The AMD B550 Motherboard Overview: ASUS, GIGABYTE, MSI, ASRock, and Others
by Dr. Ian Cutress & Gavin Bonshor on June 16, 2020 11:00 AM ESTASRock B550 Pro4
The B550 Pro4 is a more cost-down version of the Extreme4, where we replace features like the 2.5 gigabit Ethernet with single gigabit Ethernet, as well as reduce the number of power phases and such. Because Pro4 is a different line to Extreme4, there’s also a major overhaul in the styling.
In this instance the power delivery is all situated on the left hand side, with a single heatsink and a shortened rear panel cover that doesn’t cover all the rear panel segments. The socket area is a little busy, with ASRock going for a mix of angles here, so it’s hard to make out but there are three 4-pin headers around the socket, while the CPU is powered by an 8-pin and a 4-pin.
The DRAM slots are still single sided latch designs, and on the right hand side of the board we get an RGB header, the 24-pin ATX connector, a USB 3.0 header, and six SATA ports. Underneath the SATA ports are some built in RGB LEDs.
Unlike some of the other ASRock boards, because Pro4 is a more cost down model, the chipset heatsink is smaller than most. There is an M.2 heatsink, but it’s not attached to the chipset heatsink and sits on its own, but covers the PCIe 4.0 x4 slot from the CPU. There is another M.2 slot below the chipset heatsink, and this is a PCIe 3.0 x2 slot from the chipset. For the PCIe slots, the top slot is a reinforced PCIe 4.0 x16 slot, while the second full-length slot is a PCIe 3.0 x4 from the chipset.
For the rear panel, we get a combination PS/2 port, four USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports, an analog D-Sub port, a HDMI port, space for Wi-Fi antenna, a Type-A USB 3.2 Gen 2 port, a Type-C USB 3.2 Gen 2 port, gigabit Ethernet via a Realtek RTL8111H controller, and audio jacks from a Realtek ALC1200 design.
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kerwyn - Monday, June 29, 2020 - link
The second M.2 slot for the Aorus Elite seems to support PCIE3.0x2 instead of x4 stated in the review unless I read wrong. Could anyone else confirm? This is the swaying factor for me to lean towards the Mortar. Specs from Gigabyte website below:Storage Interface
1 x M.2 connector (M2A_CPU), integrated in the CPU, supporting Socket 3, M key, type 2242/2260/2280/22110 SSDs:
3rd Generation AMD Ryzen™ processors support SATA and PCIe 4.0 x4/x2 SSDs
3rd Generation AMD Ryzen™ with Radeon™ Graphics processors support SATA and PCIe 3.0 x4/x2 SSDs
1 x M.2 connector (M2B_SB), integrated in the Chipset, supporting Socket 3, M key, type 2242/2260/2280 SSDs:
Supporting SATA and PCIe 3.0 x2 SSDs
sd7832kjd3bcds - Tuesday, June 30, 2020 - link
Almost all of the boards include PS/2 connector. Why they put it in 2020? They stopped making PS/2 devices 15 years ago. Better would be to have an empty space there.Ethos Evoss - Sunday, July 5, 2020 - link
I ordered this then I quickly cancelled and ordered B550I AORUS PRO AXQuestor - Sunday, July 12, 2020 - link
"One of the main complaints about the AMD X570 motherboard line was the wide variation in pricing."This can't be said of Intel based motherboards? Yes it can and accurately so. What is the point with this pointless statement?
Cards_ - Sunday, July 26, 2020 - link
Does the WiFi module connect to any WiFi Network, or is it only ASUS Networks if so would I need to buy a WiFi adapter?CamoGeko - Sunday, August 30, 2020 - link
Hey, so is there any cheaper alternative to the Aorus 550M Pro with similar or better feature set? I'm in the middle of building a Ryzen system with 3300X and motherboard is the last thing I need to decide on. Other mATX at the same price or cheaper just don't look as good as the B550M Aorus Pro.Iqbalusamah - Sunday, October 25, 2020 - link
I need help..the mob manual says the m.2 slot for the chipset suport sata n pcie 3.0x2..but this review says it suport pci3.0x4..i bought a samsung 970 evo with a pcie 3.0x4..can it be used in the slotIqbalusamah - Sunday, October 25, 2020 - link
Help me..i cant understand which one is true..the 2nd m.2 slot for chipset runs at pci3.0x4 or pcie 3.0x2(mob manual).and can a pcie3.0x4 be used in the slotZwirley - Sunday, July 18, 2021 - link
Question, is this board capable of overclocking and does it have a good power phase design? I was wondering because I want to build an all-white system but then came across another concern of this motherboard and that is if this supports BIOS Flashback feature so that I don't have to go out of my way to purchase an older gen CPU for it to support my 5900xcharlesa365 - Tuesday, August 3, 2021 - link
My personal computer running Debian has had four GIGABYTE B550 Vision D motherboards. The first and fourth had NIC initialisation on power up problems. The second one's NICs died after ~6 months. The third did not show voltage/temperature values properly. GIGABYTE warranty agents wrote "We do not give support to Debian OS".