Question Best budget b550/b450 mobo with or without wifi (wifi preffered) and bios flashback under 180 bucks.

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Why_Me

Why_Me

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Jan 17, 2008
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smartmantech47

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Jan 30, 2021
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Nice. Can I have a lower cost one? Don't want to splurge money since this is a budget build. Example: is the B550 A-Pro or the vdh wifi version good? The Bazooka?
 
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tennis2

tennis2

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FYI, with AMD CPUs/mobos, it's generally advisable to stay moderately up-to-date on BIOS updates because they're still actively shoring up improving performance and/or compatibility. Assuming you buy a B550 board (which I'd recommend), if the board doesn't already ship with a Ryzen 5000 compatible BIOS version (with the supply shortages, pretty safe to assume most boards are going to have fairly new shipping BIOS versions), you should probably update the BIOS anyway.
 
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smartmantech47

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Most probably I'd like ATX. If not possible MATX. Not ITX. Just get me something under 600 that's nice and has flashback. Try to get me something with wifi because installing the Intel wifi 6 AX200 is a pain in the head.
 
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Karadjgne

Karadjgne

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smartmantech47 said:
bios flashback just in case something happens when I upgrade in the future.
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In the future....
That would mean you already have a cpu and dram installed, can install the latest bios, swap cpus.

Bios flashback is best used realistically if you are too lazy to update prior to cpu swap or are buying a new motherboard that doesn't have your cpus recognition.

It's a gimmick for the most part since it only works when combined with a USB that already contains the new bios which needs to be setup prior to the cpu swap, when the old cpu is still installed.

It's like buying a new car that comes with a 10year drive train warranty, and then getting a 5 year extended warranty as well, both of which start the same day, the day you buy the car.

It's honestly not needed, not for a possible 'future' update.
 
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smartmantech47

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Well things could happen and maybe the b550 I'm planning to get needs a bios update. Idk what do you think I don't want to get the kit from amd and pay shipping since it'll cost me a lot and I don't want to get another cpu
 
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tennis2

tennis2

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smartmantech47 said:
Well things could happen and maybe the b550 I'm planning to get needs a bios update. Idk what do you think I don't want to get the kit from amd and pay shipping since it'll cost me a lot and I don't want to get another cpu
Click to expand...
Every B550 board is guaranteed to ship with a Ryzen 3000 CPU compatible BIOS since B550 came out after Ryzen 3000.
  • Ryzen 3000 CPUs launched in November 2019
  • B550 mobos launched in June(ish?) 2020
Education time!!! (give a man a fish, teach a man to fish)
Here's what you do. This may look intimidating, but please follow along. It's a simple process that I've painstakingly assembled in great detail for YOU.
  • Identify what CPU you intend to buy.
  • Identify what mobo you intend to buy. (let's assume MSI B550M Mortar WiFi, even though this particular board has the BIOS flashback feature)
  • Navigate to the manufacturer's webpage for that paticular board
  • You're only GUARANTEED to get a mobo shipped with the lowest numerical value BIOS version since that was the initial BIOS version from when the board was first brought to market.
    • In the case of the B550M Mortar WiFi it's BIOS version 7C94v10
    • Any CPUs supported by BIOS version 7C94v10 are what you're GUARANTEED BIOS support for
    • If your selected CPU is supported by the lowest numerical BIOS version listed, STOP, you're guaranteed out-of-the-box compatibility.
  • While not guaranteed, you can figure in the amount of time that has elapsed since the board was brought to market and with estimated supply & demand, you can start to develop a PROBABILITY your selected board may ship with a newer BIOS version.
    • Again, in the case of the B550 Mortar WiFi, you'd need BIOS version 7C94v14 installed for Ryzen 5000 CPU compatibility.
    • Looking at the BIOS download page, we can see that BIOS version 14 was released on 11/4/2020 (6 months ago)
    • Considering the unprecedented supply shortages and demand increases in the past year or so, it's fairly safe to assume that most boards at retail will have been made in the past 6 months
  • Now, what if none of the above conditions are met (the CPU you want isn't supported by the lowest numerical BIOS version and you've decided that the probability of receiving a board that's been sitting on the shelf long enough to not have a compatible BIOS already installed):
    • If the board has BIOS flashback, that means you can update the BIOS without a CPU installed. Problem solved! (again many 500 series boards have BIOS flashback)
      • **My brother recently (early 2021) bought an AsRock B550M Steel Legend and a Ryzen 5600X. Although his board doesn't have BIOS flashback, and we determined that the board did NOT ship with the requisite Ryzen 5000 compatible BIOS (board wouldn't go any further than the BIOS/post screen), he was still able to update the BIOS with his [incompatible] Ryzen 5600X installed.
    • If your board doesn't have BIOS flashback, many brick-and-mortar PC component sellers can perform the BIOS update for you with an in-house CPU
    • If that doesn't work, AMD has a "loaner CPU" program for performing BIOS updates (not sure what the turnaround time is on this)
 
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