Motherboards

AMD launched their second generation Ryzen processor back in April and with that we got the new X470 chipset, which for one supports the new Ryzen processors right out of the gate and offers some new features like Extended Frequency Range 2 and Precision Boost 2. Just like the initial Ryzen launch the higher-end X470 motherboards came first, and now we have the budget-minded B450 boards. While we call these budget boards, they really offer quite a lot and you get pretty much the same feature-set you get with X470. If you are running a single graphics card and don't need an abundance of USB ports one of these boards might be perfect for you and the money you save can be used towards a better graphics card or NVMe solid state drive. Today we are checking out the very small MSI B450i Gaming Plus AC motherboard, which is a mini-ITX board. Is this board perfect for your next small form factor build? Read on as we find out!

When it comes to ASUS motherboards you have quite a lot of choices, many users opt for their Republic of Gamers boards, but their Prime line is actually quite good. We've used a "Prime" motherboard as our baseline board for processor testing for both Intel and AMD for the past couple of years. These boards might not have all of the flash that the ROG series does, but they are extremely reliable and are still packed with features. For the Ryzen refresh the main "Prime" board from ASUS is their Prime X470-PRO. This board features a slick design with silver heatsinks and an integrated M.2 cooler as well. You also have support for DDR4 3466 MHz memory, USB 3.1, dual M.2 slots, and even some RGB lighting. Is this the board you need for your Ryzen build? Read on as we find out!

When Intel released their 8th generation "Coffee Lake" processors back in October 2017 they were released alongside the enthusiast-class Z370 chipset. That was the only chipset you could use with these new processors at the time. Now you have the option of H370, B360, and H310. The B360 chipset differs from H370 in a few different ways, first you only have support for a single x16 PCI-E slot, only 12 PCI-E lanes (compared to 24), fewer USB ports, and there is no CPU or memory overclocking. Today we will be checking out a B360 board from Biostar. This is actually our first look at a B360 board, but also our first look at a board from Biostar. The Biostar B360GT3S motherboard is part of Biostar's Racing line, which is a gaming line within their product stack. Let's take a look and see if there is a lower-cost alternative to getting a Z370 motherboard.

EVGA always has three motherboards for each series they release, typically we see an E-ATX board, ATX board, and Micro-ATX board. Their X299 line is no different and today we are going to be checking out the X299 Micro, which is EVGA's Micro-ATX X299 board. Considering how powerful the X299 platform is you could really build as pretty amazing smaller form factor system perfect for LAN parties. This board supports 2-way SLI, has M.2 support, USB 3.1 support, 802.11ac WiFi, and even RGB header support. If you are looking to build a small, but powerful X299 system this could be the perfect board for you! Let's take a look and see what it is all about!

With the launch of Intel's 8th Generation "Coffee Lake" processors we have a whole lineup of Z370 motherboards. Gigabyte's high-end gaming brand AORUS currently has six Z370 motherboards. Today we are checking out the Z370 Ultra Gaming, which sits right in the middle of the lineup. This board will definitely be a great option for many people moving over to the Z370 platform as it has a low cost and of course in typical AORUS fashion plenty of RGB lighting. This ATX motherboard features dual M.2 slots, ALC1220 120dB SNR HD Audio with a Smart Headphone Amp, Intel LAN, Smart Fan 5 support, and USB 3.1 support. Let's get this board on our test bench and see what it can do!

We are back with our third X299 motherboard review. Today our board comes from ASRock, it is their X299 Taichi. ASrock has explained their Taichi motherboards as the best value for your money. So basically they try and pack in the features for the best price possible. In the past ASRock's Taichi motherboards have been very solid and a great choice among gamers and enthusiasts. The X299 Taichi features a 13-phase power design, triple Ultra M.2 slots, multi-GPU support, dual LAN as well as dual band 802.11ac WiFi, USB 3.1, and even some RGB lighting. It is hard to find another X299 motherboard with all of these features in the same price range as the Taichi. Let's dive in and see what the X299 Taichi is all about.

With the launch of Intel's 8th Generation desktop processors last week and the need for a new chipset (Intel Z370) we have a slew of new motherboards on the block. ASUS has quite a few different Z370 motherboards available right now, from their higher-end Republic of Gamers (ROG) brand to their more affordable Prime series. I am actually a huge fan of the Prime Series. It gives you all of the great features you expect on a motherboard, without many of the extras that cost more and you simply don't make use of. Today we are taking a look a the new ASUS Prime Z370-A Motherboard. This ATX motherboard has great features including dual M.2 slots, USB 3.1 Gen 2, 2-way SLI and 3-way CrossFire support, and even some cool RGB LEDs. You are going to get all of this for $174.99. Add an affordable "Coffee Lake" processor and you have the makings of a pretty awesome system. Let's dive in and see what this motherboard is all about.

When AMD's Ryzen processors launched many people thought the X370 chipset was the way to go. It definitely offers the most features and the motherboards in that range are pretty awesome, but one should not look over the B350 chipset. If you are building a new Ryzen-based PC and are using a single graphics card a B350 motherboard could help you save some money to put towards that graphics card or other components. B350 motherboards could actually be the sweet spot for Ryzen gamers as you still get overclocking capabilities, two more PCIe lanes as well as 1 more USB 3.1 port than the lower-end A320 motherboards. The B350 board we are checking out today is the Gigabyte AB350-Gaming 3 which features a sleek design, a single M.2 NVMe slot, USB 3.1 supoort, multi-zone RGB lighting and more! Let's jump in and see what this board is all about!

When it comes to Gigabyte's X299 lineup the current flagship motherboard is the AORUS X299 Gaming 9. This is actually the third "Gaming 9" motherboard we've taken a look at from Gigabyte. Previously we took a look at the AORUS Z270X-Gaming 9, and the Gigabyte X99-Ultra Gaming. These boards are designed to pack in as many features as possible and are specifically designed for gamers and enthusiasts. The new AORUS X299 Gaming 9 does just that and the feature list is extensive, but here are some of the main features, 3-way graphics support, a server class digital power design, Killer DoubleShot Pro and Intel networking, triple M.2 slots and a PCIe expansion card giving you 1 more M.2, Creative Sound BlasterX 720 audio, Killer 2x2 802.11ac WiFi, USB 3.1, and more RGB LEDs than any other X299 board out there! And that is just the tip of the iceberg, read on as we dive down deep and see if this is truly the ultimate X299 motherboard!

With the launch of Intel's Core X Series processors we have the brand new X299 chipset and with it a whole slew of X299 motherboards. With the big name players in the motherboard industry releasing multiple boards in different series it is really hard to choose what is the right board for you. One series we've been a huge fan of over the past few years is MSI's Pro Series. We'ver reviewed the Z170A SLI Plus and their Z270 SLI Plus motherboards in the past and they provided all of the features you want without all of the pricey extras. This allows you to build a great system and have some extra cash to put towards other components. Today we have the brand new X299 SLI Plus which will give you all of the core features of the X299 chipset without all of the costly extras and bling on other boards. This is great as some X299 motherboards are going for $500! Let's check out the X299 SLI Plus and see what it is all about!