May 2021 – Motherboard Review

MSI X570S TOMAHAWK MAX & X570S TORPEDO MAX Pictured

May 31, 2021 by Stephen

Starting off with the MSI X570S Tomahawk Max, we are looking at a slightly refreshed design scheme with the major change being the passive cooled X570 PCH. The motherboard still carries the same number of I/O and heatsinks but one thing that might have seen another slight update is the CPU power delivery. We don’t have exact information at the moment but it does look like it has been modified just a slight bit to provide better-overclocking support on AMD’s Ryzen 5000 Desktop line of processors.

NZXT N7 B550 – CG Magazine

May 31, 2021 by Stephen

Starting with how the N7 B550 looks, you will find the iconic NZXT style throughout with a simple matte black or white shroud aesthetic. This may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but it gives the NZXT boards a unique style that few other brands can offer. Coming in both white and black, the N7 B550 will give any build a striking look that should go well with the companies own H Series cases that further bring forward the minimalist concept that many are a fan of.

ASRock Launches PG Riptide Series Motherboards – AMD X570S & B550

May 31, 2021 by Stephen

TAIPEI, Taiwan, May 31 2021 – Leading global motherboard manufacturer, ASRock, is proud to announce its latest X570S & B550 PG Riptide motherboards for AMD Ryzen AM4 desktop processors. “Riptide is named after a specific kind of water current with strong wave that occurs in the ocean. Riptide is unapparent, yet strong, fast and carries a powerful punch; this is the design philosophy of ASRock PG Riptide series motherboards” Said Chris Lee, General Manager of ASRock motherboard & gaming peripherals business unit.

The Riptide is a new crew of Phantom Gaming series, these stylishly PG Riptide series motherboards are armed to the teeth with gear designed to fulfill gamers everyday needs, without biting into the bank account unlike other similarly spec’d, high-end motherboards.

ncompromised Quality and Stability

AMD X570-based motherboards commonly require active chipset cooling, however with an AMD microcode update and BIOS fine tuning by ASRock engineers, the ASRock X570S PG Riptide now offers a revolutionary fanless design to ensure quieter operation and better reliability. Designed for uncompromising performance, PC enthusiasts will be drawn to the 10 phase VRM design using Dr.MOS IC’s and 60A Power Choke on both X570S and B550 PG Riptide motherboards. This premium VRM design delivers smooth and plentiful power to even the most demanding 16-core AMD Ryzen CPUs for everyday gaming at the limit.

ASRock Lightning Gaming Ports

In addition to offering two M.2 NVMe SSD slots, M.2 Armor, and one M.2 slot dedicated for Wi-Fi card, there’s also plenty of internal and external USB ports for peripherals. ASRock Lightning Gaming Ports uniquely feature custom engineered USB signal lanes to accommodate the latest gaming mice with ultra-high polling rates. Traditional USB signal design cannot fully support ultra-high report rate gaming peripherals, therefore limiting their performance and the user experience.

Killer E3100 2.5Gbps Networking

Both X570S & B550 PG Riptide motherboards come with Killer E3100 2.5Gbps Ethernet connectivity, which supports the Killer Prioritization Engine enabling the most reliable networking. The Killer Prioritization Engine can identify thousands of games, applications, and websites to prioritize games and the most demanding connectivity needs in real-time, offering uninterrupted online experiences with better throughput and lowest latency.

Nahimic Audio

Premium audio quality is crucial for high end gaming machine, with Nahimic Audio, ASRock ensures the X570S & B550 PG Riptide motherboards are geared with best-in-class sound. Whether you are using headphones, headset, or a set of speakers via USB, analog or even HDMI, Nahimic Audio offers you the most engaging listening experience.

ASRock Graphics Card Holder

A graphics card holder is bundled with both X570S & B550 PG Riptide motherboards. Its universal design ensures even the heaviest graphics cards can be held securely in the chassis. Simply attach it to your motherboard and chassis with the provided screws, and then slide the holder to the required height to support your graphics card.

The new PG Riptide series motherboards are aimed at gamers who are looking for comprehensive gaming hardware features. Uncompromising and designed to fulfill every gamer need with a powerful punch, The PG Riptide series is the perfect motherboard for every gaming build.

Product Information:
https://www.asrock.com/mb/AMD/X570S%20PG%20Riptide/index.asp
https://www.asrock.com/mb/AMD/B550%20PG%20Riptide/index.asp

ASRock B560 Steel Legend – Hexus

May 31, 2021 by Stephen

Back on point. ASRock duly takes advantage of what B560 has to offer. The 10-phase (60A) supply is more than sufficient for driving, say, a Core i9-11900K at its higher-wattage PL2 state.
Clear concessions have been made in achieving a lower street cost. There’s no integrated I/O shield, fewer USB ports than on Z590, the heatsinks are basic (but more than up to the task), no integrated WiFi, there’s only a single M.2 heatsink, there are no onboard buttons, and the audio isn’t as robust. None of these shortcomings are deal breakers for a fit-and-forget system.

BIOSTAR B550M-SILVER – [M]adShrimps

May 31, 2021 by Stephen

The entry-level to mainstream B550M-Silver board is a solid offering from BIOSTAR, meant for more compact systems, but with interfaces available as on a fully-fledged ATX board. The color scheme is quite catchy and does not come with any RGB lighting, but the users can sync their own RGB hardware by using the included headers. We can accommodate quite a bit of RAM thanks to the total of four memory slots, while storage can be installed in the two M.2 PCIe slots but also via the six SATA III 6Gbps ports. The VRM cooling system allows installation of larger heatsinks, while the included wiring for WiFi allows an easy upgrade if a wireless card is installed in the designated area.

MSI MEG Z590 ACE – AnandTech

May 28, 2021 by Stephen

When we overclocked the MSI MEG Z590 Ace with our i9-11900K, we observed relatively tight Vdroop control at lower frequencies and CPU VCore voltages below 5 GHz, although this changed as we above 5 GHz with some very aggressive Vdroop. We managed to get to 5.2 GHz all-cores 100% stable, with no thermal throttling and an incredible and equally terrifying power draw of 485 W at full-load. We saw an increase in POV-Ray performance as we tested each frequency. MSI’s auto-overclock Game Boost presets in the firmware actually performed worse than the default settings, with more CPU VCore, and much higher core temperatures and power draw.

ASUS ROG MAXIMUS XIII HERO – PC Magazine

May 26, 2021 by Stephen

The Z590 ROG Maximus XIII Hero features an edgy aesthetic. The heatsinks and heat spreaders are all black, with a few lighter gray sections that add some contrast. Diagonal slits are cut into them to aid in cooling (allowing for more air-adjacent surface area) and make the board look even slicker. This appearance is further enhanced by RGB LEDs set over the chipset and between the fins on the VRM heatsinks.

MSI MEG B550 UNIFY – Hardware-Inside

May 26, 2021 by Stephen

With the MSI MEG B550 UNIFY, a special piece of hardware has fluttered into the editorial office. Because mainboards with B-chipset were more cheaper mainstream, it is completely different with this mainboard. In addition to the 14 + 2-phase power supply with 90 A voltage converters with powerful heat sinks, there are also four M.2 slots on the board. When it comes to the design, MSI was rather restrained, because the circuit board and heat sink are kept in black. In the following we take a closer look at the mainboard, for which the manufacturer provided us with a test sample.

ASUS ROG STRIX Z590-I GAMING WIFI – TechPowerUp

May 26, 2021 by Stephen

The ASUS ROG STRIX Z590-I Gaming WiFi is a compact power house featuring a robust 10-phase VRM with top of the line power stages and a substantial VRM cooling solution. BIOS flashback has also been included, as well as ASUS’s excellent BIOS designed to provide an optimal, stress-free overclocking experience. The ASUS ROG STRIX Z590-I Gaming WiFi also offers great connectivity with WiFi 6, 2.5 Gb/s Ethernet, and Thunderbolt 4. All of this performance is packed into an ITX form factor with some clever engineering to make it all fit.

GIGABYTE Z590 VISION G – ThinkComputers

May 26, 2021 by Stephen

Gigabyte was one of the first to make motherboards specifically made for creators. If you remember they had their “Designare” boards, but when Z490 launched they switched the naming from that to “Vision”. Now with Z590 the “Vision” naming is back and today we are going to be taking a look at the Z590 Vision G. This board of course supports the latest Intel 11th generation Core processors and has PCI-Express 4.0 connectivity, but definitely has some creator-specific features like four M.2 slots, USB 3.2 gen 2×2 connectivity and Gigabyte’s Vision LINK I/O, a DP-in port, and a very sleek white and silver design. Is this the motherboard to get for all of your creative needs? Read on as we find out!”