• Welcome to TechPowerUp Forums, Guest! Please check out our forum guidelines for info related to our community.

NZXT Rolls Out the N7 B550 Socket AM4 Motherboard

btarunr

Editor & Senior Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Oct 9, 2007
Messages
46,274 (7.69/day)
Location
Hyderabad, India
System Name RBMK-1000
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 5700G
Motherboard ASUS ROG Strix B450-E Gaming
Cooling DeepCool Gammax L240 V2
Memory 2x 8GB G.Skill Sniper X
Video Card(s) Palit GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER GameRock
Storage Western Digital Black NVMe 512GB
Display(s) BenQ 1440p 60 Hz 27-inch
Case Corsair Carbide 100R
Audio Device(s) ASUS SupremeFX S1220A
Power Supply Cooler Master MWE Gold 650W
Mouse ASUS ROG Strix Impact
Keyboard Gamdias Hermes E2
Software Windows 11 Pro
NZXT, a leading designer of computer hardware, software, and services for the PC gaming community, today announces the release of the NZXT N7 B550 motherboard, the first AMD motherboard in NZXT's N7 motherboard lineup. NZXT is expanding the N7 lineup to bring the sleek, seamless design of the N7 ATX motherboard to more gamers. The N7 B550 has optimally placed port locations, supports the latest technology like PCIe gen 4 and WiFi 6e, and gives PC builders the tools they need to create a beautifully modern build.

The N7 B550 includes key features from our RGB and Fan Controller, allowing intuitive control of four RGB lighting channels and seven fan channels through NZXT CAM. Lighting accessories from all manufacturers are supported. The metal cover is available in white or black for a seamless look that blends into the background of any NZXT H Series case for a clean aesthetic.



Building Made Easier
The N7 B550 has the latest wireless standards such as WiFi 6E connectivity and utilizes all PCI express lanes available from the CPU and chipset. The N7's layout streamlines installation with an integrated rear I/O shield and optimally placed headers for easier setup.

N7 B550 Features
  • Designed with AMD's B550 Chipset
  • Compatible with AMD Ryzen 5000, 4000, and 3000 series CPUs.
  • PCIe 4.0 support
  • 12+2 DrMOS Power Phase Design and 6 layer PCB
  • Intel Wi-Fi 6E wireless connectivity and Bluetooth V5.2
  • Two M.2 connectors for storage devices
  • Supports memory overclocking speeds of up to 4733 MHz and XMP
  • 8-channel high-definition audio
  • Metal cover made to match NZXT H Series cases
  • MSRP Pricing: $229.99
Availability:
  • USA: Now at NZXT.com
  • Rest of the World: Now

View at TechPowerUp Main Site
 
Joined
Oct 22, 2014
Messages
13,210 (3.83/day)
Location
Sunshine Coast
System Name Black Box
Processor Intel Xeon E3-1260L v5
Motherboard MSI E3 KRAIT Gaming v5
Cooling Tt tower + 120mm Tt fan
Memory G.Skill 16GB 3600 C18
Video Card(s) Asus GTX 970 Mini
Storage Kingston A2000 512Gb NVME
Display(s) AOC 24" Freesync 1m.s. 75Hz
Case Corsair 450D High Air Flow.
Audio Device(s) No need.
Power Supply FSP Aurum 650W
Mouse Yes
Keyboard Of course
Software W10 Pro 64 bit
Sweet, but not listed on their site when I look.
 

TheLostSwede

News Editor
Joined
Nov 11, 2004
Messages
15,998 (2.26/day)
Location
Sweden
System Name Overlord Mk MLI
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D
Motherboard Gigabyte X670E Aorus Master
Cooling Noctua NH-D15 SE with offsets
Memory 32GB Team T-Create Expert DDR5 6000 MHz @ CL30-34-34-68
Video Card(s) Gainward GeForce RTX 4080 Phantom GS
Storage 1TB Solidigm P44 Pro, 2 TB Corsair MP600 Pro, 2TB Kingston KC3000
Display(s) Acer XV272K LVbmiipruzx 4K@160Hz
Case Fractal Design Torrent Compact
Audio Device(s) Corsair Virtuoso SE
Power Supply be quiet! Pure Power 12 M 850 W
Mouse Logitech G502 Lightspeed
Keyboard Corsair K70 Max
Software Windows 10 Pro
Benchmark Scores https://valid.x86.fr/5za05v
I guess they haven't updated their website yet...

screencapture-nzxt-categories-motherboards-2021-03-25-20_24_40.png
 
Joined
Jun 10, 2014
Messages
788 (0.22/day)
Location
Poland
System Name Proper
Processor 5900X + OC
Motherboard GB X570s Elite AX
Cooling WC Heatkiller 3.0 LT
Memory G.Skill 3600 CL16
Video Card(s) Zotac RTX 3070 Ti Trinity LC'ed + OC
Storage KC2500 1TB + A2000 1TB
Display(s) GB M32Q
Case Fractal Define R6 USB C
Audio Device(s) Creative AE-7 + Phonic AM120
Power Supply Seasonic Prime PX-850
Mouse Log G502 X LS
Keyboard Keychron K5 Opt.brown
I hope they upgraded both the VRM and it's cooling compared to their Z490 board. Also, the back I/O was poor, another thing to improve.

Good to see wi-fi and USB C front header though.
 
Joined
Mar 14, 2018
Messages
148 (0.07/day)
Looks like there is no longer the need for a case if the MB looks like that...
 
Joined
Feb 20, 2019
Messages
7,192 (3.86/day)
System Name Bragging Rights
Processor Atom Z3735F 1.33GHz
Motherboard It has no markings but it's green
Cooling No, it's a 2.2W processor
Memory 2GB DDR3L-1333
Video Card(s) Gen7 Intel HD (4EU @ 311MHz)
Storage 32GB eMMC and 128GB Sandisk Extreme U3
Display(s) 10" IPS 1280x800 60Hz
Case Veddha T2
Audio Device(s) Apparently, yes
Power Supply Samsung 18W 5V fast-charger
Mouse MX Anywhere 2
Keyboard Logitech MX Keys (not Cherry MX at all)
VR HMD Samsung Oddyssey, not that I'd plug it into this though....
Software W10 21H1, barely
Benchmark Scores I once clocked a Celeron-300A to 564MHz on an Abit BE6 and it scored over 9000.
Are these any good yet? Last few reviews I read, confirmed by plenty of forum posts of people with issues, is that NZXT weren't the best designed boards. The OEM (ECS) aren't doing anything wrong, there's just some inexperience showing through in the BIOS, Layout, and PCH/Chipset integration.

Combined with the "Vanity over functionality" and ridiculous overpricing, I honestly haven't been paying NZXT boards any attention for the last year or so.

This particular model appears to be double the price of very good existing boards from Tier1 manufacturers, and seems to completely lack adequate cooling for the VRMs and the B550 chipset. Yes, B550 can be passively-cooled, but you don't want to shield it from aiflow with some decorative shroud, nor are some tiny holes over the heatsink going to fix the fact that it's shielded from airflow.
 
Joined
Sep 1, 2020
Messages
2,015 (1.55/day)
Location
Bulgaria
Yes there in web has info for model with z590 but also is in R&D phase. Website is soooo outdated that one can imagine that the administrators are dead. :D
 
Joined
Aug 21, 2013
Messages
1,669 (0.43/day)
I hope they upgraded both the VRM and it's cooling compared to their Z490 board. Also, the back I/O was poor, another thing to improve.

Good to see wi-fi and USB C front header though.
They are as good as the OEM that makes the boards for them. For Z390 it was ECS. It was a low end design. For Z490 they "upgraded" to AsRock but that was also bad because AsRock botched their Z490 lineup and even blacklisted several Youtubers who dared to complain about their bad Z490 boards.
 
D

Deleted member 205776

Guest
Maybe it's just me but I like seeing all the chips and capacitors.
 
Joined
Aug 2, 2012
Messages
1,759 (0.41/day)
Location
Netherlands
System Name TheDeeGee's PC
Processor Intel Core i7-11700
Motherboard ASRock Z590 Steel Legend
Cooling Noctua NH-D15
Memory Crucial Ballistix 3200/C16 4x8GB
Video Card(s) Nvidia RTX 4070 Ti 12GB
Storage Crucial P5 Plus 2TB / Crucial P3 Plus 2TB / Crucial P3 Plus 4TB
Display(s) EIZO CX240
Case Fractal Design Define 7
Audio Device(s) Creative Sound Blaster ZXR, AKG K601 Headphones
Power Supply Seasonic Fanless TX-700
Mouse Logitech G500s
Keyboard Keychron Q6
Software Windows 10 Pro 64-Bit
Benchmark Scores None, as long as my games runs smooth.
Hopefully it has no exposed 12 volt plane in the screw holes :p
 
Joined
Mar 7, 2011
Messages
3,883 (0.81/day)
Overclock3D has posted a full review, overall IO looks good but I will wait for detailed VRM report of this board to find out how it compares against competition.
 
Joined
Sep 28, 2012
Messages
963 (0.23/day)
System Name Poor Man's PC
Processor AMD Ryzen 5 7500F
Motherboard MSI B650M Mortar WiFi
Cooling ID Cooling SE 206 XT
Memory 32GB GSkill Flare X5 DDR5 6000Mhz
Video Card(s) Sapphire Pulse RX 6800 XT
Storage XPG Gammix S70 Blade 2TB + 8 TB WD Ultrastar DC HC320
Display(s) Mi Gaming Curved 3440x1440 144Hz
Case Cougar MG120-G
Audio Device(s) MPow Air Wireless + Mi Soundbar
Power Supply Enermax Revolution DF 650W Gold
Mouse Logitech MX Anywhere 3
Keyboard Logitech Pro X + Kailh box heavy pale blue switch + Durock stabilizers
VR HMD Meta Quest 2
Benchmark Scores Who need bench when everything already fast?
Overclock3D has posted a full review, overall IO looks good but I will wait for detailed VRM report of this board to find out how it compares against competition.

I saw it, albeit faint, more likely 4 phases triple inductors, using uPI power stages.
 
Joined
Oct 7, 2018
Messages
116 (0.06/day)
Location
Pennsylvania, USA
Processor AMD Ryzen 5900X
Motherboard MSI MAG B550 Mortar
Cooling ARCTIC COOLING Liquid Freezer II 240
Memory G.SKILL Flare X Series 32GB (4 x 8GB) 288-Pin DDR4 SDRAM DDR4 3200
Video Card(s) EVGA GeForce GTX 2080 FTW3 Ultra, 08G-P4-2287-KR, 8GB GDDR6
Storage 1 x Samsung 980 PRO 500G | 1 x Mushkin Enhanced Pilot-E M.2 2280 2TB | 2 x 1TB WD10EADS
Display(s) 1 x ASUS ROG PG259QNR, 1 x Dell ST2421L
Case Lian Li O11D MINI-X
Audio Device(s) SteelSeries Arctis 5
Power Supply Seasonic FOCUS SGX-650, 650W
Mouse Mionix NAOS QG
Keyboard SteelSeries Apex Pro
Software Windows 10 Pro 21H1
Can anyone confirm if ECS or ASROCK is the OEM for this new board? Thanks.
 

iO

Joined
Jul 18, 2012
Messages
526 (0.12/day)
Location
Germany
Processor R7 5700x
Motherboard MSI B450i Gaming
Cooling Accelero Mono CPU Edition
Memory 16 GB VLP
Video Card(s) AMD RX 6700 XT
Storage P34A80 512GB
Display(s) LG 27UM67 UHD
Case none
Power Supply SS G-650
Joined
Mar 1, 2021
Messages
386 (0.34/day)
Location
Germany
System Name Homebase
Processor Ryzen 5 5600
Motherboard Gigabyte Aorus X570S UD
Cooling Scythe Mugen 5 RGB
Memory 2*16 Kingston Fury DDR4-3600 double ranked
Video Card(s) AMD Radeon RX 6800 16 GB
Storage 1*512 WD Red SN700, 1*2TB Curcial P5, 1*2TB Sandisk Plus (TLC), 1*14TB Toshiba MG
Display(s) Philips E-line 275E1S
Case Fractal Design Torrent Compact
Power Supply Corsair RM850 2019
Mouse Sharkoon Sharkforce Pro
Keyboard Fujitsu KB955
It is made by ASRock.

Source in german:

 

Space Lynx

Astronaut
Joined
Oct 17, 2014
Messages
15,800 (4.58/day)
Location
Kepler-186f
Surprised I am the first comment linking this N7 name with Mass Effect remaster coming out in May. :roll:
 
Joined
Oct 18, 2013
Messages
5,413 (1.42/day)
Location
Everywhere all the time all at once
System Name The Little One
Processor i5-11320H @4.4GHZ
Motherboard AZW SEI
Cooling Fan w/heat pipes + side & rear vents
Memory 64GB Crucial DDR4-3200 (2x 32GB)
Video Card(s) Iris XE
Storage WD Black SN850X 4TB m.2, Seagate 2TB SSD + SN850 4TB x2 in an external enclosure
Display(s) 2x Samsung 43" & 2x 32"
Case Practically identical to a mac mini, just purrtier in slate blue, & with 3x usb ports on the front !
Audio Device(s) Yamaha ATS-1060 Bluetooth Soundbar & Subwoofer
Power Supply 65w brick
Mouse Logitech MX Master 2
Keyboard Logitech G613 mechanical wireless
Software Windows 10 pro 64 bit, with all the unnecessary background shitzu turned OFF !
Benchmark Scores PDQ
The N7 B550 has optimally placed port locations
Although the ports may be in optimal locations, the ATX connector sure as hell is not... it's still facing upwards instead of outwards like it should be for a cleaner looking connection. And also, why are all the fan connectors at the top edge blocked by the VRM cooling shroud ?, meaning you have to route all your fan cables around, or even worse, underneath it.... 2 very MAJOR fails IMHO :)

Good to see wi-fi and USB C front header though.

^^Agreed^^ 'bout friggin time :roll:
 

tabascosauz

Moderator
Supporter
Staff member
Joined
Jun 24, 2015
Messages
7,457 (2.33/day)
Location
Western Canada
System Name ab┃ob
Processor 7800X3D┃5800X3D
Motherboard B650E PG-ITX┃B550-I Strix
Cooling PA120+T30┃AXP120x67
Memory 64GB 6000CL30┃32GB 3600CL14
Video Card(s) RTX 4070 Ti Eagle┃RTX A2000
Storage 8TB of SSDs┃1TB SN550
Display(s) 43" QN90B / 32" M32Q / 27" S2721DGF
Case Caselabs S3┃Lone Industries L5
Power Supply Corsair HX1000┃HDPlex
Combined with the "Vanity over functionality" and ridiculous overpricing, I honestly haven't been paying NZXT boards any attention for the last year or so.

This particular model appears to be double the price of very good existing boards from Tier1 manufacturers, and seems to completely lack adequate cooling for the VRMs and the B550 chipset. Yes, B550 can be passively-cooled, but you don't want to shield it from aiflow with some decorative shroud, nor are some tiny holes over the heatsink going to fix the fact that it's shielded from airflow.

To be fair, compared to the other dumpster fire N7 boards, this one doesn't seem so unreasonable. This isn't LGA1200, so you can make do just fine with a slab heatsink when you have 12 x 50A DrMOS for Vcore (well obviously SiC65x, it's ASRock lol) - the B550 Vision D doesn't have any issues whatsoever with its VRM thermals. As for the PCH you could honestly go without a heatsink entirely, this is still an ASMedia design. Have you seen some of the mATX PCH heatsinks? Literally would be the same without a heatsink, and they can still keep it in the 30s.

- A rear I/O offering better than the Taichi
- Clear CMOS and BIOS flashback buttons on the I/O, from the Taichi
- A 6-layer PCB, so either taken from the Taichi or PG Velocita, so it can't be a Steel Legend or Extreme4

The B550 Vision D is white and has TB3, but is something like $275-300 because of the TB3, and also out of stock. Has a POST code though.
The B550 Taichi is also $270-300, for basically a backplate, less rear I/O, and a different colour scheme. Has a POST code.

This board seems to have the same $229 MSRP as its Z490 cousin (which is a sucky board, christ look at that I/O), seems to be a decent spot for what it offers. It's not the equivalent of a Steel Legend, that's for sure.

The frickin CAM integration though - things like iCUE and CAM need to die in a fire.
 

tiled-cpu

New Member
Joined
Mar 24, 2021
Messages
9 (0.01/day)
Overpriced but I paid for the ridiculous premium for an N7 Z390 (second hand) because I really wanted to have a clean build. Motherboards without covers look very vulnerable and I don't prefer it.

I'm sure the "motherboard cover" feature is an easy implementation for other manufacturers and they should definitely catch up with NZXT on this.
 
Joined
Oct 22, 2014
Messages
13,210 (3.83/day)
Location
Sunshine Coast
System Name Black Box
Processor Intel Xeon E3-1260L v5
Motherboard MSI E3 KRAIT Gaming v5
Cooling Tt tower + 120mm Tt fan
Memory G.Skill 16GB 3600 C18
Video Card(s) Asus GTX 970 Mini
Storage Kingston A2000 512Gb NVME
Display(s) AOC 24" Freesync 1m.s. 75Hz
Case Corsair 450D High Air Flow.
Audio Device(s) No need.
Power Supply FSP Aurum 650W
Mouse Yes
Keyboard Of course
Software W10 Pro 64 bit
Maybe it's just me but I like seeing all the chips and capacitors.
They are only covers to make it's appearance nicer, like clothing, they can be stripped off to see what is underneath and aren't necessary.
 
Joined
Jul 16, 2014
Messages
8,115 (2.29/day)
Location
SE Michigan
System Name Dumbass
Processor AMD Ryzen 7800X3D
Motherboard ASUS TUF gaming B650
Cooling Artic Liquid Freezer 2 - 420mm
Memory G.Skill Sniper 32gb DDR5 6000
Video Card(s) GreenTeam 4070 ti super 16gb
Storage Samsung EVO 500gb & 1Tb, 2tb HDD, 500gb WD Black
Display(s) 1x Nixeus NX_EDG27, 2x Dell S2440L (16:9)
Case Phanteks Enthoo Primo w/8 140mm SP Fans
Audio Device(s) onboard (realtek?) - SPKRS:Logitech Z623 200w 2.1
Power Supply Corsair HX1000i
Mouse Steeseries Esports Wireless
Keyboard Corsair K100
Software windows 10 H
Benchmark Scores https://i.imgur.com/aoz3vWY.jpg?2
They are only covers to make it's appearance nicer, like clothing, they can be stripped off to see what is underneath and aren't necessary.
Good. I dont like the color scheme, painted covers make it look cheap.
 
Joined
Jan 27, 2015
Messages
1,065 (0.32/day)
System Name loon v4.0
Processor i7-11700K
Motherboard asus Z590TUF+wifi
Cooling Custom Loop
Memory ballistix 3600 cl16
Video Card(s) eVga 3060 xc
Storage WD sn570 1tb(nvme) SanDisk ultra 2tb(sata)
Display(s) cheap 1080&4K 60hz
Case Roswell Stryker
Power Supply eVGA supernova 750 G6
Mouse eats cheese
Keyboard warrior!
Benchmark Scores https://www.3dmark.com/spy/21765182 https://www.3dmark.com/pr/1114767
isn't this a little late to the party?
 
Joined
Jul 16, 2014
Messages
8,115 (2.29/day)
Location
SE Michigan
System Name Dumbass
Processor AMD Ryzen 7800X3D
Motherboard ASUS TUF gaming B650
Cooling Artic Liquid Freezer 2 - 420mm
Memory G.Skill Sniper 32gb DDR5 6000
Video Card(s) GreenTeam 4070 ti super 16gb
Storage Samsung EVO 500gb & 1Tb, 2tb HDD, 500gb WD Black
Display(s) 1x Nixeus NX_EDG27, 2x Dell S2440L (16:9)
Case Phanteks Enthoo Primo w/8 140mm SP Fans
Audio Device(s) onboard (realtek?) - SPKRS:Logitech Z623 200w 2.1
Power Supply Corsair HX1000i
Mouse Steeseries Esports Wireless
Keyboard Corsair K100
Software windows 10 H
Benchmark Scores https://i.imgur.com/aoz3vWY.jpg?2
Top