Items tagged with motherboards
AMD made a splash last week by announcing its Ryzen 5000 series of CPUs based on Zen 3, with up to 16 cores and 32 threads, and a huge IPC (instructions per clock) uplift. What it did not do, however, is announce a new chipset. Whether one is coming or not for Zen 3 remains to be seen, but armed with the latest BIOS update for your X570, B550, or A520 motherboard, you should be able to POST with a Zen 3 CPU. In case you missed it, Zen 3 represents a 'take no prisoners' lineup. Core for core, Intel has generally maintained a lead in single-threaded workloads, and has held an advantage in overall gaming performance. That was before Zen 3 came along. If AMD's numbers and claims are correct, the...
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Over the weekend we reported that the launch of the value priced A520 motherboards from AMD was coming soon. These boards are now finally out, boasting great options for I/O and bandwidth for all users and promising support for the future “Zen 3” architecture while also supporting current third-generation Ryzen processors. AMD's products are priced well across the entire spectrum, and they are continuing this trend with the A520 series of motherboards. According to AMD’s slide (see below), the A520 chipset is nestled squarely between the A320 series and the B550 series. With the A520, the general purpose PCIe lane gets bumped up to PCIe 3.0, providing more bandwidth over...
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AMD has made a big deal about the longevity of its AM4 socket, and rightfully so—frequent socket changes effectively eliminate or seriously hamper potential upgrade paths when building a PC. The question is, will AM4 extend out to AMD's upcoming Zen 3 processors? AMD said it will, on select chipsets, and even hinted it could beyond Zen 3. Support through Zen 3 is not a surprise. Even back at the end of 2017, AMD's James Prior hinted this might be case when he told Overclockers the plan was to "support AM4 through 2020 using the existing infrastructure." It was not a foregone conclusion, however, because he was addressing a question about Zen 2. Lest there be any lingering doubt, AMD just...
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Intel is presumably very close to launching its Comet Lake-S desktop processors, and with it will come a flood of new motherboard models based on the company's Z490 chipset. Interestingly, those upcoming boards may have a minor performance hiccup related to the onboard Ethernet controller, according to details outlined in a leaked slide. The slide points to Intel's "Foxville" Ethernet controllers. These consist of the I225-V (already launched) and I225-LM (announced), both of which are outlined on Intel's ARK website. These Ethernet controllers support speeds of up to 2.5 gigabits. However, the slide notes a variance in the inter-packet gap (IPG) compared to the IEEE 2.5 BASE-T standard....
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Forget about bang-for-buck or any semblance of a value proposition, because without apology, ASUS chucked those notions out the window and built a beastly motherboard for AMD's third-generation Ryzen Threadripper 3990X, a monstrous high-end desktop (HEDT) CPU with 64 physical cores and 128 threads of computing muscle. The Threadripper 3990X is not even available to purchase yet, but it soon will be—it launches to retail on February 7, 2020, for a whopping $3,990. That is a lot of coin, and to be fair, the Threadripper 3990X offers a whole lot of multi-threaded muscle. And as with the rest of the third-generation Threadripper lineup, it requires a socket sTRX4 motherboard. That is where...
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The wait is finally over—AMD on Thursday formally introduced its next generation Ryzen Threadripper lineup consisting of the 24-core/48-thread Threaderipper 3960X and 32-core/64-thread Threadripper 3970X (there will likely be more SKUs to follow). Following suit, AMD's hardware partners have come out with new TRX40 motherboards to house this next round of high-end desktop (HEDT) silicon, including multiple models from ASUS, Gigabyte, and MSI. The TRX40 platform is stout. It offers quad-channel DDR4 memory support (ECC optional), a total of 88 PCI Express 4.0 lanes, multi-GPU support (CrossFire and SLI), up to 12 native USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports, up to 4 native USB 2.0 ports, two x4 NVMe ports, up to...
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Upgrading to a brand-spanking-new Ryzen 3000 series processor is about as easy as it gets, thanks in large part to AMD recycling its AM4 socket for another around. All that is required in some instances is a BIOS update. Be that as it may, certain users may find that updating the BIOS is a bit tricky, and in such cases AMD has offered to loan out a boot kit at no cost. AMD's boot kit consists of an Athlon 200GE processor and an accompanying cooler. The purpose of the loaner CPU and cooler is so that users who own an X470 or B450 motherboard can fire up their rig and apply a BIOS update, so that it will boot with their new Ryzen 3000 series CPU. Most ssers who are upgrading from an existing setup...
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Famed overclocker der8auer is known for posting de-lidding videos, whereby he strips the integrated heatspreader (IHS) off a CPU to check out what's underneath (solder or grease). This time around, however, he did something different. The overclocking ace stripped an X570 motherboard naked to observe the power consumption of the chipset, compared to an X470 motherboard. The results are interesting. One thing to note about the X570 chipset is that it supports the PCI Express 4.0 standard. This doubles the bandwidth compared to PCIe 3.0, allowing for potentially faster devices, which we have seen with a handful of PCIe 4.0 SSDs that push 5,000MB/s sequential read speeds. AMD opted not to allow...
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As we have been anticipating for several months now, AMD brought the boom with its Ryzen 3000 series of desktop processors based on its Zen 2 CPU architecture (topping out with the 12-core/24-thread Ryzen 9 3900X), and accompanying X570 chipset. As it pertains to the latter, AMD's hardware partners are wasting no time announcing new motherboards. Count ASUS among them, which has unveiled no less than a dozen new models. ASUS ROG Crosshair VIII Formula "The cast is headlined by the Republic of Gamers, whose Crosshair VIII boards are fit for the most demanding overclockers and gamers looking to extract every ounce of performance from their systems," ASUS says. Indeed, more than half of ASUS's new...
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We are exactly one week away from the start of Computex 2019, and barring a surprise change of plans, AMD will announce its new generation Ryzen 3000 series of desktop processors based on its Zen 2 CPU architecture. AMD is also expected to unveil its X570 chipset. Ahead of the event, a block diagram has emerged showing the PCie makeup of the upcoming chipset. To be clear, existing owners of X470, B450, X370, and B350 motherboards will in most cases just need a BIOS update to support the upcoming crop of processors—AMD is retaining support for its AM4 socket. That may or may not be the case for budget-oriented A320 and A300 motherboards (whenever we inquire about that, motherboard makers...
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AMD's plan from the beginning of Zen was to have a single socket last for several generations of processor releases. Making good on that promise, AMD's upcoming Ryzen 3000 series of desktop CPUs will once again utilize the same socket, with many existing motherboards getting support by way of a BIOS update. Getting a head start on the launch, Gigabyte today announced new BIOS upgrades for its X470 and B450 motherboards. Gigabyte says its engineers have spent time testing and validating many of its existing motherboards with the newest BIOS updates to ensure full support for Ryzen 3000, and "top notch compatibility." As it stands right now, the latest BIOS releases are F40 and later, depending...
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Motherboard makers can hardly contain their excitement over the pending launch of AMD's next-generation Ryzen 3000 series of desktop processors, which will be accompanied by a new X570 chipset. Biostar in particular is chomping at the bit (or champing, if you prefer). A publicly available PDF document on the company's website spills the beans on one of the company's upcoming X570 motherboards, the Racing X570 GT8. Separately, Biostar is sending emails to members of the press inviting them to stop by its booth at Computex next month to check out is latest product offerings. According to the email, Biostar plans to unveil "new flagship 4th gen Racing series motherboards as well as 5G gaming solutions,...
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All of those Encyclopedia Brown books I read as a youngster are now paying off. How is that? Well, MSI posted a partially cryptic image on Twitter that, if you don your detective cap like I have done, reveals itself to be a teaser of one of the company's unreleased X570 motherboards for AMD's upcoming Ryzen 3000 series processors. Let's look at the evidence, shall we? Before we get to the image, here's what we know: AMD is prepping a new round of Ryzen processors based on its third-generation Zen architecture, called Zen 2 (the previous two generations include current Zen+ and last generation Zen). AMD plans to at least talk about Zen 2 (and Navi, on the GPU side) during Computex next month,...
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AMD is planning to at least talk about its upcoming Ryzen 3000 series of desktop processors in a few weeks at Computex, and the expectation is that it will be launching the new CPUs at that time. As that date draws closer, motherboard makers are prepping for the event with new models based on the upcoming X570 chipset. What about existing 300 and 400 series motherboards? At least one company has begun rolling out BIOS updates. That company is ASUS, and it has already made available BIOS updates for around three dozen X470, B450, X370, and B350 motherboard models. "ASUS will release BIOS updates for its 300 and 400 series motherboards to add support for next-generation AMD Ryzen CPUs. The latest...
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Today we are going to take a look at Gigabyte’s Z390 Designare motherboard, one of the company's more recent Socket 1151-based boards for Intel's 8th and 9th Generation Coffee Lake-based processors. This board has a lean and mean look about it, even menacing in a way, with its mostly black aesthetic with silver highlights scattered about. Its VRM heatsink even carries a yin-yang motif, with the black sink at the top and silver to the left of the CPU socket. This color palette provides a clean, sharp look with its M.2 slot sharing the same light and dark offset and the PCH sink providing a final accent. The board carries a bevy of features targeted at creative professionals....
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AMD is expected to launch its Ryzen 3000 desktop processor family this summer. Otherwise known as Matisse, the upcoming chips are based on AMD's 7-nanometer Zen 2 architecture, which yields faster clockspeeds and an improved IPC for better overall performance. The new chips will also be accompanied by a new X570 chipset, and we are starting to see motherboard models based on that chipset leak out. If you plan on building a PC around a Ryzen 3000 series processor, an X570 motherboard makes the most sense—the upcoming chipset is said to offer PCI Express Gen 4 support and will likely include other goodies not found on the current batch of X470 motherboards. That said, Ryzen 3000 processors...
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Back at the Consumer Electronics Show earlier this month, AMD CEO Dr. Lisa Su held up an early sample of a Ryzen 3000 series processor based on AMD's Zen 2 (Matisse) CPU architecture. It will still be several months until Zen 2 chips start shipping to consumers, though in the meantime, motherboard makers are getting ready with next-gen boards based on AMD's upcoming X570 chipset. We suspect there will be a ton of motherboard leaks in the upcoming weeks and months, especially as AMD's Ryzen 3000 series draws closer to release. In fact, it has already started to happen. The Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) website lists a bunch of unreleased ASRock motherboards based on X570. They include: ASRock...
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EVGA showed off a new motherboard at CES simply called the Z390 Dark. This board was designed with an emphasis on performance and overclocking, and it was recently used by Finland Overclocker Juhani Luumi to set a new 8-core CPU world record on Cinebench. True to its name, the Z390 Dark motherboard is predominantly black, but the board is accented in gold. Thermal performance of the board was a key focus of this boards design, and EVGA placed large heatsinks over the Z390 chipset and the power regulation circuitry. There are a total of 17 digital VRM power phases on the board, all but one of which are devoted to the CPU to ensure a stable flow of power. The board has several overclocking features...
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Are Super Micro server motherboards safe from Chinese spies? A recent audit has determined that the Super Micro motherboards are indeed free of malicious microchips, running contrary to an explosive Bloomberg Businessweek article that made waves in early October. The company sent a letter to its customers and assured them that “no evidence” has been found of wrongdoing. A report from Bloomberg claimed that that Chinese spies had planted malicious microchips on Super Micro motherboards. These microchips supposedly created a “stealth doorway into any network that included the altered machines”. They were reportedly placed by agents of the People’s Liberation Army,...
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Gigabyte's latest motherboard makes it a little easier to incorporate a custom liquid cooling loop into your setup. That's because its new Z390 Aorus Xtreme Waterforce comes with a fitted all-on-one monoblock that you attach to the motherboard. The advantage of a solution like this is that it blends in with Gigabyte's design aesthetic, so it doesn't look like an external piece. You still have to install the monoblock, as it doesn't come already attached to the motherboard. That said, the process outlined in the user manual looks easy enough—connect the LED cables to the LED_CPU and LED-PCH headers on the motherboard, then place the monoblock on the motherboard and fasten the CPU backplate....
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Gigabyte continues to flesh out its line of Z390 motherboards designed around Intel's latest chipset. The total number of Z390 motherboards in Gigabyte's stable now stands at a dozen, with the addition of the Z390 Designare and Z390 Aorus Xtreme. Both are high-end motherboards with dual Thunderbolt 3 ports, but they're aimed at different audiences. Let's start with the Z390 Aorus Xtreme. This one stands as Gigabyte's top-shelf Z390 motherboard and has a price tag to match—$549.99 MSRP (ouch!). That price will put it out of reach of the typical mainstream shopper, and certainly those looking for a bang-for-buck solution, with Gigabyte seemingly targeting enthusiasts and overclockers who...
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Forget about overclocking, if you really want to make your shiny new processor run faster, you need RGB lighting on your motherboard! We're kidding, of course, though if RGB lighting is your thing, you will find it in abundance on Gigabyte's new Z390 Aorus Xtreme for Intel's brand-spanking-new 9th generation Core processors. You don't actually have to forget about overclocking, either. The Z390 Aorus Xtreme is a high end 8-layer PCB with a 16-phase power design and an "extreme thermal design," which is Gigabyte's fancy way of saying there are plenty of heatsinks scattered about to the board. It also features a fixed I/O shield, which we think should be a standard amenity on every motherboard....
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