We’ve spoken about a few great Asus motherboards when reviewing some of the best motherboard options for Ryzen 5 3600. These were the ROG Strix X570-E and the Prime B450M-A II. We suggested that the X570-E is the best ATX motherboard for a few good reasons. For the dedicated hardcore gamer and for everyone involved in intensive workloads, the X570-E offers the following. 128GB memory, supports multi GPU, dual PCIe 4.0 M.2 slots, Wi-Fi 6 and built for DIY. Great cooling and heat dissipation hence works perfect for overclocking. Anyways without getting too carried away, today we will review another hot topic which is the Asus Prime B550-Plus vs Asus Rog Strix B550-F.
Asus products have been dominating the tech industry in all aspects. They offer products for everyone no matter your budget and delivered with value. This is exactly why both the B550 plus and Strix B550-F are so popular due to their affordable price tag. Does this mean that the specs are downgraded? that it cannot handle overclocking or intensive workloads? Let’s find out.
Asus Prime B550-Plus vs Asus Rog Strix B550-F Specs
| Asus Prime B550-Plus | Asus Rog Strix B550-F | |
| Memory | 4 x DIMM, Max. 128GB, DDR4, Max OC @4866(O.C) | 4 x DIMM, Max. 128GB, DDR4, Max OC @4400(O.C) |
| Multi GPU support | AMD 2-Way CrossFireX Technology | Supports NVIDIA® 2-Way SLI® Technology & Supports AMD 3-Way CrossFireX™ Technology for Ryzen gen 2 & 3 CPUs, Supports AMD 2-Way CrossFireX™ Technology |
| Expansion slots | 1 x PCIe 4.0 x16,1 x PCIe 3.0 x16 | 1 x PCIe 4.0 x16,1 x PCIe 3.0 x16 |
| Storage | 2 x M.2 slot(s) and 6 x SATA 6Gb/s ports | 2 x M.2 slot(s) and 6 x SATA 6Gb/s ports |
| Audio | Realtek ALC S1200A 7.1 | ROG SupremeFX 7.1 |
| Ports | 8 USB ports including 1 x Type-A+1 x USB Type-C, LAN port, HDMI, Display, Optical, Audio, BIOS button and Thunderbolt header | 8 USB ports including 1 x Type-A+1 x USB Type-C, LAN port, HDMI, Display, Optical, Audio, BIOS button and Thunderbolt header |
| Software & special features | Asus Armoury Crate | ROG Exclusive Software & Asus Armoury Crate |
These are the essential specs as listed on paper. Of course these vary with the AMD CPU used. But it is fair to say that we can mutually agree that the specs on paper justifies the price tag and delivers even more. Packaging contains the WiFi antenna, SATA connectors, I/O cover, the guides and some other minor peripherals. Starting off with the VRM and heatsinks, the TUF has a nice design to the heatsink with the grey and yellow lines along with TUF GAMING written across it.
Takes a major space at the rear PCB near the I/O ports. The onboard VRM of TUF Gaming B550-Plus utilizes 8+2 Dr MOS power stages that combine high-side and low-side MOSFETs and drivers into a single package, delivering the power and efficiency seamlessly that AMD 5th gen CPUs require.
Considering the ROG Strix, the power delivery is a step ahead because of the 12+2 phase setup which will ensure ultra power delivery to the CPU. The heatsinks have a similar design to the TUF with the three engraved lines and the intensifying ROG logo. The port arrangement is neat and clear and the pre-mounted I/O shield eases the assembling. Packaging contains the usual as the Plus.
Asus Prime B550-Plus vs Asus Rog Strix B550-F: Additional Features
For RGB lovers who want to showcase their hardware, the Asus TUF offers plenty of RGB headers near the DIMM slots and M.2 heatsinks. Not to mention the AURA Sync software to customize the lighting. Cooling options won’t go unrecognized here. 2 fans headers near the RAM slots, near the PCIe 4.0 slot and down at the bottom. All fan headers support auto-detection of PWM or DC fans. If you are a fan of water cooling, the TUF board got you covered there too. An integrated AiO system enables full control of PWM or DC water pumps. Of course all these fan headers can be easily managed by Fan Xpert 4 or via the UEFI to optimize temperature.
The cooling is pretty much the same with the ROG Strix. 3 x 4-Pin chassis fan headers, 1 AIO pump header and 2 CPU fan headers(optional one). And the header placements are identical to the TUF. RGB is also the same with the Strix board and you have plenty of customization. One special feature that we simply cannot dismiss is the AI noise-canceling microphone. Many testers emphasized specifically on the difference of audio when the AI mode is turned off. The software supports 3.5 mm, USB, or Bluetooth headsets and turning this mode on does not take a heavy toll on the CPU.
Plus vs Strix: Ports & Software
Both the boards integrate a generous amount of USB connectivity including Type C as mentioned above. Both have thunderbolt headers and the rest of it is identical too all the way to LAN and Wi Fi. When it comes to the software, the Asus Plus features the widely known Armoury Crate while the Strix has the ROG exclusive software plus the Asus software. You are in complete control of your rig from audio, temperature, overclocking to RGB illumination.
Performance and Overclocking
Now to the most awaited bit that determines which board to proceed with for the techies who don’t care about RGB or other fancy stuff. KitGuruTech tested the ASUS ROG Strix with a Ryzen 9 3950X, 16 GB @ 3200 frequencies RAM, RTX 2080 Ti and a WD PCIe 3.0x 4 NVMe M.2 SSD. They tested with Blender version 2.82 a which is a benchmarking 3D creation suite. It offers every performance tracking feature from modeling, rigging, animation to rendering to game creation and motion tracking. The scores are slightly lower compared to the Asus Tuf Gaming X570 plus. However, with 3DMark Time Spy, it outranked the X570 board.
That was just a piece of additional info to see how the B550 stacks up against the X570. According to most testers, both the Strix and the TUF Gaming perform the same in the image rendering program of Blender with 4K and 1080p producing identical measurements. With the Ryzen 9 3950X the Strix reached about 49 degrees Celsius while the TUF Gaming peaked at 56 degrees Celsius during blender tests with identical cooling setups.
When it comes to overclocking the multi threaded CPUs in all cores, there is a special procedure to follow. Testers recommend a free app that AMD introduced called the Ryzen Master to get equal speeds in all cores. Needless to say, you are going to need a good aftermarket cooler like the Wraith Spire to keep the CPU from frying itself. Checkout this guide on how to obtain the maximum out of all cores. Bottom line is that you can bring up the frequency up to a 4.3GHz with 1.35V. This way you can create separate CPU utilization profiles for productivity, daily use and gaming. Again a bit of additional info.
Summary
So now you see why everybody gets entangled in the topic of Asus Prime B550-Plus vs Asus Rog Strix B550-F. The winner in this debate is quite clear, although having the other doesn’t make much of a difference. The Strix’s incredible power delivery is what mostly separates it from the Plus although both the boards perform well in stress tests. Audio, connectivity, PCIe slots and even the design is pretty much identical. Therefore if you plan on being a hardcore producer or gamer, then you can choose to go ahead with the Strix for 40 bucks extra, else you are fine with the Plus model.
Typical Setup?
Please note that this is merely a guide based on personal choices and you should definitely double check before finalizing. We only intent to provide some helpful hints in putting your rig together.
For the extreme content creators and gamers out there,
- AMD Ryzen 9 5950X CPU
- TEAMGROUP T-Force Xtreem 32GB Kit RAM
- ASUS ROG RYUO III 360 ARGB All-in-One Liquid CPU Cooler
- RTX 40 series card for the GPU. 4070 Ti, 4090, 4080
- Samsung 990 Pro PCIe 4.0 M.2 or WD_Black SN850X NVMe as the SSD
- Corsair RM850E or be quiet! Dark Power Pro 11 as the PSU (do the correct math)
- Cooler master, Noctua models for cooling
- Recommend a Lian Li as the PC case
We hope this guide is both informative and helpful. On that note, let us know which board you chose to go ahead with and why.
