MSI B550 Motherboard Lineup Hits the Radar

[btarunr]

MSI registered five new motherboard SKUs with the Eurasian Economic Commission, based on the AMD B550 chipset. The five new socket AM4 motherboards cover a wide range of sub-$200 (expected) price-points. The lineup is led by the MSI Performance Gaming (MPG) B550 Gaming Carbon WiFi, which was part of AMD's chipset reveal presentation; followed closely by the MPG B550 Gaming Edge WiFi, its Mini-ITX sibling, the MPG B550I Gaming Edge WiFi; the MSI Arsenal Gaming (MAG) B550M Mortar WiFi; and the B550M PRO-VDH in the entry-level. The lineup is missing a "MAG B550 Tomahawk," possibly because MSI wants to launch it later. The company launched its MAG X570 Tomahawk rather recently, and probably still has inventories of its popular B450 Tomahawk MAX motherboard launched with large 32 MB BIOS ROM chips. AMD and its motherboard partners are expected to launch B550 chipset motherboard in mid-June, 2020.



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[las]

I hope the B550 Tomahawk is going to be as good value as the X570 Tomahawk.

 

[kaspar737]

Hoping the B550M Mortar is as good as B450M Mortar, X570 mATX mobos are trash.

 

[Raendor]

Won’t mind a nice itx board for acceptable price.

 

[midnightoil]

I hope the B550 Tomahawk is going to be as good value as the X570 Tomahawk.

It's not. Minimum price is $250. Most retailers list it nearer $300.

 

[ymbaja]

Sub 200??? This is the new budget board? Maybe I need to double my hourly rate every year...

 

[Mad_foxx1983]

Won’t mind a nice itx board for acceptable price.

Same here. I really want to do an ITX b550 build for an htpc gaming living room setup.

 

[1d10t]

Hoping the B550M Mortar is as good as B450M Mortar, X570 mATX mobos are trash.

Second to that.Currently the only decent motherboard is Asrock X570M Pro 4, another one is utter trash Galax X570M.
I'm liking mATX form factor even more as it provide 2 PEGs while keeping space as minimum as possible.

 

[Tiggers97]

It's not. Minimum price is $250. Most retailers list it nearer $300.

$250-300 for the Tomahawk x570? MSRP is around $200.
Happy to report that the preorder at BH-Audio is for $220. I'm expecting other locations like Amazon and Newegg to be less as we get closer to mid-June.

 

[Caring1]

I'm waiting to see if "Titanium" shows up in their listings.

 

[Gmr_Chick]

Hoping the B550M Mortar is as good as B450M Mortar, X570 mATX mobos are trash.

Second to that.Currently the only decent motherboard is Asrock X570M Pro 4, another one is utter trash Galax X570M.
I'm liking mATX form factor even more as it provide 2 PEGs while keeping space as minimum as possible.

My Crosshair VIII Impact would like a word with both of you

But, I'm guessing you're both talking about the more "affordable" options for X570 m-ATX/ITX form factors, and I heartily agree that the selection is pitifully lacking for those wanting to do smaller builds on AMD compared to Intel. And yes, most AMD boards on said form factors are less than great, especially for the money.

Part of my decision to go with the Impact was out of necessity, as I wanted to go with a smaller build, and 1. there simply aren't that many exceptional small form factor AM4 boards, especially on the X570 chipset -- hoping that B550 brings more -- and 2. even though I'm basically doing a whole new, way smaller, build, I didn't necessarily want to go Intel just because they tend to have far more m-ATX/ITX boards.

The Impact is sort of an anomaly, mainly because of its form factor - Mini-DTX. Best way to describe it would be that if an m-ATX board and an m-ITX board banged, the Impact would be the result Same width as both, but it's maybe an inch longer in length compared to m-ATX

*Yells at mobo companies* MAKE MORE m-ATX AND ITX BOARDS FOR AM4, DAMN IT!

Ahem. That concludes my rant. Carry on, gentlemen.

 

[watzupken]

Hoping the B550M Mortar is as good as B450M Mortar, X570 mATX mobos are trash.

Unfortunately, MATX is being perceived as the budget standard for a number of years now. I am a fan of MATX, but decided to move back to ATX a year ago due to the lack of good boards. In fact prior to X570, you can't find any X470 MATX board. These top end chipsets are only found on ATX or ITX.

I think what is key for a mid range chipset is going to be the price. Hopefully they will improve the build quality from B450 to B550 due to the increasing number cores AMD is introducing.

 

[las]

Second to that.Currently the only decent motherboard is Asrock X570M Pro 4, another one is utter trash Galax X570M.
I'm liking mATX form factor even more as it provide 2 PEGs while keeping space as minimum as possible.

Yes, sadly mATX sacrifices too much on VRMs (especially) and often features too. It's considered a budget option for the most part, as in cheaper, less features etc.

Compact ATX cases made mATX fairly irellevant - You end up around the same size in the end. Difference is only 2.4 inch / 6 cm between ATX and mATX. You often get better VRMs on cheap ATX boards, compared to more expensive mATX boards (supply vs demand I guess).

ATX and ITX are the most popular options. Because if you want truly small, ITX is where it's at, not mATX.

 

[1d10t]

My Crosshair VIII Impact would like a word with both of you
But, I'm guessing you're both talking about the more "affordable" options for X570 m-ATX/ITX form factors, and I heartily agree that the selection is pitifully lacking for those wanting to do smaller builds on AMD compared to Intel. And yes, most AMD boards on said form factors are less than great, especially for the money.
Part of my decision to go with the Impact was out of necessity, as I wanted to go with a smaller build, and 1. there simply aren't that many exceptional small form factor AM4 boards, especially on the X570 chipset -- hoping that B550 brings more -- and 2. even though I'm basically doing a whole new, way smaller, build, I didn't necessarily want to go Intel just because they tend to have far more m-ATX/ITX boards.
The Impact is sort of an anomaly, mainly because of its form factor - Mini-DTX. Best way to describe it would be that if an m-ATX board and an m-ITX board banged, the Impact would be the result Same width as both, but it's maybe an inch longer in length compared to m-ATX
*Yells at mobo companies* MAKE MORE m-ATX AND ITX BOARDS FOR AM4, DAMN IT!
Ahem. That concludes my rant. Carry on, gentlemen.

"Reasonably priced" to be exact, I assume everyone don't mind price tag as long as its served nifty feature.
Previously I had Gigabyte X370 Gaming K5 before decide switch to MSI B450M Mortar MAX, and I don't feel like its a downgrade, got same 4 SATA, 2 PEG, one more M.2, more beefy VRM. All said and done while squeezing smaller. What's not to like?
Currently, MSI is the only company that makes best midrange AM4 motherboard, they don't skimp out feature and not neglected VRM too much.I just hope they re-release B450M Mortar MAX with B550 chips.

Unfortunately, MATX is being perceived as the budget standard for a number of years now. I am a fan of MATX, but decided to move back to ATX a year ago due to the lack of good boards. In fact prior to X570, you can't find any X470 MATX board. These top end chipsets are only found on ATX or ITX.
I think what is key for a mid range chipset is going to be the price. Hopefully they will improve the build quality from B450 to B550 due to the increasing number cores AMD is introducing.

Biostar is known for their consistent for making budget mATX.

X470GTQ
X570GT

How do you think? Is any of them considered decent? I don't think so and I will not buy any motherboard that still had analog output in it!

Yes, sadly mATX sacrifices too much on VRMs (especially) and often features too. It's considered a budget option for the most part, as in cheaper, less features etc.
Compact ATX cases made mATX fairly irellevant - You end up around the same size in the end. Difference is only 2.4 inch / 6 cm between ATX and mATX. You often get better VRMs on cheap ATX boards, compared to more expensive mATX boards (supply vs demand I guess).
ATX and ITX are the most popular options. Because if you want truly small, ITX is where it's at, not mATX.

Problems with ITX form factor so far
- most chassis restricted to dual slot GPU, and most of AIB GPU right now sitting between 2.5 and 3 slot.
- doesn't have secondary PEG ( obvious ).
- ITX chassis mostly space constraint it cannot contain more than 4 drive, its either 2 2.5 inch + 2 3.5 inch combo or just 4 2.5 inch.
- temperature delta between ambient is too high, around 20-25°C.

I already tasted Asrock Fatal1ty AB350 Gaming-ITX/ac build with Cooler Master Elite 130, both leave a bad taste in my mouth.

 

[las]

Problems with ITX form factor so far
- most chassis restricted to dual slot GPU, and most of AIB GPU right now sitting between 2.5 and 3 slot.
- doesn't have secondary PEG ( obvious ).
- ITX chassis mostly space constraint it cannot contain more than 4 drive, its either 2 2.5 inch + 2 3.5 inch combo or just 4 2.5 inch.
- temperature delta between ambient is too high, around 20-25°C.

I already tasted Asrock Fatal1ty AB350 Gaming-ITX/ac build with Cooler Master Elite 130, both leave a bad taste in my mouth.

Well, I don't recommend ITX for gaming builds, but they are popular.

Secondary PEG is not really needed, since multi GPU is pretty much dead at this point. For high quality sound, there's USB DAC's.

There's several ITX cases that allows for 2.5 - maybe 3 slot graphics - You always need to be careful when you order parts for small builds, this is nothing new. Compatibility and watt usage.
There's nothing small about mATX IMO. Some mATX cases are bigger than some ATX cases. Especially these days, with no 3.5 drive mounting and no 5.25 bays needed
Temps always increase in small builds yes, again, I don't consider mATX small - 2.4 inch / 6 cm less motherboard heigh compared to ATX does not really make much difference

I went from a Corsair 350D mATX to Fractal Design Meshify C ATX, and the build is actually slightly smaller.The Meshify C is actually pretty much identical to the Define Mini C I have for my Ryzen rig. Mini C is probably among the most popular mATX cases in the last few years.

All this comes down to supply vs demand, there's simply much lower demand for mATX boards and cases compared to ATX and ITX is somewhere in between.

 

[Raendor]

Same here. I really want to do an ITX b550 build for an htpc gaming living room setup.

planning to build nice intermediate rig with b550 and something like rtx 3060 until ddr5 and pcie 5 arrive and mature a bit in a few years. Ncase m1 is on the way and moved my z270i 6700k 1080 system to Sliger Conswole already.