AM4 boards roundup: iTX format

[Dirk Broer]

AM4 boards roundup: iTX format

At this moment there are three different chipsets being used in AM4 boards: the X370, the B350 and the A320. Still to come are the X300 and A300.

The usual advantage of the X370 -SLI/Crossfire- falls away in the iTX scenario -my Antec ISK 110s do not even support a discrete video card-, so why would you want to spend extra money on it?

The X370 chipset can connect up to six SATA drives (four when using Ryzen) and supports up to a massive ten USB 3.1 gen1 ports and two USB 3.1 gen2 ports.
So far we've had the ASRock Fatal1ty X370 Gaming-ITX/ac and the Biostar Racing X370GTN with this chipset.
If you don't have plans to make your tiny iTX into a hedgehog of USB connectors you can save money and go for a B350 board instead.
It can connect up to four SATA drives (two when using Ryzen) and still supports up to six USB 3.1 gen1 ports and two USB 3.1 gen2 ports.
So far we've seen the ASRock Fatal1ty AB350 Gaming-ITX/ac, the Biostar Racing B350GTN and the Gigabyte AB350N-Gaming WiFi. The Asus RoG Strix B350-I Gaming is announced

The X370 boards: What do they offer, is the chipset fully utilized?

Model	SATA 600	M.2 S600/ Pcie3.0x4	USB 3.1 Gen2	USB 3.1 Gen1	USB 2.0	NIC	WiFi	Bluetooth	Video out	Sound	Power design phases
ASRock Fatal1ty X370 Gaming-ITX/ac	4x	1x	-	2 Front, 3 Rear 1x Type-C	2 Front, 2 Rear	Intel I211AT	Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 7265 867 Mbit/s	4.2	2x HDMI	Realtek ALC1220	6+2
Asus ROG Strix X370-I Gaming	4x	2x (1x M.2 PCI-e 2.0 x4)	2x Type-A	2 Front, 4 Rear	2 Front	Intel I211AT	Dual Band Wireless	4.2		ROG SupremeFX S1220A	6+3
Biostar Racing X370GTN	4x	1x	1x Type-A 1x Type-C	2 Front, 4 Rear	2 Front	Realtek RTL8118AS	-	-	DVI-D, HDMI	Realtek ALC892	5+2

WiFi and Bluetooth don't come free and the Asrock board is by far the most expensive choice. How do these boards hold up against the B350 competition, as they do not fully utilize the advantages the X370 chipset offers?

Model	SATA 600	M.2 S600/ Pcie3.0x4	USB 3.1 Gen2	USB 3.1 Gen1	USB 2.0	NIC	WiFi	Bluetooth	Video out	Sound	Power design phases
ASRock Fatal1ty B350 Gaming-ITX/ac	4x	1x	-	2 Front, 3 Rear 1x Type-C	2 Front, 2 Rear	Intel I211AT	Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 3168 433 Mbit/s	4.2	2x HDMI	Realtek ALC1220	6+2
Asus RoG Strix B350-I Gaming	4x	2x (1x M.2 PCI-e 2.0 x4)	2x Type-A	2 Front, 2 Rear	2 Front	Intel I211AT	Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC	4.2	-	ROG SupremeFX S1220A	6+3
Biostar Racing B350GTN	4x	1x	1x Type-A 1x Type-C	2 Front, 4 Rear	2 Front	Realtek RTL8118AS	-	-	DVI-D, HDMI	Realtek ALC892	5+2
Gigabyte AB350N Gaming WiFi	4x	1x	2x Type-A	2 Front, 4 Rear	2 Front, 2 Rear	Realtek	Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 3165 433 Mbit/s	4.2	Display Port, HDMI	Realtek ALC1220	4+2
MSI B350I Pro AC	4x	1x	2x Type-A	2 Front, 2 Rear	2 Front, 2 Rear	Realtek RTL8111H	Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 3168 433 Mbit/s	4.2	Display Port, HDMI	Realtek ALC887	6+2+1

USB Type-A is the old, well known always-wrong-the-first-time USB connection, Type-C is the always-right type. The two USB front ports, whether 2.0 and/or 3.0/1 are provided through headers on the motherboard.

Did I hear jaws drop? There is nothing to justify the X370 models in terms of functionality -the B350 board do support PCIe express too-, they only cost more money! Someone smack some engineers for me....

If this all is still too much for your needs -e.g. because it just won't fit all into your small iTX casing-, there's the A320 chipset.
It can also connect up to four SATA drives (two when using Ryzen) and also supports up to six USB 3.1 gen1 ports, but only one USB 3.1 gen2 port.

But: there are no iTX boards yet with the A320 (nor with the X300 or A300). It seems the mobo companies have decided that you're just gonna use a BIG iTX case, like the Bitfenix Prodigy. or the total and utter behemoth of iTX computing: the Thermaltake Core X1, that is even stackable when you go into custom loop liquid cooling and need room for a reservoir (why not try to add another iTX board instead?):

[Nflight]

you have pegged my interest Dirk

[vaughan]

Excellent write-up Dirk.

I particularly agree with this "USB Type-A is the old, well known always-wrong-the-first-time USB connection,"

[Dirk Broer]

As with the previous form factor, there are three possible chipsets.

A320 boards
The most basic of the presently used chipsets, see the table with the iTX roundup.
There are four boards that make the cut. The cut I've made is that I think a board should be upgradeable, so more RAM should be a possibility.
All four major mobo maker have a board here: Asrock's A320M Pro4, ASUS' PRIME A320M-A, Gigabyte's GA-A320MA-M.2 and MSI's A320M Bazooka.
All four are not expensive (between 68 and75 Euro here)

• The Asrock board stands out for having two M.2 slots, Crossfire capability and having a heatsink for its VRMs.
• The ASUS board has no heatsinks and only one case fan header. ASUS wants you to have a 35 Watt TDP APU or at most a 45 Watt Zen APU in her A320 board and no more it seems. It does have two M.2 slots and two PCIe 3.0x16 slots though, and one can buy a fan controller -one might even need one with this board.
• The Gigabyte board is the only one with a USB 3.1 Gen2 port here, but has no VRM heatsink, no 2nd PCIe x16 slot and no 2nd M.2 slot either.
• The MSI board is the only one of the four that includes light on the mobo (white), but offers no other redeeming capabilities.

Based on the above I think the Asrock A320M Pro4 board would be my favorite A320 board, especially when I do not want to overclock -reportedly impossible on a A320 board.

B350 boards
A more elaborate version of the presently used chipsets, again: see the table with the iTX roundup.
Here ten boards make the cut, amongst them now also a Biostar. Furthermore one Asrock board, four (!) MSI ones, two Gigabyte and two ASUS.
The Asrock board, that is almost a twin of the A320 edition, again leaves the strongest impression with having the only full VRM heatsink of the bunch, its two M.2 slots and two PCIe x16 slots -be warned though that you can't use them all at once! The Asrock board is also much cheaper (75 euro) than the e.g. the Asus TUF B350M-PLUS GAMING (106 Euro), the Gigabyte GA-AB350M-D3H (97 Euro) or the MSI B350M Mortar Arctic (94 Euro).

X370 boards
There's a quick one: there's only the Biostar Racing X370GT3, and it costs some 120 Euro's.
Biostar has another odd one out: the sole A320 ATX board, the Biostar TA320 BTC, where BTC stands for Bitcoin, as it is aimed at Bitcoin miners.

[Dirk Broer]

Two new iTX boards included in the overview (ASUS ROG X370 and MSI)

[Dirk Broer]

Do they read these posts at Asus, Biostar, Gigabyte and MSI?

Fact is that the Socket AM4 B450 and X470 mobo's presently shown at Computex have better VRM cooling than the previous -A320, B350 and X370- generation.
It can also be their own conclusion after comparing their VRM cooling solution with the Asock's Pro4 and Tachi models.
MSI AM4 B450 mobo's at AnandTech
Gigabyte X399 TR4 and B450 AM4 mobo's at Tom's Hardware

[plonk420]

where do you guys find your VRM info if not listed on the mobo mfg's site? that german forum? or is there another source, too?

also, does VRM count above 5 really matter much if you're not OCing? and what about cooling, too? mainly for OCers?

[Dirk Broer]

where do you guys find your VRM info if not listed on the mobo mfg's site? that german forum? or is there another source, too?

also, does VRM count above 5 really matter much if you're not OCing? and what about cooling, too? mainly for OCers?

I usually google on 'power delivery' or 'power phase', together with the mobo model. Some projects can really tax your system and some CPUs need more power than others.
I really do think that a CPUs like Threadripper 2 -or the last 200+ watt TDP FX CPUs- are really better off with a stable power delivery -and so do the mobo makers.

[Dirk Broer]

The Asrock AM4 iTX-boards

Model	SATA 600	M.2 S600/ Pcie3.0x4	USB 3.1 Gen2	USB 3.1 Gen1	USB 2.0	NIC	WiFi	Bluetooth	Video out	Sound	Power design phases
ASRock Fatal1ty X470 Gaming-ITX/ac	4x	1x	Rear, 1x Type-A 1x Type-C	2 Front, 2 Rear	2 Front, 2 Rear	Intel I211AT	Intel®2T2R Dual Band 1733 Mbit/s	5.0	2x HDMI	Realtek ALC1220	3 CPU VCC (x2) +2 SoC VCC
Fatal1ty B450 Gaming-ITX/ac	4x	1x	Rear, 1x Type-A 1x Type-C	2 Front, 2 Rear	2 Front, 2 Rear	Intel I211AT	Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 3168 433 Mbit/s	4.2	2x HDMI	Realtek ALC1220	3 CPU VCC (x2) +2 SoC VCC
ASRock Fatal1ty X370 Gaming-ITX/ac	4x	1x	-	2 Front, 3 Rear 1x Type-C	2 Front, 2 Rear	Intel I211AT	Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 7265 867 Mbit/s	4.2	2x HDMI	Realtek ALC1220	3 CPU VCC (x2) +2 SoC VCC
ASRock Fatal1ty B350 Gaming-ITX/ac	4x	1x	-	2 Front, 3 Rear 1x Type-C	2 Front, 2 Rear	Intel I211AT	Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 3168 433 Mbit/s	4.2	2x HDMI	Realtek ALC1220	3 CPU VCC (x2) +2 SoC VCC
ASRock A320M-ITX	4x	1x	-	2 Front, 3 Rear 1x Type-C	2 Front, 2 Rear	Intel I211AT	-	-	2x HDMI	Realtek ALC1220	3 CPU VCC (x2) +2 SoC VCC

No doubt a X570 model will soon come out, offering PCIe 4.0 and other performance tweaks. The top model for now, the X470, goes for around 170 Euro's here,
the B450, X370 and B350 boards do some 110 Euro and the A320 board is nowhere to be found, except on the Asrock website. No vendor dares to sell it here.
The X370 has gone from Asrocks website, so seems to be discontinued. I already wrote earlier that I think the X370 is total overkill in the iTX setup anyway.
My advise would be to take the B450 board, based upon chipset capabilities and better CPU VRM cooling (but bear in mind that it will not support Excavator-based AM4 APUs and CPUs).
If you want an Asrock AM4 iTX, the X470 isn't worth the extra money -or you would have to have a desperate need for the greater WiFi speed.

Asus

Model	SATA 600	M.2 S600/ Pcie3.0x4	USB 3.1 Gen2	USB 3.1 Gen1	USB 2.0	NIC	WiFi	Bluetooth	Video out	Sound	Power design phases
Asus RoG Strix X470-I Gaming	4x	2x (1x M.2 PCIe3.0x4)	2x Type-A	2 Front, 2 Rear	2 Front	Intel I211AT	Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 867 Mbit/s	4.2	HDMI	ROG SupremeFX S1220A	6 CPU VCC + 1 SoC VCC
Asus RoG Strix B450-I Gaming	4x	2x (1x M.2 PCIe3.0x4)	2x Type-A	2 Front, 2 Rear	2 Front	Intel I211AT	Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 867 Mbit/s	4.2	HDMI	ROG SupremeFX S1220A	6 CPU VCC + 1 SoC VCC
Asus ROG Strix X370-I Gaming	4x	2x (1x M.2 PCIe2.0 x4)	2x Type-A	2 Front, 4 Rear	2 Front	Intel I211AT	Dual Band Wireless-AC 867 Mbit/s	4.2	-	ROG SupremeFX S1220A	6 CPU VCC + 1 SoC VCC
Asus RoG Strix B350-I Gaming	4x	2x (1x M.2 PCIe2.0x4)	2x Type-A	2 Front, 2 Rear	2 Front	Intel I211AT	Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 867 Mbit/s	4.2	-	ROG SupremeFX S1220A	6 CPU VCC + 1 SoC VCC

It seems that adding 'ROG' to an ASUS product warrants an extra amount of money to be asked for it. The X470 board goes for just short of 200 Euro's here, the B450 board does 150 Euro's,
the two 300-series board go at the moment for 140 Euro's, making ASUS by far the most expensive choice when choosing the mini-iTX format. And just as Biostar seems to think "WiFi? Why? No WiFI!"
ASUS seemed to have thought "APUs? Why? No APUs, no video-out!" with the 300-series of boards, only to have come back to their senses with the 400-series.

Biostar

Model	SATA 600	M.2 S600/ Pcie3.0x4	USB 3.1 Gen2	USB 3.1 Gen1	USB 2.0	NIC	WiFi	Bluetooth	Video out	Sound	Power design phases
Biostar Racing X470GTN	4x	1x	1x Type-A 1x Type-C	2 Front, 4 Rear	2 Front	Realtek RTL8118AS	-	-	DVI-D, HDMI	Realtek ALC892	4 CPU VCC + 3 SoC VCC
Biostar Racing X370GTN	4x	1x	1x Type-A 1x Type-C	2 Front, 4 Rear	2 Front	Realtek RTL8118AS	-	-	DVI-D, HDMI	Realtek ALC892	4 CPU VCC + 3 SoC VCC
Biostar Racing B350GTN	4x	1x	1x Type-A 1x Type-C	2 Front, 4 Rear	2 Front	Realtek RTL8118AS	-	-	DVI-D, HDMI	Realtek ALC892	4 CPU VCC + 3 SoC VCC

All three models still feature on the Biostar website, but the B350 board has has fallen off the price lists here. The remaining two board lack WiFi as compared to their competitors and have the over-the-top (for iTX) X370 and X470 chipsets.
Why? You can't do crossfire or SLI on an iTX board, and there's no room for the other extra's that might be given chipset-wise too.

Gigabyte

Model	SATA 600	M.2 S600/ Pcie3.0x4	USB 3.1 Gen2	USB 3.1 Gen1	USB 2.0	NIC	WiFi	Bluetooth	Video out	Sound	Power design phases
Gigabyte Aorus B450 I Pro WiFi	4x	1x	2x Type-A	2 Front, 4 Rear	2 Front	Intel®GbE LAN	Intel® 2x2 Wave2 Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n/ac 1733 Mbit/s	5.0	Display Port, 2x HDMI	Realtek ALC1220	4 CPU VCC + 2 SoC VCC
Gigabyte AB350N Gaming WiFi	4x	1x	2x Type-A	2 Front, 4 Rear	2 Front, 2 Rear	Realtek	Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 3165 433 Mbit/s	4.2	Display Port, HDMI	Realtek ALC1220	4 CPU VCC + 2 SoC VCC

A total redesign for the Aorus B450 I Pro WiFi by Gigabyte here. A far bigger CPU VRM heatsink and a complete relocation of components.
On top of that they actually dropped the price of the B450 board here (116 Euro's), as compared to the B350 board (125 Euro)

MSI

Model	SATA 600	M.2 S600/ Pcie3.0x4	USB 3.1 Gen2	USB 3.1 Gen1	USB 2.0	NIC	WiFi	Bluetooth	Video out	Sound	Power design phases
MSI B450I Gaming Plus AC	4x	1x	-	2 Front, 4 Rear	2 Front, 2 Rear	Realtek RTL8111H	Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 3168 433 Mbit/s	4.2	Display Port, HDMI	Realtek ALC887	6 CPU VCC + 2 SoC VCC
MSI B350I Pro AC	4x	1x	2x Type-A	2 Front, 2 Rear	2 Front, 2 Rear	Realtek RTL8111H	Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 3168 433 Mbit/s	4.2	Display Port, HDMI	Realtek ALC887	6 CPU VCC + 2 SoC VCC

The better-looking 120 Euro's B450 model lost the heatsink on the SoC VCC VRMs and the Gen2 USB ports, as compared to the B350 model while that can be bought for 112 Euro's.
What matters more to you?

[AMDave]

It is great to see a lot more choice in the format, with more capability, which brings more competition.
I saw a couple of prices on the old ones that really need to be refreshed as they are a bit out of whack compared to the more recent offerings.
Although I guess they don't need to clear that stock if the take-up of newer versions is high enough.
Generally, I suppose, prices are higher for an older version as the support grows older so maybe it was deliberate (Rhetorical ?).