This was posted 3 years 9 months 23 days ago, and might be an out-dated deal.

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MSI X470 Gaming Plus MAX for $169 (Preorder and in-store only) @ Centrecom

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MSI X470 Gaming Plus MAX for $169 (Preorder and in-store only) @ Centrecom
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Void on 26/06/2020 - 19:25 centrecom.com.au (3604 clicks)
Last edited 29/06/2020 - 17:19 by 1 other user

Edit: EXPIRED. Now $189, still a solid price if you were looking something comparable to the Tomahawk MAX for less but not the deal it was.

Great deal on what is pretty much a Tomahawk MAX but on the X470 chipset which also has more USB ports and… just… ports in general. Good to see it at Centrecom with free shipping.

I also want to clear up some confusion on AMD's support for different CPUs and such:

  • Right now only MSI have confirmed support for Ryzen 4000 on both their MAX and non-MAX 400-series boards. I assume the non-MAX ones will possibly lose support for older architectures, or go back to the dark ages of text based BIOS. 😬

  • AMD's roadmap for socket AM4 ended on 2020. That's not to say that AM4 will definitely not support Ryzen 5000, but it most likely will not. It is however likely that the Ryzen 5000 APUs will still be on socket AM4, as the 3x00G CPUs are still on the Zen+ architecture.

  • Aaaand a new addition to this list. MSI's MAX series boards support Ryzen 3000 series CPUs out of the box, and this is no exception.

Basically, if you don't need PCIe 4.0 go for this board and you won't be disappointed. GPUs isn't really an argument for 4.0, see how PCIe 2.0 aged. SSD however is a valid argument though if that bandwidth is necessary for your work.

Edit: This also has 2x M.2 slots! But also no Type-C…

Computing AM4 AMD B450 B450 Chipset Chipset Computer Component Motherboard

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closed Comments

  • Watanabe1995 on 26/06/2020 - 19:38
    +2

    good find!100% compitable with R9 3900x,PCIe 3.0 is enough for most circumstance

    • Void on 26/06/2020 - 19:45

      Yes this thing has a nice VRM setup. I'd even go as far as saying a 3950X is 100% OK on this unless you're overclocking it with poor airflow. PCIe 3.0 is plenty fine, and if someone's in the market for a PCIe 4.0 SSD they've probably already got a budget huge enough for an X570 board.

    • MrChadley on 26/06/2020 - 20:40
      +1

      This will be fine, a lot of 300 series boards can handle a 3900x. I run mine on a 300 board and it's fine. As long as you keep overclocking expectations to a minimal level the 300 and especially 400 boards to like this are great still.

      • gats on 26/06/2020 - 20:46
        +1

        Yes, I am running my 3900x on my MSI x370 Gaming Pro carbon currently.

        • MrChadley on 26/06/2020 - 20:54

          Aye I'm running on a msi b350m bazooka specifically. I actually pushed the overclocks a fair bit and never had any problems just to test it. I run daily at stock settings though with a slight undervolt (cos why not, lower temps and same performance is great) and so I don't lose the dynamic frequencies.

          • Void on 26/06/2020 - 21:26

            @MrChadley: I've heard Bazooka is fairly good. I also daily on my Biostar B45M2 (B350) run a -50mV offset on stock with my 3500X. Still gets to 90c at 3.7GHz all core in P95 Small FFTs, stock cooler for ya.

            • MrChadley on 26/06/2020 - 21:47

              @Void: Toasty, I threw on a nice big Be Quiet Dark Rock TF to keep things cool. I think when I ran small FFTs my temps were around 85, it's been awhile though so can't really remember.

              • Void on 26/06/2020 - 21:48

                @MrChadley: Yeah I'm gonna get a Pure Rock 2 eventually, I'm space constrained with my Versa H18 and the Pure Rock 2 will probably just barely fit. I've heard it's a very good performer, and I can't turn it down at $69 with a black heatsink.

                • MrChadley on 26/06/2020 - 21:55

                  @Void: Very nice, sounds like you've got a very good setup going on

                  • Void on 26/06/2020 - 21:56
                    +3

                    @MrChadley: Yes. I am very proud of my $1K Techfast build with a 3500X and 5700 lol. I just upgraded the power supply to an EVGA Supernova G2 750W I got for $135, so I have no dodgy parts now. Just the cooler and I'll be done. I'll be done. I won't upgrade anymore. Nope. Definitely not.

  • pyr0maniac on 26/06/2020 - 19:52
    +1

    Anyone to know if these are a good deal? Feel free to post if so.

    • Void on 26/06/2020 - 19:54
      +2

      That's pretty good actually. The mATX one is considered mid-high tier. Post it yourself! I guess they aren't able to sell them full price as very few are buying Intel CPUs these days.

      • pyr0maniac on 26/06/2020 - 20:38
        +6

        Nah I'm lazy..and sick of knobs coming in and saying it doesn't have this and that while completely disregarding the price point.

        • Void on 26/06/2020 - 21:01
          +1

          Well I'm lazy too, so this is never gonna get posted…

          • Omk4r123 on 26/06/2020 - 21:03
            +2

            @Void: Just found it for $127 in iTech here so decided to post it.

            • Void on 26/06/2020 - 21:03

              @Omk4r123: Even better! Though I am sceptical of the site.

      • AussieDeals on 27/06/2020 - 13:12

        It is likely cheap because it is quite old (released in late 2017 for 8th Gen Intel CPUs) and has since been superseded by Z390 and Z490 chipsets for later CPUs. It will likely need an 8th Gen chip to flash BIOS to run a 9th Gen chip, and is totally incompatible with the latest 10th Gen Intel CPUs

        • Void on 27/06/2020 - 13:13

          Forgot to consider that. It's best to ask Skycomp or I-Tech if they come updated. Could make a cheap pairing with a used 8700K.

          • AussieDeals on 27/06/2020 - 13:23
            +2

            @Void: Yes is a good option for anyone with a 8th gen chip lying around. Though a lot of people still want crazy prices for their old 8700Ks on eBay if you need to buy one

            • Void on 27/06/2020 - 13:26
              +2

              @AussieDeals: Oh yeah, like those delusional people selling their 7700Ks for $500 when you can get a 3300X + motherboard for almost half that. You've got to be lucky to find someone selling it for $250 which I'd say is reasonable for a used 8700K when the 3600 exists.

  • Stato on 26/06/2020 - 19:53
    +8

    Thanks OP. Just bought one. Don't know why, seemed like a bargain lol.
    Guess I will be building a new system now.

    • Void on 26/06/2020 - 19:54
      +11

      Ah yes we OzBargainers are supposed to be savvy and smart with money, yet we seem to buy things on impulse. It's a curse!

    • Fatboy74 on 26/06/2020 - 20:35
      +2

      You won't be disappointed. It's a great price for that board.

    • greatlamp on 26/06/2020 - 22:50

      Great time to get a 3900x and ram. You should be able to upgrade your pc to 12 cores at under $1000

  • dexx on 26/06/2020 - 20:02
    +1

    Cheaper than a B450 board - and better. A good deal.

  • Fatboy74 on 26/06/2020 - 20:25
    +3

    Just missing a USB C port.

    • Void on 26/06/2020 - 20:26
      +3

      Good thing to point out! I've personally never felt the need to use USB-C, but I'm sure people with external SSDs will. Could always chuck in a PCIe expansion card and still come out cheaper than the Tomahawk :)

      No integration though :(

      • Fatboy74 on 26/06/2020 - 20:31
        +1

        Don't get me wrong. It's amazing price and thanks for finding it. Just surprising it's missing a USB C port that's all :)

        • Void on 26/06/2020 - 20:35
          +1

          It probably got those extra USB ports by ditching the Type-C, so at their normal prices (pretty much the same) you pick the Tomahawk for C and the Gaming Plus for A.

        • Joshminey on 26/06/2020 - 21:15
          +3

          If you have an RTX graphics card it has one built in to the GPU

  • ykydxT on 26/06/2020 - 20:42
    +3

    Thanks OP, bought one. I was waiting for a b450m Mortar Max deal, just couldn't say no to such a great price for a x470

    • Void on 26/06/2020 - 20:42

      IIRC this has 2 M.2 connectors too. This is a great deal!

  • jp1011 on 26/06/2020 - 20:45

    Is there a list of which mobo brands/models are committed to updating 400 series boards for Zen 3?
    Haven't been able to find anything concrete along these lines and quite likely some brands won't bother updating.
    Thanks!

    • Void on 26/06/2020 - 20:46
      +1

      So far I believe only MSI have confirmed support, no word from others. MSI seem to be knocking it out of the park with their AM4 boards.

      • jp1011 on 26/06/2020 - 21:00

        Thanks for the info!
        Was hoping to save some money on a B450m board by going with Gigabyte over the Mortar Max, but their online rep said the update still isn't confirmed.
        Hopefully a few other vendors will come to the party soon, really sucks how little B450 pricing has been affected by B550's launch.

        • Void on 26/06/2020 - 21:02

          That's because B550 isn't really competing with B450, it's so much more expensive.

          • jp1011 on 26/06/2020 - 21:07

            @Void: Yep exactly :| It makes sense how it is but its a shame it turned out like this because B550 is overkill for a lot of users and just ends up overlapping X570.

  • BuyNowThinkLater on 26/06/2020 - 20:48

    Would this already have updated BIOS?

    • Fatboy74 on 26/06/2020 - 20:48
      +3

      For Zen2 (Ryzen 3xxx)? Yes out of the box ready.

      • BuyNowThinkLater on 26/06/2020 - 20:49
        +1

        Yes, planning on building my own pc. Thanks for the confirmation!

        • Fatboy74 on 26/06/2020 - 20:50

          No worries :)

    • Void on 26/06/2020 - 20:49
      +3

      Yes as it is a "MAX" series board. It comes with a 32MB BIOS chip to fit all the new CPU microcodes too without losing support for the old ones.

  • Viospeed on 26/06/2020 - 20:51
    +1

    Does any1 know if the core clock voltage settings are normal or they do use offsets?

    • Void on 26/06/2020 - 20:51

      At least on other MSI boards, they let you use both static (manual) voltage and offset. I don't see why this would be an exception.

      Edit: They call static voltage "override".

    • MrChadley on 26/06/2020 - 20:58

      Yes msi boards use offsets

  • Scalding Coffee Cup on 26/06/2020 - 20:55

    Is this good for 3300x? I'm a complete novice, and thinking of building, and someone had recommended "MSI B450M-A PRO MAX Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard" for $110.

    • Void on 26/06/2020 - 20:56
      +2

      That is a decent-ish budget board. If it's gonna hinder the rest of your core components spending another $60 I say don't get this one. The 3300X is only a 65W chip so VRMs aren't a big issue.

      Edit: To answer your question lol… yes this is a good board but I don't think it's worth it if you are going to have to skimp on your GPU or your RAM.

    • MrChadley on 26/06/2020 - 21:00
      +1

      Spending extra now for x470 is good if you plan on upgrading in the future for a higher end 3000 series chip or the upcoming 4000 series. Otherwise either board will work fine with the 3300x :).

    • MrChadley on 26/06/2020 - 21:01
      +4

      Also as rajeh said above don't skimp on something like your gpu for this mb. A better gpu will provide many more benefits over a higher end mb.

      • Scalding Coffee Cup on 26/06/2020 - 21:05
        +1

        Thanks for this, I'll do some thinking about this!

    • jp1011 on 26/06/2020 - 21:05
      +2

      Be aware that the B450M-A Pro is a different size (smaller) than this one. So this X470 won't fit in the same cases as the B-450M, or the B-450M will be very small in a case that fits the X470!
      Also if you need wifi, the B450M-A Pro (only this model and not others) can't fit a wifi card + GPU because of the pcie slot layout.

      • Void on 26/06/2020 - 21:07
        +1

        Exactly! Noticed this when adding Wi-Fi to my Techfast PC. Using a ghetto method of spacing the fan and the Wi-Fi card PCB with cardboard :D No house fire so far…

        • jp1011 on 26/06/2020 - 21:13
          +1

          That wouldn't even work on this exact model (B450M-A pro) unless it was a 1-slot GPU. Most M-ATX mobos have (just) enough space for a 2-slot GPU + wifi, but the A-pro has the pcie x1 slot right under the x16 one so no access whatsoever. Pretty dumb design.

          • Void on 26/06/2020 - 21:14
            +1

            @jp1011: Oh yikes! Even by Biostar B45M2 has somewhat decent spacing.

      • Scalding Coffee Cup on 26/06/2020 - 21:07

        Okay that's a pretty interesting point. I would probably want wifi.

        Does this X470 have onboard wifi?

        • Void on 26/06/2020 - 21:08
          +1

          No, but if you get an ATX case this has room for expansion. In mATX form factor you are stuck with boards with built in Wi-Fi or 40mm maximum thickness GPUs.

        • jp1011 on 26/06/2020 - 21:09
          +1

          No it doesn't, but you can very easily add something like this: https://www.centrecom.com.au/tp-link-tl-wn881nd-300mbps-wire…

          • Void on 26/06/2020 - 21:11
            +2

            @jp1011: Not exactly sure I'd go for that specific one as it uses outdated 802.11n technology, but it serves as a good example.

            • jp1011 on 26/06/2020 - 21:17
              +2

              @Void: :S Used that one for a while lol, just recently upgraded to a dual band one with BT. Not sure I could really notice the difference with how terrible aussie wifi is anyway.
              On your point about mATX GPU limit, there are some that can fit a 3-slot + wifi card (eg. Mortar Max, Gigabyte S2H). They have 4 rows of pcie slots and honestly I have no idea why they don't all do that.
              I feel mATX would be much better off for becuase 4 expansion slots is all most people really need.

              • Void on 26/06/2020 - 21:18
                +2

                @jp1011: You need to have a 802.11ac router too, and also internet above 40Mbps to notice it. Yeah I think they should all have an x1 above the x16 too, would be much better for people who need Wi-Fi. Or even just more Wi-Fi mATX boards!

                Edit: Might as well point out the difference it made for me… 33mbps to 96mbps on NBN 100 with a $59 Netgear AC750 router on the NBN100 plan.

                • jp1011 on 26/06/2020 - 21:27
                  +1

                  @Void: That sounds pretty great! Wifi is out of my control so I have zero expertise lol.

  • piyJ on 26/06/2020 - 21:36

    Does anyone know if this would be a suitable substitute for a MSI B450 Tomahawk Max ATX ? I have already got a Ryzen 5 3600, GTX 1660 Super and M.2/SATA SSDs

    • Void on 26/06/2020 - 21:38
      +2

      It's far better than it unless you value USB Type-C.

      • piyJ on 26/06/2020 - 22:00

        Thank you very much OP, just bought one!

        Do you have any advice for buying a wifi adapter…I have a 802 n/b/g router and 16.4Mbps download/0.8Mbps upload. NBN may be in my area in a few years but I'll likely still stay with a cheaper plan.

        • Void on 26/06/2020 - 22:02
          +1

          If you're strapped for cash right now, an 802.11n card will do you justice. You can always upgrade to an 802.11ax one in future and the 802.11n one was only $20. If you want to futureproof now you can go 802.11ac (the limitations of it are beyond NBN right now anyway) or 802.11ax if you want to really future proof. I went with the Gigabyte GC-WBAX200 for $66 from Scorptec, which is an 802.11ax one. It wasn't really the selling point for me with an 802.11ac router, but it was like $5 more than an 802.11ac one (I needed bluetooth for my pspspsps controller) so I thought why not.

          • piyJ on 26/06/2020 - 22:18

            @Void: Alright, 802.11n will probably be the one I get. Thanks for all the information and helping me understand!

  • onyxsinon on 26/06/2020 - 21:41

    Should I get this motherboard or ASRock B450M Pro4-F ($129)? Thinking about it, the b450 will also be able to support ryzen 4000 cpu's right?

    • Void on 26/06/2020 - 21:44

      ASRock have not yet confirmed support, so it's a gamble but I'm willing to bet they will support it. Though this motherboard in particular is quite entry level, so it could be a selective thing they do. As I told youngjoon get this if you can (you need an ATX case for this one) without skimping on other core components like GPU or RAM.

  • Butanal on 26/06/2020 - 22:18

    Anyone know if the 2nd PCIe x16 slot can be used if a single GPU is used?

    • Void on 26/06/2020 - 22:28
      +1

      From this page I believe that if the top two PCIe 3.0 x16 slots are populated with PCIe 3.0 x16 expansion cards (GPUs included) they will lose bandwidth when things are connected to other slots or M.2 slots, as X470 has a total of 32 usable PCIe lanes. Since you are only using 1 video card, you still have 16 lanes free. So every other slot will work, however the second M.2 slot shares bandwidth with the bottom or 3rd PCIe 2.0 x16 slot so when the M.2 slot is populated that one will not work. I dunno it's really confusing, but to directly answer your question… yes.

      • Butanal on 26/06/2020 - 22:35

        Thanks for that, I've done a bit more digging. In the manual it specifies that you lose the second x16 slot if you have a single GPU in the first slot.

        • Void on 26/06/2020 - 22:39

          Ah ok, so you can use the bottom one as long as you don't also have a second M.2 NVMe SSD. Confusing…

          • RoboRat on 27/06/2020 - 00:41

            @Void: You have the option of using an M.2 SATA SSD. You gain back your bottom X16 slot but lose SATA1 port use.

            • Void on 27/06/2020 - 00:41

              @RoboRat: That's why I said M.2 NVMe SSD but maybe that won't click with some scrolling by.

  • Milbo00 on 26/06/2020 - 22:42

    Is this better than the MSI Max Mortar? I bought a Ryzen 7 3700x and am doing my first build. I dont really play games but want it for Video editing /productivity. I think the Max Mortar has USB-c?

    • Void on 26/06/2020 - 22:44
      +1

      Yes and no. If you want more PCIe slots then this is better, but if you want USB-C then that is better. Also more USB ports iirc.

  • netsurfer on 26/06/2020 - 22:42
    +1

    Really wish this board has the BIOS flashback button. Probably not an issue for now since MAX series should have BIOS support for Ryzen 3xxx series CPU. I do have issues with MSI B450 non-MAX boards in which the standard BIOS upgrade doesn't seem to work.

    • Void on 26/06/2020 - 22:44

      Still gonna be a pain when you buy this brand new with a 4000 series CPU though. I'd take rear panel CMOS reset any day over BIOS flashback though ;)

      • netsurfer on 27/06/2020 - 21:42

        Huh? The BIOS flashback allows you to flash the BIOS without a CPU. With CMOS reset button, all it does is reset the CMOS. You still need a supporting CPU and RAM.

        CMOS reset doesn't help you with BIOS upgrade issues. The issue I mentioned cannot be solved by CMOS reset.

        • Void on 27/06/2020 - 21:45

          Of course I know that. I just thing a CMOS reset button would personally be more useful, I reset CMOS many times a day in pursuit of perfect DRAM timings.

          • netsurfer on 27/06/2020 - 21:48

            @Void: That means dodgy motherboard BIOS. It is suppose to reset to factory default after 2-3 failed boots.

            Furthermore, there are software which read your RAM modules and tell you the settings, rather than manual trial and error.

            • Void on 27/06/2020 - 21:49

              @netsurfer: It is? I've never tried that in the first place. Maybe I should try it. Also sure there's a software that reads that, but it's nowhere near as good as manual trial and error. Like how am I supposed to calculate Samsung C-die? When I do it gives me garbage like 3733CL20 when I can easily do 3733CL18.

              • netsurfer on 27/06/2020 - 21:56

                @Void: Nah, it is a waste of time doing it manually. You can use the software as the baseline, rather than pure guess work. Furthermore, you don't mess around with RAM settings all the time. You need to run memory tests to properly confirm. Once you know your RAM's capability, manually tweak it non-stop won't change it.

                Anyway, if you are doing CMOS reset regularly, you are obviously pushing the RAM too hard. If you are that serious about RAM speed, why not just go for B-die?

                CMOS reset is something you do when you stuffed things up badly. Using it regularly doesn't mean the board is good. It means the user is messing around.

                • Void on 27/06/2020 - 22:00

                  @netsurfer: I just have an obsession with getting everything as tight as possible while maintaining 1.356V, I've kinda finished but it sure would've been nice. Also the calculator can't even calculate certain frequencies (3733 included, example above was just a thing I made up). I'm not getting B-die because I want to push what I have as far as possible safely, otherwise I'd just go out and buy 4000MHz RAM and have the work done for me.

                  • netsurfer on 27/06/2020 - 22:35

                    @Void: It's not about pushing RAM all the way, it is about using CMOS reset purely for that. That's just not the right way. My guess is you probably have an MSI board as some of their early BIOSes for Ryzen 3xxx is poorly written initially. However, MSI has fixed that last year already.

                    Also, if you are doing CMOS reset a lot, you are basically not doing enough proper testing before you raise the settings. You probably considered booting into Windows being okay to then move the RAM settings to the next level. Generally, memory modules don't just reach it max performance settings and once you go beyond that, it completely stops working. There is generally a region where it is not stable enough, once you reached that level, you shouldn't push it further. Pushing RAM all the way is risky as memory errors can corrupt files. As soon as I detect memory modules reached that unstable region, I would drop down a couple of notches to give them a bit of buffer room.

                    • Void on 27/06/2020 - 22:40

                      @netsurfer: I know what I'm doing. I just said I didn't know that it does that automatically, so I'd be doing that next time I come up with some whacky OC idea like FCLK 1900 or I discover some new setting in my BIOS. It's a Biostar B45M2. I test each timing for 45 minutes with TestMem5, of course booting into Windows is a terrible indicator of stability. This makes my point about the CMOS button irrelevant then.

  • G-rig on 27/06/2020 - 00:00

    Any max board can support New ones right
    B450 mortar max is the sweet spot I found

    • Void on 27/06/2020 - 00:02

      Yes. This one also has 2x M.2 slots, so it's superior to the Mortar MAX in every way except for USB Type-C.

      • G-rig on 27/06/2020 - 00:07
        +2

        Mortar Max has Two M.2 slots, only one USB C on the back, one on the front be nice

        • Void on 27/06/2020 - 00:08
          +1

          By also I meant that they both have two M.2 slots. Only very few X570s support front Type-C, but this almost only affects every basic bitch with the H510. (satire if you didn't already think that)

          • G-rig on 27/06/2020 - 00:38

            @Void: Yeah all good, I didn't bother with the Lian Li case in the end As mobo no front USB C.

            Anyway usually just get a mid-range board no sense in trying to future proof if paying double now

            • Void on 27/06/2020 - 00:40

              @G-rig: Yeah as I stated in the description AMD will probably move to AM5 for Zen 4 anyway so no point when AM4 is pretty much EOL.

              • G-rig on 27/06/2020 - 01:20

                @Void: Cool, still rocking a sandy bridge, The boot time on this new r7 3700x is 1.5s faster lol

      • Ryballs on 27/06/2020 - 09:10

        Actually Mortar MAX has better VRM. It's not recommended to OC 3950x (and likely some 4000 series too) on the Gaming Plus MAX, whereas the Mortar MAX is fine with good airflow: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1d9_E3h8bLp-TXr-0zTJF…

        • Void on 27/06/2020 - 10:49

          There's a lot of contradicting information, with some saying they are matched and others they aren't. You're really overblowing the VRM situation here, of course 4000 series will work on it. If the 4700X is a 65W chip that's barely anything for these VRMs, even if the 4900X is 105W that's fine. The 3950X is also a 105W chip so I expect it should be fine too with decent airflow on both boards. Tier lists aren't everything.

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