORUS motherboard in Gigabyte’s B550 lineup and is available at just $105.

Pros: 

• Good Value and a good looking board with Aorus branded heatsinking.
• Equivalent performance to the more expensive boards on test.
• BIOS Q-Flash.
• Inbuilt I/O shield helps with installation.
• Lower First PCIe slot position – can fit large air coolers.
• 8 USB ports on the rear.

Cons:

• Second full length PCIe slot is blocked by any GPU larger than 2 slots. 
• No Internal USB 3.2 gen 2 header and no USB C on the rear IO.
• No Diagnostic LEDs – can frustrate when troubleshooting boot issues.
• Only 3 fan headers in total – 1 CPU and 2 System. You will likely need fan splitters. 
• No M.2 Heat sinking – not vitally important but helps with a consistent look. 
• No RGB on board.
• Awkward SATA socket location: Using 90 degree cables blocks other SATA ports, large GPUs may block SATA ports. Flush mount SATA ports would have solved this issue. 

Conclusions: 

Overall this is a good value B550 motherboard that gets the job done for the Ryzen Zen 3 builds. However, in terms of value, it loses out to the MSI B550M Pro-VDH which includes USB 3.2 gen 2 and WiFi for just $5 more. The price-cutting on this motherboard with limited fan headers, awkward SATA ports, lack of any boot diagnostic LEDs and slightly awkward PCIe slot placement all means that in all but the most basic PC builds this board is likely to frustrate. In particular, if you want WiFi or any additional add-in PCIe card you need to ensure that your GPU is no more than 2 slots thick – and many are nowadays with most designs intruding on the third PCIe slot beneath them. If your GPU is long you may have issues connecting SATA cables to some or all of the ports.

At the right price, the B550M Aorus Elite is still a good motherboard, but we’d consider that price to be around $90 to compensate for the shortcomings here. We recommend the MSI B550 Pro VDH Wifi over this for the additional features and fewer compromises of that board. 

3. Asus TUF Gaming B550M-Plus WiFi – Mid-Range Board

Moving into the mid-range selections, we have the ASUS TUF Gaming B550M Plus WiFi. The TUF lineup offers some really good products and this B550 board is no exception, but at the moment it’s retailing at $160 which is pretty steep for a B550 motherboard.

Pros:

• Great looking with hefty heatsinking and nice RGB highlights. 
• Inbuilt WiFi 6
• Asus BIOS Flashback functionality
• USB C on the rear and 7 USB A ports of various speeds.
• Higher quality Audio CODEC – Realtec S1200A
• Strong VRM – easily capable of running a 5900X.

Cons:

• Expensive
• Slightly awkward SATA socket positioning. Not as bad as the Aorus Elite, but still annoying.
• Limited Fan headers – 2 System, 1 CPU fan, 1 AIO pump optional header. 
• No internal USB 3.2 Gen 2 header. 
• Second PCIe slot blocked by a larger GPU in the first, but the 1x slot is mounted high to keep it accessible. 
• RGB may be obscured by a GPU

Conclusions:

Overall we like this B550 motherboard but not the price. At $130-$140, it’s a good buy but it has enough compromises to make us look elsewhere at $150-$160. Little things like the number of fan headers and lack of an internal USB 3.2 header are the sort of detail you’d expect a board like this to get right. However, it performs well and looks great, so if you find it at the right price there’s no reason not to buy it. Just make sure the compromises this board makes won’t interfere with your planned build. 

4. MSI MAG B550M Mortar WiFi – Mid-Range Board

The MSI B550M Mortar Wifi is the B550 motherboard we’re most familiar with in this test, we’ve actually been using it for about nine months on our test bench. It’s a good mid-range option but let’s see how it stacks up against the competition.

Pros: 

• USB 3.2 Gen 2 internal header plus USB C on the rear I/O panel.
• Plenty of fan headers: 3 system fan headers, 1 CPU, one AIO.
• Full length PCIe slots are 3 slots apart – you can fit 2 GPUs into this motherboard without conflict.
• BIOS flashback
• Inbuilt IO shield
• Inbuilt WiFi 6: A non WiFi option available with a darker colour scheme.
• 6 SATA slots (most mATX have 4)

Cons:

• Expensive at the moment – $170
• Only 5 USB A sockets on the rear.
• mATX form factor may look strange in ATX builds.

Conclusions:

This mid-range B550 motherboard does a lot of things right. The layout is good and it has a good range of internal connectors. The main weakness is the slight lack of USB A options on the rear IO. Subjectively, the silver aesthetic of this WiFi version matches white or silver themed builds nicely, and also somewhat subjectively we find the MSI bios one of the more intuitive to navigate and tweak. There’s a non WiFi version also available at about $155. Overall, this is a great board and we can heartily recommend it, but just be cautious on pricing. 

5. ASUS ROG STRIX B550-F Gaming WiFi – High-End Board

Now we move up to the higher end of B550 motherboards with the Asus ROG Strix B550-F Gaming WiFi. This full ATX board adds some more PCIe slots and USB connectivity to the mix, as well as some higher-end components like a strong VRM configuration and a good quality Audio Codec.

Pros:

• Full ATX with plenty of well-spaced PCIe slots.
• Great looking board with RGB and solid heatsinking, including both M.2 slots.
• Lots of Fan headers, with AIO pump, CPU, CPU Optional and 3 chassis fan headers for 6 total.
• High end S1220A Codec for audio. 
• BIOS Flashback
• Six SATA slots.
• Strong VRM

Cons:

• Still only 2 M.2 slots
• No internal USB 3.2 gen 2 header.
• Hard to see the value at near $200

Conclusions:

Moving up to the higher end and a full ATX B550 motherboard, we come to the Asus B550-F ROG Strix Gaming. There’s a lot to like about this motherboard, not least the looks. However, we think it’s hard to find the value on offer here when you compare the specification to, for example, the MSI B550M Mortar you don’t really gain much. Multiple X1 PCIe slots are of limited value on a board that has WiFi inbuilt anyway. There’s still just 2 M.2 slots, and no internal USB 3.2 Gen 2. On the plus side, you get loads of Fan and RGB control options, heavy heatsinking, a great VRM – but remember you’re not buying any more performance with this board, every board here performs the same with a 5600X or 5800X. Overall, if you like the looks and features, and don’t mind the ROG Strix tax or slight compromises in the specification, this is a solid option and we’d recommend it for a showy 5600X or 5800X gaming build. 

6. ASRock B550 PG Velocita – High-End Board

The ASRock B550 PG Velocita is a B550 chipset motherboard with a lot of features aimed at overclockers, but one glaring omission, so let’s take a closer look.

Pros:

• Full ATX format with good PCIe slot layout.
• Seven Fan/Pump headers, giving extensive cooling options
• Really nice LED highlights.
• Very strong VRM with 14 phase set up. You can maximise any Zen 3 CPU on this without concern.
• Excellent heatsinking with a heat pipe to spread heat load.
• Internal USB 3.2 gen 2 header. 
• Good USB connectivity on rear I/O
• Wifi compatible M.2 slot and pre cut I/O plate antenna holes – you can add Wifi without using a PCIe or M.2 storage slot. 

Mixed:

• Power and reset buttons – we found them helpful on our test bench, but how much are you really going to use them in a built PC?
• Fault code display could be a nice touch, but the code index is so generic and unhelpful that it’s really no more use than simple LED lights.
• Love it or hate it styling with red and grey accents. 

Cons:

•  No BIOS Flashback! An unforgivable sin, and this is the only board that required us to swap to a compatible CPU to update the BIOS and get it working with Ryzen 5000 CPUs. 
• Only two storage M.2 slots. 
• Expensive
• You’re not buying any extra performance

Conclusions:

This ASRock B550 PG Velocita is the B550 motherboard in this review that sparks the most mixed feelings for us. We really WANT to love it, but the overall impression is of a board that hasn’t been designed with actual use in mind. The most glaring issue is the lack of any means to perform a BIOS flash without an existing CPU. We bought this board at the start of summer 2021 and it wasn’t Ryzen 5000 ready – forcing us to use our Ryzen 3600 to update the BIOS. For a board aimed at enthusiasts, and when it’s available on boards at literally half the price, it’s just not acceptable not to include this feature. 

The other ‘overclocking’ features really feel like they’ve been added for marketing, not with functionality in mind. The Power and reset buttons were nice whilst we tested this board, but useless if you intend on actually building a PC in a traditional case. Likewise the Numeric LED Fault code display COULD be really useful, but the codes are so cryptic and poorly explained in the manual or online that actually, they’re no more helpful than simple diagnostic LED’s pointing at a problem with the CPU or RAM for example. On the plus side, it’s got great water cooling and system fan flexibility, a good range of connectors, and a hugely capable VRM. That said, you’re not getting extra performance from an overkill VRM, and short of exotic cooling methods you won’t need the VRM on offer here even for a 5950X – the overclocking headroom just doesn’t exist. It’s also, in our opinion, a great looking board with some really nice RGB highlights around the IO panel heatsink. If you’re aware of the shortcomings, have a plan to get around the BIOS flash issue, and find this board at the right price (say under $200) then it makes a solid basis for a high-end B550 based PC build. Otherwise, we’d recommend the Asus B550-F ROG Strix Gaming WiFi which has more features at a lower price and doesn’t feel as quirky as the ASRock PG Velocita. 

Closing Thoughts:

I hope you’ve found this article useful and that it has helped you decide which board is right for you. The nice thing with B550 Motherboards is that there are very few products to avoid – so long as you’re not shopping at the bargain basement they offer the same basic features and functionality as well as equivalent performance. When you’re looking to buy just ensure that the board has BIOS flashback functionality, and adequate slots and I/O for your needs. Also ensure that between the case and the motherboard, you’ve got the USB 3.2 Gen 2 connectivity that matches up, so you’re not left with dead USB-C slots on your case. Consider these points and you’ll have the foundation of a great system using the Ryzen 5600X or 5800X CPUs.

The post 6 Best B550 Motherboards for 2021: Tested, Reviewed & Compared appeared first on PremiumBuilds.

In our review of the best B560 motherboards, we found a number of anomalies in their behaviour. In this article we’ll document what we found, to help you understand the problem and avoid the pitfalls. Some boards can be fixed by paying attention n to their settings in BIOS. Others cannot be saved and should be left on the shelf. So lets’ take a look at the potential pitfalls of the B560 motherboard range.

One of our first tests was a simple Cinebench R23 run, but given that the CPU and configuration were the same it yielded some surprising results:

The MSI Bazooka delivers 1500 points lower score than the two ASUS boards and the Gigabyte Aorus Pro. The ASock B560M HDV is about 800 points down on optimal CPU performance.

Let’s look at what happens if we dig back into BIOS and remove the power limits:

Clearly, something is up here with the ASROCK HDV and the MSI B560 Bazooka. The Bazooka now matches the other boards on test, the ASROCK performs better but still falls a couple of hundred points short of optimal performance.

To work out what’s going on, we compared logged metrics throughout these runs at default settings, specifically power consumption and CPU clock frequencies over time:

This graph clearly illustrates the differences in behaviour between these three boards. Here the solid lines represent core clock speeds, the dashed lines the power delivered to the CPU. The ASUS maintains power of about 110 watts throughout the test, keeping core clocks at 4200MHz. This is the result of ‘Asus multi-core enhancement’ being on by default, although the initial BIOS screen does advise you of this, I don’t expect its explanation to mean much to most users, except it seems like a good idea to leave it on.

The ASROCK board delivers 100 Watts throughout the first portion of the test and holds 4.2GHz all-core clock speed but then drops to 65W the long term power limit after about 50 seconds. This has the effect of cutting core clocks to 3.5GHz and results in longer test duration, and lower score.

Finally, we see the MSI Bazooka: Like the ASUS this initially delivers 110 Watts, and 4.2GHZ clock speed, but ramps down to 65W at just 24 seconds. Thereafter it holds a significantly lower 3.3GHz clock speed for the remainder of the test, finishing last and delivering the lowest score. This is a function of the ‘stock cooler’ settings being applied in BIOS.

This behaviour is the results of different implementations of Intel’s power specifications. Short term power should allow for 125W even on this i5-11500 which has a nominal TDP of 65W – that’s its long term power limit. We see it draw 110W on most of the boards because that’s the power required to achieve its maximum allowable all-core boost clock.

One of these graphs is more insidious than the others, and it’s not the MSI. If we adjust the power limit behaviour through MSI BIOS by selecting ‘Tower’ or ‘AIO’ cooler the MSI performs in line with the other boards. For the ASRock HDV, this means setting the power target, but it won’t allow user input of 125W, just 100W. Why is that?

This graph shows us why: We ran Cinebench for a 10-minute loop with power limits set as high as possible on the Asrock HDV, and the i5-11500. Here is power delivery vs Clock speeds over the duration of that test, 8 loops of the rendering task:

For the first three runs, all appear to be relatively normal, except that the CPU is only getting 100 Watts when it will use 110W for peak performance. By the fourth run we start to see something different though: The board spikes, then cuts power. Core clocks are no longer held at 4.2GHz but instead begin to fluctuate below that. As the runs repeat we see increasingly ragged behaviour. This VRM is failing to deliver clean power even at a reduced 100W level and is throttling the CPU as a result. Performance suffers. In the long term, if subjected to this workload, it’s clear the VRMs are over-extending themselves. And in case you’re thinking: ‘Surely that’s CPU temperature throttling’ The raw data shows that no core exceeded 60C throughout this test, and no core recorded thermal throttling at any point.

So, this is behaviour with a 65W rated part, an entry-level i5 CPU.

i9-11900K Testing

What happens is you dare to put a more power hungry chip on these boards?!

To test, we installed the i9-11900K on each of these boards, using unlimited power settings, to see what they were capable of. For comparison we’ve included the result this CPU gives on the ASUS ROG Maximus XIII Z590, a motherboard with insane VRMS capable of supplying well over 330W to this chip under demanding loads.

Here we can see the consequences of weaker VRMs. Both the MSI and the Asrock HDV, the two cheapest boards in this test, deliver substantially sub-par results. The Gigabyte and two Asus boards both achieve ‘full’ performance for this demanding CPU, nearly matching the Z590 at default behaviour.

Again, looking at the metrics, we can see how default board behaviour has a drastic impact on performance:

The Gigabyte is the only B560 motherboard that delivers sufficient power to reach a 4.7GHz all core speed, at 170W consumption. It maintains this for the duration of the test and records a score of 15,000 representing the potential of this CPU. The MSI initially ramps to 170W deliver as well but fails to lift core clocks beyond 4.2GHz and quickly falls back to a 130W power delivery, PL1. From there it maintains 4.2 GHz of the duration of the test.
Finally, the ASRock HDV starts out delivering about 135W for 18 seconds, then drops to the 65W PL1 limit. That means that the clocks fall back from 3.7GHz to 3.1GHz where they remain until the workload is complete. The ASRocks score in this test is just 10098. And as a reminder, that’s BELOW the score the six-core i5-11500 can post in this test given adequate power. Simply put: The CPU can only do as much work as you supply it power for. This ASRock motherboard limits that power enough to make the 8 core i9-11900K perform the same as a six-core i5-11500 in an all core workload, and if you don’t adjust power limits in BIOS, it’ll even make the i5-11500 drastically underperform. If you do lift those power limits and then subject the i5-11500 to demanding but entirely reasonable workloads, the VRMS can’t keep up.

Conclusions and the root cause

Fundamentally, the blame lies with Intel. This kind of underperformance due to power limitations is down to their inability to make the Rocketlake CPUs more efficient. Remember, none of the Ryzen Zen 3 CPUs, not even the 16 core 5950X demand more than 125W for full performance. Here we have a six-core part needing 115W to perform to full potential and motherboards failing to deliver the 170Watts that the 8 core i9-11900K requires to reach its all core boost clocks.

Then there’s the confusion around power limits. These CPUs quote boost clocks that are only achievable if you can deliver sufficient power and keep them sufficiently cool. Intel’s power specifications quote maximum power delivery and time periods – but there don’t appear to be any consequences for not adhering to them, breaking them, or simply not achieving them. Ultimately, when your boosting mechanisms are as complex and varied as Intels, you’re not setting a clear picture of the level of performance consumers can expect from your products. 

A mid-range CPU that can exceed 100 Watts draw in an all core load poses a significant problem for motherboard manufacturers. The i5-11400 has been touted as the new value champion for gaming – but you need a motherboard to run it. It’s sold with a 65W TDP but that’s not an accurate representation of its power demands. So motherboard manufacturers want to cater to a value-conscious market but need to make a board that can potentially be fitted with any CPU from an i3 up to an i9-11900K, or more realistically perhaps an i7-11700.

ASROCK has abjectly failed to do that. The B560M HDV is plainly inadequate. It throttles an i5-11500 at base settings. It will not allow those settings to be lifted to a point that achieves full performance from the CPU. It cannot sustain an all core workload for ten minutes without the cracks showing through. It’s not acceptable. 

Then we come on to the wider issues: Across the boards, we’ve sampled we’ve seen wildly different behaviour because of the power limits set and implemented by manufacturers. Credit goes to Gigabyte and Asus for manufacturing boards that can achieve the full potential of even demanding CPUs – but they’re not actually adhering to Intel’s specifications either, by allowing power limits that exceed specifications and durations that also run longer than those specifications. MSI are at least open about the need to define power limits when you set the motherboard up.

Some of these boards allow you to set your own power limits to achieve your desired result, but we don’t believe that consumers should have to do that on motherboards that are aimed squarely at the mainstream. If you’re buying a B560 board you have every right to expect it to work well with an i5 or i7 non K CPU without manually adjusting settings or understanding the detail of power delivery and limits, but some of them don’t.

So my ultimate conclusion is that if you do want to make use of an i5-11400 or any other Intel CPU and you’re considering a B560 board, it will take some research and sadly a little more money to get the most of your CPU. You can see out the linked article for the best B560 Motherboard recommendations, in tandem with the information presented in this article.

The post B560 Motherboard Power Limit Analysis: A Real Minefield of Bad Boards, Confusing Settings, Tricky Choices! appeared first on PremiumBuilds.

The Intel Rocket Lake i5 CPUs represent some of the best value gaming options on the market right now, particularly the i5-11400. To get the most out of them you need a B560 motherboard, so we thought we should test them out so we can make some recommendations to you.

B560 Motherboards under test

There’s a lot more going on here than simple features and looks – there’s some great B560 motherboards here but there’s also a product you’re definitely going to want to avoid.

We’ll take you through the features of these motherboards, how easy they are to install and set up, the BIOS configuration of each, and give some insights into performance because unusually some of these motherboards can actually limit the performance of a CPU, even an i5-11400 – one of them because it’s just a bad B560 motherboard, others if you don’t set them up correctly. Because we’ve selected boards across the range and from different manufacturers, we can use this to recommend other boards not on this test but that share components or specification with them. We’ve used our testing to give recommendations for boards to pick for the entry-level, mid-range and at the high end, so let’s get stuck in!

1. Features Overview

All of these boards share some basic features common to the B560 platform. All are PCIe 4.0 compatible in the primary M.2 slot and PCIe slot. All have 2 M.2 slots total. They all allow RAM overclocking.

The ASRock B560M-HDV is unquestionably the bottom of the stack. It has just 2 RAM slots, and it’s cut down from the normal mATX size using just 6 mounting points instead of the usual 8. It doesn’t have any POST code troubleshooting lights or a Bios flash button. The rear IO lacks Displayport and instead has HDMI, DVI and even a D-Sub port, along with 3 audio jacks and just 6 USB ports. There’s Gigabit LAN but no WiFi. It has just one full-length PCI-E x16 slot and two x1 slots. It lacks a USB 3.2 gen 1 header so many more modern cases aren’t compatible without an adaptor, and will lose that connectors potential speed. It has just 4 SATA ports for additional drives. There’s no heatsinking on the m.2 drive or the Voltage delivery circuitry – but more on that later.

The MSI B560M Bazooka has heatsinking on the VRMS and primary M.2 slot, and a military-themed aesthetic. There are 4 RAM slots but still just one full-length PCIe slot and two additional single length slots for WiFi cards or similar expansion. The rear IO is pretty sparse, with just 6 USB ports, 3 Audio jacks, and a 2.5Gigabit Ethernet port. There are HDMI and Displayport outputs if you want to use the iGPU. It does have some basic troubleshooting boot LEDs and 6 SATA ports. There’s an AIO pump header and adequate fan headers for most builds. It does lack the USB 3.2 Gen2 header so check your case compatibility. There are RGB headers but no RGB on the board.

The Asus TUF Gaming B560M-Plus WiFi plus is firmly mid-range and has a good suite of features. Importantly it has inbuilt Wifi 6, so there’s no need for an additional card to get WiFi and Bluetooth connectivity, it’s right there on the rear IO. It’s got 8 USB ports on the rear plus a USB C, five audio jack connectors plus optical out, and 2.5 Gigabit Lan, as well as Displayport and HDMI.  The IO shield is inbuilt too, making install a cinch. There are 2 full-length PCIe slots so a capture card or similar ‘X4’ secondary card will fit in the lower slot. There are 4 RAM slots, 6 SATA ports, and a USB 3.2 Gen 1 header to give you those high-speed ports on the front of the case. It has the ‘TUF’ militarised aesthetic and some neat RGB highlights on the board. 

The Gigabyte Aorus Pro AX represents the higher end, with a sleek silver aesthetic, heavy aluminium heatsinking and an integrated IO plate. They’ve crammed in 9 USB ports on the rear, and a USB C socket as well, alongside the WiFi 6 antenna connectors. Internally there’s 2 full length PCIe slots, and one awkwardly placed single length slot, along with 6 SATA ports and a USB 3.2 gen 1 header socket. There’s also a good number of USB 3.0 and audio connectors as well as RGB control headers. It has a Q-Flash button on the bottom edge of the board, useful for recovering BIOS or updating without RAM and CPU installed. It’s worth mentioning the VRMs here, this board has a 12 phase 50 Amp VRM set up which is clearly the best specified in test.

Finally, we come to the only mini ITX board on test, the ASUS B560-I ROG Strix. This is a premium board but contends with the constraints imposed by its tiny size. The rear IO is integrated and includes 6 USB sockets, a USB Type C, WiFi 6 antenna connectors, and five audio jacks and unusually it also has an audio type C connector. There’s 2.5Gigabit ethernet, a Displayport and HDMI output. Internally there are two M.2 slots, one front at PCIe 4.0 speeds with dual-sided heatsinking and a rear PCIe 3.0 slot as well. You’ll have to contend with the mini ITX limitations of a single PCIe slot, 2 RAM slots, 4 SATA ports, one each of USB 3.0 and 3.2 gen 1 header, and one each of CPU, Chassis and AIO pump fan headers. ASUS include a handy USB C extension cable – and a key ring…

2. Ease of set up and install

Full marks go to Asus here for their M.2 clip which makes drive installation a cinch. The manuals are clear and accurate, and they have integrated backplates to ease installation.

The Gigabyte also has an integrated IO plate, but it loses marks for an awkward M.2 installation solution with a split standoff. The heatsink looks like it’s hinged but it’s actually just a tab. The awkward process is exacerbated by a manual that doesn’t have clear diagrams or even reference the m.2 installation process. It’s outdated and could do with a refresh to help first time builders along.

The MSI Bazooka has a separate I/O backplate, but the m.2 installation is easy enough and the manuals are clear. POST lights help diagnose any installation or settings errors. 

In a clear last place is the ASROCK HDV. The IO shield is incredibly basic pressed tin, there’s no diagnostic lights or BIOS flash button to help troubleshoot. At least with no M.2 heatsink, and only 2 RAM slots, it’s hard to get it wrong when you put it together. There’s a major problem when it comes to the configuration of this board though, which we’ll come to in the performance section. 

3. BIOS

You don’t often see a critique of BIOS in reviews. It’s a one time deal for most people who just want to build and set up their PC and won’t re-enter BIOS unless something goes wrong.

B560 is the first non-enthusiast chipset to permit RAM overclocking, so that opens up the need to enter BIOS to set up RAM correctly, and delve through menus and settings that otherwise you may never see. There’s another issue here, and that’s that some of these boards have default power settings that actually limit performance even of i5 CPUs. That means you might need to dig into power settings to get full performance and if the BIOS isn’t intuitive that can be a tricky task.

BIOS is somewhat subjective because your comfort with a particular lay out hinges on what you’re used to. However, in our opinion, the MSI BIOS is the best laid out and most intuitive to use. On initial set up it’s the only BIOS that clearly explains the need to set your power limits according to the cooler you’re using and shows exactly what the limits will be set to. Once you’re in BIOS, there’s a basic simple mode that lets you select XMP and boot order, likely the only 2 tasks you’ll need to do. Advanced mode opens up a wealth of options including fan tweaking, Memory overclocking, setting power limits for the CPU, and saving and applying profiles. 

Asus and Gigabyte suffer from the same slightly confusing advanced layout, with numerous options jumbled together and not always in a logical order. Asus buries sub-menus making them hard to navigate. It does however default to using ‘Multi-core enhancement’ which allows a CPU to utilise higher power limits, but it’s not entirely clear to the first time user exactly what this means and it’s very much sold as an option you should select. 

Gigabyte makes no mention of power Iimits: It appears the option may depend on what CPU is fitted. It suffers from the same problems as ASUS with a slightly confusing BIOS layout but does make some attempt to explain some settings like Load Line Calibration which is nice to see.

The ASROCK BIOS is acceptable in layout and function, but again the power settings are both obscured, and actually do not allow a free choice of power limits, likely because of constraints of the motherboard’s design. As a result, you cannot set a power limit higher than 100W and this has a negative effect on performance. Other than that, the Asus, Gigabyte and ASRock BIOSes are similar in layout and function and serve their purpose well enough. 

4. Performance

Firstly, one of the main reasons the B560 chipset is recommended is because it allows memory overclocking for the first time officially on non-K CPUs. This can bring decent performance benefits and is worth exploring if you are opting for this platform.

All of these boards allow memory overclocking, all have very similar settings available to enable that, and all allow running memory in ‘GEAR 1’ mode at 3600MHz – meaning the memory controller clock matches that of the RAM itself. All the boards accepted the XMP profile on the 3600MHz CL16 G.Skill kit we used for testing. 

Where we start to see some important differences is in how the boards behave due to their implementation of Intel’s power limit specifications, especially at default. 

To demonstrate, here’s a graph showing the Cinebench R23 score of each of these boards running an i5-11500 CPU using default power settings:

Whilst the two Asus boards and the Gigabyte Aorus all turn in similar results at about 10,200, we can see the MSI Bazooka and ASRock fall significantly behind. What’s going on?

Logging metrics, we can compare the CPU behaviour through this test on the different B560 motherboards.

This graph shows the impact of power limiting behaviour by the motherboard. The MSI deploys it’s high power limit which allows the CPU to draw 110W for the first section of the test, and permits running the CPU at it’s rated 4.2GHz all core speed. It then drops to a 65W long term power limit which limits clock frequencies to 3.3 GHz and causes a low score.

The ASRock HDV initially appears to be doing better: But look closely: It is never able to deliver more than 100W, and it then drops to 65W and the clocks to 3.5GHZ.

Meanwhile, the Asus TUF maintains 110W for the full duration of this test, running the CPU at 4.2GHZ throughout, and that’s down to ‘multi-core enhancement’ being active by default.

The MSI Bazooka’s behaviour can be fixed: Selecting ‘Tower’ or ‘All in one water cooler’ on initial set up in the BIOS imposes a higher power limit and allows the CPU to perform to its full potential. 

The ASROCK HDV however, cannot be saved. Imposing a 100W limit in BIOS improves the CPU performance as can be seen in this re-test with power limits removed, but its performance still falls short of the other B560 motherboards. If you’re thinking ‘hey, that’s not too bad, it’s only 200 points behind’… all I can say is please watch our linked video exploring this issue on B560 boards. We’ve got much more testing including testing with an i9-11900K, and they show why this is such a bad result for the ASROCK HDV, and why you shouldn’t consider this motherboard for even an i5 build. 

In terms of performance, the ASUS, Gigabyte and MSI boards perform equivalently and are able to extract the full potential from this CPU whilst the ASRock HDV gets a serious black mark against it for failing to meet Intel specification and failing to extract the full potential from an i5 CPU. 

Conclusions: Power delivery matters on B560 Motherboards

Our testing has highlighted important differences in the B560 chipset motherboards available. You need to factor in not only features and price, but also potential performance issues with some of these B560 motherboards.

The performance issue really is one of Intel’s own making: Their dogged adherence to squeezing every last drop out of aged architecture and process leaves them with mid-range CPUs that draw a lot of power when performing at their full potential. These components aren’t cheap, and this leaves motherboard manufacturers in the unpleasant position of trying to deliver compatible boards at an attractive price point. It appears that boards like the ASROCK HDV or some of the Gigabyte UD offerings are intended for use with i3 CPUs in office style low-demand builds because they’re not suitable for more demanding CPUs or usage. 

B560 Motherboard Recommendations

Best Entry Level B560 Motherboards

In our testing, the MSI MAG B560M Bazooka proves itself to be an excellent entry-level B560 motherboard. Or, if your budget is tighter, the MSI Pro VDH which is identical in specification and has VRM heatsinks, but loses the gamer aesthetic, but is also available with inbuilt WiFI.

ASUS has used a robust 8 phase VRM design across their affordable Prime Range, and also have heatsinking. The B560M-A or B560-PLUS are also good options at the entry-level price point.

Best Mid Range B560 Motherboards

The MSI MAG B560M Mortar and Asus TUF Gaming B560M-Plus WiFi both hit the sweet spot of solid VRM design and features and both have integrated WiFI 6 options available.

If you are looking for an ATX board the MSI MAG B560 Torpedo is a strong option with similar specification to the Mortar.

Best High End B560 Motherboard

Gigabyte has done a good job of VRM design since the ‘Coffee Lake’ era, and the VRM on the B560M Aorus Pro AX is no exception. The closely matched Aorus Elite and Aorus Pro are near identical in specification, with the Pro version having slightly stronger components in the VRM but retaining the same basic design. Either B560 motherboard will make a great choice for an i5 CPU. The Aorus Pro is our pick for the strongest VRM on test, it had no problems supplying power to the i9-11900K and its all-round specification matches the other motherboards on test.

Beyond $200 – Look to Z590 or AMD Zen 3

If you’re pushing towards $200 you perhaps look to a Z590 motherboard instead. Whilst the Asus Strix and MSI B560 Tomahawk are good offerings, you should look to gain the flexibility of a Z590 motherboard as you approach that price point. 

You could also consider the platform cost of a switch to a Ryzen Zen 3 CPU and a more cost-effective AMD B550 motherboard, where there’s a range of good options for around $100-$150 that offset the slightly higher CPU cost. There isn’t really a lot of sense in trying to get the value out of a CPU like the i5-11400 or i7-11700, but then overspending on motherboards to support them.

Best Mini ITX B560 Motherboard

If you’re looking for a mini ITX board, then the ASUS ROG Strix B560-I doesn’t disappoint. It allows both the i5-11500 and i9-11900K to perform to potential and has the same features as any other B560 ITX board on the market. You might want to consider the heat loading of an Intel Rocket Lake CPU in a small form factor build, especially when compared to a more efficient AMD Zen 3 CPU. That said, it’s a great looking and well-specified board and gets our recommendation from the handful of mITX B560 offerings.

That concludes our roundup. We hope you have this interesting, and perhaps it’s saved you from buying a part that would lead to the disappointing performance of your build. The B560 motherboards we’ve recommended will provide an excellent basis for your next PC, with a great blend of features, performance, ease of use and good value too. 

We also have produced a video companion to our B560 motherboard article, which we have linked below.

The post Best B560 Motherboards for Intel Rocket Lake Builds appeared first on PremiumBuilds.

In order to compete with AMD’s complete domination of the CPU market after the release of their Zen 3 Ryzen 5000 CPUs, Intel has launched their 11^th generation Rocket Lake processors. These models have respectable single core performance, and are excellent choices for gaming builds. Another inherent advantage of these CPUs is their availability, as AMD’s Zen 3 processors can seldomly be found at their initial MSRP.

Now, if you have chosen to go the Intel route for your next CPU, you are going to want to find the best motherboard to house this processor. Choosing a motherboard can be tricky, as there are so many models to choose from, and the differences between them can be hard to differentiate. Currently, Intel has three different types of motherboards for their 10^th and 11^th generation CPUs (LGA 1200 chipset): The B560, the H570, and the Z590.

The main differences between the three motherboards are: their number and configuration of PCIe lanes, their connectivity, and their support for CPU overclocking. The B560, being the entry-level option, has the least amount of PCIe & DMI lanes, the least amount of USB slots, and no raid configuration support. However, it is the least expensive of all three options, so, if these shortcoming seem unimportant to you, then this would be the best of the three motherboards to choose from.

The H570, being the mid-level option of the two, does have a bit more connectivity then the B560 –  with x8 DMI lanes, 20 PCIe lanes, and 2 additional USB 3.2 slots – but the key missing feature is its lack of CPU overclocking support.

The premium model of the three is the Z590, which not only has the best connectivity, but it also is the only option that allows for CPU overclocking. This is particularly important for those looking to purchase Intel i7 or i9 Rocket Lake CPUs, which are built with premium overclocking technology like Intel’s Turbo Boost Max Technology 3.0 Frequency and Intel Thermal Velocity Boost Frequency. 

Conclusion

The best way to choose which motherboard to purchase, in order to house your new Intel Rocket Lake CPU, is to check their connectivity and see which best fills your needs. If you care little about overclocking your CPU, then both B560 and H570 motherboard models have solid options for your choosing. If you don’t need the extra connectivity, the B560 is the way to go, as it is the cheapest of the three, yet offers enough utility to be a respectable option. Given also that RAM overclocking is now possible for any LGA 1200 motherboard model, both the B560 and H570 can be valuable for their price.

If CPU overclocking potential is important for you, then, unfortunately, you only have one option to choose from: the Z590. This motherboard may come at a relatively high price, but the good news is you will have excellent connectivity, and added features that are usually reserved for premium motherboards: like a high-end audio chipset and powerful VRM & cooling solutions.

The post B560 vs H570 vs Z590 Motherboard Comparison: Which is Best for Rocket Lake CPUs? appeared first on PremiumBuilds.

Choosing a motherboard is not an easy task. There are many factors to consider, and many aspects that need to be analyzed. Especially new PC builders can find that choosing a proper motherboard to be a daunting task, as these components are associated with plenty of technical terminology, and excessively over-the-top marketing, overloaded with information that is many times just fluff.

The most key aspects to look for in a motherboard are:

1. The VRM and cooling solutions.
2. The memory support and number of slots.
3. The number of storage slots and PCIe lanes.
4. The included audio chipset.
5. The overall connectivity – be it USB, fan headers, or networking.
6. The manufacturer’s BIOS.
7. Their external appearance.
8. And, most importantly, their form factor.

The form factor of the motherboard will not only determine the overall size of your PC, but it will also determine everything from: overclocking and upgrade potential, to RAM & ROM storage size, and even the cooling potential of your build. If you are currently debating what form factor to choose, this article will provide you with the four main questions you must ask yourself in order to reach a decision on which form factor best fits your style and preferences.

What is your budget?

The first question, of course, is also the most predictable. The first thing you need to know before planning any new build is your budget – and there are some hidden costs associated with different motherboard form-factors. 

ATX motherboards offer the best connectivity out of all three types, but they are typically more expensive than their smaller counterparts and they require larger cases to accommodate them, which also drives up the price. 

Mini-ITX motherboards may cost less, but because they lack connectivity – like DDR4 RAM slots, M.2 SSD slots, and PCIe lanes – they will require a more substantial initial investment. For example, a mITX motherboard will typically have just two DDR4 Slots, whereas ATX motherboards will have four. That means that if you need 32 GB of RAM, you will also need to purchase them in two ranks (instead of four), since the ability to upgrade the RAM storage size will not be available. This means that it may be wise to purchase more RAM than is necessary at the time of their purchase. Because of the smaller size of mITX compatible cases, you may also need a SFX form factor power supply – which are typically more expensive than larger ATX PSUs – and an SFX compatible CPU cooler; together with additional fans – or liquid cooling – to keep the internal components at proper temperatures, since smaller cases tend to run hotter.

Finally, micro-ATX motherboards will typically be cheaper than the other two options, but they feature four RAM slots & plenty of connectivity; and they can also be placed in different cases ranging from micro to midi towers (or even mini-towers in some cases). These motherboards are  cheaper in price, so they do make for more cost efficient options. The downside is that they are  lower end motherboard models, so they will have fewer PCIe slots, weaker VRM & cooling solutions, lower-end audio chipsets, and may lack WiFi networking.

Do you want your PC to be mobile or stationary?

So, ultimately, mITX motherboards are the more expensive options, when compared to either micro-ATX or ATX form-factors, but they have a smaller footprint, and therefore more portability. If, for example, you have an office separate from your home, and want to be able to transfer your PC between these two locations, a small form factor (SFF) case can easily be relocated. Of course, there are also mini-towers (and even micro-towers) that can easily be moved, since options do exist that even include a handle for easier transfer. ATX cases are much more difficult to carry, as they are considerably larger and heavier than the aforementioned form factors; but their upsides lie in their better connectivity and wider range of compatibility. 

If your case will be stationary,  then an ATX motherboard and case is almost a no-brainer. There are few reasons to purchase a smaller case if you do not have the intent of it being mobile
: which would be the budget, or the looks – and this leads to the next question:

Will your PC be flashy, or will it be quiet?

Preferences in appearance are always in the eye of the beholder, so some will want to make something like a large build with a tempered glass side panel and plenty of RGB lighting, while others may find a smaller, sleeker, and perhaps monochrome case to be more to their liking. These preferences do play a role in the choice of a motherboard, due to budget considerations, the overall size of the case, and the lighting that the motherboard itself can support. 

If you’re looking to add as much pizzazz as you can get – and don’t mind sacrificing a bit of the motherboard’s functionality, or the ability to properly overclock your CPU – then a micro-ATX  build will give you a bit more budget leeway and space to plan out the RGB effects. 

ATX motherboards may cost a bit more, but they will provide additional RGB lighting (on the motherboard itself) and room between hardware components that can allow for different setups for liquid cooling. 

Last but not least, we have the most expensive of the three options, but arguably the most stylish: the mITX motherboards and their accompanying SFF cases. These cases can cost more than the motherboard itself, and if you want yours to allow for both style and functionality – like perhaps a Thor Mjolnir or a Sliger SM550 – then you will be paying upwards of two-to-three hundred dollars for the case alone. That being said, having both a small footprint and a sleek design can make for an excellent combination.

Now, if you see a PC as a practical piece of machinery, rather than a centerpiece for your desk, then chances are that you will also prefer to have a quiet build, rather than a flashy one. Silent builds also require specialized hardware components, including the case they will be placed in. Midi-towers will generally have less noise emissions, due to the fact that they have more sound dampening materials (larger panels), more ventilation, more space between components, and more sufficient cooling. Smaller cases will ultimately be noisier, due to the factors above, but there are exceptions to the rule: like Fractal Design’s Define Nano S: an ITX case (that only takes mITX motherboards) which is surrounded by sound dampening panels and allows for a 160mm CPU cooler & up to six case-fans (4x 140mm, 2x 120 mm).

Are you planning on overclocking?

If you plan on overclocking your CPU regularly, certain motherboards will definitely be better than others, due to their VRM and cooling solutions. The VRM is a buck converter than throttles +5 / +12 V potential to the lower values needed by the CPU. A poor VRM solution may result in insufficient voltage supplied to the processor, unwanted shutdowns, and instability. Additionally, if the MOSFETs, chokes, and capacitors are not heatsinked, the subsequent overheating can cause these components to deteriorate and have shorter lifespans. 

If you want to avoid bottlenecking your CPU’s overclocking capabilities, you will want a high end VRM solution, with all the components being heatsinked, and perhaps even a heatpipe or PCH fan for additional cooling. The motherboards that are most-guilty of not heatsinking their VRM components are the micro-ATX variants, which generally should be ignored if you plan on overclocking your CPU in the future. ATX and mITX motherboards can have excellent cooling, depending, of course, on their price and model.CONCLUSION

To sum things up, if you want a motherboard for a stationary PC with a good VRM solution, that can become either stylish or silent depending on your preference – and that comes at a decent overall price – then ATX motherboards will be best for your needs. You will have an easier time setting it up, extra space for better connectivity, and far more motherboard models to choose from.

On the other hand, if you are looking for a motherboard – and overall PC build – on a budget, and don’t mind missing out on overclocking potential or connectivity, a micro-ATX build is the way to go. This will allow you for more leeway to make your PC either extra stylish, or silent, and will give you a wider range of compatible cases to consider.

Finally, if you want a premium PC build – and don’t mind spending a bit more in order to attain one – then a mITX build can be incredibly powerful, sleek, and convenient. If these motherboards are to be placed in a SFF case, then scrupulous planning must be made to ensure all components fit, and that you have sufficient memory, storage, and cooling. They can offer high-end overclocking potential, fit full-sized GPUs, and they can be transferred from one area to another on a whim. They  do have limited connectivity and may be a bit noisy, depending on the case, but if you see this as a small price to pay for what they offer, than an ITX motherboard is definitely an excellent option to consider.

The post Which Motherboard Size Should You Choose? ATX vs Micro-ATX vs Mini-ITX appeared first on PremiumBuilds.

Intel’s newest 11th generation CPUs, ‘Rocket Lake’ require motherboards with their latest chipsets to function. The Z590 chipset is top of the line and allows full CPU and memory overclocking on K series CPUs, as well as memory overclocking on non-K CPUs. These motherboards make full use of the Z590 specification to provide 20+4 PCIe 4.0 lanes for the GPU and main SSD (though PCIe 3.0 SSDs will work just fine), whilst other nice to have features like integrated Intel networking boost the spec sheet. They’re not cheap, however: Running these power-hungry CPUs demands top-flight power delivery circuitry and Z590 motherboards command a significant price premium. In this article, we’ll recommend the best options for a range of needs, including to keep costs down or if you want to extract the most from a new Rocket Lake CPU – such as the i5-11400, i5-11600K, i7-11700K and i9-11900K.

Best Z590 Motherboards – Our Recommendations

Award	Model	Design	VRM
Best Overall Z590 Motherboard	Gigabyte Z590 AORUS Elite AX		12+1 Phase 60A
Best Mini-ITX Z590 Motherboard	Gigabyte Z590I AORUS Ultra		10 Phase
Best Z590 Motherboard for Overclocking	ASRock Z590 PG Velocita		14+1 Phase
Best Value Z590 Motherboard	MSI Z590-A Pro		12+1 Phase
Best High-End Z590 Motherboard	Asus ROG Strix Z590-E		14 Phase 70A
Best White-Themed Z590 Motherboard	Gigabyte Z590 Vision G		12 Phase

Best Overall Z590 Motherboard

Gigabyte has been impressing us with the balance of specification, performance and price on Intel chipset motherboards for several generations now. The Z590 line up is no exception. This mid-range board, the Z590 AORUS Elite AX, boasts a suite of features that make it our go-to recommendation. It has strong 12+1 Phase 60 Amp VRMS and extensive and attractive heatsinking, 3 M.2 slots with the top one direct to the CPU (11^th gen only), four armoured RAM slots and two full-length PCIe Slots. For networking, there’s integrated WiFI 6 and 2.5Gb Ethernet. The audio solution is a higher-end ALC 1220 Codec, with full audio output on the back panel. USB is covered with 8 rear ports, and a USB 3.2 Gen2 Type C front panel connector – so ensure your case is compatible. It also has Q flash for easy BIOS updates and a full complement of configurable fan and RGB headers. The aesthetics are on point with attractive anodized heat sinking and discrete RGB elements. Overall this board covers all the bases and packs a great feature list into its $240 asking price. 

Best Mini-ITX Z590 Motherboard

Gigabyte also takes our recommendation for the best mini-ITX Z590 board for SFF builds with the Z590I AORUS Ultra. Not only is it significantly cheaper than the alternatives at $280, it beasts some of them out for specification. Despite its diminutive size, it packs in an impressive 10 phase VRM with 90 Amp Power Stages, capable of running even the 11900K to full potential. There’s also a neat heat pipe and fin stack to keep VRMs cool. A pair of M.2 slots give versatile storage options with the main front slot being PCIe 4.0 and there are 4 SATA ports too. The single PCIe Slot is ‘armour plated’ to help it cope with the stresses of large GPUs, as are the memory and power connector sockets. As with all mITX motherboards, there’s integrated Wi-Fi and 2.5Gb Ethernet, and they’ve squeezed in Displayport and HDMI outputs as well as USB-C and 7 other USB A ports on the rear panel. Audio is rounded out with the ALC 1220 Codec for good performance and features there too. Aesthetics are clean and classy with black anodization and burnished highlights, with only an RGB AORUS eagle highlighting the brand.

If you’re looking for an mITX Z590 board this option offers great specification, and the price point makes the more expensive competition look like bad value.

Best Z590 Motherboard for Overclocking

Whilst the price tag may not scream ‘class-leading performance’, a deeper look at the spec sheet highlights the ASRock Z590 PG Velocita as a wolf in sheep’s clothing. There’s everything you’d expect of a high-end overclockers motherboard on offer here.

This Z590 motherboard has a 14+1 phase DrMOS power delivery system with 60Amp chokes – capable of delivering well over 700W of power to a CPU. Thermal control is managed by a chunky and heavily ventilated pair of heatsinks connected by a heatpipe, and there’s even a 30mm fan supplied to actively cool the heatsinks in extended overclocking sessions – though it’s probably noisy enough you wouldn’t want to run it 24/7, with such efficient and extensive VRM design there’s no need to use it for general use. This forms the foundation of a very solid overclockers board. Enhancing the OC credentials, there’s onboard power and reset switches for ease of use on a test bench or partially built system, whilst a full LED diagnostic display helps you track down boot or running issues with ease. There’s even a pair of full 8 pin CPU power connectors for over 300W total delivery to the CPU. The Z590 motherboard is full-featured and doesn’t skimp in more general specifications either, with Wi-Fi 6, three full-length PCIe slots, three m.2 slots and a comprehensive selection of ports on the rear I/O panel. They’ve even integrated a GPU holder that supports the front edge of the card to limit the stress on the PCIe slot. ASRock has squeezed an impressive amount of functionality in at this price point, and we have no doubt that this board is as capable as any when it comes to squeezing the most out of a Z590 compatible CPU. 

Best Value Z590 Motherboard

MSI’s A-Pro is the more discreet and focused products in their line-up, aimed at a function over form rather than a gamer aesthetic. The Z590-A Pro hits all the core specifications without diverting money to RGB or other frivolities.

The capable 12+1 Phase power stages and heat sinking ensures you can run any 10^th or 11^th Gen CPU to its full potential. There’s a pair of full-length PCIe Slots and a second pair of x1 slots for expansion cards. Three M.2 slots (top slot is 11th Gen CPU only) and 6 SATA ports take care of storage – though as with all Z590 motherboards it pays to pay attention to which exact combinations of PCIe slots, M.2 slots and SATA ports are active depending on your proposed system configuration. There’s an inbuilt 2.5Gb LAN, and a reasonable if unexciting ALC 987 audio chip providing 7.1 channel audio output. To take care of cooling there’s an impressive six fan headers and one water cooling pump header. It also has a BIOS flash button, a useful addition for system upgrades. In conclusion, this motherboard is one of the cheapest options for the Z590 chipset but makes a perfect basis for a productivity or budget gaming rig where bang-for-buck matters. 

Best High-End Z590 Motherboard

ASUS’s Z590 lineup includes the ROG Strix Z590-E, which is their top tier board before you get to the incredibly expensive ROG MAXIMUS XIII Hero – a board which we have used to test the 11^th generation flagship.

The Z590-E gets you most of that boards functionality at $120 less, whilst retaining the aggressive all black looks and ROG Styling as well as premium features.

The VRM is gloriously overkilled with 14 phases 70 Amp power stages, a heat pipe and chunky finned heatsinks – and it even includes a fan and bracket to concentrate airflow over the VRMs for additional cooling when pushing power-hungry CPUs to the limits. The m.2 heatsinks sandwich drives between a pair of thermal pads and keep temperatures incredibly low – we’ve not seen drive temperatures exceed 40C with this design, and there are 4 Slots total (One is 11^th gen only, another shares bandwidth with the main PCIe slot when active, so choose your drive configuration with care). An integrated clear CMOS button helps you reset when testing settings to the limits, whilst a LED Code output helps troubleshooting during set up or testing. There’s a broad range of qualified RAM on the compatibility lists for this Z590 motherboard and we’ve found its bigger brother forgiving of higher speeds and aggressive RAM timings to find those last few per cent of performance from tweaking for optimisations. There’s no denying it’s a great looking motherboard as well, one that will integrate perfectly with most enthusiast Rocket Lake PC builds.

Best White-Themed Z590 Motherboard

Gigabytes new ‘Vision’ line is aimed at content creators, but they’ve accented the boards with the cleanest white and silver aesthetic available in Z590 format, with the Z590 Vision G being our pick. These slick motherboards have a high-end VRM solution, including extensive heat sinking so you can run any 10^th or 11^th generation CPU with the confidence it will be performing at its best. There are four M.2 slots (primary PCIe 4.0 slot 11^th gen CPU only) and three full-length PCIe slots available with the main one being PCIe 4.0. To control RGB there’s 2 RGB headers plus two more addressable headers, and integrated discrete RGB on the board itself as well. It also provides a good selection of fan, CPU fan and pump headers for you to customise a comprehensive cooling solution. The stand-out styling and full feature set mark this Z590 motherboard out as the one to get for a build that performs every bit as good as it looks and means you can build a beautiful white PC, without compromising on features or performance. 

The post 6 Best Z590 Motherboards for Intel ‘Rocket Lake’ Builds appeared first on PremiumBuilds.