ASRock Phantom Gaming B850 Riptide WiFi Review: Worth It?

AMD’s X870 chipset was amazing in terms of price-to-performance ratio, and we believed it couldn’t be topped. However, AMD’s latest B850 chipset is yet another surprise. It provides a more budget-friendly option for consumers upgrading to the Ryzen 9000 series CPUs. ASRock was gracious enough to provide us with one of their latest mid-range budget options: the ASRock Phantom Gaming B850 Riptide WiFi.

The Phantom Gaming motherboards are known to provide better value for gamers, so let’s see how this particular product performs in our benchmarks and what goodies ASRock has prepared for us this time around.

---

Key Takeaways

• The ASRock Phantom Gaming B850 Riptide WiFi is a mid-range motherboard with a $219 price tag. It provides all the juicy bennies: WiFi 7, Bluetooth 5.4, PCIe Gen 5 slots, and more.
• It’s amazing if you want a decent motherboard on a lower budget for AMD’s latest CPU lineup.
• I recommend staying away if you want to occupy both PCIe expansion slots and all four M.2 slots at once.

---

Here’s a quick rundown of the motherboard’s specifications:

ASRock PG B850 Riptide WiFi	Specifications
CPU Support	AMD Ryzen 7000, Ryzen 8000, Ryzen 9000
Memory Support	DDR5 8,000MHz
PCIe Slots	1x PCIe 5.0 x16, 1x PCIe 4.0 x4, 1x vertical M.2 socket
M.2 Slots	1x PCIe 5.0 x4, 1x PCIe 4.0 x4, 2x PCIe 4.0 x4
SATA Ports	4x 6Gbps
Audio	Realtek ALC4082 Audio Codec
Network & Connectivity	1x 2.5G LAN, 1x 802.11be 2×2 WiFi 7, Bluetooth 5.4
USB Ports	20 ports, including 1x USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type-C (Front)
Size	ATX Form Factor: 305mm x 248mm
MSRP	$219

Some changes over the last generation ASRock B650E PG Riptide WiFi include PCIe 5.0 expansion and M.2 slots, WiFi 7 over WiFi 6E, and Bluetooth 5.4 over Bluetooth 5.2. I would have liked to see a 5G LAN, but unfortunately, ASRock has decided to stay on 2.5G for the B850 this time around as well.

Packaging & Unboxing

Unlike its last-gen motherboards like the B650E PG ITX, the B850 Riptide has changed its packaging color considerably. You can see quite the color shift, which I don’t mind.

There’s not much to see on the front of the box, with just the motherboard’s name, its WiFi 7 certification, and “AMD Ryzen 9000 Desktop Ready”. However, the back of the box is filled with design information, VRMs, and capacitance. The basic specifications and an I/O overview are also readily available.

Here’s what you’ll find inside the box:

• Quick installation guide
• Regulatory notice
• 2x SATA data cables
• 1x A-RGB splitter cable
• 2x ASRock WiFi 2.4/5/6GHz antennas
• 1x thermistor cable

You don’t have many accessories, but the SATA cables and the A-RGB splitter cable will be handy. If you’re a newbie PC builder, keep the quick installation guide close. The installation process isn’t too difficult, so you shouldn’t worry. The accessories also include 2x WiFi 2.4/5/6GHz antennas and a thermistor cable, but the former is unnecessary with WiFi 7 connectivity.

There aren’t many EZ build features except for a GPU lite release and a tool-less M.2 heatsink, which makes sense considering its pricing, even among other B850 motherboards.

Design

Focusing its branding on gamers, the ASRock Phantom Gaming B850 Riptide WiFi motherboard has a more colorful design than other budget options. While the product isn’t dipped in RGB, you get a blue hue underneath the M.2 heatsink, complementing the motherboard’s blue aesthetic design. Besides that, the motherboard is fully black and has little to look at.

The B850 Riptide WiFi is built on an 8-layer PCB, which helps provide stable signal traces and power shapes, resulting in lower temperatures and overall greater efficiency. The higher quality PCB is great for memory overclocking, although Ryzen 9000 series CPUs mainly benefit from 6,400MHz RAM.

The above block diagram shows what the CPU and the chipset provide power to. For example, the CPU powers the DDR5 RAM slots, an HDMI port, the PCIe 5.0 expansion slot, and the M.2 slot. The CPU also powers an M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4 slot and 3x USB 3.2 ports. On the other hand, the chipset powers 4x USB 3.2 ports and 2x USB 2.0 ports. Besides that, the audio codec and remaining PCIe slots are also powered by the chipset, along with WiFi 6E and SATA ports.

Power Delivery System

Like all other motherboards using the B850 chipset, the B850 Riptide utilizes the AM5 LGA1718 socket and supports Ryzen 7000, 8000, and 9000 series CPUs.

As for the VRMs, the motherboard houses a 14+2+1 phase power design, with 80A Dr.MOS SPS for VCore and SOC. The duet-rail design on the VRMs is a better solution than a doubler phase, but it’s not as good as one stage per controller setups. In total, the CPU gets 1,120A, which is more than enough for even high-end Ryzen 9000 CPUs when overclocked.

Upon closer inspection, the motherboard has the exclusive 1000uF capacitors, rated for 20K capacitance and providing up to 20,000 hours of lifespan. Mind you, these are the same ones used for the “better” ASRock X870 Phantom Gaming Riptide WiFi motherboard. It seems ASRock did not hold back at all with the capacitors for the lower-end chipset. I’m excited to see how it performs in realtime.

We see standard 2×8-EPS connectors for the CPU, utilizing ASRock’s Hi-Density power connector system designed to withstand higher current loads. This design will help keep the system stable and perform better overclocks without facing annoying crashes.

The aluminum heatsinks use a stacked fin design with 6x fins, and we see plenty of thermal pads to keep the VRMs cool. Again, design-wise, we don’t see much except for the motherboard’s name and a decent blue design on the I/O heatsink.

DIMM Slots

Pretty standard stuff over here, with the motherboard housing 4x DIMM slots with a maximum capacity of 256GB and a maximum speed of 8,000MHz. A handy feature I liked is that the motherboard supports both Intel XMP and AMD EXPO settings, allowing an easier transition from Intel to AMD.

The DIMM slots are placed fairly far apart from the CPU socket, so you shouldn’t face any RAM and CPU cooler compatibility issues unless your RAM is extremely tall. It’s also important to note that Ryzen 7000 and 9000 series CPUs don’t like RAM speeds over 6,400MHz, as the FLCK value drops to 1:2, negatively affecting performance.

PCIe Slots

The ASRock Phantom Gaming B850 Riptide WiFi motherboard has two PCIe slots, and the PCIe 1 expansion slot utilizes PCIe 5.0 x16, which should be used for your graphics card. The PCIe 2 slot uses PCIe 4.0 x16, but if the M2_4 slot is occupied, this PCIe slot will be disabled. We also see a vertical M.2 socket which supports WiFi or Bluetooth modules.

The PCIe 1 expansion slot also houses the Graphics Card Lite release mechanism to ease troubleshooting and installation processes. The enlarged latch must be pressed, and you can easily pull the GPU out of the slot.

Storage

The motherboard has four M.2 slots. The M2_1 slot utilizes PCIe Gen 5.0 x4 — ideally, your priority slot. The M2_2 and M2_3 slots utilize PCIe Gen 4.0 x4. The problematic M2_4 slot also runs on PCIe Gen 4.0 x4. According to ASRock, all the NVMe M.2 storage drives can be configured for RAID 0, RAID 1, or RAID 10.

The M.2 heatsinks also have a toolless design, with a quick-release mechanism on the motherboard, making them user-friendly. ASRock has also introduced an anti-drop screw design on the M.2 heatsinks, making it impossible for you to lose any screws during installation.

These are the M.2 types the motherboard supports:

• M2_1: 2280
• M2_2, M2_4: 2260/2280
• M2_3: 2230/2260/2280

Three heatsinks cover three M.2 NVMe SSDs, while the M2_2 runs without a heatsink on top. I would have preferred either a heatsink on the M.2_2 or switching the positions of the M2_2 and M2_4. Thankfully, all the heatsinks have a toolless design and can be easily removed. This is what the heatsinks look like after being removed:

The three covered slots use double-sided thermal pads, so you won’t have to worry about the temperatures. It should be pretty standard in most motherboards by now, but it’s a good feature to see.

USB Connectivity

The motherboard houses 20x USB slots:

• 2x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-C (Rear)
• 2x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-A (Rear)
• 3x USB 3.2 Gen1 Type-A (Rear)
• 1x USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type-C (Front)
• 4x USB 3.2 Gen1 Type-A (Front)
• 4x USB 2.0 (Rear)
• 4x USB 2.0 (Front)

To maintain cost-effectiveness, ASRock has opted not to provide a USB4 port; instead, we see only a single USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type-C port on the front. I’m happy to see support for ESD protection on all the USB ports, ensuring there’s no physical damage during transient spikes.

Network & Connectivity

I’m disappointed with the motherboard’s wired 2.5G LAN connectivity. However, the wireless connectivity options are decent, providing WiFi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4. ASRock has included the Killer Control Center feature, which was originally for Intel’s CPUs. The program examines applications and prioritizes the most speed-critical applications for increased bandwidth. You can also manually customize the program according to your needs.

If you want to utilize WiFi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4, you’ll need Windows 11 24H2.

Audio Solution

The motherboard uses the mid-range Realtek ALC4082 audio codec with a few improvements. ASRock has implemented Steelseries’ Nahimic Audio software, which enhances audio quality from audio devices. The audio engine improves background noise suppression, cancels echo, and stabilizes voice for better communication.

The audio codec is isolated, and the PCB layers are separated to power the right and left audio channels. The isolated design helps provide clear audio because the audio jacks are in a different framework. Moreover, the motherboard houses Direct Drive Technology on the front headphone port, which supports up to 600 Ohm headsets.

Internal Connectors And Components

Here’s a rundown of all the connectors on the motherboard:

• 1x SPI TPM header
• 1x thermistor cable 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 AIO pump fan connector (4-pin) (Smart Fan Speed control)
• 1x 24-pin ATX power connector (Hi-Density power connector)
• 2x 8-pin 12V power connectors (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 Gen2x2 header (20Gb/s)

This motherboard’s connectors are standard: a 2×8-pin 12V and a 24-pin ATX connector. ASRock didn’t forget about its Hi-Density power connector feature, so there won’t be any issues if you try to squeeze out more power while overclocking. However, I doubt many of you will be using this motherboard to test the limits of your PC hardware.

The motherboard uses the Nuvoton NCT6687D super I/O controller chip to manage I/O functions, fan control speeds, hardware monitoring, and legacy device support.

The ASRock B850 Riptide WiFi uses the Post Status Checker (PSC) to diagnose any issues with the computer on boot-up. A solid red LED means an issue with the CPU, solid yellow for DRAM, solid white for VGA, and solid yellow-green for BOOT. If the PC is working properly, no LEDs will light up, and these LEDs won’t turn off until the issue is resolved.

Heatsinks Removed

Here’s what your motherboard will look like with all of its heatsinks removed.

Rear I/O Shield Panel

Here’s a list of all the rear I/O shield panel connections on the motherboard:

• 2x antenna ports
• 1x HDMI port
• 1x optical SPDIF outport
• 2x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-C ports (10Gb/s)
• 3x USB 3.2 Gen1 Type-A ports
• 2x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-A ports (10Gb/s)
• 4x USB 2.0 ports
• 1x RJ-45 LAN port
• 1x BIOS flashback button
• 1x line out jack (gold audio jack)
• 1x microphone input jack (gold audio jack)

Unfortunately, ASRock hasn’t included a CMOS reset button, but at least we have a BIOS flashback. All the ports are labeled for ease of use, and we see an Ultra USB Power USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-A port beside a Lighting Gaming Port USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-C.

You need to press the BIOS flashback switch for about three seconds, after which the LED will start to blink. Wait until the blinking subsides, which means the process has finished. However, if the LED turns a solid green color, it means the BIOS flashback is not operating properly.

Test Bench

Here are the specifications of my test bench where I tested the motherboard:

• 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 7E62v2A1
• AGESA 1.2.0.2 firmware

Synthetic Benchmarks

Here are my synthetic benchmarks with the ASRock Phantom Gaming B850 Riptide WiFi motherboard:

The motherboard was the fastest on the list for the Blender 4.0.2 benchmark at 50 seconds.

In Cinebench 2024, the board scored 2,312 points in multi-core and 141 points in single-core, once again ranking at the top.

The board showed a 63.4-second render time in Corona 11.

There’s not much of a difference in the Geekbench 6 score, with the ASRock B850 Riptide WiFi leading with 21,726 points.

The board falls slightly in the V-Ray test, scoring 48,893 points.

Overall, the motherboard performed very well in the synthetic tests and was on top of most benchmarks.

Gaming Benchmarks

Let’s see how the motherboard performs in the gaming tests:

We see an average FPS of 143 in Cyberpunk 2077 with a minimum of 108 FPS.

The motherboard botched the Far Cry 6 test, as well, with an average and minimum FPS of 183 and 138, respectively.

The Starfield test is pretty good on the motherboard, providing a 110 FPS average with a minimum FPS of 80.

Overall, the motherboard is losing in the gaming benchmarks, but you probably won’t notice a difference of one or two FPS.

Power Consumption And VRM Temperatures

Here’s an overview of the total power consumption of the CPU and motherboard on our test bench. We have used Cinebench 2024 to stress test the system:

The ASRock B850 Riptide WiFi is pretty efficient. It consumes 374W at 100% load and only 118W during gaming, which is only 6W higher than at idle.

I’m pretty happy with the VRM temperatures, averaging at 60°C even at 100% load. Remember the bulky VRM heatsink I showed earlier? This is why I loved it.

Boot Times

The ASRock B850 Riptide WiFi boots up in 22 seconds, only 1 second slower than the MSI MAG B850 Tomahawk WiFi.

Should You Buy It?

Time for the main question: Is it worth the investment?

Buy It If

✅ You want a mid-range motherboard that excels in productivity performance: The ASRock Phantom Gaming B850 Riptide WiFi motherboard topped most of our synthetic benchmarks amongst its mid-range peers; it’s pretty decent for its price.

✅ You don’t want to miss out on the bells and whistles: This motherboard gives you lots of good features, like low VRM temperatures, the Killer Control Center feature, EZ features for easier installation, WiFi 7, Bluetooth 5.4, and much more.

Don’t Buy It If

❌ You want to utilize all the PCIe and M.2 slots at once: When occupying the M2_4 slot, the PCIe 2 expansion slot will be disabled. So, if you want to utilize all the PCIe and M.2 slots, you may have to look elsewhere.

❌ You require high-speed internet: While the motherboard provides WiFi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4 network connectivity options, it’s unfortunate that it has stayed on a 2.5G LAN network.

My Thoughts

The ASRock Phantom Gaming B850 Riptide WiFi motherboard is an outstanding mid-range budget version priced at a low $219. Even though it is lower priced, we see a few features that match the X870 version of this motherboard, like the 1000uF capacitors, rated for 20K capacitance. The motherboard also provides an impressive 14+2+1 phase power design VRMs, with 80A Dr.MOS SPS for VCore and SOC. There are no problems with the cooling, with the average temperature at 60°C on the VRMs.

The motherboard only has 2x PCIe slots, of which the PCIe 2 expansion slot will be disabled if the M2_4 slot is occupied. The primary is obviously a PCIe Gen 5.0 x16 slot for the graphics card. The secondary is a PCIe Gen 4.0 x16 slot, useful for a sound card or storage adapter. The GPU slot has an EZ clip mechanism for easier installation and removal. Furthermore, the motherboard has 4x M.2 drives, with the M2_1 providing PCIe Gen 5.0 x4 for ultra-fast speeds. The dual-sided thermal pads are appreciated.

While the B850 Riptide WiFi doesn’t provide any USB4 connectors, we’re happy with the 20x total USB connectors on the motherboard. Of these, we have 1x USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type-C for ultra-fast transfer speeds. For networking, ASRock could have improved the LAN connectivity and shifted to a 5G network rather than reusing the same 2.5G LAN network. Other than that, the WiFi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4 connectivity are decent additions.

The motherboard’s design is gamer-centric, with a blue color scheme throughout. There’s slight RGB under the M.2 heatsink, but other than that, you won’t find much else. It shouldn’t come as a surprise, considering its pricing.

All in all, for a $219 package, the ASRock Phantom Gaming B850 Riptide WiFi ate and left no crumbs (okay, maybe it left a few). Perhaps a 5G LAN network and an active PCIe 2 slot could have perfected this motherboard. Other than that, it’s quite a decent purchase that will gladly house any Ryzen 7000 or 9000 series CPU.