Comparison Asus ROG STRIX B650E-F GAMING WIFI vs Asus ROG STRIX B650-A GAMING WIFI

The number of processor power phases provided on the motherboard.

Very simplistically, phases can be described as electronic blocks of a special design, through which power is supplied to the processor. The task of such blocks is to optimize this power, in particular, to minimize power surges when the load on the processor changes. In general, the more phases, the lower the load on each of them, the more stable the power supply and the more durable the electronics of the board. And the more powerful the CPU and the more cores it has, the more phases it needs; this number increases even more if the processor is planned to be overclocked. For example, for a conventional quad-core chip, only four phases are often enough, and for an overclocked one, at least eight may be needed. It is because of this that powerful processors can have problems when used on inexpensive low-phase motherboards.

Detailed recommendations on choosing the number of phases for specific CPU series and models can be found in special sources (including the documentation for CPU itself). Here we note that with numerous phases on the motherboard (more than 8), some of them can be virtual. To do this, real electronic blocks are supplemented with doublers or even triplers, which, formally, increases the number of phases: for example, 12 claimed phases can represent 6 physical blocks with doublers. However, virtual phases are much inferior to real ones in terms of capabilities — in fact, t...hey are just additions that slightly improve the characteristics of real phases. So, let's say, in our example, it is more correct to speak not about twelve, but only about six (though improved) phases. These nuances must be specified when choosing a motherboard.

The chipset model installed in the motherboard. AMD's current chipset models are B450, A520, B550, X570, A620, B650, B650E, X670, X670E, X870, X870E.. For Intel, in turn, the list of chipsets looks like this: X299, H410, B460, H470, Z490, H510, B560, H570, Z590, H610, B660, H670, Z690, B760, Z790, Z890.

A chipset is a set of chips on the motherboard through which the individual components of the system interact directly: the processor, RAM, drives, audio and video adapters, network controllers, etc. Technically, such a set consists of two parts — the north and sou...th bridges. The key element is the northbridge, it connects the processor, memory, graphics card and the southbridge (together with the devices it controls). Therefore, it is often the name of the north bridge that is indicated as the chipset model, and the south bridge model is specified separately (see below); it is this scheme that is used in traditional layout motherboards, where bridges are made in the form of separate microcircuits. There are also solutions where both bridges are combined in one chip; for them, the name of the entire chipset can be indicated.

Anyway, knowing the chipset model, you can find various additional data on it — from general reviews to special instructions. An ordinary user, usually, does not need such information, but it can be useful for various professional tasks.

The maximum RAM clock speed supported by the motherboard. The actual clock frequency of the installed RAM modules should not exceed this indicator — otherwise, malfunctions are possible, and the capabilities of the “RAM” cannot be used to the fullest.

For modern PCs, a RAM frequency of 1500 – 2000 MHz or less is considered very low, 2000 – 2500 MHz is modest, 2500 – 3000 MHz is average, 3000 – 3500 MHz is above average, and the most advanced boards can support frequencies of 3500 – 4000 MHz and even more than 4000 MHz.

The version of the M.2 interface determines both the maximum data transfer rate and the supported devices that can be connected via physical M.2 connectors (see the corresponding paragraph).

The version of the M.2 interface in the specifications of motherboards is usually indicated by the number of connectors themselves and by the PCI-E revision provided for in each of them. For example, the entry “3x4.0” means three connectors capable of supporting PCI-E 4.0; and the designation “2x5.0, 1x4.0” means a trio of connectors, two of which support PCI-E 4.0, and another one supports PCI-E 5.0.

The version of the PCI Express interface supported by the motherboard. Recall that nowadays this interface is actually the standard for connecting video cards and other expansion cards. It can have a different number of lines — usually 1x, 4x and/or 16x; see the relevant paragraphs above for more details. Here we note that the version depends primarily on the data transfer rate per line. The most relevant options are:

— PCI Express 3.0. A version released back in 2010 and implemented in hardware two years later. One of the key differences from the previous PCI E 2.0 was the use of 128b / 130b encoding, that is, in every 130 bits — 128 main and two service bits (instead of 8b / 10b, which was used earlier and gave very high redundancy). This made it possible to almost double the data transfer rate (up to 984 Mbps versus 500 Mbps per 1 PCI-E lane) with a relatively small increase in the number of transactions per second (up to 8 GT/s versus 5 GT/s). Despite the introduction of the newer version 4.0, the PCI-E 3.0 standard is still quite popular in modern motherboards.

— PCI Express 4.0. Another PCI-E update introduced in 2017; the first "motherboards" with support for this version appeared in late spring 2019. Compared to PCI-E 3.0, the data transfer rate in PCI-E 4.0 has been doubled to 1969 Mbps per PCI-E lane.

— PCI Express 5.0. The evoluti...onary development of the PCI Express 5.0 standard, the final specification of which was approved in 2019, and its implementation in hardware began to be implemented in 2021. If we draw parallels with PCI E 4.0, the interface bandwidth has doubled — up to 32 gigatransactions per second. In particular, PCI E 5.0 x16 devices can exchange information at a speed of about 64 GB / s.

It is worth noting that different versions of PCI-E are mutually compatible with each other, however, the throughput is limited by the slowest standard. For example, a PCI-E 4.0 graphics card installed in a PCI-E 3.0 slot will only be able to operate at half its maximum speed (according to version 3.0 specifications).

Model of the LAN controller installed in the motherboard.

The LAN controller provides data exchange between the card and the network port(s) of the computer. Accordingly, both general characteristics and individual features of the network functionality of the "motherboard" depend on the characteristics of this module: support for special technologies, connection quality in case of unstable communication, etc. Knowing the model of the LAN controller, you can find detailed data on it — including including practical reviews; this information is rarely needed by the average user, but it can be useful for online game enthusiasts and for some specific tasks.

Thus, the LAN controller model is specified mainly in cases where it is a rather advanced solution that is noticeably superior to standard models. Such solutions are currently produced mainly under the brands Intel(middle level), Realtek(relatively simple models), Aquntia and Killer(mostly advanced solutions).

The number of native USB 3.2 gen1 connectors provided on the back of the motherboard. In this case, traditional, full-size USB A ports are meant.

USB 3.2 gen1(formerly known as USB 3.1 gen1 and USB 3.0) is a direct successor and development of the USB 2.0 interface. The main differences are a 10-fold increase in the maximum data transfer rate — 4.8 Gbps — as well as higher power supply, which is important when connecting several devices to one port through a splitter (hub). At the same time, peripherals of other versions can be connected to this connector.

The more connectors provided in the design, the more peripheral devices can be connected to the motherboard without the use of additional equipment (USB splitters). There are boards on the market that have more than 4 USB 3.2 gen1 ports on the back panel. At the same time, we note that in addition to the connectors on the rear panel, connectors on the board itself (more precisely, ports on the case connected to such connectors) can also provide a USB connection. See below for more on this.

The number of native USB 3.2 gen2 connectors provided on the back of the motherboard. In this case, we mean traditional, full-size USB A ports.

USB 3.2 gen2(formerly known as USB 3.1 gen2 and simply USB 3.1) is the evolution of USB 3.2 after version 3.2 gen1 (see above). This standard provides connection speeds up to 10 Gbps, and to power external devices in such connectors, USB Power Delivery technology (see below) can be provided, which allows you to output up to 100 W per device (however, Power Delivery support is not mandatory, its presence should be specified separately). Traditionally for the USB standard, this interface is backwards compatible with previous versions — in other words, you can easily connect a device supporting USB 2.0 or 3.2 gen1 to this port (unless the speed will be limited by the capabilities of a slower version).

The more connectors provided in the design, the more peripheral devices can be connected to the motherboard without the use of additional equipment (USB splitters). In some models of motherboards, the number of ports of this type is 5 or even more. At the same time, we note that in addition to the connectors on the rear panel, connectors on the board itself (more precisely, ports on the case connected to such connectors) can also provide a USB connection. See below for more on this.