ASRock X870 Steel Legend WIFI Motherboard Review

It’s been two years since the launch of the AMD AM5 motherboard platform and the 600-series motherboards. Since its launch, the platform has seen the launch of several CPUs in the Ryzen 7000, Ryzen 8000, and Ryzen 9000 family. While the 600-series motherboards provide great features & compatibility with newer Zen 5 CPUs, motherboard makers are always looking to enhance user experiences through the latest technologies which is why AMD has introduced a new chipset line called 800-series.

Today, the first wave of AMD 800-series motherboards is hitting shelves in the form of the X870E for Enthusiasts and X870 for high-end gamers. Both of these chips provide brand-new designs and brand-new features that are sure to entice new AMD builders and older AM4 users into investing in a new motherboard for their gaming and content creation needs.

We received a load of motherboards from various manufacturers so let’s start by taking a look at these updated designs. For this review, we will be testing ASRock’s X870 Steel Legend WIFI which is priced at $449 US.

The AMD AM5 Platform

The AMD AM4 platform has been the longest-running modern-day platform to date which was first introduced in 2017 &  is very much alive and kicking in 2024. The company just recently launched new chips for the platform and it looks like it will stick around for another year till 2025.

AMD is now launching its 2nd Generation AM5 platform under the new 800-series family. The lineup will initially target the high-end enthusiasts with the X870E and X870 chipsets. These chipsets are designed to offer better features, IO memory support, and additional OC features for Ryzen CPUs such as the Zen 5-based Ryzen 9000 “Granite Ridge” family and future Ryzen launches.

Certain aspects that have been upgraded on the AMD X870E & X870 motherboards include:

• USB 4.0 standard on all X870/X870E motherboards
• PCIe Gen5 on Graphics & NVME on all X870/X870E motherboards
• Higher EXPO memory clock support on X870/X870E motherboards

AMD did disclose that there would be new PBO and CO algorithms introduced with Ryzen 9000 CPUs and these new motherboards will fully support them out of the box. In addition to the X870E and X870 motherboards, the company also plans to introduce its B850 & B840 chipsets which will serve the mainstream segment. Following is what the chipset lineup will look like:

• X870E (Promontory 21 x2)
• X870 (Promontory 21 x1)
• B650 (Promonotory 21 x1)
• B840 (Promontory 19 x1)

So in terms of what each chipset offers, the X870E series will use two Promontory 21 dies on the motherboards with support of USB4 & both Gen5 GPU/SSD support. X870 (Non-E) will feature just 1 of the dies but retain the same support in terms of I/O. Just the lanes will be fewer.

AMD Chipset Features and Specifications:

The motherboards will feature support for DDR5-5600 MT/s memory speeds natively and over 8000 MT/s transfer rates on some of the high-end motherboards that we will be getting by the July timeframe.

The AMD B850 motherboards will feature the same Promontory 21 die minus the native USB4 support. They will carry Gen5 GPU support but Gen5 M.2 support will be optional. The B840 will be the entry-level option within the series with the older Promontory 19 die which means you will get just Gen4 GPU/SSD support, no CPU overclocking and only memory overclock support. The B840 motherboards are going to be very affordable in terms of pricing so that will be competitive against sub-$200 US options from Intel.

AMD will also have the A620/A620A series continuing its role to serve the entry-level segment. There are plans to offer even more price adjustments, making them a viable option for ODMs and system builders to attract more customers.

AMD AM5 Chipset Comparisons:

Meet The LGA 1718 Socket – How Long Will This One Last?

As mentioned earlier, AM4’s reign is finally over and the AM5 socket is here now. The new socket moves from a PGA (Pin-Grid-Array) design to an LGA (Land-Grid-Array) layout. The new LGA 1718 socket offers more pin connections to the CPU, allowing for more communication channels with the board itself and enabling support for enhanced features that the new platform has to offer.

As for longevity, AMD has committed to a 2027+ plan for its latest AM5 socket. The AM4 platform is a testament to AMD’s support for its consumers and while the newer 500-series lineup was locked out initially, the company and its partners worked towards extending support for older processors on the newer chipsets and newer CPUs on older motherboards. The AM4 platform continues to be the best seller in the Ryzen lineup but that would change with the introduction of more budget and feature-rich designs for the AM5 socket like the 800-series.

Cooler Compatibility With AM5 Socket

The AMD Ryzen 7000/8000/9000 Desktop CPUs will feature a perfect square shape (45x45mm) but will house a very chonky integrated heat spreader or IHS. The CPUs will be the same length, width, and height as the existing Ryzen Desktop CPUs and are sealed across the sides so applying thermal paste won’t fill the interior of the IHS with TIM. That’s also why current coolers will be fully compatible with the latest Ryzen CPUs.

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