SOVLED! Is the B450 chipset compatible with Ryzen 5 5600x?

In case you needed to know, the B450 series is the successor to the previous-gen B350 series. For starters, it offers you access to premium functionalities that were previously reserved exclusively for the flagship X470 chipset. These features include SenseMI, and StoreMI support, Precision Boost 2, XFR 2.0,  to name a few.

Well, kudos to you if you’re planning to upgrade from B350 to a B450. Allow me to let you know a few things! The USB connection, storage, or PCIe lanes are the same. Now, the availability of a PCIe 3.0 x16 lane from the SoC indicates that the b450 is appropriate for use in configurations with a single GPU. However, there is no CPU PCIe bifurcation functionality,  it is reserved for the more expensive X470 chipset. With that said, the implementation of StoreMI in b450 makes it possible to mix and match different combinations of RAM, SSD, and HDD to provide you with the quickest possible way to access data.

Ryzen 5 5600x is a zen 3-based 4th Generation Ryzen CPU. So, your B550 Chipset will have full support for this 5600X without the need for a BIOS update. You can check this page to know more about CPU and motherboard compatibility.

Also Read: Are AMD Motherboards Backward compatible?

What else is new with the B450?

The B450 allows for overclocking on all supported Ryzen CPUs. It is by far the most bang for your buck feature of this chipset. AMD did this to bring in some heat, It’s forever rival, Intel enables overclocking for you (both for the CPU and the RAM) only on their higher-end Z370 and Z270 chipsets. 

On the flip side, AMD lets you overclock even on the most basic B450 motherboards. Now you know why AMD did this. Whatever their rivalry may be, at the end of the day, it is we that are benefitted.

Now, the question is,

Right off the bat, you should not assume that any given B450 motherboard will work with Ryzen 5000-series CPUs. With that out of the way, some B450 motherboards work seamlessly with the Ryzen 5 5600X.

So, what now? The solution is absolutely simple! You will either need to purchase a motherboard that already has an updated BIOS, or you will need to upgrade your BIOS manually. This is likely required for an older CPU, as most B450 motherboards do not support BIOS flashback without a CPU.

One thing to keep in mind is that the first generation of Ryzen and certain older APUs do not receive updates anymore. We highly recommend that you look at the BIOS changelog and the CPU support list for your motherboard.

Final Verdict

If you are going to purchase a new motherboard for your Ryzen 5 5600X, we recommend that you at least buy a B450 motherboard or higher. This will ensure that you have proper support. It will also allow you to take advantage of PCIe 4.0 if you plan on using a next-gen graphics card equipped with Directstorage/RTX IO or Smart Access Memory/Resizable BAR technologies. 

In the end, it also comes down to your thorough research about the motherboard and the processor. This will not only save your hard-earned bucks but will allow you to make wiser decisions.