Protip: Don't go cheap on a motherboard

[minervx]

I'm not saying you need a $200 Pro-Gaming-100X-RGB board, but a cheap one will end up being a false bargain in so many ways.

 

* No integrated wifi/bluetooth

* Unstable CPU overclocking

* Unstable Memory overclocking

* Annoying/frustrating user interface

* No voltage control for fans

* Software updates that don't actually work

and other annoyances

 

I'm not saying everyone will care about these features, but I bet it's probably true that there's some kind of problem a low-end board will have, that in the long run, you'll wish you had just gotten a better one.

[Psittac]

For many years I have gone ASrock on builds for friends and family and Asus on personal rig's.

 

ASrock will work every time out of the box

 

Asus stays up to date with the BIOS/UEFI and stays current with clocking and other features.

 

Honestly I haven't gone out of this ecosystem for over a decade

 

edit: I attempted an ASrock for a personal build on my x99 and it would do something funky every time I changed something in uefi, something along the lines of hanging in post.  This was end of life for x99 and ASrock hadn't kept their bios up to date.  I returned the mobo and got a pricier Asus.  Granted I learned that x99 is not an OC platform (had taken a few years off of clocking and system building for myself) but the Asus board hasn't let me down, even though I gave up on that machine and built a Z270

[AskTJ]

ASRock boards are great for me.

[NoRomanBatmansAllowed]

I'd disagree.

 

Most people who game don't need integrated wifi/bluetooth.

 

Most people don't OC at all.

 

Most people only touch the BIOS once in a blue moon (and even then it's pretty navigable)

 

I want to say most mobos have voltage control now, but either way most people don't touch the fan curves.

 

The BIOS update is a valid concern, though in my experience it's been decent so far (as long as you get a mature enough platform).

[Streetguru]

31 minutes ago, minervx said:

 

A decent B360 or B350 board will be fine, more so for AMD since it has overclocking on lower end boards.

 

Don't need all of those features really.

The lowest end boards are basically trash though.

[Psittac]

7 minutes ago, NoRomanBatmansAllowed said:

I'd disagree.

 

Most people who game don't need integrated wifi/bluetooth.

 

Most people don't OC at all.

 

Most people only touch the BIOS once in a blue moon (and even then it's pretty navigable)

 

I want to say most mobos have voltage control now, but either way most people don't touch the fan curves.

 

The BIOS update is a valid concern, though in my experience it's been decent so far (as long as you get a mature enough platform).

I rarely OC my system these day's, I'm tired of the upkeep.  Short of Destiny 2 I find no need (that game is glitched).  But my system is rather current and has no need for OC.  Though I can say that every ASUS machine I have built that found it's self to be dated did NOT lack the thing's I later wished it had.

 

Also a note on the fan curve: I am not one to be concerned with fan curves or noise for that matter.  However a few month's ago I had a friend over clickity clacking away on a ducky cherry red keyboard and for some reason I couldn't focus on my gaming.  A specific frequency was transmitting through my desk and peripherals at completely random intervals, it DROVE ME INSANE.  I discovered that it was a fan ramping up and down on my radiator so I installed AI suite and set it to a steady RPM.

[minervx]

On this forum are not going to be most people.  They are going to be people who are interested in using their computer for relatively demanding tasks and care about certain features, even if they're not trying to build a RGB-meme PC.

[minervx]

1 minute ago, Streetguru said:

A decent B360 or B350 board will be fine, more so for AMD since it has overclocking on lower end boards.

 

Yes, they have overclocking, but can they overclock to the potential of the CPU.

 

Can they overclock in a stable way without system crashes?

[Psittac]

1 minute ago, minervx said:

Yes, they have overclocking, but can they overclock to the potential of the CPU.

 

Can they overclock in a stable way without system crashes?

I guess this is a subversion of the OP, he is talking about low endish motherboards.

[PlayStation 2]

Cheaper ASRock boards tend to be some of the best budget boards out there.
My board was $60 and is pretty much fully featured as far as an B350 board goes.

33 minutes ago, minervx said:

* No integrated wifi/bluetooth

* Software updates that don't actually work

The former point is hella hard to really make with a straight face unless it's genuinely necessary to get a board that supports Mini PCI-E cards and WiFi and Bluetooth-capable cards.

The latter... that's real dependent on the board. Flashing the BIOS on my board was stupid easy. All it required was a flash drive and the BIOS to be on it.

[Streetguru]

11 minutes ago, minervx said:

Yes, they have overclocking, but can they overclock to the potential of the CPU.

 

Can they overclock in a stable way without system crashes?

If you pick the right board yes, mostly because Ryzen is efficient, the cheap VRM of the ASrock Pro4 OC'd my R7 1700 just fine with a fan over the VRM.

[Jurrunio]

48 minutes ago, minervx said:

* No integrated wifi/bluetooth

* Unstable CPU overclocking

* Unstable Memory overclocking

* Annoying/frustrating user interface

* No voltage control for fans

* Software updates that don't actually work

and other annoyances

-I dont care about wireless connectivity of a big bulky desktop.

-Cheap doesnt mean it's automatically bad

-Same

-Choose the right brand, not necessarily related to the price.

-I'm fine with that, because PWM control

-Buy the brand, not the price

[KarathKasun]

R5 1400 + $60 B350 motherboard.  I get fan control, updates, and reasonable overclocking on air.

Why would I need mediocre BT/WiFi built into my motherboard when I can get a better experience with a $40 add in card that can move to a new build later?

 

The thing to remember is that you should get what you need.  Don't pair a high end CPU with a low end board and expect to get the best OC or performance.  Conversely, do not put a cheap CPU into an expensive board as the benefits are not worth the extra cash compared with getting a better CPU.