MSI today introduced the B350 Gaming Plus, a gaming-grade socket AM4 motherboard based on the mid-range AMD B350 chipset. Built in the ATX form-factor, the board is based on the same PCB as the B350 Tomahawk, and draws power from a combination of 24-pin ATX and 8-pin EPS power connectors, and conditions it for the AM4 SoC with a 6-phase VRM. The AM4 socket is wired to four DDR4 DIMM slots, supporting up to 64 GB of dual-channel DDR4 memory; and one PCI-Express 3.0 x16 slot, with a metal reinforcement brace. The second x16 slot is electrical x4, and wired to the B350 chipset. Two each of PCIe x1 and legacy PCI make for the rest of the expansion area.

Storage connectivity on the MSI B350 Gaming Plus includes four SATA 6 Gb/s ports, and one 32 Gb/s M.2 slot with NVMe booting support. USB connectivity includes eight USB 3.0 ports (six on the rear panel including a type-C port, and two via headers). Display outputs include one each of DVI, D-Sub, and HDMI. The onboard audio solution combines a Realtek ALC892 8-channel HD audio CODEC with ground layer isolation, and audio-grade capacitors. Gigabit Ethernet is handled by a Realtek RTL8111H controller. We expect the board to be priced around the $120 mark.

BIOSTAR is thrilled to present the latest addition to its AM4 product line-up with the debut of the 2nd-generation of the highly-acclaimed BIOSTAR PRO Series motherboards. The new BIOSTAR A320 PRO series features new and improved features that focus on reliability, stability whilst providing top-of-the-line performance. The 2nd-generation PRO Series motherboards featuring A320 chipset supports AMD RYZEN CPU and upcoming APUs for the AM4 socket. The board will support up to DDR4-2667 memory up to 32GB in capacity.

MSI today introduced the A320 Grenade, an entry-level yet gaming-grade socket AM4 motherboard based on AMD's basic A320 chipset. Built in the narrow micro-ATX form-factor, the board draws power from a combination of 24-pin ATX and 8-pin EPS power connectors. A simple 5-phase VRM conditions power for the AM4 SoC. The socket is wired to a pair of DDR4 DIMM slots, and a PCI-Express 3.0 x16 slot. Two PCI-Express 2.0 x1 slots make for the rest of the expansion area.

Storage connectivity includes four SATA 6 Gbps ports, from which two are wired to the SoC, and one 32 Gbps M.2 slot. USB connectivity includes four USB 3.0 ports (four on the rear panel, two via headers). Gigabit Ethernet (driven by Realtek RTL8111H controller) and 6-channel HD audio (Realtek ALC887 CODEC), make for the rest of it. We expect it to be priced around the $75 mark.

MSI now has three "X370 Gaming Pro" motherboards. The first one is the X370 Gaming Pro Carbon, which the company launched its socket AM4 lineup with, then the X370 Gaming Pro Carbon AC, released earlier this month, which is its variant with 802.11ac WLAN; and now we have the X370 Gaming Pro (without the "Carbon" moniker). This board is based on a different PCB, and has a lighter feature-set than the X370 Gaming Pro Carbon series. The board features the same 10-phase CPU VRM as the Pro Carbon boards. The expansion slot layout is identical, too, with two PCI-Express 3.0 x16 slots (x8/x8 with both populated) wired to the CPU, a third x16 (electrical x4) slot wired to the X370 chipset, and three other x1 slots.

The differences kick in with the storage options. You get six SATA 6 Gb/s ports, but just one 32 Gb/s M.2 slot with MSI M.2 Shield (the Pro Carbon boards have two M.2 slots). Another major difference is the lighting. The chipset heatsink, audio ground-layer isolation strip, and various other areas on the board have red LED illumination, in place of RGB LED on the Pro Carbon boards. You can still control the brightness and illumination of these red LEDs using the Mystic Light Sync software. Another area of cost-cutting is the gigabit Ethernet. This board features a Realtek RTL8111H controller, while the Pro Carbon boards feature Intel I211AT controllers. The rest of the board's feature set is the same as the Pro Carbon, including two USB 3.1 ports (with one typc-C port), VR Boost USB ports. The MSI X370 Gaming Pro goes on sale on the 11th of April, at a price we expect to be around USD $150.

Following its launch of the Ryzen 5 series performance-segment six-core and quad-core processors later this month, AMD could launch entry-level quad-core chips based on the 14 nm "Summit Ridge" silicon in the second half of 2017. This lineup will be called the Ryzen 3 series, and will occupy several sub-$150 price points.

The Ryzen 3 series parts will compete with Intel's Core i3 dual-core "Kaby Lake" processors, and will offer four cores, even if lacking SMT (that's 4 cores, 4 threads), and up to 8 MB of L3 cache, making for a compelling deal against Core i3 "Kaby Lake" dual-core parts that have 2 cores and 4 threads enabled through HyperThreading, and just 3-4 MB of L3 cache. What's more, the Ryzen 3 series chips will come with unlocked base-clock multipliers. One of the prominent Ryzen 3 series SKUs revealed by leaky taps among the motherboard industry is the Ryzen 3 1200.

MSI today introduced the X370 Gaming Pro Carbon AC socket AM4 motherboard for AMD Ryzen processors and 7th generation A-series APUs. A variant of the X370 Gaming Pro Carbon the company launched its X370 motherboard lineup with, this board includes support for 802.11ac WLAN and Bluetooth 4.2 using a PCI-Express x1 add-on card. The card features an Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 8265 controller, which supports Dual Band 2x2 802.11ac and MU-MIMO Rx, and a maximum bandwidth of 867 Mbps. The card takes up a PCI-Express slot on your motherboard, and has a small riser cable that plugs into your motherboard for low-level wake-on-LAN functions, and the Bluetooth connection. The included MSI Gaming LAN app lets you run your machine with two Internet connections (one over the WLAN card, and the other over the wired gigabit Ethernet port), and lets you assign specific applications to the two connections. The rest of the board's feature-set is identical to that of the original X370 Gaming Pro Carbon.

With the Freezer 12 and Freezer 12 CO, ARCTIC now offers two compact CPU coolers, which are multi-compatible and also suitable for the AMD Ryzen AM4 socket. The successors of the Freezer 11 series convince all along the line with regards to noise level, cooling capacity, mounting versatility and transport-proofness. As semi passive coolers, the Freezer 12 and Freezer 12 CO also work extremely efficiently as the fan only starts up at a PWM signal with 40 % pulse width.

The fan runs only when it is actually needed, i.e. with increased CPU utilization. In combination with the vibration absorption rubber mounts of the fan, this leads to almost silent operation even at its maximum cooling performance of 150 watts. The 92 mm fan provides an improved air flow, three double sided direct touch heat pipes and 45 aluminum fins ensure an optimal heat dissipation and an excellent cooling power. Unlike the predecessor Freezer 11 series, the Freezer 12 and Freezer 12 CO are multi-compatible and fit Intel sockets as well as AMD AM4.

BIOSTAR today introduced the first AMD X370 chipset based socket AM4 motherboard to the market, with the X370GTN. The board comes with out of the box support for AMD Ryzen processors, with TDP of up to 95W. It draws power from a combination of 24-pin ATX and 4-pin ATX power connectors, and conditions it for the AM4 SoC using a 7-phase VRM. The socket is wired to two full-length DDR4 DIMM slots, supporting up to 32 GB of dual-channel DDR4-3200 memory; and the lone PCI-Express 3.0 x16 slot, besides some of the I/O ports.

Storage connectivity includes four SATA 6 Gb/s ports from which two are directly wired to the AM4 SoC, and one 32 Gb/s M.2-2280 slot with NVMe booting support (reverse side). USB connectivity includes two 10 Gb/s USB 3.1 ports (including a type-C port), and six USB 3.0 ports (four on the rear panel, two via headers). The board features BIOSTAR's Hi-Fi onboard audio solution, and a gigabit Ethernet connection driven by Realtek DragonLAN controller. Display outputs include DVI and HDMI.

GIGABYTE introduced one of the first ATX form-factor motherboard based on AMD's new entry-level chipset for socket AM4 processors, the A320-DS3. The company also launched the micro-ATX A320M-HD2. Besides a slim feature-set, the A320 chipset lacks support CPU overclocking, making these boards better suited for the 7th generation A-series "Bristol Ridge" APUs than the unlocked Ryzen "Summit Ridge" processors, although they do come with Ryzen support out of the box.

Besides one PCI-Express 3.0 x16 slot, the A320-DS3 features a PCI-Express 2.0 x4 (x16) slot, and two each of gen 2.0 x1 and legacy PCI slots. You also get two DDR4 DIMM slots, two 10 Gb/s USB 3.1 type-A ports, 6-channel HD audio, gigabit Ethernet, and display outputs that include DVI and D-Sub. The A320M-HD2, on the other hand, features two PCIe gen 2.0 x1 slots, besides a legacy PCI slot, and the gen 3.0 x16 slot. Most of its feature-set is similar to its ATX sibling, except it also offers an HDMI display output. Expect sub-$80 pricing for the two.

AMD launched the retail versions of its flagship Ryzen 7 1800X and second-best Ryzen 7 1700X processors in WOF (without fan-heatsink) boxed packages, similar to how Intel sells unlocked "K" and "X" series processors, such as the Core i5-7600K and Core i7-7700K. The company is giving final touches to newer packages of the two chips that include a stock cooling solution, probably addressing markets in which socket AM4-compatible aftermarket cooling solutions aren't easily available. These packages will include AMD's largest Wraith-series cooler, the Wraith Max.

Wraith Max is the company's largest stock cooling solution, and is a slight upscale of the original Wraith cooler AMD introduced with the FX-8370. It is rated for CPUs with TDP of up to 140W, and so it could make short work of the 95W Ryzen 7 1800X and 1700X chips. It consists of a dense aluminium fin-stack heatsink to which heat drawn from a copper base is conveyed by heat pipes, and ventilated by a large fan. PIB (processor in a box) retail packages of the two chips with Wraith Max will have clear markings on the box, including stylized artwork of the cooler, besides being noticeably heavier. According to ComputerBase.de, the Ryzen 7 1800X Wraith Max is priced at 579€, compared to the WOF (without fan-heatsink) package's 537€ price; while the Ryzen 7 1700X Wraith Max is priced at 460€, compared to the WOF package's 396€ price (all prices include taxes).

In news that would have been very well received some 5 years ago (but is still relevant today), MSI has announced an approximation (of sorts) of Intel's XMP Profiles. Named A-XMP (how clever), MSI has essentially adapted Intel's XMP (eXtreme Memory Profile) for the AM4 platform. A-XMP enables support for higher rated DDR4 memory kits, enabling them to work without any hassle. You are probably reminded of AM4 and Ryzen's peculiarities when it comes to memory support. A-XMP aims to at least mitigate those issues, whilst allowing for increased performance in a platform which is particularly sensitive to memory performance.

MSI is calling A-XMP "the world's first 1-second DDR4 performance and stability feature", and has announced the feature will be rolled out in soon to be available BIOS updates for all MSI AM4 motherboards.

In addition to the X370 Krait Gaming, MSI announced two other white-themed socket AM4 motherboards, with the B350 Tomahawk Arctic, and the B350M Mortar Arctic. As their names suggest, the two MSI Arsenal Gaming series motherboards are nearly identical to the original B350 Tomahawk and B350M Mortar, respectively, except for the white PCBs, silvery white VRM/chipset heatsinks, and white PCI-Express and DDR4 DIMM slots. The two are also studded with white LEDs that put up a bright colored light-show, and which can be controlled with the MSI Mystic Light application (brightness, lighting programs, etc.). The two could hence be sold at tiny ($15-20) premiums over the originals.

MSI today announced the X370 Krait Gaming socket AM4 motherboard. Based on AMD's highest-grade X370 chipset, and ready for its Ryzen processor family, this ATX form-factor motherboard appears to be based on the same exact PCB as the X370 SLI Plus, with a few added features, such as higher grade capacitors, VR Boost specialized USB ports, a higher SNR audio CODEC with Nahmic 2 and EM shielding, white LED lighting, and of course the signature white+black color scheme of the Krait series.

Like the X370 SLI Plus, the X370 Krait Gaming draws power from a combination of 24-pin ATX and 8-pin EPS power connectors, conditioning it for the processor with an 8+2 phase VRM. The AM4 socket is wired to four DDR4 DIMM slots, and two PCI-Express 3.0 x16 slots (x8/x8 with both populated), besides two each of the board's USB 3.0 and SATA 6 Gb/s ports. In all, storage connectivity includes six SATA 6 Gb/s ports, one 32 Gb/s M.2 slot with NVMe booting support, while the USB connectivity includes two USB 3.1 ports (one each type-A and type-C), and six USB 3.0 ports (four on the rear panel, two by headers). 8-channel HD audio and gigabit Ethernet make for the rest of it. We expect this board to be priced at a $20-30 premium over the X370 SLI Plus.

Following the successful introduction of AMD Ryzen 7 desktop processors including record pre-orders and award-winning performance, AMD today announced Ryzen 5 desktop processors will launch worldwide on April 11, 2017, offering disruptive price-to-performance for gamers and creators. With end users at the heart of everything AMD does, the new Ryzen 5 processors feature the powerful and efficient "Zen" architecture in 6-core,12-thread as well as 4-core, 8-thread options, to deliver enhanced performance, immersive experiences and high performance innovation to gamers and consumers worldwide with a price range of $169 to $249 USD SEP.

"Ryzen will ultimately bring innovation and competition to virtually every segment of the PC market, and Ryzen 5 is the next big step on that journey, designed to achieve new levels of compute performance for millions of PC users," said Jim Anderson, senior vice president and general manager, Computing and Graphics Group, AMD. "AMD reinvigorated the high-performance desktop market with Ryzen 7 earlier this month, and AMD Ryzen 5 now brings the power and efficiency of the 'Zen' core to users in the highly popular sub-$300 segment of the market."

In a blog post titled "Tips for Building a Better AMD Ryzen System", AMD has shed some light on the current memory support quirks with their Ryzen CPUs. First interesting detail: Ryzen processors do not offer memory dividers for DDR4-3000 or DDR4-3400. As such, AMD recommends that users looking to use higher memory speeds with their Ryzen processors instead look towards 3200 or 3500 MT/s. Due to Ryzen's preferences when it comes to memory, AMD also recommends that users pay particular attention to motherboard vendor's memory QVL lists for speeds greater than DDR4-2667.

Remember RAM importance on Ryzen processors' performance, which is given newfound importance in alleviating possible bottlenecks related to AMD's Data Fabric, the interconnect technology being used to communicate between different CCX's in AMD's 8-core Ryzen 7 and upcoming 6-core Ryzen 5 processors. Higher data rate of your memory subsystem should better help Ryzen's inter-core communication, and thus allow for higher performance in multiple scenarios, more so than with any other current CPU architecture.

ADATA Technology, a leading manufacturer of highperformance DRAM modules, NAND Flash products, and mobile accessories is proud to share that all DDR4 offerings from its XPG high performance hardware brand have been officially certified by AMD as compatible with the AM4 socket and accompanying processors, namely the recently-launched Ryzen range. XPG memory was validated while installed on MSI motherboards, signaling major cooperation between ADATA and MSI.

With formal AMD approval, customers know they are purchasing a fully compatible product when selecting XPG DDR4 to be used on AMD AM4-based motherboards. As XPG DDR4 has been added to the AMD QVL (qualified vendor list), customers can rely on seamless compatibility without having to worry about POST or other conflict issues.

For the all-in-one water coolers Liquid Freezer 120, Liquid Freezer 240 and Liquid Freezer 360, ARCTIC now offers a retention ring for the new AMD Ryzen processors with AM4 socket. Therefore all already acquired Liquid Freezers can be upgraded with the AM4 kit. The retention module can be ordered directly from ARCTIC support and is free of charge upon presentation of the invoice copy. The bulk of our CPU-coolers, including the new Freezer 33 series, is already compatible to the AM4-socket and needs no further adaption. An overview is available here.

BIOSTAR is proud to introduce new additions to its growing AMD RYZEN motherboard lineup designed with the perfect balance of cost and performance with the new RACING B350GT3 and RACING B350ET2 motherboards, the first micro-ATX motherboards for AMD RYZEN. Featuring support for AM4 socket processors including AMD RYZEN which deliver incredible multithreaded performance at less price than its competitor, the BIOSTAR RACING B350GT3 and RACING B350ET2 allows users who want to unleash the power of AMD RYZEN without spending too much.

BIOSTAR sets the stage for the micro-ATX AM4 market as the pioneer in including RGB LED function in its micro-ATX B350 motherboards. The BIOSTAR RACING B350GT3 is ideal for system builders and gamers that want an RGB lighting-capable system with the latest AMD B350 chipset. In addition to this, the BIOSTAR RACING B350ET2 sets itself apart from the competition by introducing 1.5V USB charger functionality and SATA POWER characteristics, perfect for iCafe owners who want to feature LED-equipped gaming headphones from the USB.

ARCTIC announces its new Freezer 33 Series. The high-performance semi passive CPU coolers Freezer 33, Freezer 33 CO and Freezer 33 Plus are the successor models of the Freezer 32 series. They are equipped with PWM controlled 120 mm cooling fans and offset heat pipes to ensure optimal heat dissipation. The low footprint of the Freezer 33 avoids interference with the RAM, even if there are two fans used. Fast and easy to install and extremely reliable, the mounting system is compatible with Intel and the new AMD Ryzen AM4 socket.

Semi passive cooling makes the Freezer 33 coolers very efficient and extra quiet. During simple applications, such as creating documents, the CPU is cooled passively. The F12 PWM fan only powers up at a higher load, starting at 40 % PWM. In this way, an optimal cooling capacity at a low noise level is guaranteed.

With the much-anticipated release of the AMD Ryzen CRYORIG prepares to launch a full line of AMD Ryzen dedicated coolers as well as simple upgrade kits for existing AMD compatible CRYORIG cooling products. Beginning from Type A to Type D, there will be a total of 4 different AM4 upgrade kits depending on the corresponding CRYORIG product. Natively supporting Ryzen dedicated version models will begin to release later in Q2 2017 and will consist of the full CRYORIG cooling portfolio.

In early 2017, what excites gamers is AMD brings innovation and competition back to the gaming world with the Ryzen 7. Along with this exciting news, end users are concerned about the cooler compatibility issue with the new AM4 socket. Deepcool, being a market-oriented professional thermal solution provider, is proud to show you a current list of AM4 compatible CPU coolers, including Gammaxx Series, ICE BLADE 200M, ICE BLADE 100, ICE EDGE MIDI FS V2.0, GAMMA ARCHER and etc.

Based on AM4 compatible solution, liquid cooling chassis like Genome II, Genome ROG Certified Edition, as well as high-end Aio liquid cooler Captain EX Series will be launched after the end of March, closely followed by many other featured coolers. Another great news is the specifically designed AM4 mounting kit for Captain EX series will be firstly available at Amazon US around Mid-March. For other countries and regions, upgraded kits will be arriving after the end of March.

BIOSTAR showed off the industry's first socket AM4 motherboard in the mini-ITX form-factor, the Racing X370-GTN, based on AMD's top of the line X370 chipset. The board draws power from a combination of 24-pin ATX and 4-pin CPU power connectors, and supports all models of Ryzen processors, although we're curious how XFR will work with such slim power inputs. The board conditions power for the SoC using a 7-phase VRM.

The socket AM4 chip is wired to two DDR4 DIMM slots, supporting up to 32 GB of dual-channel DDR4-2666 memory; the PCI-Express 3.0 x16 slot, and since this is an SoC, most of the board's connectivity comes from the processor, too. This includes two out of the board's four SATA 6 Gb/s ports, a 32 Gb/s M.2 slot (reverse side, unseen), 2-4 USB 3.0 ports, and the display I/O. The X370 chipset puts out two additional SATA 6 Gb/s ports, and wires out the HD audio (115 dBA SNR CODEC), and a Realtek DragonLAN GbE controller. The company didn't reveal availability details.

G.SKILL International Enterprise Co., Ltd., the world's leading manufacturer of extreme performance memory and gaming peripherals, is announcing two new DDR4 memory series, the Flare X series and FORTIS series, designed and tested specifically for the new AMD Ryzen processor platform. With a brand new architecture, processor, and chipset from AMD, high performance overclocking memory kits must be validated for optimized compatibility and stability for the new hardware.

Designed for the latest AMD Ryzen processor, the Flare X series DDR4 memory kit marks the return of the legendary G.SKILL Flare series that provided awesome performance in the previous generation of DDR3 memory. Built with carefully selected IC chips specifically tested and validated on the AM4 platform, the Flare X series will provide the best compatibility and stability for systems with the AMD Ryzen CPU.

Fractal Design has announced the immediate availability of free AM4 upgrade kits to Kelvin series customers ensuring that owners wanting to upgrade to the latest AMD line of processors will be able to continue to use their multi award-winning All in One Water Cooling unit.

Owners of the Kelvin T12, S24 and S36 choosing to update to the new AM4 socket processor from AMD will be able to apply online via our Support Ticket System. Kelvin users requesting an upgrade kit will be required to upload a copy of their AMD Ryzen CPU or AM4 supported motherboard receipt via "attach a file."

AMD, at its post-Ryzen 7 launch Reddit AMA, disclosed some juicy details about its other upcoming socket AM4 chips, beginning with the rest of the Ryzen 5 and Ryzen 3 "Summit Ridge" processor roll-out, and a little bit about its 8th generation socket AM4 APU, codenamed "Raven Ridge." To begin with, AMD CEO Lisa Su stated that "Raven Ridge" will also be sold under the Ryzen brand. This would mark a departure from the less-than-stellar A-series branding for its performance APUs. "Raven Ridge" likely combines a "Zen" quad-core CPU complex (CCX) with an integrated GPU based on one of AMD's newer GPU architectures (either "Polaris" or "Vega").

The range-topping Ryzen 7 series will lead the company's lineup throughout Q1, with six-core and quad-core Ryzen 5 and Ryzen 3 series launches being scheduled for later this year. Our older reports pinned Ryzen 5 series rollout for Q2, and Ryzen 3 series for the second half of 2017. This is likely also when the company rolls out "Raven Ridge" initially as mobile Ryzen products (BGA packages, which will likely also be used in AIOs), and later as desktop socket AM4 parts.