The usual case when building a PC is always the pricing factor that bothers the mind of a consumer, even in today’s pricing range, it can still be costly if anyone planned to do that. Over the new Ryzen 7000 series processors range, this is still the same case, although the performance is vastly improved from the previous generations, the combination of the hardware is new, therefore it will be slightly higher on the overall cost. AMD since then has introduced the B650 motherboard chipset, which is a chipset that cuts certain corners, but still retain some of the best features to keep consumer up to date plus some of the current ready support of connected hardware..
Today we will look at one of the ASUS offerings, the ASUS TUF Gaming B650-PLUS WIFI, affordable with a mixed of new and current features to keep the cost right for the most part.
Also for those that wanted to know more about the performance of the Ryzen 7000 processor, click HERE to read
Unboxing and Contents
The ASUS TUF Gaming B650-PLUS WIFI came with the following
- The Motherboard
- 2 x SATA 6Gb/s cables
- 1 x ASUS Wi-Fi moving antenna
- 2 x Rubber packages for M.2
- 2 x Screw packages for M.2 SSD
- 1 x TUF certification card
- 1 x User guide
Design
The TUF series is known for mixing gaming aesthetics and normal user build needs into one. Starting from the full ATX layout that is in all black which still hold the classic look and most TUF motherboard category is pretty much geared towards affordable level budget gamers to it. With that, similar to the TUF Gaming X670 series, you will also get premium features like the ASUS SafeSlot Core+, shielded audio chip and Thunderbolt 4 header expansion.
No fancy RGB lighting over there, but if you wanted to have RGB lights, thats up to the user to expand it externally with RGB memory, RGB NVME and available ARGB connectors for your hardware. The rest of the motherboard is basically simple, nice to look at with covers on screws that acts as the heatsink for NVME drive slot, VRM heatsink and I/O ports arrangement with the plate integrated to it, making it easy to install on any ATX class casings.
Features
For the features, we will be highlighting the major points of the motherboard
Power Stages – 12+2 power stages are each rated to handle 60 amperes, combining high-side and low-side MOSFETS and drivers into a single package to deliver power, efficiency and stable performance
Premium Connectivity – Comes with the latest version of PCI Express 4.0 for GPU/Expansion, 5.0 for storage, while an arsenal of USB ports includes three Type-C® connections, and Thunderbolt™ (USB4®) expands compatibility and bandwidth even further.
DDR 5 Memory Support with AEMP – ASUS Enhanced Memory Profile (AEMP) is an exclusive firmware feature for PMIC-restricted memory modules. AEMP automatically detects the memory chips on your kit and then presents optimized frequency, timing and voltage profiles that you can effortlessly apply to unleash performance.
2.5 Gb Ethernet with WiFi 6 – The motherboard came equipped with Realtek 2.5 Gb Ethernet LAN jack for fast ethernet connection and WiFi 6 module with peak speed up to 1.2Gbps, smart connect and mass compatibility with major routers in the market, including ASUS current and latest WiFi 6 routers in the market.
Compatibility
The ASUS TUF Gaming B650-PLUS WIFI is compatible with all AMD Ryzen 7000 series processor, usually if AMD tends to release more processor under the same series usually ASUS will update the BIOS to ensure it is supported, it is not sure whether AMD will carry on the support for the next generation lineup for this chipset, but I guess we will have to wait for that. Other than that the motherboard is compatible with both AMD EXPO RAM kits, XMP RAM Kits under ASUS D.O.C.P which can push compatible DDR 5 RAM kits beyond 6400MT/s
System Setup and Benchmarks
| Processor | AMD Ryzen 5 7600X |
| Motherboard | ASUS TUF GAMING B650-PLUS WIFI |
| System Memory | Kingston Fury 16GB X2 DDR5 (running at 6000MT) |
| Primary Drive | NVME SSD 500GB (Gen4 X4) |
| Secondary Drive | NVME SSD 500GB |
| PSU | Thermaltake LP 650w PSU |
| Operating System | Windows 11 64bit Professional |
| Graphics Card | Radeon RX 6700XT 12GB |
| Cooling | AMD Stock Cooler |
So here is the system setup on our test bench along with our benchmark results, and the result is very similar to what we have tested on X670E motherboards, and that is also because we still dont have any PCIe 5.0 based hardware with us when testing over X60E boards, but in general performance is pretty much similar, the only thing you might missed out is all the new PCIE 50 bells and whistles which will take a while to became a norm for every builders out there
Software & BIOS
Lets start with Software, the ASUS TUF Gaming B650-PLUS WIFI came with Armory Crate, a full featured dashboard app that lets you see your system status, configure your RGB lights, changing fan curves, updates drivers and tool with special deals will also appear in the app (with sign in required) which offers free software, discounted games and much more. This piece of software is great for beginners and beyond on customizing your build.
Over to BIOS, as usual ASUS TUF enthusiast level motherboards came with a slightly advanced BIOS/UEFI configuration with TUF theme for easy overclocking on memory and processor, as well as fan curve settings, BIOS updates, boot method, voltage settings, and many if we want to fit all in, it will be a lot, but rest assured that it has a flashback BIOS for reverting or updating the UEFI, and on and all, it is easy to use as well, if you prefer to set everything to automatic via dynamic OC mode.
Technical Specifications
| CPU | AMD Socket AM5 for AMD Ryzen™ 7000 Series Desktop Processors |
| Chipset | AMD B650 |
| Memory | 4 x DIMM, Max. 128GB, DDR5 6400+(OC)/ 6200(OC)/ 6000(OC)/ 5800(OC)/ 5600(OC)/ 5400(OC)/ 5200/ 5000/ 4800 ECC & Non-ECC, Un-buffered Memory Dual Channel Memory Architecture Supports AMD EXTended Profiles for Overclocking (EXPO™) OptiMem II |
| Expansion Slots | AMD Ryzen™ 7000 Series Desktop Processors 1 x PCIe 4.0/3.0 x16 slot(s) AMD B650 Chipset 1 x PCIe 4.0/3.0 x16 slot (supports x4 mode) 2 x PCIe 4.0/3.0 x1 slots |
| Storage | Total supports 3 x M.2 slots and 4 x SATA 6Gb/s ports AMD Ryzen™ 7000 Series Desktop Processors M.2_1 slot (Key M), type 2242/2260/2280(supports PCIe 5.0 x4 mode) M.2_2 slot (Key M), type 2242/2260/2280/22110 (supports PCIe 4.0 x4 mode) AMD B650 Chipset M.2_3 slot (Key M), type 2242/2260/2280 (supports PCIe 4.0 x4 mode)** 4 x SATA 6Gb/s ports * AMD RAIDXpert2 Technology supports both PCIe RAID 0/1/10 and SATA RAID 0/1/10. ** M.2_3 shares bandwidth with PCIEX16_2. PCIEX16_2 will be suspended once M.2_3 is populated. |
| Ethernet | 1 x Realtek 2.5Gb Ethernet TUF LANGuard |
| Wireless | Wi-Fi 6 2×2 Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax) Supports 2.4/5GHz frequency band Bluetooth v5.2 |
| USB | Rear USB (Total 8 ports) 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 port(s) (1 x USB Type-C®) 3 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 port(s) (2 x Type-A + 1 x USB Type-C®) 4 x USB 2.0 port(s) (4 x Type-A) Front USB (Total 7 ports) 1 x USB 3.2Gen 1 connector (supports USB Type-C®) 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 header(s) support(s) additional 2 USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports 2 x USB 2.0 header(s) support(s) additional 4 USB 2.0 ports |
| Audio | Realtek 7.1 Surround Sound High Definition Audio CODEC* – Supports: Jack-detection, Multi-streaming, Front Panel Jack-retasking – Supports up to 24-Bit/192 kHz playback Audio Features – Audio Shielding – Power pre-regulator reduces power input noise to ensure consistent performance – Premium audio capacitors – Dedicated audio PCB layers – Audio cover – Unique de-pop circuit * Due to limitations in HDA bandwidth, 32-Bit/192 kHz is not supported for 7.1 Surround Sound audio. ** A chassis with an HD audio module in the front panel is required to support 7.1 Surround Sound audio output. |
| Rear I/O Connector | 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 port(s) (1 x USB Type-C®) 3 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 port(s) (2 x Type-A + 1 x USB Type-C®) 4 x USB 2.0 port(s) (4 x Type-A) 1 x DisplayPort 1 x HDMI® port 1 x Wi-Fi Module 1 x Realtek 2.5Gb Ethernet port 5 x Audio jacks 1 x BIOS FlashBack™ button |
| Internal I/O Connections | Fan and Cooling related 1 x 4-pin CPU Fan header(s) 1 x 4-pin CPU OPT Fan header(s) 1 x 4-pin AIO Pump header(s) 4 x 4-pin Chassis Fan header(s) Power related 1 x 24-pin Main Power connector 1 x 8-pin +12V Power connector 1 x 4-pin +12V Power connector Storage related 3 x M.2 slots (Key M) 4 x SATA 6Gb/s ports USB 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 connector (support(s) USB Type-C® ) 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 header(s) support(s) 2 additional USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports 2 x USB 2.0 header(s) support(s) 4 additional USB 2.0 ports Miscellaneous 3 x Addressable Gen 2 header(s) 1 x Aura RGB header(s) 1 x Clear CMOS header 1 x COM Port header 1 x Front Panel Audio header (AAFP) 20-3 pin System Panel header with Chassis intrude function 1 x Thunderbolt™ (USB4®) header |
| Accessories | Cables 2 x SATA 6Gb/s cables Miscellaneous 1 x ASUS Wi-Fi moving antenna 2 x Rubber packages for M.2 2 x Screw packages for M.2 SSD Documentation 1 x TUF certification card 1 x User guide |
Verdict and Conclusion
The ASUS TUF Gaming B650-PLUS WIFI is a motherboard that one we can recommend over its affordability factor with good current hardware support and compatibility that consumer can seek on, especially those looking for a partial upgrade. By just purchasing this motherboard, a Ryzen 7000 series processor and a set of new DDR5 RAM, then rest can be used back for the most part and you can get your work or gaming going without spending too much, plus it still have the best optimisation features over BIOS and overclocking capability, basically you are not losing much, in fact you save some on your pocket.
It is now currently selling at a street price of around RM1250. For more information you can CLICK HERE to find out
*Special thanks to ASUS, AMD, Kingston, Thermaltake for providing the units for the purpose of this review.