Choosing The Right X570 Motherboard

Overall, there are more than 35 X570 motherboards available just as part of the first wave of designs. And there will be quite a few more to be announced later on, such as the ASRock X570 Taichi Ultimate, Biostar's mini-ITX X570GTN and a number of models from ASUS. This can be a lot to dig through.

Selecting the right motherboard comes down to personal preferences and needs, and there are many different variables to consider as part of that process. This includes the number of M.2 slots onboard, SATA ports, support for NVIDIA SLI, etc. The vast majority of boards come with a strong feature set, which is to be expected from a premium desktop platform such as X570. This is no small part due to vendors finally bringing their high-end feature sets to AMD boards, on the heels of AMD's success in the market with the first and second generations of Ryzen processors.

So, similar to what we did in our previous Intel Z390 round-up from last year, we've taken some of the most common requirements when choosing the foundation for a new system, and narrowed them down to help users select a board based on specific features.

Overall, vendors have a lot of flexibility here for the X570 generation of boards. With support for more chipset USB 3.1 G2 lanes, as well as 12 to 16 flexible PCIe 4.0 lanes, motherboard makers have plenty of I/O for adding features and playing around with their PCIe/M.2 slot configurations. This modular system allows vendors to quickly create different types of boards based on the product's target market, trading off between SATA ports and various ways to use PCIe lanes. For example, a vendor can select to add two blocks of 4 x SATA ports for boards looking to offer superior storage capabilities, while the remaining 8 flexible PCIe 4.0 lanes being set aside for devices such as x4 M.2 slots. Then on top of all this, additional controllers can be added.

Finally, it's interesting to note that vendors have been surprisingly consistent in implementing the latest Intel and Realtek Wi-Fi 6 802.11ax wireless interfaces, both of which also include support for BT 5. Even counting "duplicate" designs in the total, a full 18 of the 35 launch boards have some form of Wi-Fi support.

Normally we would also note which boards include a Realtek ALC1220 HD audio codec in the table, but it's actually quicker and easier to list which boards don't have it, as it's now a regular feature across most X570 boards. Only a limited number of boards in the entry-level segment feature a non-ALC1220 codec.

The other big variable to consider when selecting between the various motherboards is price. As with any other motherboard lineup, you have the entry-level models which usually offer a good mixture of mid-range controller selections, but with cut down features. The mid-range models usually include a strong premium controller set, but with other cost-reducing variables such as fewer M.2 slots and less heatsink space on the board.

The premium flagship models go all-out, offering as much as they can cram onto the PCB. Of course, it's unfair to compare a $199 board to a $699 board without also appreciating the step up in refinements such as the power delivery, extra controllers such as 10 G/5 G/2.5 G NICs, and other integrated features. 

All of the boards we've covered today, with the exception of the Colorful CVN X570 Pro V14, are set to be available to buy this week in the USA, EU, and the UK, across various retailers such as Amazon, Newegg, Overclockers UK, etc. There may be other models available for other parts of the world such as the Asian market which we haven't covered, but none of these was announced during the unveiling of the X570 chipset at Computex 2019.

A much talked about feature on the X570 products is the implementation of an actively cooled chipset which has raised questions on noise, how hot the X570 chipset actually runs, and why it runs so hot. Adding PCIe 4.0 lanes over PCIe 3.0 currently requires a higher power draw and is the primary reason for the 11 W TDP that the X570 chipset has. So far only one model in the entire X570 product stack has a passively cooled heatsink, the flagship GIGABYTE X570 Aorus Xtreme, so it will be interesting to see how the heatsink compares to other boards.

ASRock X570 Product Stack

Starting alphabetically, ASRock has 10 different X570 models, with a single E-ATX sized board in the form of the limited edition X570 Aqua. The company also has one mini-ITX board with Thunderbolt 3, and the only mATX board in the entire X570 product stack (at launch), the X570M Pro4.

One board that dominates with features is the flagship ASRock X570 Aqua, which includes an Aquantia AQC107 10 G NIC, two PCIe 4.0 x4 M.2 slots, and 8 SATA ports. The Phantom Gaming series also makes a reappearance with its flagship gaming model, the X570 Phantom Gaming X. This board includes a Realtek RTL8125-AG 2.5 G NIC, and the Wi-Fi enabled models adding an Intel AX200 802.11ax wireless interface.

There is no X570 Taichi Ultimate as of yet, but it's expected to come out after launch. Meanwhile, the standard X570 Taichi model does make an appearance in the product stack. Also making a reappearance is the X570 Steel Legend, which is essentially the X570 Extreme4 with a different aesthetic design, and the X570/X570M Pro4 models which are generally targeted more towards professional users.

ASUS X570 Product Stack

Moving onto the ASUS models, there are a total of 12 models to select from, which is the largest array of any vendor at launch. This is due to certain models being "doubled up", with both WI-Fi and non-Wi-Fi versions available for the ROG Crosshair VIII Hero and TUF Gaming X570-Plus. The Wi-Fi enabled variants to come with an Intel AX200 802.11ax wireless controller, which is the only difference between to the versions without Wi-Fi.

The flagship ASUS ROG Crosshair VIII Formula includes an EKWB water block for the power delivery system, all the while the range filters down to the mini-DTX sized ROG Crosshair VIII Impact, which is sure to please extreme overclockers and small form factor enthusiasts. The majority of ASUS's X570 product stack includes three or more USB 3.1 G2 ports on the rear panel, which is nice to see, and this includes the cheaper Prime series models too. Also included on the vast majority of the ASUS X570 product stack are eight (or more) SATA ports; handy for users looking to make use of the X570 chipset's support of RAID 0, 1, and 10 arrays.

The other models in the range include the mid-range Strix series with three boards – two ATX and one mini-ITX – and the ASUS TUF Gaming caters to the gamers looking for more a more affordable option. For non-gamers, there's the anticipated ASUS Pro WS X570-Ace, which incorporates three full-length PCIe 4.0 slots with x8 or better bandwidth, which should be particularly useful for building out systems with lots of accelerators. Other boards include a pair of Prime series parts, with the Prime X570-Pro and the lower spec but ultimately cheaper Prime X570-P.

GIGABYTE X570 Product Stack

GIGABYTE has a total of 9 X570 models at launch, with their top board being the E-ATX sized X570 Aorus Extreme. This board bundles a number of high-end features, including an Aquantia AQC107 10 G NIC and a large 16-phase power delivery system, and interestingly enough it's also the only board so far to feature a passively cooled X570 chipset. Meanwhile, all but one of GIGABYTE's boards come from its Aorus gaming brand, including a single mini-ITX model in the X570 I Aorus Pro WIFI, which is a cut-down version of its ATX sized X570 Aorus Pro Wi-Fi. 

Moving down the product stack from the Xtreme, Master, Ultra, Pro, and Elite, is the entry-level GIGABYTE X570 Gaming X. This is the only board not to hail from the Aorus series, and it includes a more wallet-friendly feature set. From the X570 Aorus Pro/Aorus Pro WIFI and up the product stack, each model includes three or more USB 3.1 G2 ports on the rear panel. It's also worth noting that for users looking for a lot of SATA ports, no board in GIGABYTE's product stack includes more than six.

MSI X570 Product Stack

The last of the major motherboard vendors are MSI, and it has the smallest product stack out of the big four, with just 7 X570 boards at launch. Usually coming out with one of the larger product stacks, MSI has condensed its range a bit, as the MPG X570 Gaming Pro Carbon WIFI and X570 Gaming Edge WIFI does not have non-Wi-Fi variants like on we've seen on previous chipsets. Both these boards sit in the mid-range segment, while the company has a trio of high-end models, including the two enthusiast models: the MEG X570 Godlike, and MEG X570 Ace. Otherwise the new Prestige X570 Creation is aimed at content creators and professionals, and it has the best USB-laden rear panel of any X570 board thus far. 

Moving down the MSI product stack is the MPG X570 Gaming Plus, which represents good value for money thanks to a decent feature set that doesn't break the bank. There is also the entry-level and professional focused MSI X570-A Pro, which drops the gaming theme of the other models (barring the Creation) and looks to offer users a solid entry-point into the X570 platform. The MSI MEG X570 Godlike also has one of the best feature/accessory bundles of any X570 board, with a dual PCIe 4.0 x4 slot (Xpander-Z) add-on card, as well as a Super LAN Aquantia AQC107 10 G NIC.

Other X570 Product Stack Options

Other X570 boards outside of the usual vendors include the X570 Racing GT8 from Biostar, which they actually blundered with and leaked way ahead of the X570 launch. Biostar also has plans to release a mini-ITX board later this year, a follow on of the X470GTN that's most likely to be called the X570GTN.

Last but not least on the list is the US Navy-inspired Colorful CVN X570 Gaming Pro V14, which we got hands-on with at Computex 2019. We expect that the Colorful model will be available primarily in the Asian market.

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