Introduction

After the successful launch of Intel's 12th Gen Core processors in 2021, the company is at it again to keep the pressure on AMD with a new budget-originated chipset for the LGA 1700 socket. This means motherboard manufactures are once again readying more products at a much cheaper price point. While Intel may have not officially axed DDR5 memory support for the B660 chipset, it seems most of the offerings are DDR4 only. This comes as a welcome surprise as DDR5 is not a cost-effective approach for Alder Lake budget builds.

The biggest difference between Intel's flagship Z690 and the B660 chipset is a cut to the DMI 4.0 inference, which is now lowered to x4. This in turn leaves less PCIe 4.0 and 3.0 lanes available, which will lower the total amount of available M.2 sockets and PCIe slots. Being that the B660 chipset is targeted towards casual users and budget-conscious people, the lack of these extra lanes may go unnoticed.


The MAG naming convention serves as MSI's entry-range line for Intel motherboards. These tend to focus on essentials rather then premium features, and their B660 lineup is comprised of just two models currently, the Tomahawk and Mortar. The MSI MAG B660M Mortar WiFi is using an M-ATX form factor and has DDR4 and DDR5 models to choose from.

The MSI MAG B660M Mortar WiFi DDR4 features a duet VRM design with 12 power stages, PCIE 4.0, and two M.2 sockets. To round out the experience, the B660M Mortar WiFi also offers great connectivity with WiFi 6 technology, 2.5G LAN, and USB 3.2 20 Gbps for those who need to transfer data quickly. There is a lot to cover in this review, so let's take a closer look at what the MSI MAG B660M Mortar WiFi DDR4 has to offer.

Specifications