ASRock B850M Pro RS WiFi Review: Low Budget, High Value

Nauman Siddique

At Tech4Gamers, I take on the role of Hardware Reviewer with pride. My responsibilities involve a thorough examination of essential hardware components like motherboards, graphics cards, processors, PC cases, and CPU coolers, among others, focusing on their complexities and functionalities.

 

 

 

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Ali

I intitally started by writing CPU comparisons and since then have written articles of all kinds, from Wikis and How-Tos to dedicated CPU reviews. Currently, I test and review CPUs, motherboards, and sometimes, RAM.

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ASRock has launched a new set of motherboards for AMD’s latest B850 chipset. One of the more affordable boards out of the lineup is the B850M Pro RS WiFi, which has a micro-ATX design. The Pro RS WiFi motherboards are part of ASRock’s affordable lineup and promise enough performance and sufficient I/O for casual users. Also, they almost feature white heatsinks with a black PCB, and this one is no different. We have also got our hands on the ASRock B850 Pro RS WiFi, the standard ATX variant of the same motherboard, make sure to check that out as well.

Without further ado, let’s see what this motherboard holds.

Key Takeaways

• The ASRock B850M Pro RS WiFi is a great budget motherboard with a $160 USD price tag. It provides good connectivity, decent network options, and a beautiful design, improving its overall value.
• You should buy the ASRock B850M Pro RS WiFi if you are building a mid-range PC for $1,000 with good future-proofing support. 
• You should not buy the ASRock B850M Pro RS WiFi if you want the USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type-C port because this motherboard doesn’t offer one.

Let’s look at the specifications first:

Compared to the previous generation, B650M Pro RS WiFi, we get PCIe Gen 5 for the graphics card (as part of the chipset) and faster memory support. There are also two full Gen 4 M.2 slots (while the B650M model had one running at x2 by default). The rest of the specifications are very similar, though the pricing is $20 higher than the predecessor.

Packaging and Unboxing

The motherboard is shipped inside a predominantly white-themed cardboard box.

The front shows a picture and the name of the motherboard, along with some key features.

Let’s see what’s inside the box.

• Quick installation guide
• Regulatory notices
• 2x SATA Data cables
• 2x ASRock WiFi 2.4/5/6GHz antennas

Nothing particularly noticeable here. Let’s dive into the design!

Design

As with most of the boards out of this lineup, we have a black PCB with white heatsinks. The contrast here is a bit weak as the heatsinks don’t cover a lot of the area, but it’s a nice look. ASRock always does well with aesthetics on their boards. On the bottom right, there’s an RGB strip that can be controlled through the ASRock Polychrome Sync software. It’s small but fits well for a mATX board, and it’s a nice addition to a budget board.

The motherboard is built on a 6-layered PCB design.

The motherboard uses the Promontory 21 silicon for the B850 chipset. This is the same silicon used in B650 boards, so there are no major I/O changes. In any case, the CPU powers DDR5 memory, Gen 5 expansion, two M.2 slots (including the Gen 5), audio, a rear USB, and three USB ports. The CPU also powers the super I/O controller.

The chipset connects to the CPU through a PCIe Gen 4 x4 bus and powers the remaining USB and SATA ports and the M.2 slot. It also powers WiFi 6E and the 2.5G LAN network.

CPU Socket And Power Delivery System

The ASRock B850M Pro RS WiFi uses AMD’s AM5 (LGA1718) socket with out-of-the-box support for Ryzen 7000, 8000, and 9000 series CPUs.

We have a modest 8+2+1 (VCore + SOC + Misc) Dr. MOS design. This is not the most powerful design but is enough for any supporting Ryzen CPU, though you should look to add a mid-ranger for an ideal pairing. You can install the 7800X3D and 9800X3D CPUs, too. Also important to note is that there won’t be a lot of overclocking room.

The initial power is provided by 8+4 EPS connectors, with the 8-pin connector providing up to 300W, plenty for any Ryzen 9000 CPU. These are ASRock’s “Hi-Density” connectors, promising better current-withstanding ability than traditional connectors. ASRock recommends using the additional power connector for overclocking.

Dual heatsinks cool the VRMs. These are densely stacked heatsinks that are not connected by any heat pipe. However, they should be more than adequate for this setup; we’ll examine them in the testing section.

The larger of the two heatsinks has a striped pattern and the “Pro” branding on it, while the other heatsink is plain.

DIMM Slots

The B850M Pro RS WiFi has 4x DIMM slots with a maximum memory capacity of 256GB, supporting DDR5 memory at up to 8000MT/s with overclocking.

It should be noted that the memory controller on AMD’s Ryzen 7000/9000 series CPUs cannot sync with the memory beyond 6400MT/s (3200MHz). Beyond 6400MT/s, you’ll be looking at a higher latency, which can only be countered if you push beyond memory speeds of 8000MT/s, which the board doesn’t (officially) support.

PCIe Slots

The motherboard has a PCIe 5.0 x16 slot (made mandatory as part of the chipset) and a Gen 4 x4 slot. If you occupy the third M.2 slot, the Gen 4 x4 PCIe slot will be disabled as these two share bandwidth.

The primary Gen 5 slot is steel-reinforced and surface-mounted to bear the weight of heavy graphics cards. You should still use an anti-sag bracket for the bulkier cards, however. The other slot does not share these characteristics. Also, there’s no “easy” PCIe release button on display here.

Storage Options

The motherboard has 4x SATA 6G ports and 3x M.2 slots, more than enough for most users. Talking M.2 cooling, only the Gen 5 slot comes with a heatsink, so you’ll need a Gen 4 drive with a heatsink if you’re looking to install one. The heatsink in question has striped patterns and the “Blazing M.2” text with a brushed aluminum texture. Removing the heatsink requires a screwdriver. Let’s remove it and take a look. 

It’s good to see that ASRock added double-sided thermal pads (beneath the heatsink and at the base of the slot). The pad on the base is a bit misaligned, though. Installing/removing the drive doesn’t require screws. For the Gen 4 drives, you have the “twisting latch” mechanism; twist away from the drive for installation, and then twist the latch toward the drive.

USB Connectivity

The ASRock B850M Pro RS WiFi motherboard houses a total of 17x USB ports:

• 1x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-C (Rear)
• 1x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-A (Rear)
• 1x USB 3.2 Gen1 Type-C (Front)
• 2x USB 3.2 Gen1 Type-A (Rear)
• 4x USB 3.2 Gen1 Type-A (Front)
• 4x USB 2.0 (Rear)
• 4x USB 2.0 (Front)

You’ll notice the motherboard doesn’t include the USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type-C, even though it is supported. We saw the same pattern with the B850M Phantom Gaming Riptide WiFi. It can’t be helped because of cost restraints, I suppose. The board’s fastest port is the USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-C on the rear.

Network & Connectivity

The board offers mid-range network options, and they’re not too bad. First, it includes a 2.5G LAN network, standard with ASRock’s latest B850 chipset motherboards. The board also supports WiFi 6E and Bluetooth 5.2 for wireless networks. Bluetooth 5.2 is pretty old, but you need to consider its pricing and the value it offers. Perhaps Bluetooth 5.3 could have been better, but we don’t have any issues with the network & connectivity this board provides.

Editor`s Note

ASRock’s Auto Driver Installer software simplifies finding and downloading drivers. All you have to do is download the “Auto Driver Installer” software, allow it to find drivers that require updates, complete the updates, and you’re done. This feature is very useful for new PC users who aren’t accustomed to manually updating their hardware’s drivers.

– Ali

Audio Solution

The motherboard uses the entry-level Realtek ALC897 audio codec. It’s not an impressive codec, but it’s decent for budget PCs. Paired with Steelseries’ Nahimic Audio software, the audio should be crispier, have greater noise suppression, and better echo cancellation. Overall, the audio is fine, especially with the software.

Internal Connectors And Components

Here is a list of all the connectors present on the motherboard:

• 1x SPI TPM header
• 1x power LED and speaker header
• 1x RGB LED header
• 3x addressable LED headers
• 2x CPU fan connectors (4-pin) (Smart Fan Speed Control)
• 3x chassis fan connectors (4-pin) (Smart Fan Speed Control)
• 1x 24-pin ATX power connector
• 1x 8-pin 12V power connector (Hi-Density Power Connector)
• 1x 4-pin 12V power connector (Hi-Density Power Connector)
• 1x front panel audio connector
• 2x USB 2.0 headers (support 4 USB 2.0 ports)
• 2x USB 3.2 Gen1 headers (support 4 USB 3.2 Gen1 ports)
• 1x front panel type-C USB 3.2 Gen1 header

Along with the EPS 8+4-pin connector, which we discussed earlier, the board features a standard 24-pin ATX connector, which also has the Hi-Power Density feature for better voltage control.

Of course, there is also the Post Status Checker (PSC), which helps diagnose issues with the CPU, GPU, RAM, and boot drive quickly. You can see one of four LED lights, and here’s what they mean:

• Solid Red: Indicates CPU is dysfunctional
• Solid Yellow: Showcases issues with the DRAM
• Solid White: Highlights a problem with the GPU
• Solid Yellow-Green: Indicates boot device is dysfunctional

No LEDs will blink if the system is running properly. Similarly, the LED won’t turn off until the issue is fixed.

Rear I/O Shield Panel

Here are all the connections provided on the rear I/O shield panel:

• 2x antenna ports
• 1x HDMI port
• 1x DisplayPort 1.4
• 1x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-A port (10Gbs/s)
• 1x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-C port
• 2x USB 3.2 Gen1 ports
• 4x USB 2.0 ports
• 1x RJ-45 LAN port
• 1x BIOS flashback button
• HD audio jacks: line in/ front speaker/ microphone

It’s great to see a BIOS flashback button on a budget B850 motherboard. We also see two antenna ports for the WiFi 6E, an HDMI and DisplayPort 1.4 ports, and a few USB ports. The fastest is, of course, the USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-C port.

To use the BIOS flashback button, install the latest BIOS from ASRock’s website into a USB drive and plug it into the BIOS port on the I/O shield panel. Press the BIOS flashback button for around three seconds, and you should see an LED blink. Wait for the blinking to stop, indicating the flashback has been completed. On the off-chance, the LED turns into a solid green color, which suggests an issue occurred with the flashback.

Test Bench

These are the specifications of my test bench:

• AMD Ryzen 9 9950X 16C/32T
• ARCTIC Liquid Freezer II 420 Liquid CPU Cooler
• G. Skill Trident Z5 Royal NEO DDR5-8000 CL36 EXPO Kit (2×16 = 32GB)
• XPG Lancer RGB 32GB 7200MHz DDR5 RAM
• Nvidia GeForce Gigabyte RTX 4090 Gaming OC
• Western Digital SN850 Black 500GB NVMe SSD [For OS]
• Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus 2TB Gen4x4 NVMe SSD [For Software]
• Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus 4TB Gen4x4 NVMe SSD [For Games]
• Sabrent Rocket NANO V2 4TB Portable SSD
• Corsair HX1200i Platinum PSU
• Windows 11 Pro Build 23H2
• BIOS Version 3.18.AS01 [Beta]
• AGESA 1.2.0.2 firmware

Synthetic Benchmarks

Let’s see how the ASRock B850M Pro RS WiFi motherboard performs in the synthetic benchmarking tests:

As expected, the motherboard performed the lowest among the ones we tested, taking 55 seconds to complete a Blender 4.0.2 render.

Again, we see the B850M Pro RS WiFi at the lowest spot in the Cinebench 2024 test, with a multi-core score of 2,282 points and a single-core score of 137 points.

Unexpectedly, the board performed slightly better in the Corona 11 test, completing the render in 66.4 seconds.

The motherboard again came in last place in the Geekbench 6 score. However, the difference isn’t significant.

The motherboard barely managed to beat its ATX variant in the V-Ray test.

Overall, it’s refreshing to see a cost-friendly motherboard providing decent performance.

Gaming Benchmarks

Let’s check whether the board can keep up the momentum in the gaming benchmarks:

The ASRock B850M Pro RS WiFi motherboard performs at the lower end of the range in Cyberpunk 2077, averaging 143 FPS with a minimum of 108.

Surprisingly, the motherboard is in the middle in Far Cry 6, averaging 184 FPS, with 139 minimum FPS.

We see the board average 110 FPS in Starfield with a minimum of 80 FPS.

Overall, the gaming performance is better than the synthetic benchmarks. The performance difference is minuscule, so you won’t notice any difference while gaming.

Power Consumption And VRM Temperatures

It’s time to see the motherboard’s total power consumption and the temperatures of the VRMs. We used Cinebench 2024 for our stress testing.

Out of all our test options, the B850M Pro RS WiFi is the most efficient, consuming the least power at 100% and while gaming.

The motherboard’s VRM temperatures are slightly high at 67°C, but it shouldn’t be a hindrance for most tasks. Of course, we don’t expect anyone to overclock their CPU with such a budget motherboard, so that shouldn’t be taken into account.

Boot Times

The B850M Pro RS WiFi board has slightly slower boot times, taking 24 seconds. This is only a three-second difference from the top spot, so it’s not too bad.

Should You Buy It?

So, is this motherboard worth the investment, or should you look elsewhere?

Buy It If

✅ You’re building a mid-range AMD-oriented PC: If you’re trying to build a PC with the Ryzen 5 7600 or 9600 CPU and want an affordable motherboard within $160 that can provide decent future-proofing, then this board is for you.

✅ You want to utilize all the USB ports: The ASRock B850M Pro RS WiFi, although a mATX board, provides 17x USB ports. If you need such connectivity, then I recommend looking into this motherboard.

✅ You’re looking for a motherboard with a good design: With a mix of black and white, this motherboard provides beautiful aesthetics for all PC builders, along with slight RGB lighting.

Don’t Buy It If

❌ You require USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type-C: If you want to use the USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type-C port, I don’t recommend buying this motherboard because it doesn’t provide any of those ports.

❌ You want to use all your PCIe and M.2 slots: Unfortunately, occupying the M2_3 slot disables the PCIe2 slot on this motherboard. So, if you want to use all the slots provided, I recommend you look for another option.

My Thoughts

The ASRock B850M Pro RS WiFi motherboard is a good budget board at $160 USD, perfect for anyone looking to build a mid-range AMD PC. It slightly falls short on performance, but for its price, it can easily be overlooked. The motherboard houses 8+2+1-phase VRMs with Dr. MOS, which is obviously not meant for overclocking, so don’t get your hopes up on that end.

The board does come with three M.2 slots, with the M2_1 being PCIe Gen5x4. The other two slots are PCIe Gen4x4, and the PCIe2 slot gets disabled when the M2_3 slot is occupied. The PCIe1 slot is Gen 5 x16 for graphics cards, and the secondary slot is Gen 4 x4, mostly for expansion cards. Unfortunately, ASRock hasn’t provided a GPU EZ latch on this motherboard, which is sad.

Similarly, we don’t see other EZ features that have been common in other ASRock B850 motherboards, like the toolless M.2 heatsinks or anti-drop screw design. The VRM temperatures are slightly hot, recording 67°C under a stressful environment. For most use cases it won’t pose any problems, though.

Besides that, we were impressed by the motherboard’s 17x USB ports. Perhaps adding a USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type-C port would have improved its value, but it’s understandable to remove it for cost concerns. There aren’t any issues with the networking, either, especially considering this is a budget motherboard. We see a 2.5G LAN network, along with WiFi 6E and Bluetooth 5.2 support, catering to all kinds of audiences.

The ASRock B850M Pro RS WiFi motherboard is similar in design to the ASRock B850 LiveMixer WiFi. Its fully black PCB is topped with white heatsinks, creating a contrasting yet beautiful aesthetic. Additionally, the bottom features an RGB strip that can be controlled through ASRock’s Polychrome Sync software.

Overall, this is a great budget motherboard for a mid-range AMD build. It also provides decent support for future-proofing. Technically speaking, you could install a high-end CPU like the Ryzen 7 9800X3D or the Ryzen 9 9950X, but at that point, you’d be better off with a better-performing board with more features. I recommend purchasing this motherboard if you’re trying to build a PC within $1,000 and want a decent upgradability path for your next build.

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Ali

[Hardware Reviewer]

Hi! I’m Ali Tauseef, and I have been writing for Tech4Gamers since 2022. I love all things computer hardware but am particularly fond of CPUs and motherboards, and I like to stay up-to-date about the latest advancements in these worlds, and when possible, write about it. When I’m not doing that, I like to get into a little FPS action in CS2 or get lost in the vast world of RDR2.

Get In Touch: ali@tech4gamers.com