b450 or x470 for overclocking?

[mfields1077]

I am trying to decide on which motherboard to get:

-MSI B450 Gaming Pro Carbon AC
-Gigabyte X470 Gaming 5 Wifi

Im building a gaming rig around a Ryzen 5 2600, and i plan on overclocking at some point, and eventually i will want to put a better cpu in the board, so i guess im trying to future proof a little. Ive read the X470 has better vrm's for overclocking, and that board works best for 8 cores (which i may end up with in the future). Not much is known about the B450 boards apparently, but i have read that sustaining an overclocked cpu in one is more hazardous to the board because of heat.
The X470 is only $30 more, but will it really make that much difference? Are the B450's good enough? What are the major differences between an X470 and a B450? Please help!

 

[Hellfire13]

Depends on how much you plan to push the clocks. For mild to moderate OC to around 4ghz, a b450 is fine. For extreme clocks, a b450 might not be able to hold it stable. But then, for those kind of OC, you will need good cooling solution as well.
In my opinion, a few mhz above 4ghz that the x470 can accomodate, will not give you any ground breaking performance difference. Besides, the MSI OC software is also pretty dope.

 

[zebarjadi.raouf]

What are the major differences between an X470 and a B450?

More Ports, VRMs, PCIs, Support, Durabiliy, Heatsink, etc. Anything the B450 has, the equivalent X470 is usually better at it. But the difference is not that big.

Ive read the X470 has better vrm's for overclocking

More VRMs, don't directly translate to higher OC. One reason it helps is by distributing the load, therefore, cooling VRMs temp. So it can help when the airflow is bad.
For comparison, take a look:
ASUS ROG STRIX B450
ASUS ROG STRIX X470
----------------
In my opinion, if you're not upgrading in a year, get the X470. You might get a great deal on a 2700/2700X later on and regret that you didn't buy X470 then.

 

[mfields1077]

What are the major differences between an X470 and a B450?

More Ports, VRMs, PCIs, Support, Durabiliy, Heatsink, etc. Anything the B450 has, the equivalent X470 is usually better at it. But the difference is not the big.

Ive read the X470 has better vrm's for overclocking

More VRMs, don't directly translate to higher OC. One reason it helps is by distributing the load, therefore, cooling VRMs temp. So it can help when the airflow is bad.
For comparison, take a look:
ASUS ROG STRIX B450
ASUS ROG STRIX X470
----------------
In my opinion, if you're not upgrading in a year, get the X470. You might get a great deal on a 2700/2700X later on and regret that you didn't buy X470 then.

Seems like the X470 is a safer bet. Is the 2700x the best cpu that it will take? Can it take threadripper?

 

[mfields1077]

Ok, so any ideas on which X470 is better, Gigabyte, MSI, or ASUS?

 

[Hellfire13]

Ok, so any ideas on which X470 is better, Gigabyte, MSI, or ASUS?

This can give you some idea... https://www.techspot.com/bestof/amd-x470-motherboards/

 

[Karadjgne]

Threadripper is a different socket, so no it doesn't work out for that.

As far as best, that's for you to decide vrs needs. Games use less than 12 threads, most multi thread games use about 8 at best, and the vast majority of slightly older games use less than 4 threads. So even with its clock speeds, a 2700x is vastly overpriced since it's vastly under used. If you are majorly multitasking, running encoding and rendering programs etc that's a different story, then the massive thread count makes a quite large difference compared to the budget cpus. So just because it's currently top of AM4 food chain, doesn't always mean it's the best for your application.

 

[zebarjadi.raouf]

Is the 2700x the best cpu that it will take?

Right now, Yes. Also, any AM4 socket CPU can be used. And I doubt you would need anything more.

Can it take threadripper?

No, TR needs TR4 socket. A different kind of motherboards (X399).

Gigabyte, MSI, or ASUS?

Pick any you like? The difference between brands (at the same level) is mostly aesthetics. Even if one is better at let's say overclocking, it would be 0.1-0.2GHz at most which is negligible.

You can also use the link recommended by Hellfire13 to gain an idea.

So just because it's currently top of AM4 food chain, doesn't always mean it's the best for your application

Uhmm, Karadjgne, The OP never said he wants to buy a 2700X now, he said he will want upgrade later on. Also, you never know what you might do in the future. I bought an i7 PC for gaming and now I'm using it for encoding, rendering and university stuff.

 

[Karadjgne]

"Seems like the X470 is a safer bet. Is the 2700x the best cpu that it will take? Can it take threadripper?"

Not everybody gets into streaming videos, rendering, encoding etc. Nor have any need or desire too. It's going to be years until games really start taking full advantage of all the cores/threads available in top line cpus. Really not much different than when amd dropped the fx8 series on ppl, games were only running 1-2 threads. For a gaming oriented pc, a 2700x is a waste at 8c/16t, the 2600x at 6c/12t is a far better value, and when Op does decide to upgrade, the 3600x or 4600x or whatever at 6c/12t will still be a good upgrade. More cores doesn't always make a better cpu for mostly gaming, and even the occasional render or encode or compile runs just fine on 12t.

I bought my i5 and i7 back when ppl were still spouting that an i7 was a waste, games don't use 4 threads. Now they do, and more, and my i7 is still sorta relevant. But thats software finally catching upto the hardware capabilities. By the time software catches up to using a 2700x capabilities in any realistic capacity, the 3x/4x AM4 will be out, and Op will have far better options for whatever future use he intends.