Category: Motherboards

MSI B650 Gaming Plus WiFi: Axe for “expensive” and “weak” boards

Extra tests, Motherboards | | Ľubomír Samák

If you don’t want to skimp on a motherboard for an AMD CPU, but also don’t want to pay more than you need to, the MSI B650 Gaming Plus WiFi appears to be an attractive option. The price is well under two hundred euros and yet it can handle even the Ryzen 9 7950X without any power limits. Although there are also things calling for improvement, the cheapest MSI B650 board in ATX format defends its position in a lower-budget gaming build. Read more “MSI B650 Gaming Plus WiFi: Axe for “expensive” and “weak” boards” »

Realtek RTL8126 has stability issues, no 5.0Gb/s Ethernet this year

Motherboards, Networks, News | | Jan Olšan

In June, Computex 2023 brought news of 5.0Gb/s Ethernet adapters coming soon to motherboards courtesy of Realtek-developed RTL8126 low-cost NIC chip. It would follow in the footsteps of the previous RTL8125, which enabled mass adoption of 2.5Gb/s Ethernet networking on motherboards. Unfortunately, it looks like the advent of 5,0Gb/s networking will be delayed as the RTL8126 suffers from flaws and the rollout was cancelled. Read more “Realtek RTL8126 has stability issues, no 5.0Gb/s Ethernet this year” »

ASRock B650E Taichi motherboard – breaker of several records

Extra tests, Motherboards | | Ľubomír Samák

The AMD B650E chipset is a compromise solution to some extent, but the ASRock Taichi motherboard that is based on it makes an ultimate impression. And it’s not just a “feel”, it really is that… The VRM of the CPU didn’t fit in our thermal image with the standard procedure. There are a few quirks and things that you might find it worth tweaking, but those are usually related to other things, like the more modest chipset features. Read more “ASRock B650E Taichi motherboard – breaker of several records” »

Gigabyte A620M Gaming X vs. 200+W. No fireworks in sight!

Extra tests, Motherboards | | Ľubomír Samák

Some people paint disasters around cheap motherboards (literally, flames in the graphics editor and such… natural disasters sell), yet often you have nothing to worry about and nothing burns up anywhere. Such A620M Gaming X can handle even the most powerful processors for AMD AM5 socket with ease. It doesn’t make much sense to pair it up like this, as the features are tailored to the undemanding user, but it is an option. Read more “Gigabyte A620M Gaming X vs. 200+W. No fireworks in sight!” »

So we took a look at the MSI MAG B760M Mortar WiFi and…

Extra tests, Motherboards | | Ľubomír Samák

When building a relatively cheaper Intel-based desktop, you’ll probably choose a “B” chipset motherboard. One of those is the B760M Mortar WiFi. Because of the use of the Micro ATX format, this motherboard is also attractive for smaller computer cases. The cross-generational comparison with the B660M Mortar WiFi is also striking. What direction is MSI taking this? Read more “So we took a look at the MSI MAG B760M Mortar WiFi and…” »

Asus improves board warranty: Memory OC and beta BIOS covered

Motherboards, News | | Jan Olšan

Recently, a controversy has flared up on the web surrounding Asus motherboards. It is related to the issues of Ryzen 7000X3D CPUs killed by excessive VSoC voltage, which was previously set too high by Asus boards (not just Asus ones though). Asus received further complaints after providing a fix as a beta BIOS update that was not officially covered by warranty. The company has now responded by changes that should improve things quite a bit. Read more “Asus improves board warranty: Memory OC and beta BIOS covered” »

A620 chipset specs in detail: a PCIe Gen4 uplink surprise

Motherboards, News | | Jan Olšan

Last Friday, the last day of Q1, low-cost AM5 boards for Ryzen 7000 processors based on the low-end A620 chipset were released by all the manufacturers in a coordinated fashion (we’ve put together an overview of the models here), but AMD itself didn’t make any announcements at first, so we didn’t have exact specs. These have been published now and include one surprising thing which makes the A620 better than expected. Read more “A620 chipset specs in detail: a PCIe Gen4 uplink surprise” »

Cheap A620 AM5 boards are out, starting at $85. Here’s the models

Motherboards, News | | Jan Olšan

In the last few days, inexpensive A620 chipset-based AM5 motherboards for Ryzen 7000 started leaking. We’ve already seen photos of one model and it seems that AMD has timed the unveiling and release for the last day of March (maybe they wanted to formally make it before the end of the first quarter). And now, boards with this chipset were launched from all the usual manufacturers, with the cheapest ones going as low as $85. Read more “Cheap A620 AM5 boards are out, starting at $85. Here’s the models” »

Intel LGA 1851 platform details: Z890 and Meteor Lake connectivity

Motherboards, News, Processors | | Jan Olšan

Intel LGA 1700 desktop platform is now running on its second generation of processors (Raptor Lake) which will see a refresh in fall, but that will be the end of this socket. A new LGA 1851 socket is planned for Meteor Lake and Arrow Lake processors and a report has now revealed new features of this platform. Intel will give the processor-connected I/O interfaces an upgrade that will put it closer to the AM5 platform. Read more “Intel LGA 1851 platform details: Z890 and Meteor Lake connectivity” »

MSI MAG B650 Tomahawk WiFi: The cheapest of the decent ones

Extra tests, Motherboards | | Ľubomír Samák

The higher price of motherboards is one of the main topics around desktop PCs. Especially in the context of the AMD platform. However, if you decide to build your rig on DDR5 memory with the vision of a longer life expectancy, the B650 Tomahawk WiFi, in comparison to similarly equipped motherboards with Intel chipsets, is rather higher on the “price” scales and with a more attractive price/value ratio. Read more “MSI MAG B650 Tomahawk WiFi: The cheapest of the decent ones” »

A620 chipset specs leak: With PCIe 4.0 but no overclocking

Chipsets, Motherboards, News | | Jan Olšan

In recent weeks, information about the upcoming AMD A620 chipset and cheaper AM5 boards for Ryzen 7000 CPUs based on it began to appear. One of the hardware “leakers” shared the alleged specifications that the A620 chipset is supposed to have, and also what will be the other features of the boards built on the chipset. According to earlier reports, these could start selling or at least be revealed as early as this month. Read more “A620 chipset specs leak: With PCIe 4.0 but no overclocking” »

“Weaker PCB”, but still (Gigabyte Aorus X670 Elite AX) stands out

Extra tests, Motherboards | | Ľubomír Samák

Motherboards for the AMD AM5 platform with chipsets without “E” in the designation have weaker connectivity derived from the processor, but if you do not require PCIe 5.0 for the graphics card, you do not really need to worry. And not at all with the Aorus X670 Elite AX board, which defends the “Elite” label without the slightest difficulty. For proper features, but also for the fact that Gigabyte has once again pushed the performance more than usual. Read more ““Weaker PCB”, but still (Gigabyte Aorus X670 Elite AX) stands out” »

W790 board for Sapphire Rapids: 64L and 112L CPUs both supported

Motherboards, News | | Jan Olšan

One of December’s interesting news was the leak about Intel’s new Sapphire Rapids CPU platform for both high-end desktop (HEDT) and workstations. It’s three CPU platforms – but besides the 2S systems, we’re mainly interested in the two lineups for single-processor workstations: the pricier octo-channel Xeon W-3400 and the cheaper quad-channel Xeon W-2400 with fewer cores. But it looks like these two will be partially compatible. Read more “W790 board for Sapphire Rapids: 64L and 112L CPUs both supported” »

In-depth analysis of Asus ROG Strix B760-A Gaming WiFi D4

Extra tests, Motherboards | | Ľubomír Samák

After the Z790 motherboards for the Intel LGA 1700 platform, models with cheaper B760 and H770 chipsets are also coming out. In this test, we’ll take a detailed look at the Asus ROG Strix B760-A Gaming WiFi D4 motherboard, which takes full advantage of what the new chipset (B760) brings. You’ll also get a general idea of how the Core i9-13900K processor performs with DDR4 memory compared to the faster DDR5 modules. Read more “In-depth analysis of Asus ROG Strix B760-A Gaming WiFi D4” »

MSI MEG X670E Ace: A truly extreme motherboard that… has it all

Extra tests, Motherboards | | Ľubomír Samák

We haven’t tested modern motherboards for AMD platforms so far and all attention has been paid to boards with Intel chipsets. That will change now, at least for a while – more AMD X670(E) and B650(E) boards will be added to the tests, but the bar will be set high. We’re starting with MSI’s top-of-the-line MEG X670E Ace motherboard, which won’t be beaten by any other board “just like that”. Read more “MSI MEG X670E Ace: A truly extreme motherboard that… has it all” »

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