When does it make sense to cheapening your AM5 motherboard?
Posted by Pale-West-3176@reddit | buildapc | View on Reddit | 44 comments
I am referring to most of the A620M Motherboards and the few cheap B650Ms with lower end VRMs. Just a curious questions. Just noticed that AM5 mobos are kinda expensive.
Temporary_Slide_3477@reddit
It really doesn't.
The quality difference between a $80 motherboard and a $120 motherboard is immense. And starts tapering off dramatically after $200. While that's 50% more expensive per part its peanuts compared to a full system build
If this socket has the longevity of AM4 you want to buy a little more motherboard than the bare minimum, you don't have to upgrade your board along with your CPU when the time comes and you want that 2nd hand 16 core or fire sale chip later in the life of the platform.
You will have more expansion options in the future, whether that be ram, nvme or a more powerful CPU.
A series boards are fine for a set and forget build, like one for your grandma or parents.
persson9999@reddit
Whats the difference between a 80$ and a 120$ mobgo except slots?
salcedoge@reddit
I have literally never seen anyone 5 years down the line say "man I wished I bought the more expensive motherboard".
I don't know if It's just me but just a few years ago the consensus amongst builders has always been buy the cheapest motherboard that has all your needs but these days people start talking about vrms and PCIE slots like crazy
tm0587@reddit
I bought my AM4 build in 2018 and now I'm contemplating getting a better AM4 motherboard.
I honestly never thought I'll stay on AM4 for this long.
Should have bought the more expensive motherboard back then.
kikimaru024@reddit
Why?
Put a 5700X3D in there and tell me what feature you'd be missing.
tm0587@reddit
I need an extra PCIE slot so I can install an adapter for the USB Type C port on the front of my new case.
Will be nice to have the lan port capable of 2.5gbps like I see on some motherboard. Of course, I wasn't sure if this feature was common back then.
resetallthethings@reddit
do you even have the network capability to leverage that?
tm0587@reddit
A couple of nights ago at my current place, I tested and I was getting 900+ mbps upload and download speed.
At my new place, I'm planning to get a 3gbps internet plan (10gbps plans are available but feel like overkill) though I need to get someone to check my lan cables and see what's the max speed they are capable of.
They're Cat 5e cables, but I've seen online that people are able to get above 1gbps if the distances aren't that long.
resetallthethings@reddit
Was talking more modem and router
tm0587@reddit
There are already 10gbps broadband plans available in my country so I'm relatively confident that they can provide me with a suitable modem and router for my 3gbps plan.
resetallthethings@reddit
Maybe so. That would be an extreme rarity for typical consumer grade plans and equipment here in the States, and would require a significant hardware investment.
tm0587@reddit
In Singapore, multiple providers are already offering 10gbps plans.
The 3gbps plan I'm eyeing is around $30 per month and it includes a Wifi 6 router.
Sufficient-Mix-4872@reddit
Yeah mee too. I dont have no aditional pcie slots, because one is gpu and the other one is disabled because i use all the nvme slots. This leaves me with only 1gbe ethernet which sucks because i would like to go 10gbe to use my nas as iscsi target for some aditional nvmes
ksn240@reddit
I splurged for the Taichi x370 when I built mine in 2018. Dropped a 5800x3d in it last year and I’ll be good until AM6.
VersaceUpholstery@reddit
It's because of the recent HardwareUnboxed "best (chipset name) videos". Where some of the cheap MOBOs thermal throttle CPUs on their charts. What people don't pay attention to is that they're using something like a 7950x or 14900k with a full load stress test, on an open bench for an hour or more. So for a majority of people who are going to simply game with their much weaker CPUs and well ventilated systems, those charts don't matter.
lichtspieler@reddit
HardwareUnboxed did cover Intel 10th gen mainboards, that had a lot of VRM budget cutted boards in that chipset generation, that caused even the 10400 (i5) range of CPUs to power throttle during - GAMING, with massive performance impact.
So the i9 argument, that budget boards should be fine for lower end CPU SKUs, is not what we saw just a few generations ago and you had to be very selective with lower budget boards even for just a gaming use-case.
Again HardwareUnboxed covered it quite well, they also got shadow banned from ASRock because of the coverage, since ASRock managed to release shittier AMD B350 / X470 / B450 / X570 boards and also released awfull PCB designs for the Intel 9/10/11 series back-2-back, especially with boards in the lower budget range.
The popular techtubers went instead of clickbait meme topics during all that time, with "MAINBOARDS ARE OVERVOLTING i9 CPUS", using >$500 OC/showcase boards and missleading the audience with the content, since it was rather about letting the CPUs run boostclocks without a time limitations, because the boards actually had overbuild VRMs that could sustain the wattage without overheating. The CPUs itself were never overvolted since the CPU's VF curve call for the voltage it needs from the mainboard and not the other way around.
_Rah@reddit
If you buy one with fewer PCIE slots, or weaker slots like PCIE 4 vs PCIE 5 you might regret it. You might not. Depends on your future purchases. If you cheap out and get a motherboard with USB 3.2 vs USB 4, you might regret it again. Especially if you plan on having the motherboard for 8 years. I got mine at release with a 7950X3D. I will probably upgrade again in 2 more years, and then 4 years after that. That's 8 years total. Imagine saving 50 bucks, and feeling the pinch for the next few years, because you missed out on a feature that you didn't need, but would have been nice to have. In 8 years time, PCIE 6 will be a thing, while you might be stuck on PCIE 4.
There are times to save money, and that's fair. But save it based on the features you need. If you don't need it, its fine, don't buy it. But saying that "no one" has ever said that they wished they had paid for a feature when they bought the motherboard is a little silly.
rygaroo@reddit
But if you buy an $80 board now and decide you need more features a few years down the road, you could sell your mobo and buy another $80 one for barely any money out of pocket. You have more options besides suffer for 8 years :)
kikimaru024@reddit
When a goddamn RTX 4090 only loses 2% performance between PCIe 4.0 x16 and PCIe 3.0 x16 you should realise how little PCIe slot matters.
_Rah@reddit
They said the same thing about PCIE 3 to 4. I would still rather not put a 5090 in a PCIE 3.
And there is more to a PCIE than just GPU. Most common would be SSDs.
Once again, we aren't talking about someone wanting the spec at launch. We are talking about people who want the spec years down the track, only to realize they got stingy and didn`t pay for it.
I know I regretted not buying a motherboard with USB 3 back in the day when USB 3 was new. I didn't know any better and chose a model without USB 3 front port connector thinking my case does not have it anyway. Then I bought a case and regretted not having that connector.
kikimaru024@reddit
If you have a PCI slot, you can add USB front-port connectors.
Complex-Frosting3144@reddit
Yea I want the best cpu for am4 right now, but won't buy it cuz my mobo lacks in vrm department.
wsteelerfan7@reddit
Unless you're talking a 5950x... A 5800X3D pulls way less power than any top CPUs and probably pulls less than what you already have. You'll be fine
Complex-Frosting3144@reddit
I have a a320m-k. As far as I read, people recommend at most 5700x. The jump from 60w to 120w seems to not be worth it with this mobo. I am more into productivity, I was eyeing the 5900x
wsteelerfan7@reddit
Oh ok
Deep90@reddit
I wish mine came with any amount of debugging or flashing features because it came with none of those.
Yebi@reddit
Plenty of people said that when Zen 3 came out. Zen 2 as well.
Though I should note that early entry level AM4 boards had a far lower quality floor than AM5 does
YamaVega@reddit
I did. The H series boards locked me down from upgrading to better CPUs, and I learned that lesson well
No_Guarantee7841@reddit
I have seen a gazillion people getting screwed by buying a bad b660 board or h-chipset board and upgrading to high core count intel cpu.
Temporary_Slide_3477@reddit
VRMs that can sustain higher loads longer, more system fan headers for better control of your fans, more ram slots, more sata, better onboard things like audio and lan, more USB on the back, better troubleshooting features, better bios, onboard wifi if you want it, or a dedicated m.2 slot for it that's open, etc
A motherboard can only get so cheap the PCB has a base cost associated with it. So if a $80 board and a $120 board have a similar base PCB cost, that extra $40 is ALL features and power delivery.
Even $10 can be the difference between 2 and 4 ram slots or a 65W CPU and a 125W CPU limit
Einherier96@reddit
Usually lack of troubleshooting utilities. You never know how much you need a bios flash button till you need it cause your bios on the board doesn't like the new cpu and your old one is unavailable. I would never buy a board without it anymore.
persson9999@reddit
Only that? Because i know Theres cheap ones with flash button. Is there no difference in performance?
b-maacc@reddit
I’d avoid the A620 boards, they don’t allow the use of PBO.
There are several B650 boards in the $100 to $160 range that will suit the needs for 98% of users.
ASRock B650M-HDV/M.2
ASRock B650M Pro RS
ASRock B650M Pro RS WiFi
MSI PRO B650-S WIFI
Gigabyte B650M GAMING PLUS WF
MSI PRO B650M-A WIFI
MSI B650 GAMING PLUS WIFI
Gigabyte B650 EAGLE AX
ASRock B650 Pro RS WiFi
https://www.techspot.com/review/2699-amd-b650-motherboards/
https://youtu.be/57X2FygcqLE?si=0qQlNCP1yxA9HYdH
Dragontech97@reddit
cries in ITX
Withinmyrange@reddit
A series mobo's are almost never worth it. For the majority of people, a mobo with pcie 5.0 and decent vrm is good enough. Asrock b650e riptide is one of the cheaper mobo's that fits this description and would be my recommendation.
d9320490@reddit
ASRock Steel Legend is cheaper in many regions like Australia but the availability is not there
mHo2@reddit
One follow up question to OP, but how many of you are actually using the eClk feature? I noticed that there aren’t many ATX or smaller boards with it.
mpdwarrior@reddit
If you buy a cheap board without wifi build in and then get a fat GPU you may have no space on the board to fit an extra wifi card.
879190747@reddit
Does it ever for the main parts? I use my computer daily for 6+ years so comparatively it's always cheap compared to anything else in life.
Not that I buy what I don't need, but no skimping.
ICastCats@reddit
Yes and no.
A decent B650 board with VRMS good enough to handle a 120W CPU should be fine, but when you start hitting the higher end boards, I figure buying a $125 B650 now and a $125 B1050 later is going to be a better plan than a $250 X670E now, if that makes sense.
Gradonsider@reddit
It makes sense to an extent. For me that is, not buying the cheapest one and getting a decent midrange board (Asrock B650 Livemixer in my case).
If AM5 support is anything like AM4, I intend to stick with it for a long time (5y+), so a cheap mobo might not be a good idea. Those with bad VRMs already struggle to handle Ryzen 9 CPU's, and lack connectivity options and "new" technologies.
You will probably regret not spending those 50-60$ in a year, or 2, or 3.. when you want to upgrade your CPU , or your SSD , etc.
Accomplished_Emu_658@reddit
I would say no it’s not. It’s not worth cheapening out completely if you’ll need to replace it sooner. Buying twice is always more expensive than making a singular reasonable purchase.
Get one mid board and be done. Get one with extra rear io than you need. The way usb c is going one with a couple is good idea. Getting one with a couple nvme slots is a great idea. Vrms are important but most don’t need top of line.
I need a motherboard but i regret buying top of line x670e because i have had issues. So i bought a $300 x870e with free $125 worth of ram off newegg. Don’t necessarily need the ram. But i can sell ram off to make money back or use it and sell my current ram. And now got decent price on a good board
I
Zuokula@reddit
When it's just for reddit doom scrolling
Key-Net5970@reddit
Probably because pc building is all about getting the max performance out of your build now rather than really thinking about running integrated graphics (which are actually pretty good these days) and then buying a discrete graphics card.