Ryzen 3000 has been on the market for about a month now . However, if choosing your processor remains relatively simple, the choice of motherboard is more complex.
Indeed, there is no b550 card . Thus, for small budgets it is necessary to fall back on b450 and x470. But unfortunately, the quality of the b450 and x470 motherboards fluctuates a lot from model to model.
This is why I have aggregated information on motherboards from the four major retailers: Asus, MSI, AS Rock and Gigabyte to select the twenty-eight best.
However, before we get to the list, there is one important thing to clarify . Ryzen 3000 processors require a BIOS update . But not all b450 and x470 cards have it. So we need a way to update them. To update a BIOS, there are three possibilities .
- Either you already have the motherboard because you are currently on Ryzen 1000 or 2000 . In this case, you can update your BIOS and then make the processor change.
- Either you buy your Ryzen 3000 and the motherboard b450 or x470 with it. There you will have to update the BIOS otherwise. Some motherboards have a feature to update the BIOS without installing the processor . But what if your card can’t? The solution is to go to an electronics store and ask them to update the BIOS for you.
- Finally, the last solution is to contact AMD to send you a processor while you update. However, you will need to return this processor to AMD once the operation is complete.
The Best Budget B450 Motherboard For Ryzen 3000
Below are the some of top motherboards for ryzen 3000 which are available on budget.
ASUS ROG Strix B450-F Gaming Motherboard
About this item
- AMD AM4 Socket: The perfect pairing for 3rd/2nd/1st Gen AMD Ryzen CPUs
- Gaming connectivity: Dual M.2 and USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type-A connectors.
- Gaming networking: Intel Gigabit Ethernet, plus ASUS LANGuard and GameFirst technologies.
- 5-Way Optimization: Automated system-wide tuning, providing overclocking and cooling profiles that are tailor-made for your rig.
- Aura Sync RGB: Synchronize LED lighting with a vast portfolio of compatible PC gear.
- Gaming audio: SupremeFX S1220A teams with Sonic Studio III to create an aural landscape that draws you deeper into the action.
- Gamer’s Guardian: Pre-mounted I/O shield, ASUS SafeSlot and premium components for maximum endurance
- Please ensure your BIOS is up to date if installing a compatible Ryzen 5000 series CPU. Visit ASUS site search by motherboard model name, click on “Support” tab, Drivers and Tools, then BIOS & Firmware to download the latest BIOS
MSI Performance Gaming Motherboard
About this item
- Support AMD Ryzen 1st and 2nd Generation / Ryzen with Radeon Vega Graphics Processors for Socket AM4
- Supports 32gb dual channel ddr4 memory 1866/ 2133/ 2400/ 2667 MHz by jedec, and 2667/ 2800/ 2933/ 3000/ 3066/ 3200/ 3466 MHz by a xmp oc mode
- VR ready: Automatically optimizes your system for VR usage, pushing for maximum performance
- In game weapons: Game boost, gaming hotkey, x boost
- Gaming certified 24 hour on and offline game and motherboard testing by esports players. Form factor: Mini ITX
ASUS ROG Strix B450-I Gaming Motherboard
About this item
- AMD AM4 Socket: The perfect pairing for 3rd/2nd /1st Gen AMD Ryzen CPUs
- Fast memory and storage: Dual-channel DDR4 3600MHz (OC) and NVM Express RAID supported.
- Aura Sync RGB: Synchronize LED lighting with a vast portfolio of compatible PC gear, including addressable RGB strips.
- Gaming connectivity: Dual M.2 and USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type-A connectors.
- Gaming networking: Intel Gigabit Ethernet, 2×2 802.11ac Wi-Fi with MU-MIMO support, plus ASUS LANGuard and GameFirst technologies.
- Gaming audio: SupremeFX S1220A teams with Sonic Studio III to create an aural landscape that draws you deeper into the action.
- Gamer’s Guardian: Pre-mounted I/O shield, ASUS SafeSlot and premium components for maximum endurance.
- Please ensure your BIOS is up to date if installing a compatible Ryzen 5000 series CPU. Visit ASUS site search by motherboard model name, click on “Support” tab, Drivers and Tools, then BIOS & Firmware to download the latest BIOS.
GIGABYTE B450 AORUS M Motherboard
About this item
- Supports AMD 1st & 2nd Generation Ryzen/ Ryzen with Radeon Vega Graphics Processors
- Dual channel non-ECC unbuffered DDR4, 4 DIMMs
- PCIe Gen3 M.2 NVMe with thermal guard. Operating system – Support for Windows 10 64-bit, Windows 7 64-bit, to support Windows 7 64-bit, you must install an AMD Pinnacle Ridge & Summit Ridge CPU
- High quality audio capacitors and audio noise guard
- Gigabyte exclusive 8118 gaming LAN
- HDMI, DVI D ports for multiple display
- RGB fusion with digital LED & RGB LED headers
ASUS Prime B450M-A/CSM Motherboard
About this item
- AMD AM4 Socket: The perfect pairing for 3rd/2nd/1st Gen AMD Ryzen CPUs
- Fast Connectivity: 1Gb LAN, HDMI 2.0b, D-Sub, and DVI display outputs
- ASUS CSM motherboard: ASUS Corporate Stable Model with up to 36-month supply, EOL notice, and ECN control
- ASUS Control Center Express to make IT endpoint management simpler
- 5X Protection III: all-round protection with LANGuard, DRAM overcurrent protection, overvoltage protection, SafeSlot Core safeguards and stainless-steel back I/O
- Please ensure your BIOS is up to date if installing a compatible Ryzen 5000 series CPU. Visit ASUS site search by motherboard model name, click on “Support” tab, Drivers and Tools, then BIOS & Firmware to download the latest BIOS
Obviously, all of this only concerns you if you assemble your PC yourself . If it is assembled by professional store, you don’t need to worry about this. Last precision, this time concerning the power supply stages . Indeed, the b450 and x470 cards were designed to power eight cores.
However, Ryzen 3000 offers a twelve and soon also sixteen cores . The 3900x and 3950x consume much more than an eight-core Ryzen 2000. This is why for some of these b450 and x470 cards, it is not recommended using a 3900x.
To end this aside, I would like to clarify that none of the x570 cards in this list are affected by this limit . That being said, let’s start with the lowest budget recommended for a Ryzen 3000 system. That is, $100 budget for the motherboard.
There are a few other chipsets that support Zen2 processors, but they are not worth it today. Typically, enthusiasts consider Ryzen series CPUs because of their low price and overclocking potential.
As with Intel, you cannot overclock non-K processors while this is not the case with AMD, as your multiplier is unlocked from the factory, and you can take them to new potentials.
The main difference between A320, B350 and B450 is the number of storage and connectivity interfaces and VRM and MOSFET cooling systems. Its price is almost the same, and even some motherboards for B450 games they are cheaper than other chipsets, so it’s good to go with them.
AMD Ryzen 3000: Which motherboard to choose? X570 or B450? – It is normal to receive several emails, or messages on Facebook / Instagram with questions in various types of builds.
Especially now, that AMD has launched its Ryzen 3000 processors that are making a huge success in the market, leaning Intel against the wall. (Something that hasn’t happened in over 10 years!)
Frequently asked questions and choosing the right B450 motherboard for you.
Now that we’ve covered all of our best options, we’ll give you all the information you need to know to make an informed purchasing decision.
What is AMD B450?
First, we are going to explain what AMD B450 is even for those of you who are unsure or stumbled on this article by accident.
“B450” refers to the chipset model. The motherboard chipset determines which CPU it supports, how fast RAM it can go, overclocking ability, and all sorts of other nerdy things.
There are three main levels of AM4 motherboard chipsets:
- A320 – Minimal, no real OC features or extras.
- B450 : The mid-range occasionally flirts with the high-end, adding overclocking and higher RAM speeds. X470 / X570 – The high- end , with X570 mostly eliminating X470. Improves VRMs for higher CPU over clocks and overall build quality for even higher RAM speeds, faster PCIe / NVMe and other extras,
B450 is the one for most users, who are not going to push crazy over clocks, but just want a balanced motherboard at a balanced price.
Motherboard size and expandability
The size of the motherboard corresponds directly to the amount of expansion a motherboard can handle, but as the years have passed … these have become less important to most users.
Offer a motherboard with a single PCI Express slot to an enthusiast in the 90s, and they would have seen it as crazy, because the features that we now see as basic, including networking and sound, required PCI Express expansion at the time.
Today, features like that are built right into the motherboard, and options like Wi-Fi and Bluetooth can be easily accomplished with a simple plug into a USB port. Many PC users only need a single PCI Express slot for their graphics card today.
That said, there are still plenty of reasons to go for a larger motherboard, including multi-GPU setups, four-channel RAM setups, and multi-NVMe storage setups.
The overall price seems to be balanced primarily in favor of the Micro ATX as well, with Mini ITX and ATX both more expensive trends for the same features due to smaller size and higher gross capacity, respectively.
Difference between SATA and NVMe bandwidth
SATA is used by 2.5 and 3.5-inch drives, generally SSD and HDD, respectively. Its effective speed is limited to about ~ 600 MB / s, typically manifesting around 550 MB / s read for higher-end SATA SSDs.
NVMe drives use PCI Express bandwidth, and for PCI Express Gen 3, that’s a theoretical maximum of 4000 MB / s . (Most high-end NVMe Gen 3 drives have much lower performance than this, around 3000 MB / s. Still, it’s still a significant improvement over SATA!)
Where things get a bit tricky is with the M.2 form factor. Many motherboards have M.2 slots that only support SATA speeds, and some M.2 drives only support SATA speeds despite looking physically identical to much faster M.2 NVMe drives. Be sure to check
the motherboard and M.2 drive specs if you’re looking for ultra-fast SSD storage!
How Ryzen trusts RAM
As you read this article, you may notice a higher-than-normal level of focus on RAM.
This is because Ryzen processors, in particular, can be affected by low RAM speeds and benefit greatly from higher RAM speeds.
Intel CPUs are not that affected in this regard because they are built differently, but for any serious Ryzen enthusiast, this is a big deal, especially if you are buying Ryzen 5 or better processors.
For that reason, we’ve included maximum RAM speed ratings with each of our motherboard picks.
While delving into all the details of Ryzen and RAM is a bit beyond the scope of this particular article, we’ve included this information so that users can make truly informed purchasing decisions.
Conclusion
With Ryzen 3000, motherboard makers went out of their way to provide a lot of quality options . This is a good thing in itself.
However, the x570 chipset is expensive to produce and motherboards supporting PCIe 4.0 require higher quality circuit boards . So good x570 cards start above $200 , which is too much for a lot of buyers. Fortunately, PCIe 4.0 is “ahead”.
Unless you work in video editing or 3D rendering, you don’t need this type of superfast SSD . So if you don’t have the budget for a x570 motherboard, don’t worry, you don’t lose much.