AMD’s Ryzen 3000 processors come with a ton of features, including support for the latest PCIe 4.0 standard. To make the most of them though, you’ll need a new X570 motherboard.
AMD’s Ryzen 3000 processors come with a ton of features, including support for the latest PCIe 4.0 standard. To make the most of them though, you’ll need a new X570 motherboard.
ASROCK X570 TAICHI
The ASRock X570 Taichi is the most down-to-earth board in this shootout. As far as flagship boards go, it’s super affordable at just $499, but the price should give you an inkling that it isn’t really competing in the same league as the others.
One of the biggest changes coming from the X470 model is the addition of the plastic shroud over most of the PCB and also a back cover as well. The familiar Taichi cogwheel is printed on this shroud instead of the PCB itself, and there are RGB LEDs built into the I/O cover, chipset heatsink, and the right edge of the board. The aluminium backplate also helps shore up the structural integrity of the board and conveys a more premium feel.
Like most other X570 boards, the Taichi comes with active cooling for the chipset and an aluminium alloy top cover that doubles as a passive heatsink. The 6,000RPM fan can get quite noisy at full speed, but ASRock has fortunately added options that let you tame the fan.
Another new addition is the upgraded Wi-Fi module. The Taichi now has Intel’s Wi-Fi 6 AX200 adapter, which supports speeds up to 2.4Gbps. That’s paired with a Gigabit Ethernet port on the rear, powered by an Intel I211-AT controller.
Compared to the X470 Taichi, the I/O panel now has an integrated I/O shield to make the installation process slightly simpler. ASRock threw in a BIOS update button as well, and there’s also a dedicated Clear CMOS button. Other than that, not much has changed in terms of the rear connector offerings, and you’re still getting one USB 3.2 (Gen 2) Type-A, one USB 3.1 (Gen 2) Type-C, and six USB 3.2 (Gen 1) Type-A ports. I’d have liked the Clear CMOS button to be more easily accessible though. The tiny button sits in a recess, so you’ll need to use a pen or some other tool to get at it.
The Taichi doesn’t have the richest offering when it comes to fan headers, but you still get four 4-pin fan connectors for chassis fans and separate headers for the CPU and water pump fans. With the exception of the 1A CPU fan header, all the other headers fans can handle up to 2A, which is pretty decent.
The VRM uses a 12+2-phase configuration, but it uses doublers to get up to 14 phases for both the CPU and SoC. It only has 6+1 true phases, but ASRock has installed 14 50A MOSFETs, 60A chokes, and Nichicon 12K capacitors, so that’s some quality stuff right there. That’s topped off by an extra-large aluminium alloy heatsink that soaks up heat from the MOSFETs and chipset.
PROS
Good value for money
CONS
USB 3.2 (Gen 2) header is in the way of top PCIe x16 slot
The board features power and reset buttons and a debug LED at the bottom right.
The front panel USB 3.2 (Gen 2) header will get in the way of the GPU if in use.
The pre-installed I/O shield simplifies the installation process somewhat.
AT A GLANCE
VRM
12+2 (7 true phases)
PCIE EXPANSION SLOTS
3x PCIe 4.0 x16
2x PCIe 4.0 x1
STORAGE
8x SATA 6Gbps; 3x M.2 sockets
FORM FACTOR
ATX
PRICE
$499
ASUS ROG CROSSHAIR VIII FORMULA
The ASUS ROG Crosshair VIII Formula is ASUS’ flagship X570 motherboard and its highest-end AM4 board to date. At $862, the Formula is competing with the best of the best, and it features a ton of features geared toward the most serious enthusiasts, with the ability to integrate a custom liquid cooling loop into the VRM heatsink and even an LN2 Mode switch.
Having said that, I should point out that there are a lot of similarities with the Crosshair VIII Hero (Wi-Fi), which is cheaper at $722. Why would you get this board over the latter? That’s a question I’m still trying to answer, and I believe it comes down mostly to aesthetics, liquid cooling support, and that fancy LiveDash OLED display.
The Formula boasts a full-coverage shroud over most of the PCB, and even the power and reset buttons have a shroud built over them for a cleaner and more elegant look.
The 1.3-inch LiveDash OLED display sits on the I/O cover and can show you useful information such as the power status and error codes for the CPU, memory, or graphics hardware. It’s useful for some quick troubleshooting, but you can also upload your custom logos or animations and have them displayed on your motherboard.
Compared to the Hero (Wi-Fi), the Formula also adds a solid steel backplate in a stealthy black that helps reinforce the PCB to prevent bending.
ASUS hasn’t bothered to provide any display outputs on the rear I/O, because let’s face it, if you’re buying the Formula, you’re not going to be putting an APU into it. Instead, the I/O panel is bristling with USB ports, including one USB 3.2 (Gen 2) Type-C, seven USB 3.2 (Gen 2) Type-A, and four USB 3.2 (Gen 1) Type-A ports. For convenience, there’s also a Clear CMOS button here, in addition to a USB Flashback button.
When it comes to cooling, the biggest feature of the Formula board is EK’s CrossChill EK III hybrid cooler,which covers the VRM with a combined water block and heat sink. You can either connect it to a custom liquid cooling loop or use it as-is with an air cooling solution. According to ASUS, the new design also offers wider copper channels than before and a large copper surface area for heat transfer.
The VRM uses a 14+2-phase design with 8 true phases. It is comprised of 16 Infineon PowlRstage IR3555 MOSFETs, each rated to handle up to 60A. Each MOSFET is accompanied by a high-permeability alloy-core choke rated for 45A, and paired with solid-polymer capacitors that generally last longer than their electrolytic counterparts.
ASUS hasn’t used any phase doublers here, but there are still only 8 true phases because of its use of a parallel rail design.
PROS
Great aesthetics
CONS
Not much differentiation from the Hero (Wi-Fi)
AT A GLANCE
VRM
14+2 (8 true phases)
PCIE EXPANSION SLOTS
3x PCIe 4.0 x16
1x PCIe 4.0 x1
STORAGE
8x SATA 6Gbps;
2x M.2 sockets
FORM FACTOR
ATX
PRICE
S$862
The EK CrossChill EK III hybrid cooler lets you easily liquid cool the VRM.
The board comes with Safe Boot and ReTry buttons at the bottom.
There’s a 5G Ethernet port at the rear.
GIGABYTE X570 AORUS XTREME
Gigabyte’s top X570 motherboard certainly looks the part, with beefy heatsinks, snaking heat pipes, and shielding for the majority of the PCB. However, where the board really stands out is in the overclocking department, and the X570 Aorus Xtreme features a true 16-phase power delivery subsystem to provide smoother and cleaner power to your Ryzen 3000 processor. The Aorus Xtreme uses the new Infineon XDPE132G5C digital PWM controller, the first in the industry to offer a true 16-phase design. In addition, it features Infineon TDA21472 PowlRstage MOSFETs that are capable of providing at least 70A of power, for a total of up to 1,120A.
With overclocking comes plenty of heat, which is where Gigabyte’s so-called Thermal Reactive Armor comes in. Surprisingly, the X570 chipset is only passively cooled, the lone exception in this shootout. However, it tries to make up for that with a multi-layered chipset heatsink that is connected by a heat pipe to the extensive heat sink fin array that cools the VRM, effectively making the entire motherboard a giant heatsink.
This fin array reportedly increases the surface area available for heat dissipation by 300 per cent. Heat pipes also come into direct contact with the MOSFETs, further helping heat transfer. Elsewhere, Gigabyte employs thicker Laird thermal pads, which boast improved thermal conductivity too.
The back of the board features an aluminium base plate that also acts as a heat sink for the rear of the PCB. A thin layer of what Gigabyte refers to as NanoCarbon is further coated on the base plate through electrostatic adhesion to improve thermal radiation. In fact, the company says this lowers the temperatures of PWM components on the back by up to 10 percent.
One of the reasons why Gigabyte chose to omit any integrated fans in the I/O cover or chipset heat sink is noise. As it turns out, the company is so concerned about staying quiet that it’s bundling a noise detection cable with the board to help you monitor your overall system noise and adjust fan speeds accordingly.
Another point that deserves mention is that Gigabyte clearly put some thought into cable management. All the ports on the right edge are side-mounted, which should make routing and tucking your cables away slightly easier. It also means the board looks a lot cleaner.
However, it’s missing a dynamic OLED display that the ASUS and MSI motherboards have. That said, you do get a regular 2-digit debug display, so Gigabyte still has the troubleshooting essentials covered.
PROS
True 16-phase design
CONS
No dynamic OLED display
The board features dual 8-pin connectors for the CPU.
You can switch between the backup and main BIOS using switches at the bottom of the board.
All the ports on the right edge are side-mounted for easier cable routing.
AT A GLANCE
VRM
14+2 (all true phases)
PCIE EXPANSION SLOTS
3x PCIe 4.0 x16
STORAGE
6x SATA 6Gbps;
3x M.2 sockets
FORM FACTOR
E-ATX
PRICE
$965
MSI MEG X570 GODLIKE
The MEG X570 Godlike marks the first time MSI is bringing its flagship Godlike model to an AMD Ryzen chipset.
For starters, the Godlike features a 14+4-phase power design, comprising an IR Digital PWM controller, DrMOS power stages, and titanium chokes.
In addition, it is equipped with dual 8-pin CPU power connectors and an eight-layer PCB, the latter of which helps accommodate the additional trace paths required to sustain the greater amount of power. According to MSI, it’s actually using a server-grade PCB here in order to ensure PCIe 4.0 performance and better stability.
Its integrated double ball-bearing fan works to keep to chipset cool, and it is also linked to the VRM heatsink via a single heat pipe to increase the surface area available for heat dissipation.
And speaking of cooling, one potentially useful feature is MSI’s Zero Frozr technology, which you may recognise from the company’s graphics cards. This is a smart tuning system that can automatically adjust fan speeds based on the chipset temperature, but it can also completely turn down the fans when system loads are low.
Another nifty feature is the Dynamic Dashboard OLED display on the right. This can display system information like CPU temperature or be set to show off your own custom GIFs. The special mirror reflection effect you get on the I/O shroud is also pretty fantastic, and it’s sure to be a nice fixture in your case.
The board costs a whopping $1,269, and MSI has just about thrown the kitchen sink at it. However, there’s still one glaring omission, and that’s a metal backplate. It’s not that important a feature, but I’d expect a board that costs this much to include it anyway, since the ASRock X570 Taichi, which costs less than half its price, has one.
It feels like a big focus of the Godlike’s design is on expandability. It features four PCIe 4.0 x16 slots, three M.2 sockets, and six SATA 6Gbps. On top of that, it also ships with a couple of expansion cards, including a 10G Super LAN card for ultra-fast connections if your network supports it and an M.2 Xpander-Z Gen 4 card that can hold two more M.2 PCIe 4.0 drives. The latter even has its own heat sink and fan to keep your drives running cool. Each of the motherboard’s built-in M.2 sockets have MSI’s Shield Frozr heat sinks as well to reduce thermal throttling.
On the storage front, only four of the six SATA 6Gbps are provided directly by the chipset. The remaining two are actually provided for by an ASMedia ASM1061 chip.
PROS
Crammed with nearly every feature you may need
CONS
Expansion cards feel unnecessary. Very costly
AT A GLANCE
VRM
14+2 (8 true phases)
PCIE EXPANSION SLOTS
4x PCIe 4.0 x16
STORAGE
6x SATA 6Gbps;
3x M.2 sockets
FORM FACTOR
E-ATX
PRICE
$1,269
The JCORSAIR1 header makes connecting Corsair RGB fans a lot more convenient.
The Game Boost knob provides a simple way to overclock your processor.
There’s a 6.3mm headphone jack at the rear.
SPECIFICATIONS
AND THE BEST X570 MOTHERBOARD IS…
GIGABYTE X570 AORUS XTREME
The Gigabyte X570 Aorus Xtreme is quite clearly a cut above the rest here, boasting premium features like a true 16-phase VRM design, onboard 10G Ethernet, and passive cooling for the PCH that does away with noise entirely. The VRM implementation and passive chipset cooling are things that no other X570 board has.
The MSI board is too pricey, and it doesn’t even have onboard 10G Ethernet like the Aorus Xtreme, while the ASUS motherboard lacks meaningful differentiation from its cheaper Hero (Wi-Fi) sibling. The ASRock is a decent alternative if you’re on a tight budget, but it doesn’t really compare in terms of usability and features.
I’m not saying you shouldn’t buy the ASUS ROG Crosshair VIII Formula or MSI MEG X570 Godlike though, but if you’re just looking for a solid board that will give you the most utility, there’s no beating the Gigabyte X570 Aorus Xtreme.
Art Direction by Jason Tan
