Will I notice a difference between X370 x B350 x A320?

bonesdaplays

Prominent
Nov 19, 2017
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510
I'm looking to build a new computer next year and would love to put one of the relatively new Amd Ryzens in it. While I was looking into motherboards, I notice that most of the mid range to low range priced X370 boards are getting relatively bad reviews (3/5 stars), so I'm trying to determine how much of a difference I'd notice between the three chipsets. I understand that most of the problems are due to memory kits not working or poorly preforming. From the little research I've done, I should probably find a B350 board.

Some background info:
- As of the moment I have no interest in overclocking, but I could at a future date.
- I would love to just set it up and have it work with little to no effort on my part.
- I'm looking for something in the $100-150 USD range on the Motherboard.
- I would really like something on the higher end Memory speed wise.

If anyone has any recommendations Motherboard and/or Memory kit wise or could address my concerns that would be lovely.


 
Solution
Most of the memory problems with Ryzen occurred when the motherboards first came out but those problems we fixed by BIOS updates. Never the less those initial bad reviews are not removed so they hold down the overall ratings. On Newegg customer ratings there are 3 tabs to choose from, Overall - Last 2 Weeks - Last 6 Months, but Overall is the default.

Also as you stated "the mid range to low range priced X370 boards are getting relatively bad reviews". A lot of those bad reviews are because people complain these mid to low range X370 boards don't overclock as well as the more expensive X370 boards, and that's because they don't have as many VRM phases, chokes and mosfets around the CPU, as the expensive X370 boards, but it's not...
Most of the memory problems with Ryzen occurred when the motherboards first came out but those problems we fixed by BIOS updates. Never the less those initial bad reviews are not removed so they hold down the overall ratings. On Newegg customer ratings there are 3 tabs to choose from, Overall - Last 2 Weeks - Last 6 Months, but Overall is the default.

Also as you stated "the mid range to low range priced X370 boards are getting relatively bad reviews". A lot of those bad reviews are because people complain these mid to low range X370 boards don't overclock as well as the more expensive X370 boards, and that's because they don't have as many VRM phases, chokes and mosfets around the CPU, as the expensive X370 boards, but it's not realistic to think they should. Even though they use the top of the line X370 chipset, they are budget priced boards, you get what you pay for. You want better overclocking, buy a more expensive board.
 
Solution


rocktalkrock said it pretty well but I would like to add a few things...

if you've truly no interest in overclocking then an A320 based board would probably do you well. But it can not overclock at all so if that itch should arise you can't scratch it.

b350 motherboards will overclock but, as rocktalkrock noted, they're the ones that are most limited with power delivery to the CPU so it won't overclock as far as a good X370...especially so with 8 core CPU's. .

The X370 chipset is the only one that will allow you to run Nvidia cards in SLI, if that's important to you.

X370 also has more PCIe lanes available so you're more likely to find more x8 or x4 slots expansion slots, more M.2 interfaces, more USB 3.1 gen 2 ports and/or more SATA III ports, for instance, on those boards.

Other than that: look for features you need and expansion you consider necessary.
 

dasantilli123

Prominent
Feb 4, 2018
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The best advice if you aren't sure about your chipset....don't get an x370. Chances are this is your first AMD build or you are getting back into PC building. Don't get an A320 because you will be restricted on features as well as OC capabilities as you learn more about the board you select and it's features.. I have an X370 Asus board but run B350 MSI Tomahawk PLus' in two other Riggs at my home and couldn't be happier. The Plus model has more vrm's,, the Asmedia USB chipset for better handoff, and it looks awesome (heatsink,and LEDs on back are RGB not just red ).Many people criticise hardware quality (VRM,Components, etc) but they have been great and you can usually grab one brand new for $79 after the rebate on new egg. My B350 sets have been able to OC several Ryzen 5 1400 to 3.8/3.9 and it was stable and my RAM clocked to 3200 on the first post with no adjustments . Also I can use dual gpus on the b350 board even thou AMD states it's not supported for the chipset. X370 boards are really for your enthusiasts, more room to overclock and also have more vrm's which help with power distribution to your CPU, Dimms etc. So bottom line...if you have to ask go with the B350 unless you are planning on spending the extra cheddar for features you won't use or don't need. Good luck. Also look at the ASRock boards, they have stepped their game way up with the new chipsets. MSI IS NOT GARBAGE...WELL THE CHEAP BOARDS ARE. Good luck hope it helps.
Basic budeget PC:
Ryzen 5 1400 (3.6ghz)
16GB Corsair Vengence RGB DDR4 3000mhz (has better timings than the 3200)
B350 MSI Tomahawk Plus
Deepcool Earlkase
Coolermaster Liquidmaster lite 120 (cool trick is to pop the cap off the pump and you can use colored cellophane or non permanent ink to color the inside letters so it matches your color scheme)
Corsair,Seagate or Evga 550 PSU (don't spent money on a cheap PSU because it has more watts, a quality 550 is 10 times better than an 800w cheap no name)
Samsung m.2 SSD or 850 Evo with Seagate Barracuda HDD, don't skimp on your SSD, it truly matters
EVGA GeForce 1050 or 1060 is usually more than you need,GPU tricky, go with what suits your needs, don't spend $250 on a card because it's shiny, start on ebay (cards starting at $10 and GDDR5 2GB+ for $50)
This setup easily handles just about any game and if your smart you can build it for less than $500. Scores a 78 percentile for Mid to Upper class gaming PC thru several benches.