ASUS - ROG STRIX X870E-E GAMING Wi-FI 7 NEO (Socket AM5) AMD X870E ATX DDR5 Wi-Fi 7 Motherboard - Black

To start off, I've had tons of boards over the years and I'm not exactly biased to any one manufacturer, but ASUS has always been a top tier contender for me. My first ASUS board was actually a Striker Extreme, which I believe was the First true "RoG" board back in 2006. I had that one paired with a E6800 core 2 duo, which funny enough was my first true intel gaming system. AMD was faster during the Intel Pentium 4 era. Anyway, this board is pretty nice. I don't think most people would need something like this and would opt for something like an ASUS TUF, but this one is sorta like a "mid-high" range board. Since it's the "NEO" version of X870E-E, this one was upgraded with Infineon 110A SPS, from the previous VISHAY 110A power stages that ASUS used on the previous series. I don't know if there's any real world benefits as I'm not a serious Overlocker or EE engineer, but I'd like to think Infineon's are the better option. These are the same exact SPS that are used in the DARK HERO and Glacial, albeit, you get less. This has 18 x 110A for VCORE.. Relatively DARK HERO is 20 x 110A, and Glacial is 24 x 110A Both of those alternative "higher end" boards also have upgraded chokes and caps.. so the Strix line is like a semi mid-high alternative that is close, but not quite "flagship" territory. no FP10K or the premium upgraded chokes here. The 5G LAN is a newer Realtek model which is becoming the industry standard brand for most boards and consumer routers/networking. Would have been cool if they opt'd for the 10G model, but the other higher end boards do include it.. I just think this board should have it as a standard option. WIFI is MediaTek and while I prefer Intel, I've actually been impressed with this one. It's matching my previous boards intel ping and providing a more stable WIFI7 connection since I'm able to use 320mhz bonding now. No real cons for the 5 or so days I've had this board. Tons of USB! Most are fed through the X870E combo and not from CPU, which I'd argue is a good thing since I had an older X570 platform causing issues with direct CPU fed USB to mouse/keyboard. This works completely fine and as expected. Awesome heatsinks and storage associability. Main M.2 is wired as PCI5.0.. which is pretty nice. Stays very cool. PROS: -Great build quality. Seems well made and has heavy heat sinks. -One of the better X870E boards per overall package. -Tons of USB. This board has +3 more USB type A than the Dark Hero X870E. Tons of type C too. -Holds clocks well. Getting solid max boost and 870 single threaded CPUZ score after a full format. -Nice RGB, Better if you have a matching AIO. (This has the new ASUS specific connector) CONS: -Pricey. It's an 8 layer board, but I don't think the value is here. Ryzen doesn't really consume much power to warrant these overkill VRM designs, but it likely helps in some areas such as overall boost core stability in smaller case. This isn't flagship, but has a flagship like price. -Mediatek WIFI (I prefer intel, but I'm aware there's no BE200 capable driver on AMD). It performs well enough to where I don't really notice any real problems..so not really a con.. but just nitpicking. OVERALL: Can I recommend this board? Yes.. but with a caveat. If you're running a 9800X3D single CCD 8 core or lower.. this is kind of overkill in terms of design, but most modern boards are to be completely fair. I can only really recommend something like this for the current DUAL CCD models (99xx) or future ZEN 6 24C models. Single CCD? Baseline ASUS boards work well enough, including temps. They're also 8 layer designs these days on AMD side..so the value of this feels fairly bad to me.. Especially since ASUS' own DARK HERO is only $100 more, but lacks the same sheer amount of rear USB. Side note.. The entire industry seems to be moving to a higher price brackets so this might not even be such a bad value long term. It just looks worse since there are a ton of previous X870E models that only cost half and offer similar "real world" performance. So that's where I'm taking off a star. It's a good mid-high end board at the end of the day. Have to step up to a X870E Crosshair model if you want the "Best of the best" from ASUS.

The Asus ROG Strix X870E-E Gaming Wi-FI 7 Neo (Socket AM5) motherboard is a full featured, mid to high end motherboard. I recently build with the Intel version of this motherboard. Both were very easy to set up and booted immediately. What sets Neo apart for me is the UEFI (BIOS) interface. Looks: For those that care about how a motherboard looks, this one is a mix of clean and angular shapes that define the ROG Strix look. Being a higher end MB, it is a little more on the clean side but still has more than its share of technical graphics. The shield that covers the interior parts of the rear IO components has an LED panel that is broken up into large pixels. It creates an RGB stained glass effect that is unique. Even if you pick a solid color, the LEDs display shades of that color. It even illuminates when the PC is off to let you know it’s plugged in. Assembly: No issues. Best features: (1) The integrated rear IO shield. This makes installing MB much easier and just looks better. Most mid-upper range boards have this feature and it is appreciated. (2) The M.2 covers and M.2 hold downs are tool free Quick release. Just push a clip to secure or remove a drive. No more tiny screws to deal with. (3) There is a remote release for Graphics card. No more using a chop stick to try and get to the release button. There is a button at the back of the board and offset from the graphics card allowing for easy release. UEFI (BIOS) interface: The UEFI interface on this motherboard is different from what I’m used to. Quick links to the most used features (like BIOS Update) on the EZ mode menu means fewer clicks to get to those features. There is an Essentials Mode that is somewhere between EZ and Advanced mode. This gives access to the most used tuning settings. It is very convenient. Advanced mode is typical advanced tuning layout. On board headers and devices: USB-C and USB-3 each have 2 internal headers. There are the typical headers that face up so the cables stick out into the case, but there are also 2 headers that point towards the cable pass-throughs on the case making for a much cleaner installation. There are three (3) ARGB headers and four (4) 4-pin case fan headers. Enough for most modest builds. I also like the fact that this MB has a Q-Code display for troubleshooting and the more typical 4 LEDs. I wish this was on all motherboards. There is also a power button integrated into the motherboard. This is very helpful for initial setup and troubleshooting. Storage There are 5 M.2 slots. Two (2) are PCIe 5.0x4 (Gen 5) compliant and have direct connections to the CPU (See note 2 below). These two also have a unique Q-Slide feature that allows you to have a quick release for shorter (2242, 2260) and standard (2280) M.2 cards. The other three (3) are PCIe 4.0x4 (Gen 4) compliant. I put a Gen 5 drive in the main slot. Boot and Load times have been very impressive. FYI: There are also 4 x SATA 6Gb/s ports for older drive compatibility. Note: You must use Ryzen 7000 or 9000 Series processors to have the two 5.0x4 operate at full speed. They drop to 4.0x4 with 8700 & 8600 & 8400 series processors and you lose the second slot with 8500 & 8300 processors. Note 2: Some slots and ports share band width. As noted on the Asus Specs for this board – ** USB 40Gbps Type-C ports on the back panel and M.2_2 slot share the bandwidth. Both run at x2 when a device is installed in the M2_2 slot. You can switch M2_2 to x4 in the BIOS, but this will disable the USB 40Gbps Type-C ports. *** M.2_3 shares bandwidth with PCIEX16(G4). When an M.2 drive is installed on M.2_3, PCIEX16(G4) will be disabled Rear IO: On the rear IO panel, there is the usual assortment of USB ports, Ethernet jacks, WiFi connectors, etc. There are also buttons for clearing the CMOS and updating the BIOS via a USB Stick (just in case the current BIOS doesn’t support a new CPU or you are having boot issues). What stands out most to me is the number of ports and the speeds. There are nine (9) 10 Gbps USB-A ports, two (2) 10 Gbps USB-C ports, and two (2) 40 Gbps USB-C ports (USB4). One of the 10 Gbps C ports supports up to 30W PD/PPS Fast-charge. Besides the HDMI port, the two (2) USB4 – type C (40Gbps) ports also support display output at max. 4K@60Hz (as specified in DisplayPort 1.4a). Ethernet is Realtek RTL8126 5Gb. I would have expected 10Gb or an additional Ethernet port at this price point, but I guess they saved that for the Dark Hero. Motherboard and Windows 11: Once MS Windows is loaded on the PC, if the WiFi Driver wasn’t installed, there is a pop-up asking to install the WiFi driver for the motherboard. This was very convenient. I didn’t have to go looking for it on another PC or plug the MB into my network to download it. Similarly, there was a pop-up for the Asus utility software called Armoury Crate. This software is a bit bloated for what it does. I wish it was more modular so I could just take the pieces I like. For some reason, I’ve had a lot of issues with certain peripherals. In the past, it wasn’t nearly as bad. I do like the Asus Driver updates in Armoury Crate and Driver Hub. I just wish they could be combined into one standalone piece of update software. Asus fan control has also worked well to keep the fans moderately quiet. The Build: MB - Asus ROG Strix X870E-E Gaming Wi-FI 7 Neo (Socket AM5), Processor - AMD Ryzen R9 9900x (12 Core) CPU. GPU - RTX 5070 FE Memory - RGB 32GB DDR5 RAM Kit (2x16GB) CL38 6000 MHz with the RGB enhancement kit. Storage - Primary M.2 = 1TB NVMe PCIe Gen5. Secondary M.2 = 2TB SSD NVMe PCIe Gen3 Power Supply - Asus TUF Gaming 850 Watt 80 Plus Gold ATX Fully Modular CPU Cooler - Asus Prime LC 360 ARGB LCD 360mm All-in-One Liquid CPU Cooling Kit – Black Additional Fans - Asus Prime MR20 ARGB, Black, 28mm thick, Aura compatible. For top exhaust. Additional RGB - Two (2) Generic, flexible ARGB Strips Conclusion: I know this board is intended for gaming, but it is also very good for creators. There are a ton of features on this board and I can’t cover them all in this review. Most important to me is the amount of USB ports, M.2 slots and number of PCIe lanes that make for a very robust platform. If you are a creator of any type and need a ton of fast storage, this board should be high on your shopping list. I’ve been using ASUS boards for many, many years and find them to be of very high quality, especially the Strix variants. I would recommend this board to anyone looking to build a higher end gaming PC or personal workstation with a little “bling”.

Coming from an ASUS Z790-E motherboard and Intel CPU, I noticed similar layouts and features, but this X870E-E has some significant improvements: many more USB-C ports, more traditional DIMM locks (easier to get in and out), ultra-simple NVMe drive installation that's doesn't require tools, more colorful on-board RGB effects, and a smarter layout for the fan headers. I had no problems installing my Ryzen 7 CPU and AIO. This motherboard comes with ASUS' new Q-connector, which simplifies the wiring for an AIO unit; but unfortunately, compatible device options are rather low right now and I didn't want to give up my cool AIO screen. Otherwise, everything else about this motherboard's setup worked as expected. The BIOS configuration is fairly nice as well, with options between basic and advanced interfaces. It runs the full gamut of control over how you motherboard works, but also has AI and automated control - in case you really don't want to be bothered. Fully booted, I've been really satisfied with the speed and options. The only problem I've seen so far is that the onboard RGB doesn't seem to work with custom-created profiles in Aura Creator, however the out-of-the-box RGB profiles work just fine on the motherboard. I'm assuming this just needs a software fix...and it's a very small thing.

I was super excited to have a chance to build a PC. I have not built one in a long time. I finally was able to piece together all the parts I had collected over the few years and my last 2 items in addition to this mother board was a CPU and an ATX Tower and Power Supply. I ended up get a nice glass tower and bought an AMD Ryzen 5 - 9600 - 6 core processor complement the ASUS - ROG STRIX X870E-E GAMING Wi-FI 7 NEO (Socket AM5) AMD X870E ATX DDR5 Wi-Fi 7 Motherboard. Out of the box the Asus Strix was nicely packed. No damage from shipper. Inserting CPU, CPU fan, and then landing the board on the ATX Tower was fine. I ran into a few challenges with plugging everything in because the tower I had blocked several of the pin connectors for fans and RGB lighting as the bottom. So my I had to temporarily remove the bottom fans and plug in the connectors and then reinstall the fans. First fire up the lights and everything was really dazzling and beautiful. I really have to say this is way better than the older closed up black box that I have grown up to use. After that I buttoned up the tower fired it up and started to install the OS. I ran with on board video graphics for now and will decide on whether to buy a graphics card later. So after loading OS and letting it do its updates it fired up pretty quick. I then let my kid loose on his games and then I took over and played my head over graphics game. It held up just fine. Overall appearance is great! Performance is great. I would recommend this product if you are in the market to build a PC on your own.

Fantastic motherboard to build with, plenty of connectivity from fan headers to USB headers to NVME drive slots, and plenty of power with its 18+2+2 phase power design with 90A power stages. My system specs are a 9800x3D, RTX 4080 FE, Sandisk 2TB SSD, and 64GB Ram @ 6400M/Ts CL32. This is all being cooled by a custom water cooling set-up in a Meshify 2 XL using EKWB reflection2 distribution plate, 480mm and 360mm radiators, and vector2 water blocks. I have a pretty basic overclock using AMD PBO with a -25 curve offset, and a +200mhz boost offset, putting my 9800x3d at a respectable 5.4ghz and is able to maintain stability while keeping the clocks pegged. Regarding the ram, didn't really dive into voltages or anything here, just loaded up the ASUS tweaked EXPO configuration and then set speed to 6400M/Ts up from the 6000M/Ts the standard EXPO profile would have provided. There are many more power and potentially damaging settings available for power users who want to take the plunge in the BIOS. Other nice features from a power user/overclocker perspective is one touch clear CMOS button, and a power/reset switch located on the motherboard itself for mounting in an open air test bench. Building in it was a dream, everything is toolless and it features a remote PCI-E ejector making it easier to work with massive GPU's or vertical configurations. My main gripe with Asus motherboards was the armory crate bloatware that they would make you use to control RGB. I was excited to find the option in the BIOS with this board to allow Windows Dynamic Lighting to control the ASUS AURA RGB. This is so much better than installing software I never wanted to use in the first place, the only thing left to sort out is getting the RAM changed to the right color using something like OpenRGB, but just know its possible to bypass armory crate now. The motherboard itself is quite attractive, and has a very cool RGB panel where the VRM cooler/Back panel connector shroud is. Built in sound is solid, but I use a desktop DAC/AMP combo and XLR mic so can't speak too in-depth on that, but more than adequate for gaming headsets and enjoying some Spotify for 99% of users. Connectivity on the back panel is fantastic offering plenty of high speed options with 10x 10Gb USB-A ports, 2x 40Gb USB-C ports w/ DP out capability, and 2x 10Gb USB-C ports one of which has 30w power delivery. This board features ASUS new Q-connector for those that want water cooling with a clean install and not all the hassle of a custom set-up. Internally for whatever you are hooking up, you have a CPU FAN, CPU OPT, AIO PUMP, and 5 more PWM controlled fan headers to utilize, 3 ARGB headers, and 3x USB 2.0 headers, along with the standard connections for high speed front panel USB. Overall a fantastic motherboard for those looking in that premium $500+ motherboard price range. In my 30+ years of building systems I have used Asus motherboards in a vast majority with great performance and reliability. I would definitely recommend considering the x870e-e NEO if you are starting a new build with top end components.