AMD’s X670E chipset is proving a preferred platform, and the subsequent suitable motherboard to hit our check bench is the ASRock X670E PG Lightning. This value-priced board ($259.99, readily discovered for $229.99 at retail) gives well-rounded specs and a impartial, black-and-light-gray look that blends in effectively with most construct themes however won’t be everybody’s cup of tea. With 4 M.2 sockets and 4 SATA ports, two speedy 20Gbps USB Sort-C ports, succesful energy supply, a 2.5Gbps Ethernet port, a dozen USB ports on the rear I/O, and a budget-class audio codec, it is a competent price range motherboard for each productiveness and gaming PCs.
Design, CPU, and Reminiscence
The PG Lightning design is kind of easy. The black 8-layer PCB and black heatsinks, slots, and sockets stand out among the many grey design parts masking the board. Lined patterns dominate the remainder of the PCB, which some customers might not like. It seems to be a bit extra subdued inside your chassis than in your bench, because the board has no built-in RGB lighting, but it surely does present a unique look than a plain black motherboard in the event you do not thoughts the stenciled-on sample. The heatsinks for the ability supply and PCIe 5.0 socket seem to have sufficient mass and floor space to do the job. In all, we like how the ASRock seems to be.
The board helps AMD Ryzen (AM5) processors with 19-phase VRMs powering them. The 960A accessible (16 phases devoted to the processor utilizing 60A MOSFETs) proved sufficient to deal with our flagship Ryzen 9 7950X each at inventory and overclocked speeds throughout our testing. The VRM heatsinks did an ideal job maintaining the ability supply cool and inside spec. As regular, in the event you’re into overclocking, you may be restricted by your CPU cooling technique moderately than the ability supply.
ASRock says the X670E PG Lightning helps reminiscence speeds as much as DDR5-7200+ (OC), one of many increased specs you may see (although many motherboard companions have just lately been updating their BIOSes to assist sooner speeds, so ASRock will not be alone for lengthy). We nonetheless take into account the value/efficiency candy spot to be within the DDR5-6000 to DDR5-6400 vary. If you happen to want a whole lot of RAM, the PG Lightning can accommodate as much as 192GB with the most recent BIOS.
Our DDR5-5600 and DDR5-6000 kits ran stably by setting the inner profile (XMP on one package, EXPO on the opposite), so all is effectively at these speeds. If overclocking reminiscence is in your want record, you may simply extract the final couple of share factors of efficiency as there are numerous reminiscence timings to tweak within the BIOS. Certainly, new BIOS releases sporting the most recent AEGESA updates (1.0.0.7b/c) permit the board to succeed in even increased speeds. After we examined our Teamgroup DDR5-7200 package, it did not work, however these sticks aren’t on ASRock’s Reminiscence QVL record, so we won’t complain an excessive amount of. It is all the time price attempting the RAM you’ve gotten readily available, however persist with the QVL record for assured performance.
Structure and Inside Connectors
Beginning within the high left nook, the primary issues we see are the 8-pin and 4-pin EPS connectors to energy the CPU. Solely the 8-pin is required—you do not want the 4-pin until you are attempting to push overclocks on one in every of AMD’s extra power-hungry processors. Conserving the VRMs cool are two giant heatsinks on the left and above the socket. The lined sample on the PCB makes its means onto the left heatsink and the Lightning branding, all in a stealthy black.
The primary two of six 4-pin fan/pump headers reside previous the socket space earlier than the DRAM slots. CPU_FAN1 helps as much as 1A/12W whereas the remainder assist as much as 2A/24W. These values ought to suffice for a number of followers and a pump for customized/AIO water cooling with out problem. Do not overload these headers, nevertheless, as doing so may completely injury your board. To the proper are 4 unreinforced DRAM slots that safe their sticks with locking mechanisms on either side.
Shifting down the proper edge, we spy the primary two of three 3-pin ARGB headers. The opposite ARGB header and the 4-pin RGB header are situated alongside the underside edge. Management over any connected RGB units is managed by way of ASRock’s Polychrome Sync utility, which gives a number of canned modes and different changes. Subsequent, we discover the 24-pin ATX connector for board energy, a 19-pin entrance panel USB 3.2 Gen 1 (5Gbps) Sort-A port, and 20Gbps Sort-C port.
Audio, Enlargement, Storage, and Rear I/O
On the underside left facet is a completely uncovered audio part utilizing the price range Realtek ALC4082 audio codec. Just a few yellow capacitors are devoted to the audio part, but it surely’s lacking premium options together with EMI safety for the codec and built-in amplifiers/DACs. Many customers will probably be glad with this audio setup, however crucial listeners or audiophiles might want one thing higher.
Three full-length growth slots and an open-ended x1 slot are in the course of the board. The highest slot (PCIE1), major for graphics playing cards, connects by way of the CPU and is your PCIe 5.0 x16 slot. The second full-length slot (PCIE3) additionally connects by way of the CPU and runs at PCIe 4.0 x4 speeds. The underside slot (PCIE4) and the x1 slot (PCIE2) join by way of the chipset, yielding PCIe 4.0 x1 bandwidth for each.
In and round these slots are the 5 complete M.2 sockets with 4 devoted to storage (Key-M) and the fifth (Key-E) for a CNVi- or CNVi2-based Wi-Fi card (not included). The highest M.2 socket below the big heatsink is the CPU-connected PCIe 5.0 x4 (128Gbps) socket, whereas the remainder supply their bandwidth by way of the chipset and supply as much as PCIe 4.0 x4 (64Gbps) speeds. The entire M.2 storage sockets assist as much as 80mm modules and RAID 0/1/10 modes. There are many M.2 sockets accessible.
Shifting proper previous the chip are the primary two of 4 SATA ports; the opposite two are mounted vertically alongside the underside edge. For these on the lookout for redundancy or further pace by way of RAID, the board helps RAID 0/1/10 modes. Simply keep watch over your SATA rely, as 4 ports is likely to be limiting for customers who have not jumped headfirst into the M.2 format.
Alongside the underside fringe of the board are a number of headers together with further USB 2.0 headers, two of the SATA ports, fan headers, a 5-pin Thunderbolt AIC header, front-panel audio, ARGB and RGB headers, a clear-CMOS jumper, and at last the front-panel header.
The rear I/O consists of a preinstalled plate sporting the identical black and grey theme with accent traces together with PG Gaming branding. There are a whopping 12 USB ports right here. A single 20Gbps (USB 3.2 Gen 2×2) Sort-C port is the quickest, together with one 10Gbps (USB 3.2 Gen 2) Sort-A port. There are six USB 3.2 Gen 1 (5Gbps) ports, two of that are Lightning Gaming ports (in yellow). Final are 4 legacy USB 2.0 ports. On the left are DisplayPort and HDMI video outputs to make use of with the processor’s built-in graphics. The Realtek-based 2.5GbE sits above the USB ports, whereas on the proper is a 3-plug (1/8-inch) audio stack and a BIOS Flashback button. There are additionally pre-drilled holes so as to add Wi-Fi antennas.
BIOS and UEFI Utilities
The BIOS of the PG Lightning is like that of different ASRock motherboards, with a alternative of EZ and Superior modes. Each modes use the PG Gaming theme with easy-to-read crimson and white textual content on a darkish background. In EZ Mode, you may discover details about the processor, RAM, storage, followers, and extra. You may allow XMP profiles, regulate thermal throttling limits, and make different changes.
The Superior portion of the BIOS gives a extra normal configuration with main headings throughout the highest together with Fundamental, OC Tweaker, Superior, Device, H/W Monitor, and Boot. The Fundamental web page is informational, primarily taken from the My Favourite part. You may create a customized BIOS web page itemizing your most steadily used gadgets.
The OC Tweaker part holds the keys to fine-tuning your system. Right here you may regulate voltages, RAM, and the CPU and save profiles for recall later.
Beneath the Superior heading is the place to entry CPU, chipset, storage, NVMe, ACPI, and USB configuration, amongst different gadgets like Trusted Computing. You can even regulate the UEFI’s look and specify its beginning web page (EZ Mode or a desired web page in Superior).
The Instruments part (not pictured) provides entry to ASRock’s Polychrome RGB for lighting management and SSD and NVMe sanitation or secure-erase instruments, in addition to the On the spot Flash utility to flash your BIOS. H/W Monitor shows related system info starting from CPU and motherboard temps to fan speeds and voltages. Right here you may regulate the fan speeds of all of the onboard 4-pin fan headers.
ASRock’s BIOS is as absolutely featured and simple to navigate as its opponents’. The X670E BIOS supplies loads of performance to overclock the processor and reminiscence, as you’d anticipate from the flagship chipset. There’s additionally performance to regulate RGB lighting and followers and even wipe storage clear. Total, it supplies loads of usefulness, and the most recent model (1.29 AS01) proved steady in our restricted testing.
For different software program, ASRock has an AppShop to obtain and replace drivers and an A-Tune utility to tweak your system. The previous is useful for downloading ASRock purposes together with Polychrome RGB LED, Nahimic 3 audio, and the App Charger. Along with these applications, it checks for drivers and allows you to replace them straight from the utility, an ideal different for these not used to grabbing the most recent drivers straight from part makers’ web sites.
The AppShop is ASRock’s one-stop-shop answer for downloading and updating your drivers. For the unadorned, this and the auto driver set up that pops up in Home windows make it simple to get all the most recent and biggest software program and drivers in your PC.
For individuals who wish to play with their PCs, ASRock’s A-Tune software program (reskinned and renamed PG Gaming for this board) is an all-inclusive tweaking utility. This program allows you to regulate fan speeds, tweak the CPU, and peruse detailed system info together with temperatures, voltages, and clock speeds and ratios. You additionally get entry to the Blazing OC software program devoted to overclocking the processor manually or by way of PBO; the latter does not supply as a lot management because the BIOS however will get the job accomplished.
Verdict: Inviting Value, Good Specs, Impartial Seems to be
The ASRock X670E PG Lightning is likely one of the least costly X670E platforms now in the marketplace. For the cash, you get all AMD’s flagship platform has to supply, together with PCIe 5.0 assist on each a PCIe slot and a single M.2 socket; quick DDR5 assist; ample energy supply for flagship processors; and extra. The board has ample M.2 storage choices, although its 4 SATA ports might be too few for some customers. On the networking facet, you do get a 2.5GbE port, however Wi-Fi is lacking. Additionally, the audio codec could also be missing for some. The motherboard’s massive promoting level, other than value, is its copious variety of USB ports, together with two USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Sort-C ports.
There’s loads of competitors round this value level, together with Asus’ Prime X670-P Wi-Fi ($264.99), the Gigabyte X670 Aorus Elite AX ($279.99), and the MSI X670E Tomahawk Wi-Fi ($299.99). All are strong options; the Asus consists of Wi-Fi and has extra SATA ports, whereas the MSI has a greater audio codec. The ASRock, nevertheless, is an effective deal at its record value of $259.99 and a good higher one at its road value of $229.99. Whether or not you are constructing a gaming rig or a productiveness PC, you may discover it a well-rounded possibility that checks off a slew of consumer necessities, so long as built-in Wi-Fi is not one.
