ASUS ROG Crosshair VIII Extreme AMD AM4 X570/X570S EATX gaming board
ASUS ROG Crosshair VIII Extreme AMD AM4 X570/X570S EATX gaming board
I'm working on planning my next project. I aim for durability and take the time to select reliable components. This particular motherboard caught my attention, but I'm mindful of budget constraints and am open to investing for quality. My main worries come from reviews I've read. One person mentioned a slow 28-second load time after a clean Windows installation on an Asus Mobos. Does anyone else face this problem with Asus boards and Windows? Is there a solution? If it causes trouble, especially for a costly board, I'd prefer not to deal with it. Another concern is that the M.2 slots on these boards appear inactive right out of the box. I'm curious if anyone has bought one and had similar issues. Also, with AMD's upcoming CPU lineup next year, should I hold off or upgrade soon? Will the new CPUs still fit in AM4 slots? I'm unsure how long before I might need another board, so I'll likely upgrade eventually. Overall, this expensive board seems to have some reliability issues. I wasn't too concerned about dead M.2 slots, but repeated problems after returning could be a red flag. Thanks for your advice!
First of all, investing that much in a motherboard is usually not worth it unless you're aiming for world record overclocking. For most users, the advantages are minimal compared to popular options like the MSI B550 Tomahawk. It’s probably wiser to allocate your budget elsewhere and opt for a more widely accepted board.
Second, you’ll likely encounter similar reviews from various manufacturers. No quality control team is flawless, and those who run into problems tend to leave negative feedback. Still, much of this criticism comes from ASUS’s customer service, which generally has a poor reputation. While their products are decent and not overly expensive, issues can be frustrating. If you’re planning a significant investment, consider EVGA instead—they produce high-quality boards and their support team is often praised. For X570 builds, their FTW model offers excellent performance without the QC drawbacks seen with ASUS.
Don’t spend around $500–600 on a motherboard unless you’ve saved up enough. The market evolves quickly, so what’s sensible today might not be tomorrow. Right now, a 12900k seems like a more practical choice for your project.
Future proofing is a fool's errand. There is no such thing. You're better off buying less powerful (and less expensive) components more often to keep up with the latest and greatest, than plunking down a king's ransom on high end today. I can't remember the video, but there was one where Linus discussed this in context of his time at NCIX and trying to get people to make reasonable purchases for today, instead of the future. Over time, you actually get better performance for the same money going more mid tier, but staying up to date, than getting the absolute best of the best now and keeping it for the next 6 years or whatever. Especially with how quickly things have been moving in the CPU and GPU space the last few years, whatever is out 3 years from now will beat the pants off the absolute best available today. We're also in the middle of two big transitions: DDR4 to DDR5 and PCIe 5.0. Right now, neither are necessary or even that worthwhile, but over the next few years, that will surely change. DDR5 will eventually hit clockspeeds and latencies that will leave DDR4 in the dust. PCIe 5.0 will become important for tech like USB4.
Thanks for the guidance! I've been comparing other motherboards and found the newer Intel options quite attractive. You're right, it makes sense to wait until I've saved enough.
I’m not overly focused on future-proofing; what matters most is lasting durability so I can afford a few years for a new build. Your comments on the shift from DDR4 to 5 are really important, and I appreciate you bringing them to my notice.
It's important to evaluate each part individually rather than relying on general assumptions. There are several mid-range boards that perform well and last longer than premium parts. You should assess each component separately instead of assuming a broad outcome. Focusing on individual needs is more reliable than making blanket financial predictions about reliability.
It's interesting I'm checking this board because Amazon is offering a discount, and I found this discussion. Most of my past spending was on the ASUS Rampage IV Black, which was quite reliable. This one is pricier, and I'm not a gamer or an overclocker anymore. I'm a developer planning to buy the next AM4 CPU from AMD. Still unsure if it's worth the investment, though the NVMe expansion is a plus since I've run out of NVMe slots. Time to decide...