Best AM3+ Motherboard For High-Performance PC Build
OVERVIEW
The best am3+ motherboard can be essentially defined as the heart of a computing device or system. The essential components of a system are present on the motherboard, and your motherboard decides the quality of performance that your system delivers.
It is home to several components like the CPU socket, the power connector, slots for memory, and ROM chip. The base of an am3+ motherboards consists of a very firm sheet of non-conductive material, typically some rigid plastic.
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An am3+ is a type of the CPU socket of the motherboard, out of the many types of like am2, am2+, am4, etc. It was released in mid-2011 designed for CPUs that use the AMD Bulldozer micro-architecture and retains compatibility with am3 processors. There are a lot of companies manufacturing the am3+ motherboards with various features coming with different price tags.
I have done the treacherous job of finding out the best am3+ motherboard available in the market, just for you. Let us know have a look at the list of the best am3+ motherboard along with their features, advantages, and disadvantages.
11 BEST AM3+ MOTHERBOARD REVIEW
1. GIGABYTE GA-A320M-S2H MOTHERBOARD
I am starting the list of the best am3+ motherboard with the Gigabyte GA-A320M-S2H motherboard. This motherboard is loved by people because of its performance with a budget-friendly price tag.
It provides a great foundation for AMD Ryzen processors and is easy to install and provides you with out of the box compatibility for all Ryzen offerings. But, if you are buying an older stock, you have to find a way to flash the latest BIOS for improved compatibility with the latest CPUs.
This motherboard gives you an M.2 slot, for using PCIe NVMe SSDs and a PCIe x16 slot for running high-end GPUs. It also has an HDMI, D-SUB, and DVI-D outs in the offering.
The Smart Fan 5 in the motherboard gathers the temperature data from various thermal sensors spread and helps to optimize the fan speed and noise for better working experience. The advantage of hybrid fan headers are, they can detect the type of fan being installed and adjust the parameters accordingly.
The onboard Realtek GbE LAN includes cFosSpeed optimizations for low network latency, which helps in online gaming. The BIOS is easy enough to get used to and overall, you won’t have any issues in using the Gigabyte GA-A320M-S2H, unless you have an old stock of board, and is powerful enough to power a lower budget gaming PC.
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2. ASUS ROG STRIX B450-F GAMING MOTHERBOARD
Next up in my list of best am3+ motherboard comes the Asus Rog Strix B450-F Gaming motherboard. The B450-F Gaming is a mid-range motherboard, but has some premium features and is great for gaming.
It supports both, the Crossfire and SLI multi-GPU configurations and supports the full range of Ryzen processors, up to the flagship processor in the Ryzen 7 2700X. The board has a couple of headers to expand your lighting options, and the RGB LEDs are controlled by the Asus Aura RGB Software.
The B450-F gaming includes 6 SATA ports, a couple of M.2 slots for storage including an M.2 Key E slot for a WiFi module, premium audio, Gen 2 USB 3.1 (10 Gbps) ports, and also the beautifully implemented RGB LEDs. It supports both the AMD-based and the NVIDIA-based multi-GPU builds.
It has 6 header fans, out of which 4 are located on the top, that is, 2 sit on the right of the top VRMs, which are for CPU fans, and the other 2 are above the PCIe x1 slot, which is designated for case fan and an AIO pump duty.
The B450 chipset allows for overclocking, comes with the standard SATA port allotment, a couple of M.2 slots, and USB ports, including a USB Type-C port, running 3.1 Gen 1 speed. Overall, the motherboard is an asset to any gamer, as it comes with a moderate price tag and offers quality gaming.
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3. ASUS PRIME B-360M-A MOTHERBOARD
Another best am3+ motherboard in the list is Asus Prime B-360M-A motherboard. This motherboard is powered by 8th Generation Intel Core processors and supports the Intel B360 chipset and the LGA 1151 socket.
The B360 chipset natively supports an M.2 slot over the PCIe to enable compatibility with super-fast NVMe SSDs, as well as Intel Optane. The board comes in micro-ATX cases and is compatible with DDR4 memory, plus HDMI, DVI, and VGA display outputs.
The B-360M-A motherboard offers an RGB LED header that enables you to install and customize additional LEDs via ASUS Aura Sync.
The I/O panel of the B360M-A comes with a couple of USB 3.1 (10 Gbps) ports. The peripheral devices can be connected using the 2 USB 2.0 ports and a USB 3.0 port, and devices can be inserted in either orientation. The motherboard has a PCIe x16 slot and a couple of PCIe x1 slots.
The M.2 slots are connected using 4 PCIe 3.0 lanes to support the fast NVMe protocol. Additional drives like SSDs, HDDs and optical drives can be connected using the six SATA 3.0 ports.
The 5X Protection III hardware-level safeguards provide much-needed longevity and reliability to the board. For dynamic cooling, the board has FanXpert 2+ that delivers advanced fan control.
The Asus OptiMem enhances the memory stability and performance of the board by improving trace isolation between PCB layers to maintain signal integrity.
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4. ASUS PRIME A320M-K MOTHERBOARD
If you are looking for an affordable AM3+ motherboard in the list of best am3+ motherboard, then check out the Asus Prime A320M-K motherboard. It is a moderately priced board that features LED illumination, USB 3.0, DDR4-3200 memory, and M.2 NVMe slot.
This motherboard has a DIGI+ VRM that provides reliable power to your CPU. The A320 chipset is not for overclockers, but you can use CPUs from the AMD Ryzen 1st and 2nd generation. The Prime A320 series motherboards also come up with Asus’s 5x Protection III hardware-level safeguards.
The Prime A320M-K features numerous protective mechanisms such as SafeSlot core, surge-protected networking, overvoltage protection, and integrated stainless steel I/O plate. The board boasts the Fan Xpert monitoring software, which provides an overview of the PWM/DC fans and offers one-click optimization for all supported fan types.
The BIOS offers good-enough tuning and monitoring controls. With this, you can organize settings by favorites, use Fan Xpert, improve the DRAM performance, and update the latest version of the BIOS.
Overall, the Asus Prime A320M-K is one of the best A320 motherboards for AMD Ryzen. Despite the lack of overclocking features, it is a worth for all the features it has in the offering.
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5. MSI B360 GAMING PLUS MOTHERBOARD
The B360 Gaming Plus motherboard is built on the Intel B360 chipset and has an LGA 1151 socket designed for 8th generation Intel Core, and Celeron processors.
The board features a couple of DDR4 memory slots, which support up to 32GB of 2666 MHz RAM. The performance of the board goes hand in hand with the cooling of the system and it has an effective and fast cooling system that ensures a longer lifespan for your PC.
The board has 6 SATA III ports and a single M.2 slot that supports Intel Optane Memory. The B360M Gaming Plus has a single PCIe 3.0 x16 slot for your graphics card and 2 PCIe 3.0 x1 slots. It also features Intel Gigabit LAN, VGA, DVI-D, and HDMI outputs, and Realtek ALC887 7.1-channel high-definition audio.
It has plenty of fan headers with full control to keep the system cool under any condition. The board is equipped with MSI mystic RGB lighting that you can customize using MSI's downloadable software.
The Audio boost provides you with an enhanced listening experience with multiple hardware and software features. The Nahimic 3 delivers virtual 7.1-channel surround sound and in-game overlay that informs you of which direction sounds are coming from.
This best am3+ motherboard is great for gaming purpose, as the Gaming Hotkey assigns functions to any key to launch games, load profiles, and overclock in real-time.
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6. GIGABYTE B365M DS3H MOTHERBOARD
Are you a gamer? Then this best am3+ motherboard is for you. Gigabyte B365M DS3H motherboard is perfect for gaming purposes and is designed for 8th and 9th generation Intel Core processors, with the LGA 1151 socket.
The board is powered by the B365 chipset and provides you with power gaming, content creation, and other intense computing tasks. The motherboard also features an RGB lighting header, Realtek ALC887 7.1-channel audio, and a gaming-optimized Gigabit Ethernet port.
To take advantage of all the features, you need to have Windows 10 in your system. The motherboard is durable and has connectors for an M.2 SSD and 6 SATA III storage drives, which can be enhanced with quicker load times with the Intel Optane technology.
The PCIe 3.0 x16 slots of the board can accommodate high-performance video cards to boost frame rates for games and speed up the video rendering. PCIe x1 and x4 slots are also available. The Dual-BIOS design boats a secondary backup BIOS to help recover from computer viruses and hardware issues.
The smart fan 5 enables you to interchange fan headers to correspond with the six thermal sensors across the motherboard, to maintain low temperatures so that the system produces immaculate gaming results.
The board also has an audio noise guard, which separates sensitive audio components from the motherboard's other electrical components for a cleaner sound. Overall, this board is exquisite for gaming.
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7. MSI MPG X570 GAMING PRO CARBON WIFI MOTHERBOARD
Next best am3+ motherboard in the list is MSI MPG X570 Gaming Pro Carbon WiFi motherboard. This board is built on the AMD X570 chipset that supports 2nd and 3rd-generation AMD Ryzen processors with an AM4 socket, and is loaded with optimum quality features.
The chipset features PCIe Gen 4 that gives you headroom for high-speed solid-state drives. Other features of the board include Intel I211AT Gigabit ethernet, Intel AX200 802.11ax WiFi, bluetooth 5.0, and Realtek ALC1220 7.1-channel HD audio.
The motherboard is equipped with 6 SATA III ports a couple of M.2 slots. It also has two PCIe 4.0 x16 slots for graphics cards, out of which, one runs x4 mode, and 2 PCIe 3.0 x1 slots for other PCI-based hardware. The X570 Gaming Pro has 4 memory slots for up to 128GB of dual-channel DDR4 RAM.
It can also be overclocked to up to 4400 MHz. The board is also equipped with multiple DC/PWM fan headers that enable you to connect additional cooling solutions. You can choose your cooling preference from the boost, balance, and silence modes within the Dragon Center software or its UEFI BIOS.
The WiFi 6 (802.11ax) standard gives greater network efficiency, faster Wi-Fi speeds, better coverage, and improved battery life for the connected devices. It has bluetooth 5.0 also provides you with cable-free device connectivity. The board also provides excellent audio and is overall great for gaming.
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8. MSI B450-A PRO MAX MOTHERBOARD
The eighth spot in this list of the best am3+ motherboard is taken up by the MSI B450-A Pro Max motherboard. This motherboard is built on the AMD B450 chipset and supports 3rd generation AMD Ryzen processors with the AM4 socket.
The board features DVI-D, VGA, and HDMI outputs for integrated graphics. It also comes with a PCIe 3.0 x16 slot for a dedicated graphics card. The B450-A Pro Max also boasts Realtek ALC 892 7.1-Channel HD Audio and Realtek 8111H Gigabit LAN.
The board is equipped with 4 memory slots that support a maximum of up to 64GB of DDR4 RAM, which can be overclocked up to 4133 MHz. There are 6 SATA III ports and an M.2 slot utilizing the PCIe 3.0 x4 interface, for storage purposes.
The I/O interface of the board consists of 2 Type-A USB 3.1 connections, as these ports are capable of achieving speeds of up to 10 Gbps per port. The B450-A Pro Max motherboard features PCIe steel armor to protect GPUs from bending and EMI.
The board features a header for static RGB lighting elements as well as four 4-pin PWM connectors, which are available for fans and a combined 4-pin connector for a water cooling pump or additional fans.
The audio boost offers HD audio processor, dedicated amplifier, and high-quality audio capacitors that provide you with optimal results. The B450-A Pro Max gives you the performance you want to build your gaming rig and has all that you need to enjoy your gaming sessions.
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9. GIGABYTE X299 DESIGNARE EX MOTHERBOARD
Gigabyte X299 Designare Ex motherboard is based on the X299 chipset and supports Intel Core processors using the LGA 2066 socket.
The premium board is built to deliver high-end performance for intensive tasks such as 3D rendering, video editing, and gaming. The board includes features such as fast internet connections via a couple of cFosSpeed-accelerated wired Intel Gigabit Ethernet ports with the built-in 802.11ac WiFi.
The X299 supports up to 128GB of quad-channel non-ECC DDR4 RAM, reaching to 4400 MHz when overclocked, which can be installed across 8 memory slots to make applications and multitasking efficiently. It supports up to 3 M.2 SSDs and 6 SATA III storage drives.
The U.2 adapter is also included to give 2.5-inch SATA SSDs a performance boost with transfer rates of up to 32 Gbps. The 5 PCIe 3.0 x16 slots can accommodate 2-way, 3-way, and Quad-GPU NVIDIA SLI or AMD CrossFire configurations. This maximizes the graphical capabilities of your for high frame rates, connecting 4K and 8K monitors.
The X299 board boasts the Realtek ALC1220 audio codec to deliver deep Sound BlasterX 720° 7.1-channel surround sound. To enhance your computing experience you can customize using the addressable RGB headers to connect light strips, it supports up to 300 digital LEDs. To take advantage of all the features you need to have Windows 10 64-bit.
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10. ASROCK COMBO J4205-ITX MOTHERBOARD
Another best am3+ motherboard in the list is the ASRock Combo J4205-ITX motherboard. This motherboard is based on an Intel quad-core Pentium J4205 Processor and features a high-density glass fabric.
It consists of embedded Apollo Lake SoCs, which uses passive cooling to keep your system completely noiseless. The cooling system of the board should be sufficient for these low-power processors, or else it might limit performance as the CPU will throttle once it reaches a certain temperature.
The board uses dual-channel DDR3 or DDR3L memory technology and is equipped with a couple of DDR3 or DDR3L SO-DIMM slots. It supports 1866 or 1600 or 1333 non-ECC, un-buffered memory, and has a maximum capacity of 16 GB memory.
The J4205-ITX motherboard also has 64 MB AMI UEFI Legal BIOS with GUI support and features a PCIe 2.0 1 slot and an M.2 socket, which support Type 2230 WiFi and Bluetooth module.
The motherboard features a great audio module that supports premium Blu-Ray audio support, surge protection, and Realtek ALC892 Audio Codec. For storage purposes, it has a couple of SATA III 6 Gbps connectors that support NCQ, AHCI, and Hot Plug.
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11. ASROCK Z270 KILLER SLI/AC ATX MOTHERBOARD
Rounding off this list of the best am3+ motherboard comes ASRock Z270 Killer SLI/ac ATX motherboard. This board supports 7th and 6th Generation Intel Core i7, i5, i3, Pentium, and Celeron processors by using an 1151 Socket.
The board has dual graphics output that supports DVI-D and HDMI ports by independent display controllers. It produces great audio with the help of the Realtek ALC892 Audio Codec.
The board features 2 PCIe 3.0 x16 and 4 PCIe 3.0 x1 slots and is packed with solid cover that prevents signal interference with graphics cards and ensures that the heaver graphics cards to be well-installed in the PCIe slot safely.
The Z270 Killer SLI/ac ATX motherboard supports 6 SATA III and dual-ultra M.2 for SSD. For storage purposes, it is equipped with 4 DDR4 DIMM slots that support up to 64 GB of DDR4 RAM, which can be overlocked up to 3733 MHz. The M.2 slot utilizes the PCIe Gen3 x4 that delivers up to 32 Gbps transfer speed.
The Intel LAN aims at providing you with the best throughput performance, lower CPU utilization, and enhanced stability. The RGB LED and header of the board allow you to connect an LED strip and create unique PC designs and styles with ease.
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CONCLUSION
This was my list of best am3+ motherboard with their features, advantages, and disadvantages. I hope this list helps you choose amongst the best am3+ motherboard in the market. See to that the motherboard which you choose satisfies your expectation and budget. Cheers!!
