AMD mainboard B550 or X570 featuring two HDMI ports and one DP port, not from Gigabyte and offering good value.
AMD mainboard B550 or X570 featuring two HDMI ports and one DP port, not from Gigabyte and offering good value.
I changed my primary system to Linux two months ago, but I'm not satisfied with the gaming experience. I want to remain on Linux. My goal is to assemble a reasonably budget-friendly Linux setup and connect it to my Windows gaming rig for smoother play. Initially, I considered an AMD APU such as the 5600G, but finding suitable motherboards with enough ports for three screens has been difficult. Most options are either Gigabyte or very costly. I’d prefer not to rely on Gigabyte and keep things more affordable. Any recommendations for a mainboard would be helpful? Is my overall plan realistic?
Boards supporting DisplayPort, HDMI and VGA are likely equipped with VGA or DVI-I. You might need a budget passive adapter or a DVI-VGA cable, but verify the manual first. The ASRock B550M Pro4 MSI B550M PRO-VDH is affordable and reliable, offering solid VRM performance, effective heatsinking, and avoiding overheating. It also includes a PCIe X4 port which could be handy. The Asus TUF GAMING B550M-E MSI B550M Pro-VDH is budget-friendly but has older audio output (alc887 vs alc892 on MSI vs alc1200 on ASRock). It provides 2.5 Gbps Ethernet, though it may not justify the cost. With chipset A520, the Gigabyte A520M DS3H supports DP, HDMI, and DVI-D, though it's unclear if DVI is shared with HDMI. The manual suggests no heatsink on VRM (but mounting holes exist for adding larger heatsinks or adhesive RAM heatsinks). It should handle 5600G, but lacks BIOS flashback protection—upgrading BIOS might be necessary before installing a higher clock speed. The ASRock A520M Pro4 is similar to the B550M Pro4 in VRM quality but has a less efficient heatsink and no BIOS flashback, requiring caution if a BIOS update is needed. The ASUS PRIME A520M-A II offers DP, HDMI, and VGA, but costs more and has fewer USB ports on the IO shield.