ASUS ROG Strix B560-A Gaming WiFi motherboard review and testing. Introducing the Intel B560 Chipset with the Core i7-10700K Processor

Together with the release of Rocket Lake-S processors to the market, developers from Intel proposed new chipsets of the “500th” series. Now boards based on the older Z590 solution are equipped with two CPU power sockets and an unprecedented power subsystem, since the appetites of computing units grow quite noticeably after forcing high power limits, not to mention overclocking. At the same time, the veil on DRAM overclocking for motherboards with simpler chips was lifted. H510, as the youngest hub, is still deprived of it, so special attention will be focused on products based on the B560. In addition to an increase of one hundred in numbering and above the agreed upon long-awaited innovation, there are a lot of changes! So, now support for RAID arrays has returned to the “seventieth” hub (H570). Having reduced the number of PCI-E lanes relative to its direct predecessor (B460), the manufacturer increased the number of high-speed USB ports and added support for several of the fastest revisions. A proprietary communication line familiar from the B360 (not to be confused with the B365) with the CNVi wireless network adapter has also been implemented. It is officially allowed, unlike the H510, to use four PCI-E 4.0 lanes from the socket for the needs of drives in case of buying older CPUs of the latest generation. You can learn more about the difference between the new chips in our material on the Rocket Lake-S family.

As we already know, CPU overclocking, especially older models, is associated with a sharp increase in energy consumption and operating temperatures, therefore, frankly, the process can hardly be called massive, at least in the near future, looking at the level of selling prices for new products. . Of course, the segment of overclockers and gamers with a tight wallet has not disappeared anywhere, but the vast majority will focus on overclocking RAM, for which cheaper motherboards, in particular, already based on the B560, may suffice.

ROG Strix B560-A Gaming WiFi is a model from the ASUS gaming motherboard segment, the design uses non-trivial white shades, more recently this accent has been distinguished by the suffix “A”. In addition to a powerful, at first glance, power stabilizer, the product is complemented by a mass of modern interfaces and entertainment-oriented software developments.

As before, bonuses for simplifying the overclocking procedure offered as part of the ROG Maximus line cannot be found here. We are talking about various kinds of buttons, switches, platforms for measuring operating voltages, wiring for the POST code indicator and other nuances that are important for a sophisticated buyer. Here all this is removed, the positioning is clear – a one-time assembly of the system. To begin with, I suggest that you familiarize yourself with the list of the main characteristics in the pivot table:

Almost all sockets on the board can be used without regard to any restrictions. The first SATA port will be disabled if you install a drive with the same type of interface into the bottom M.2 drive. The upper M.2 gets by with only four PCI-E lanes from the processor, when they are available (only older Rocket Lake-S models are able to provide them).

Packaging and equipment

The presence of a pre-installed wireless network adapter is already implied by one model name, but right on the front of the package it is clear that we are talking about the most modern generation. The box is made of thick cardboard, and unusual white motifs are used in its design. Inside, the seals are also made of white cardboard – everything for the buyer to feel the triumph of the moment of acquaintance with an uncommon, by today’s standards, product.

There is a photo of the product on the back and accents are made regarding its most interesting features in the form of a collage and a small summary plate below. Everything is simple and, at the same time, quite understandable.

Equipment:

• user manual (in English);
• short multilingual user manual for PC assembly;
• an additional booklet with information on the need to comply with a number of safety measures when assembling and operating the system;
• ROG device owner welcome brochure;
• disk with drivers and proprietary software;
• a set of stickers with various images of the ROG Strix series, including those for cables;
• additional proprietary lock for M.2 device;
• two rubber pads for M.2 drives with an adhesive backing;
• four SATA 6Gb / s cables, two of which have an L-shaped connector on one of the ends;
• adapter USB Type-C – AUX mini Jack 3.5 mm;
• extension cord for connecting a controlled LED strip;
• seven nylon ties;
• remote antenna with the possibility of fixing only one position, a magnet with a slight attraction effect is built-in along the long edge.
• fabric keychain with ROG logo.

Appearance

Although there are no separate elements for monitoring operation and all sorts of indicators, the proprietary Q-LED is still present: four multi-colored LEDs are soldered over the RAM slots, which will help you quickly find out the cause of the POST problem, if any. The platform for resetting the CMOS settings is located next to the others, where the body buttons and indicators are switched, therefore, if desired, you can easily attach the same Reset there. By the way, for the entire time of the experiments, I never needed to manually carry out the zeroing procedure. In the event of overclocking the RAM, the board initialized the boot with safe settings on its own, perhaps only a few times it took the PC to turn off power to thereby help it get out of a series of reboots.

Behind you can find a large number of hats from screws and self-tapping screws; there are no plastic spring-loaded nails, as well as some backlit elements, of note there are etched areas in the textolite layers to improve the performance of the sound subsystem.

The visor above the input-output ports is equipped with a backlight, more precisely, its plastic lower part, and for other PC elements equipped with illumination, there are two pairs of sites. The control environment is Armory Crate.

The hub is cooled by a separate radiator, made in the form of a massive monolithic bar, with a ROG themed sticker on top.

The M.2 top heatsink is sympathetically labeled GEN4. Its left “tail” looks unusual, but it’s even better, because the heat dissipation area increases, especially since the epicenter will be somewhere in the center, because the slot itself is also on the left.

There is a legend right on the board, but I also urge you to use the user manual. An auxiliary Q-Latch clamping mechanism for 2280 type devices was immediately installed, for longer ones it will have to be unscrewed, and for a rubber stop, add a layer from the kit if the drive is one-sided.

The installation procedure is illustrated on the sticker below. Here the radiator is shorter and already with a simple M.2 inscription.

Under it there is also an additional latch and a rubber seal, like the legend on the board, in a word, everything is done very kindly for those who assemble it on their own and, perhaps, will encounter the installation of an SSD of this form factor for the first time.

For those who will use Comet Lake-S processors, the lower M.2 will actually be the only one for use in the system, and therefore it is especially pleasant that here, as well as from above, there are no length restrictions, the limit allows installation of devices like 22110.

Six SATA outputs are equipped with separate longitudinal ports, this will definitely improve the outflow of heat from the surface of the board, especially if a powerful graphics adapter is placed here, where the air is vented towards the PCI-E slot, that is, towards the surface of the motherboard.

By the way, there will be nothing under the massive VC, except, perhaps, the chipset, which should also have a beneficial effect on its operating temperatures. On the right side of the product there are two transverse slots for case cables of USB ports of high-speed types, and for classic 2.0 those are located at the bottom side, including two pieces.

Of course, we are not talking about some division of the PCI-E lines coming from the socket. Everything will end on the top, reinforced, designed for the video card. The four bottom pieces interact with the Intel B560.

In addition to the thematic slogans of the ROG series that are found every now and then on both sides of the board, you can find unusual pixel-style icons designed to add zest to empty areas.

Behind the shielding cap with the SupremeFX inscription is the S1220A codec, which has long been known from older products from ASUS, released by Realtek. There is also an S210 chip for the needs of a balanced USB audio output, not surprising with a group of specialized capacitors. There is a platform on the board for S/PDIF. What’s new is the Savitech SV3H712 headphone amplifier. In a word, they approached the preparation of the audio subsystem with all seriousness. Wired network controller again from Realtek – RTL8125B.

The heatsinks for the CPU power circuits are complex, ribbed, and there are ventilation holes in the larger one, creeping onto the decorative visor. The massiveness of the design did not cause any compatibility problems when mounting a bench two-section cooler.

At the head of the stabilizer is the relabeled ASP1900B PWM controller, you can count ten channels, two for the iGPU, as a result, eight form the CPU Voltage. There are no external drivers or doublers, and therefore, most likely, the number of elements in each “phase” is doubled, which means that we have to talk about only a four-phase stabilizer, although this is hardly critical for a board where CPU overclocking is not provided. Assembly – NCP302150 from ON Semiconductor. Using four transistors marked 4C10B from the same company, SA Voltage is implemented. Nearby, a single-phase Richtek RT9624F driver is visible, most likely, again we are dealing with a double number of elements – two channels per “phase”. For the test CPU Comet Lake-S, we were able to confirm the implementation of IO Voltage based on Texas Instruments TPS51396A (DC/DC Converter). Obviously, there is also a second IO 2 channel under Rocket Lake-S, most likely it is more powerful, since it was on the largest throttle below the socket that there was no voltage. Here, a Richtek RT8125DGQW single-phase PWM controller is wired and there are also three ON Semiconductor 4C10B transistors. Obviously, they did a good job on the power subsystem, it remains only to conduct practical tests.

The contact of the main ten assemblies with thermal pads and then with the radiator is complete, but the four power elements from the SA Voltage group were much less fortunate, the chokes do come into contact with the radiator according to the residual principle, although there are separate thermal conductors for these purposes. Everything is fine with the chipset, as well as two large-area plates are pre-installed for the SSD.

Looking at the rear panel with ports, you can probably feel sad because of the lack of PS / 2, otherwise there is literally everything here. Unless, except for the additional buttons mentioned more than once today, which will have to be looked for in the composition of more expensive boards, for those who really need them there.