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…”
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”
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”
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 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”
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”
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”
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”
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”
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”
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”
With motherboards, we don’t like to write about “gaming” hardware. They usually have virtually no effect on gaming performance. In this case, however, there is something to the marketing slogan, although not for free, and in some cases the higher performance is paid for by higher power draw in games. However, there are naturally more reasons to care about or, on the contrary, to avoid the Gigabyte Z790 Aorus Elite AX. Read more “Gigabyte Z790 Aorus Elite AX: “Optimized for gaming””
New motherboards for Intel Raptor Lake processors are again a bit more expensive in the same class than the previous generation Z690, but they are also better equipped. This also applies to the ROG Strix Z790-E Gaming WiFi, which now has more M.2 slots than SATA ports. What’s also neater is the mechanism for removing graphics cards from underneath the big tower coolers and overclocking the CPU using machine learning. That’s also an option. Read more “Even more features. Asus ROG Strix Z790-E Gaming WiFi test”
Over time, we have tested ten motherboards with Intel B660 and Z690 chipsets in great detail. From more than 5000 different measurements, we can thus confidently deny some speculations that are usually spread on the Internet from the ignorance of the authors of articles or comments (in discussions). But this is natural. The less substantial the reviews are, the more fertile ground they create for various confusions. Read more “Analysis: What have we learned from motherboard tests”
Here we have a test of the latest motherboard, which is designed primarily for the needs of Intel Alder Lake processors. It is also compatible with Raptor Lakes, but most importantly we finally have a tough opponent for the MSI Pro Z690-A DDR4. That board has set the bar really high among the cheaper models. But Gigabyte also has one ace up its sleeve in the low-end segment. The Z690 Gaming X DDR4 motherboard is truly a class act! Read more “Great value for money? Gigabyte Z690 Gaming X DDR4”
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