When AMD launched its Ryzen 7000 processors last year, most motherboards were in the multi-hundred dollar price range. This was because more affordable options just weren’t available, even though AMD promised motherboards in the $125 range. Well, it’s now time for those who have been waiting for a more budget-friendly motherboard to start building their new PC. First up to the plate is the budget-focused ASRock B650M-HDV AM5 motherboard at $124.99, available to order today from Newegg. Wondering what all this motherboard brings to the table? Keep reading to learn more.
Building a Ryzen 7000 system has never cost less
As the first low-cost Ryzen 7000 AM5 motherboard, ASRock’s B650M-HDV is setting the tone for the rest of the manufacturers out there. You’ll find full support for all Ryzen 7000-series processors here, all the way up to the Ryzen 9 7950X. There’s 8+2+1 Dr.MOS power phase available to deliver clean power to your processor, as well as support for DDR5 6400+MHz OC RAM. While PCIe 5.0 isn’t supported on the x16 side, you’ll find two x16 4.0 slots, a x1 4.0 slot, and a M.2 Key E spot for a Wi-Fi adapter. On top of that, there’s 7.1-channel HD audio backed by Nahimic Audio and Realtek.
For storage, there are four SATA3 plugs as well as a PCIe 5.0×4 NVMe SSD slot and an additional PCIe 4.0×4 NVMe slot, giving you room for two M.2 storage drives. For other I/O, you’ll find a Front Type-C USB 3.2 Gen2 plug, support for four front USB 3.1 Gen1 ports, as well as two rear USB-A and one rear USB-C plug.
For networking, in addition to the M.2 Key E slot for a Wi-Fi chip in the future, there’s also 2.5GbE LAN available for those who want to leverage multi-gig networks. This is something that we have yet to see on many of the budget-focused motherboards, so it’s a nice addition for sure.
All of this comes in at just $124.99 shipped on Newegg, making it the most budget-friendly AM5 Ryzen 7000-series motherboard to date, and one that, from the specs sheet, we can recommend checking out for more budget-focused PC builds.
Electronicsforward’ Take
Honestly, I think ASRock knocked it out of the park here. With two NVMe slots, support for AMD’s RDNA 2 graphics that are built-into the processors, and 2.5GbE, there’s not a whole lot to dislike about the motherboard. I do wish Wi-Fi was built-in, but the fact that ASRock is giving you a M.2 Key E slot to use your own adapter instead of having to take up one of the USB or PCIe slots for it is a nice alternative. Plus, it’s just a low-cost motherboard all around, making it a great option for those building a system without breaking the bank.
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