AMD revised: B650 mainboards without PCIe 5.0 obligation
Chaos with AMD’s specifications for mainboards with the CPU version AM5: Not all models have to provide PCIe 5.0 for a GPU or SSD.
AMD is turning its new AM5 platform for the Ryzen 7000 aka Raphael desktop processor series upside down. The chipset B650 Extreme, or B650E for short, is what the B650 used to be. B650 motherboards, on the other hand, appear with lower requirements.
In concrete terms, this means that the obligation for a PCI Express 5.0 M.2 slot to install a particularly fast NVMe SSD is only available on B650E mainboards. B650 models, on the other hand, can appear completely without PCIe 5.0 support in order to save costs on signal amplifiers, among other things. These models are therefore cheaper and should start at 125 US dollars according to AMD.
| Feature overview of AMD’s AM5 chipsets | ||||
| chipset | X670E | X670 | B650 Extreme | B650 |
| PCIe 5.0 for graphics cards | causing obligation | optional | optional | optional / not provided |
| PCIe 5.0 for SSDs | one M.2 slot mandatory | optional / not provided | ||
| overclocking | possible | |||
There are no other differences apart from the PCI Express requirements within the X and B series. X670E motherboards can basically provide the same connectors as X670 models and B650E motherboards the same as B650 boards. AMD has come up with a trick to save production costs: two B650(E) chips combined result in an X670(E) chipset for doubling the connections.
PCIe 5.0 for graphics cards is only mandatory for the X670E
A x16 slot for graphics cards connected with PCIe 5.0 remains optional on B650E mainboards. There was confusion here, as AMD had stated to the press when announcing the B650E chipset that the corresponding mainboards should have the same PCIe 5.0 requirements as the X670E models from the high-end segment.
Interested parties who do not need all the connections and (overclocking) features of the X670E boards would have had a guaranteed PCIe 5.0 graphics card slot on all B650E models. With the change, you first have to look at the data sheet to see what the manufacturer specifies.
In general, manufacturers can decide a lot themselves with regard to the range of functions. For example, limitations when overclocking in the case of cheaper B650 mainboards cannot be ruled out, even if AMD does not provide an OC lock for any chipset. October will see how manufacturers segment their products – that’s the month when AMD releases the B650E and B650.
AM5 support until at least 2025
Meanwhile, AMD is committed to supporting the AM5 platform until at least 2025. That corresponds to at least two CPU generations, i.e. Zen 4 (Ryzen 7000) and Zen 5 (probably Ryzen 8000), and with luck also Zen 6. Since AMD currently releases a new CPU generation for desktop PCs every 1.5 to 2 years introduces, there is no longer a guarantee for Zen 6 processors on AM5 mainboards. In addition, users are always dependent on the goodwill of the mainboard manufacturers, who have to offer BIOS updates for new CPUs.
