The ASRock B650E PG-ITX motherboard comes in a small cardboard package. The front is themed in black and red which has been a staple of ASRock’s Phantom Gaming design for years. You can also note the “PG” logo on the front which looks great. The front side also lists down support for AMD’s Ryzen 7000 “Zen 4” processors while the motherboard is clearly labeled as a gaming product.
The backside of the package lists the specifications and special features of the motherboard such as the Direct 10+2+1 Phase 105A SPS VRM design, Blazing M.2 Gen5 Fan-Heatsink, PCIe Gen 5 tech, and Intel Killer connectivity for LAN and WIFI.
Inside the package is another box that contains the accessories at the bottom. It is very easy to access although the accessories and each of them are nicely packed in three compartments. Following is the full list of accessories in the package.
1x User Manual
2x SATA Data Cables
1x ASRock WiFi 2.4/5/6 GHz Antenna
1x Screw for M.2 Socket
The motherboard is housed above the accessories and has anti-static wrapping to protect it from any built-up electrical resistance that can affect the board. Despite being an ITX board and based on the B650E chipset, ASRock is asking $290 US for the product which is fairly decent.
The ASRock B650 PG ITX motherboard features matte black and red colors. The motherboard falls within the Mini-ITX form factor and looks adorable yet ferocious at the same time. It’s something about that PG aesthetic that gives it a different perspective and its also the first ITX AM5 board in our test suite.
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The board uses the LGA 1718 socket to support AMD Ryzen 7000 processors. The socket is compatible only with Ryzen 7000 CPUs for now but will also support future iterations on the AM5 platform.
Next to the socket are four DDR5 DIMM slots that can support up to 128 GB of dual-channel memory. These slots are rated to support EXPO profiles up to 6200 MHz (OC Plus). The DIMM slots feature metallic shielding around them for extra durability. Each slot is labeled, making it easier to install DIMMs in the proper orientation. DDR5 memory comes with a different latch position so forcing a DDR4 module into a DDR5 slot will cause permanent damage.
The B650E PG-ITX features a 10+2+1 (VCore/ VccGT/VccAUX) phase digital power delivery.
There’s a singular heatsink on the motherboard which stands taller due to the amount of work it has to handle. 90% of the VRMs are populated underneath this heatsink so there’s bound to be a lot of heat generated in this particular area.
The CPU is supplied power through a single 8-pin power connector configuration. This will feed the CPU with up to 150 Watts of power. The AMD Ryzen 7000 CPUs are very power-hungry with the maximum package power rating of 230W & more if you are planning to overclock these chips.
Getting a closer look at the VRM heatsinks reveals an aluminum fin design on the heatsink. The heatsink itself is very slim but shares some of its load with the M.2 Blazing heatsink thanks to a heat pipe implementation.
Expansion slots include a single PCI Express x16 (1 x Gen 5.0 x16) and two M.2 slots which are rated at Gen 5 and Gen 4 specs.
ASRock is using a metallic cover on the sides of the expansion slots which provides protection to some extent. It adds more retention and shearing resistance by reinforcing the slots with metal plates. Aside from adding more protection, they do look really sweet.
The front M.2 heatsink sits beneath the new M.2 Blazing heatsink while the second slot sits on the back of the motherboard and doesn’t feature any heatsink. Though there’s enough room that you can get a Gen 4 NVMe that already uses a heatsink. The thermal adhesive has a plastic cover over them which needs to be removed before being used with the storage devices.
Following is the M.2 config on the motherboard:
CPU:
– 1 x Blazing M.2 Socket (M2_1, Key M), supports type 2280 PCIe Gen5x4 (128 Gb/s) mode
– 1 x Hyper M.2 Socket (M2_2, Key M), supports type 2280 PCIe Gen4x4 (64 Gb/s) mode
The B650E PCH is housed beneath a secondary heatsink underneath the M.2 heatsink which comes with an active cooling solution.
Storage options include two SATA III ports rated to operate at 6 GB/s. These can support 2 different storage devices at once. There are also three USB 3.2 front panel connectors (1 x Gen 2×2 2x Gen2x1) and dual USB 2.0 dual connectors are also included.
ASRock has implemented a 7.1 channel HD audio with the latest Realtek ALC1220 audio codec.
The full list of connectors on the motherboard is listed as follows.
– 1 x eDP Signal Connector
– 2 x Addressable LED Headers
– 1 x CPU Fan Connector (4-pin)
– 1 x CPU/Water Pump Fan (M.2 Fan) Connector (4-pin) (Smart Fan Speed Control)
– 1 x Chassis/Water Pump Fan Connector (4-pin) (Smart Fan Speed Control)
– 1 x 24 pin ATX Power Connector (Hi-Density Power Connector)
– 1 x 8 pin 12V Power Connector (Hi-Density Power Connector)
– 1 x Front Panel Audio Connector (15μ Gold Audio Connector)
– 1 x USB 2.0 Header (Supports 2 USB 2.0 ports)
– 1 x USB 3.2 Gen1 Header (Supports 2 USB 3.2 Gen1 ports)
– 1 x Front Panel Type C USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Header (20 Gb/s) (ReDriver)
ASRock is using Intel’s WiFi 6E 802.11 AX210 WiFi Module to power wireless connectivity such as 802.11ax WiFi (2.4/5/6 GHz WiFi) and Bluetooth 5.2. In terms of Ethernet, there is also a single 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet LAN port which is powered by a Killer E3100G network controller chip. The motherboard comes with the following I/O connectors:
– 2 x Antenna Ports
– 1 x HDMI Port
– 1 x Optical SPDIF OutPort
– 3 x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-A Ports (10 Gb/s) (USB32_23 are Lightning Gaming Ports.)
– 1 x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-C Port (10 Gb/s)
– 4 x USB 2.0 Ports
– 1 x RJ-45 LAN Port
– 1 x Line Out Jack (Gold Audio Jack)
– 1 x Microphone Input Jack (Gold Audio Jack)
