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AMD has delivered another punch to Intel, launching its flagship batch of Ryzen 9000 series. While these CPUs don’t have vertically stacked 3D cache, there’s still plenty of cache under the hood, along with other architectural changes and the same impressive power efficiency. This guide focuses on the Ryzen 9 9900X, which we have also reviewed. So, if you’re looking to purchase it, here are the best motherboards to pair it with.
Here is a comparison table for our top selections.
Table setup not completed.Best Motherboards For Ryzen 9 9900X
Alright then, here are my picks, all selected after thorough testing and comparison.
- Best Overall: GIGABYTE X670E AORUS MASTER
- Best Value: MSI MAG B650 Tomahawk WiFi
- Best For Overclocking: MSI MEG X670E ACE Gaming
- Best White: ASRock X670E STEEL LEGEND
Gigabyte X670E AORUS MASTER
Best Overall Motherboard For Ryzen 9 9900X
Chipset: AMD X670E | Memory: DDR5-8000+ (OC) | VRM: 16+2+2 | Video Outputs: HDMI 2.1, DisplayPort 1.4, USB 3.2 Gen 2 10Gbps | RGB Lighting: Yes | Network: Wi-Fi 6E, Intel 2.5G LAN, Bluetooth 5.3 | Storage: 4x M.2 (2x PCIe 5.0), 6x SATA 6G | USB Ports: 12x Rear, 9x Front
Pros
- Great onboard cooling
- Memory support up to DDR5-8000
- 2x PCIe 5.0 M.2 slots
- A good amount of rear USB ports
Cons
- Expensive
- No USB 4.0 ports
The X670E Aorus Master features a classy design, with the 8-layered PCB and the heatsinks showing a mix of matte black and grey. We get an RGB-illuminated AORUS logo over the chipset heatsink, and I think it blends nicely with the overall theme. The VRMs have a 16+2+2 phase design, which proves more than enough for the 9900x, even with a slight boost (5.1GHz), while maxing out at a cool 46°C.
It sports 2x PCIe 5.0 M.2 ports plus 2x PCIe 4.0 standard, which are also cooled by the Thermal Guard technology, so things stayed breezy regarding temperatures. There are 3x additional PCIe slots and 6x SATA 3.0 ports to fulfill all your storage needs. Memory support is up to 192 GB of DDR5 (up to 8000 MT/s). Also, it has plenty of rear USB ports (12), but I would’ve liked to see USB 4 in this price bracket.
Testing this powerhouse of a board, here’s what reviewer Nauman Siddique had to say:
The GIGABYTE X670E AORUS MASTER has more than what meets the eye. In its brilliance, this motherboard packs the features that one would need to drive their high-end needs in computing. We are impressed with every bit of it. It not only has top-notch performance but quite some style as well. GIGABYTE has covered all the major corners and left no stone unturned.
What Makes It The Best Overall Motherboard For The Ryzen 9 9900X?
The X670E Aorus Master ticks all the boxes, whether its looks, performance, or features. It comes with the PCIe 5.0 of the X670E chipset, with plenty of room for SATA storage and many USB ports onboard. The memory support is also great, and the cooling performance from the heatsinks impressed me.
If you’re looking for a capable motherboard for your Ryzen 9 9900X, I’d recommend the X670E Aorus Master, and the recommendation wouldn’t change unless you have very particular requirements, like a USB 4 port.
– Dr. Usman Saleem
| Performance: 9/10 | Value: 7.5/10 |
| Features: 9.5/10 | Design: 9/10 |
MSI MAG B650 Tomahawk WiFi
Best Value Motherboard For Ryzen 9 9900X
Chipset: AMD B650 | Memory: DDR5-7600+ (OC) | VRM: 14+2+1 | Video Outputs: HDMI 2.1, DisplayPort 1.4 | RGB Lighting: No | Network: Wi-Fi 6E, Realtek 2.5G LAN, Bluetooth 5.3 | Storage: 3x M.2 (PCIe 4.0 x4), 6x SATA 6G | USB Ports: 12x Rear, 11x Front
Pros
- Affordable
- Good set of features for the price
Cons
- No M.2 PCIe 5.0 slot
Right off the bat, the MAG B650 Tomahawk WiFi presents a minimalistic yet sleek, all-black look. There’s no room for RGB, which wouldn’t have suited it so well anyway if you ask me. The board features a 14+2+1 VRM design, cooled by a beefy heatsink with 7W/mK thermal pads. Things went smoothly during our intensive stress testing, and I was also very impressed with the VRM cooling that kept things chill throughout.
The motherboard supports DDR5 speeds up to (7600 MT/s), an upgrade from the initial 6400 MT/s. There are 3x PCIe 4.0 x4 M.2 (2x being cooled by the M.2 Shield Frozr technology), but none of PCIe 5.0. Its 10x rear USB ports include a 20Gbps Type-C port. It also features WiFi 6E and 2.5GbE LAN, which is fairly standard, but overall, I found the I/O selection superimpressive for this class.
I was blown away by this board’s impressive value when I tested it; here’s what I said:
The MSI MAG B650 Tomahawk WiFi motherboard delivers robust performance at an affordable price, making it a great value for budget-conscious users. The motherboard features comprehensive USB connectivity with 23 ports, including a USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type-C. Overall, I recommend it to anyone looking for a bang-for-the-buck B650 motherboard.
What Makes It The Best Value Motherboard For The Ryzen 9 9900X?
At $190, I found no better budget option than the MAG B650 Tomahawk WiFi, and you certainly shouldn’t underestimate it. Its plain black aesthetic can make it fit into any black build. The VRMs adequately support the Ryzen 9 9900X while staying cool; there is plenty of room for storage and USB, plus the memory support is superb. Just keep your expectations in line if you’re thinking of overclocking the 9900X on this board.
| Performance: 8/10 | Value: 9.5/10 |
| Features: 8/10 | Design: 8/10 |
MSI MEG X670E ACE
Best Overclocking Motherboard For Ryzen 9 9900X
Chipset: AMD X670E | Memory: DDR5-8000+ (OC) | VRM: 22+2+1 | Video Outputs: USB 3.2 Gen 2 10Gbps | RGB Lighting: Yes | Network: Wi-Fi 6E, Realtek 10G LAN, Bluetooth 5.3 | Storage: 4x M.2 (1x PCIe 5.0), 6x SATA 6G | USB Ports: 11x Rear, 14x Front
Pros
- Excellent overclocking performance
- High-end audio codec
- 10G LAN port
- DDR5 support up to 8000
- Convenient design for M.2 slots
Cons
- Very expensive
- No USB 4.0 ports
The MEG X670E ACE has a stealthy black look with a hint of golden, which looks neat without any over-the-top elements. There are 4x RGB lighting zones, and a large part of the motherboard is covered by its heatsinks, which makes it one of the heavier motherboards I’ve tested. The VRM design (22+2+1) includes 90A power stages for the CPU VCore, proving enough to run the 9900X stably at 5.4GHz.
We have room for 4x M.2 drives (1x on PCIe 5.0), and an additional 2x PCIe 5.0 drives can be installed with the included PCIe card. For memory, it supports up to 128GB of DDR5 (up to 8000 MT/s). Lastly, the motherboard has a high-speed 10GbE LAN port and Realtek’s high-end ALC4082 audio processor.
The MEG X670E ACE’s overclocking potential was not the only factor that impressed motherboard me; here’s what I had to say after testing it in my review:
The MSI MEG X670E ACE is a flagship motherboard that packs solid performance and is a feature-rich solution for your AMD platform. Its main features like 3x PCIe Gen5 slots, a total of 3x Gen5 M.2 ports, V-Check points, Dual BIOS, Beefy power delivery with effective cooling, a perfect combination of USB ports, and whatnot make it stand out from the competition.
What Makes It The Best Overclocking Motherboard For The Ryzen 9 9900X?
From my testing, the MEG X670E ACE proved excellent for overclocking, allowing me to run the 9900X at 5.4GHz stably. That’s not the only area where it impressed (as it should be, given the price tag): the motherboard is built like a tank, has plenty of (subtle) RGB, and has excellent onboard cooling. The memory support, wired LAN, and Audio codecs are also high-end.
| Performance: 9.5/10 | Value: 7/10 |
| Features: 9.5/10 | Design: 9/10 |
ASRock X670E Steel Legend
Best White Motherboard for Ryzen 9 9900X
Chipset: AMD X670E| Memory: DDR5-7600+ (OC) | VRM: 16+2+1 | Video Outputs: HDMI 2.1, DisplayPort 1.4 | RGB Lighting: Yes | Network: Wi-Fi 6E, Gigabit 2.5G + 1G LAN, Bluetooth 5.2 | Storage: 4x M.2 (1x PCIe 5.0 x4), 4x SATA 6G | USB Ports: 12x Rear, 9x Front
Pros
- Affordable for an X670E board
- Good build quality
- Impressive onboard cooling
- Included metal GPU bracket
Cons
- Design may not be for everyone
The X670E Steel Legend from ASRock has its fair bits of camo elements, but there is enough white to fit in with just about any white-themed build. Two integrated RGB strips provide more than enough bling to please the RGB lovers. The heatsinks occupy a significant area, and the 16 VRM phases were kept under 55°C during my testing. I tested this board with the 170W 7950X earlier, and so, of course, it was enough for the 9900X, too.
Moving on, the Steel Legend provides decent connectivity, including compulsory PCIe 5.0 x16 (GPU) and PCIe 5.0 x4 (M.2) slots. There are also 3x PCIe 4 x4 M.2 slots and, interestingly, two LAN ports (2.5G and 1G). Memory support is up to an impressive 7600 MT/s, but I only tested my 6400 MT/s kits (the recommended speeds for Ryzen 9000) and had no trouble.
What Makes It The Best White Motherboard For The Ryzen 9 9900X?
With its mix of camouflage and white, plus integrated RGB strips, the X670E Steel Legend looks great. It can not only fit into any white build but will also look good in black-themed builds. With a fair price tag, you get a PCIe 5.0 M.2 slot, dual LAN ports, memory support up to DDR5-7600, and a metal GPU bracket to accommodate behemoth cards like the RTX 4090.
I have also tested the B650e variant of this motherboard:
| Performance: 8/10 | Value: 8.5/10 |
| Features: 8/10 | Design: 8/10 |
Specifications Comparison
Looking for the motherboard with the highest number of M.2 ports or the best memory support? This comparison table will make it easier:
| Motherboard Model | Total Power Phases | Max Memory Speed (MT/s) | Max Memory Capacity (GB) | No. of M.2 slots | No. of SATA III ports | No. of USB ports (Front) | No. of USB ports (Rear) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gigabyte X670E Aorus Master | 20 | 8000 | 192 | 4 | 6 | 9 | 12 |
| MSI MAG B650 Tomahawk WiFi | 17 | 7600 | 256 | 3 | 6 | 11 | 12 |
| MSI MEG X670E ACE Gaming | 25 | 8000 | 128 | 4 | 6 | 14 | 11 |
| ASRock X670E Steel Legend WiFi | 19 | 7600 | 128 | 4 | 4 | 9 | 12 |
Motherboard Choices That Just Missed The List
The four motherboards we narrowed down to were after much testing, but that doesn’t mean there weren’t other strong contenders. Here are a couple of boards that only just missed out:
- Gigabyte B650 Aorus Elite AX Ice: An excellent option for white builds, but we were let down by the Audio codec, which is advertised as “HiFi audio,” but isn’t adequate for high-end HiFi headphones, as tested by us.
- Asus TUF Gaming X670E-PLUS WiFi: This motherboard was a solid performer, but we weren’t quite satisfied with the VRM temperatures while testing it with the Ryzen 9 9900X.
Key Terms To Look For When Buying A Motherboard
Buying a motherboard can be a bit confusing, especially if you are not aware of what all the different terms mean – here are some quick definitions to get you up to speed:
- VRM: A Voltage Regulatory Module (or VRM) converts power for the CPU to make sure it gets the right amount.
- Chipset: It acts as the motherboard’s traffic controller, managing data between components.
- Socket: It is where the CPU sits and connects to the motherboard.
- DIMM Slot: It holds the RAM sticks, giving your system memory.
- PCIe Slot: This is where you plug in graphics cards and other expansion cards.
- Heatsink: A heatsink helps keep your VRMs, SSDs, and other components cool by dissipating heat.
- Form Factor: The size and shape of the motherboard, mostly Mini-ITX, MicroATX, ATX, and e-ATX.
How We Tested These Motherboards
My team and I have been hard at work to test a huge number of different motherboards for the Ryzen 9000 series processors. Throughout our testing, we focused the most on these aspects:
- Chipset: The 9900X is a high-end CPU. As such, it is only fair to get a high-end chipset motherboard that offers great connectivity and performance for it. That’s why most of our picks use the X670e boards.
- VRM Design: Of course, we did not compromise on the VRM structure at all. I made sure that every board I recommended offered excellent power design to deliver rock-solid power.
- Features: I also scrutinized based on several other features like connectivity, storage, audio, networking, debug LEDs, and more.
- Value: We can never ignore the price tag. That’s why my motherboard picks offer the right balance between a great set of features, top-tier performance, and relatively good pricing.
FAQs
The Ryzen 9900X supports AMD’s 600- and 800-series chipset of motherboards.
Yes, the Ryzen 9 9900X is a great choice over the 7950X as it performs phenomenally across the board.
No, AMD has completely shifted to DDR5 RAM from the Ryzen 7000 series. That’s why you can only use DDR5 RAM on a Ryzen 9 9900X build.
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[Reviews Specialist]
Usman Saleem brings 8+ years of comprehensive PC hardware expertise to the table. His journey in the tech world has involved in-depth tech analysis and insightful PC hardware reviews, perfecting over 6+ years of dedicated work. Usman’s commitment to staying authentic and relevant in the field is underscored by many professional certifications, including a recent one in Google IT Support Specialization.
8+ years of specialized PC hardware coverage
6+ years of in-depth PC hardware analysis and reviews
Lead PC hardware expert across multiple tech journalism platforms
Certified in Google IT Support Specialization
Get In Touch: usman@old.tech4gamers.com
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