Mini ITX motherboards come with two RAM slots whereas the others come with four or sometimes even eight. Depending on what kinds of tasks you need to carry out, two RAM slots is usually enough as Mini ITX motherboards can accommodate up to 32GB of RAM total. I’m wondering which slots my RAM should go on Gigabyte b450m ds3h. Manual says: Dual Channel Memory Configuration This motherboard provides four memory sockets and supports Dual Channel Technology. After the memory is installed, the BIOS will automatically detect the specifications and capacity of the memory.

• Apr 30th 2020Intel 10th Generation Comet Lake Desktop Processors and 400-Series Chipsets Announced, Here's what's New (203)
• Dec 8th 2020ASRock Rack Unveils M.2 Slot Graphics Card (46)
• Nov 26th 2020ASRock Rack Brings AMD EPYC CPUs to 'Deep' Mini-ITX Form Factor (13)
• Jan 26th 2021ASRock Launches Jupiter X300 1-liter Mini PC (12)
• Dec 10th 2020Ryzen 5000 Series Processor Support Comes to ASRock X370 Motherboards in Leaked BIOS Update (25)
• Dec 4th 2020ASRock Implements CAM (Clever Access Memory) on Intel Z490 Taichi Motherboard (32)
• Nov 30th 2020ASRock Launches X570 and B550 Taichi Razer Edition Motherboards (18)
• Nov 17th 2020ASRock Announces its Radeon RX 6800 XT and RX 6800 Series Custom-design Graphics Cards (15)
• Jan 12th 2021ASRock Announces its Full Range of Intel 500-series Chipset Motherboards (3)
• Nov 19th 2020ASRock Releases Ryzen 5000 Support BIOS Updates for B450 Motherboards (18)

1 Commenton ASRock Readies X79 Extreme6/GB Motherboard with 8 DIMM Slots

Have you landed a great Ryzen processor, and now you need the right motherboard?

Well, AM4 is your best bet. It’s the most popular socket, supports a whole range of chipsets, and best of all, it’s future-proof: AMD has promised long-term support.

Check out our guide to the best AM4 motherboards for every budget and purpose whether you’re a gamer, video editor or streamer.

What Makes a Good AM4 Motherboard?

Compatibility

Motherboards are all about compatibility. Motherboards have different chipsets, but AMD’s are way more forgiving than Intels.

You also want to check it supports your RAM and it’s got enough PCIe slots, memory slots and ports, taking into account any extras you might want to add later.

Finally, think about casing; make sure it can actually fit into your case.

Size

There’s 3 main sizes (or to use the more technical term, form factors) of motherboard: ATX is the largest and most ‘standard’ size, Micro-ATX is smaller and Mini-ITX is the smallest. (I know, you would think Micro would be the smallest but it isn’t).

Generally, the bigger the board, the better; it will have more features, and more connectors, heatsinks, card expansion slots, and RAM slots.

Micro and Mini have to inevitably make some pretty large sacrifices, and you’re never going to get as good value as an ATX board, so we recommend ATX if you can swing it.

How We Choose AM4 Motherboards

Features and Performance

Although specs are important, real-life testing is even better. For example, gaming benchmarks, overclocking testing, and efficiency all paint a much better picture of performance.

Purpose

We always bear the user purpose in mind, instead of just going for the highest specs. You don’t want to overspend for nothing.

Value for money

The price has to be reasonable, but even more importantly, can you get more for your money elsewhere?

Best Overall AM4 Motherboard

Gigabyte X570 Aorus Ultra

Image credit: Gigabyte

Tech Specs

Socket: AM4

Chipset: AMD X570

Form Factor: ATX

PROS

• Front and Rear USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C port/header
• Three high speed M.2 slots with heatsinks
• Great overclocking

CONS

• Gen2 M.2 slot

If you’re looking to use a AMD Ryzen 3rd or 2nd Generation chip such as the quality Ryzen 7 2700 or 3700X, this is the best motherboard sporting the latest AMD X570 chipset.

It delivers great performance, stability and overclocking, topped up with an attractive design and expandability options.

This model holds its own against more expensive X570 boards, the only major difference between losing 2.5G network capabilities and 2 less SATA ports.

It’s a very well-rounded board with 3 M.2 slots, premium audio, wifi, a quiet fan and plenty of USB slots.

It’s also backward-compatible with Ryzen 1000 series and other AM4-socket processors.

Memory is DDR4 with speeds up to DDR4 4400, with up to 128GB over 4 RAM slots and 6 SATA ports.

There’s plenty of fast USB connectivity with 10 USB ports, including 3 USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports (one Type-C).

It uses a premium Realtek ALC1220-VB audio codec.

The voltage regulator heatsinks are a bit revolutionary, with a direct-touch heatpipe and a fin design that increases heat dissipation area by 300%.

There are 3 full-length PCIe 4.0 slots, the top 2 of which are reinforced, supporting two-way SLI and up to three-way CrossFire multi-graphics card configuration.

Gaming performance was similar to other more expensive X570 models (Crosshair VIII’s 64W and ASRock Phantom Gaming) when playing Ashes of the Singularity: Escalation.

It overclocks well with no issues and no overheating, similar to more expensive X570 boards.

It’s also 12% more efficient than a few other X570 models, and temperatures peaked at just 148W, lower than Crosshair VIII’s 64W and the ASRock Phantom Gaming’s 218W.

RGB lighting is more subtle than some, on the left voltage regulator heatsink and audio section, though it does come with a few headers if you want to add more.

Honorable Mentions:

ASrock X570 Taichi – a close contender.

Best Bang for the Buck AM4 Motherboard

Gigabyte Aorus AX370-Gaming 5

Image credit: Gigabyte

Tech Specs

Socket: AM4

Chipset: AMD X370

Form Factor: ATX

PROS

• Affordable
• Great connectivity for price
• 2 audio codecs

CONS

• Awkward UEFI

If you’re looking for a well-rounded budget board that’s not just for gaming, you can’t go wrong with the Gigabyte Aorus AX370-Gaming 5.

It’s got a very well thought-out layout, and beats its ASRock competitor, the X370 Taichi, in features.

Memory is still a standard DDR4 over 4 RAM slots supporting up to 64 GB memory.

Connectivity and storage is still respectable. There’s 2 PCIex16 3.0 slots and 4 PCIe 2.0 slots and 1 M.2 or U.2 slot (if you use the U.2 slot, you can’t use the M.2 slot). There’s also 8 SATA 6Gb/s ports and 2 Express ports.

There’s 10 USBs in total: USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type-C, 3 USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type-A and 6 USB 3.1 Gen 1.

It actually offers 2 Realtek ALC1220 audio codecs rather than the standard 1, with one each on the front and back ports.

The only downside is the UEFI, which is a bit awkward to use.

The board aesthetics are rather bland, but it comes with full-on RGB lighting.

Honorable Mentions:

Gigabyte AB350-Gaming 3 – if you’re content with a B350 chipset.

Best AM4 Motherboard for Gaming

Asus X570 ROG Crosshair VIII Hero Wi-Fi

Image credit: Asus

Tech Specs

Socket: AM4

Chipset: AMD X570

Form Factor: ATX

PROS

• Amazing overclocking
• Tons of slots and expandability
• 2.5G ethernet

CONS

• Expensive

• Chipset fan in awkward position

This is the best high-end AMD X570 for enthusiast gamers and overclockers who want some extra oomph. It pairs well with the much-lauded Ryzen 9 3900X chip.

It’s packed with features, and is incredibly powerful and reliable.

There is the more expensive Crosshair VIII Formula variation, but we think the extra money just isn’t worth it in terms of overall performance.

It comes with a strong voltage regulator, lots of USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports, Wifi 6 and a stellar audio codec in the form of ROG SupremeFX.

Memory is DDR4 RAM supporting up to 128GB over 4 RAM slots and 8 SATA ports.

There’s 3 full-length PCIe slots, 2 of which are reinforced. All support SLI twin or CrossFire twin- or triple-card installations.

Two M.2 slots can also run SATA or PCIe.

The voltage regulator is covered by 2 heatsinks, which are cleverly connected by a heatpipe. The chipset also has a large heatsink and a small fan, which is quiet and can last up to 60,000 hours.

The only issue is the chipset fan might be blocked when using a dual-slot graphics card, which isn’t ideal.

There’s 12 USB ports in total, including an incredible 8 USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports (seven Type-A, one Type-C).

There’s also quality 2.5G Realtek based LAN.

There’s 16 IR3555 PowIRstages that can handle 60 amps each, perfect for overclocking.

It comes with a power and reset button, as well as very handy voltage read points.

The BIOS is well-organized. It features beginners and advanced modes, as well as a ton of overclocking options.

It’s all-black aside from a grey steel diagonal stripe running across the board.

They go for an understated RGB look on the rear I/O shroud and chipset heatsink, including an ROG logo, but it comes with more headers if you want the full bling effect.

It’s 12 USB ports(much more than most), 2.5G ethernet, 8 SATA ports, and incredible overclocking are stand-out features.

Honorable Mentions:

ASRock Phantom Gaming X – slightly cheaper if you don’t want to overclock as much.

Best AM4 Motherboard for Video Editing

MSI X470 Gaming Pro Carbon

Image credit: MSI

Tech Specs

Socket: AM4

Chipset: AMD X470

Form Factor: ATX

PROS

• Excellent audio codec
• Plenty of storage
• Good value

CONS

• Not very stylish
• Not great for gamers

This motherboard is much more suitable for video editors than gamers, with an emphasis on stability, storage and audio quality, rather than overclocking and aesthetics.

It’s also mid-range in price, allowing you to invest more in a decent CPU which is crucial for video editing.

The board is rather plain looking, just black with some silver lines, and some RGB lights on the rear I/O shroud, chipset heatsink, and one of the edges.

8 Slot Ram Motherboard

There’s 3 full-length PCI Express x16 slots and 2 PCIe x1 slots.

Memory is DDR4 RAM supporting up to 64GB clocked up to 3,466MHz.

The memory and PCIe x16 slots are steel-reinforced.

It features 8 SATA 3.0 ports and a generous two M.2 slots for storage devices. The first slot has a heatsink and is designed to connect to your CPU, and works perfectly with Ryzens, operating with a PCI Express 3.0 x4 connection, the best possible.

Audio is high-quality for the price. First off, it’s separated from the rest of the motherboard to reduce signal degradation. It comes with a Realtek ALC1220 DAC audio codec that has a 120dB signal-to-noise ratio. There’s also high-quality capacitors, a headphone amplifier, and an EMI shield to help guard against electromagnetic interference.

There’s also plenty of USB ports; 11 in total, including 1 USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type-C and 1 USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type-A port on the rear I/O.

The BIOS has rather basic overclocking options, but this isn’t an issue for video editors.

Best AM4 Motherboard for Streaming

Gigabyte X470 Aorus Gaming 7

Image credit: Gigabyte

Tech Specs

Socket: AM4

Chipset: AMD X470

Form Factor: ATX

8 Slot Ram Motherboard Gaming Amd

PROS

• Stunning looks
• Great expandability
• Great overclocking

CONS

• Gen2 M.2 slot

If you’re looking to use a AMD Ryzen 2nd Generation chip for streaming such as the quality Ryzen 7 2700X, this is the best motherboard sporting the AMD X470 chipset.

It delivers great performance, stability and overclocking, topped up with an attractive design and expandability options.

It’s also backward-compatible with Ryzen 1000 series and other AM4-socket processors.

Memory is DDR4 with speeds of DDR4-3600, with up to 64GB over 4 RAM slots, and support for ECC memory for un-buffered modules.

It includes 3 PCIe slots, the top 2 supporting Gen3, and the bottom Gen2.

2 Ram Slots Vs 4

There’s 10 USB ports in total: 1 Type-A and 1 Type-C USB 3.1 Gen2 port, 6 USB 3.1 Gen1 ports, and 2 2.0 ports on the back.

It’s wifi-capable with 2 wifi antenna ports, and also provides Bluetooth 5 support. A wifi antenna can be positioned away from the motherboard for a stronger signal.

It uses a solid Realtek ALC1220 audio codec.

It also comes with power and clear CMOS buttons, very handy for experimental gamers.

It’s got a nice large power delivery heatsink with a large copper heat pipe and aluminum fin stack.

For gaming, this model beat several competitor models when playing Ashes of the Singularity: Escalation at mid-quality.

In efficiency benchmarks, the Aorus Gaming 7 Wifi beats the ASRock X370 Killer SLI/ac by 1.5% overall.

Best Budget AM4 Motherboard for Gaming

ASRock X570 Steel Legend WiFi ax

Image credit: ASRock

Tech Specs

Socket: AM4

Chipset: AMD X570

Form Factor: ATX

PROS

• Affordable
• Very efficient
• Large voltage regulator for price

CONS

• Fixed x16/x4 pathways on the two long PCIe slots

This model has enough power with its 10-phase power delivery to handle the top Ryzen 3000 processors, which is extremely rare at this price point.

There’s 2 full-length PCIe slots, although they only run at x16/x4, supporting two way AMD CrossFire multi-graphics cards. Incredibly there’s also 2 M.2 slots, both with heatsinks, and 8 SATA ports.

Audio codec is solid Realtek ALC1220 HD.

Memory is up to DDR4-4666 over 4 RAM slots, with a max capacity of 64GB. Overall, this is very impressive.

There’s 8 USB ports overall: 1 USB 3.1 G2 Type-C, 1 USB 3.1 G2 Type-A, and 6 USB 3.1 G1 Type-A ports.

Wifi isn’t included, which is to be expected, but you can install your own via the M.2 Key E 2230 slot.

In terms of gaming, it actually performed better than many higher-priced X570 models in all game settings, including against the ASRock X570, and Gigabyte X570 Aorus Master.

It was also 12% more efficient than these models.

Best Slots For Ram

Honorable Mentions:

ASUS TUF B450 – a cheaper B450 alternative.

Which AM4 Motherboard Should I Buy?

The best AM4 motherboard for most people is Gigabyte’s mid-range X570 Aorus Ultra, sporting the latest chipset with great performance, stability and overclocking.

Serious gamers, however, will want to opt for the high-end Asus X570 ROG Crosshair VIII Hero Wi-Fi, with an extremely strong and well-cooled voltage regulator and incredible memory and overclocking.

For budget gamers, the ASRock X570 Steel Legend WiFi ax is a safe bet.

8 Slot Ram Mobo

If you’re just looking for a cheap well-rounded motherboard, that would be the Gigabyte Aorus AX370-Gaming 5.

8 Ram Slot Mobo

Video editors will appreciate the plain but solid MSI X470 Gaming Pro Carbon, whilst streamers will find the Gigabyte X470 Aorus Gaming 7 suits their requirements well.