Comparison ASRock 970M Pro3 vs Gigabyte GA-78LMT-USB3

The design of the motherboard has a separate heatsink for VRM.

VRM is a voltage regulation module through which power from a computer power supply is supplied to the processor. This module steps down the standard power supply voltage (+5V or +12V) to a lower value required by the processor (usually just over 1V). At high loads, the voltage regulator can get very hot, and without a specialized cooling system, the matter can end with overheating and even burnout of parts. The VRM heatsink reduces the likelihood of such situations; it can be useful for any CPU, and highly desirable if the board is planned to be used with a powerful high-end processor (especially overclocked).

The chipset model installed in the motherboard. AMD's current chipset models are B450, A520, B550, X570, A620, B650, B650E, X670, X670E, X870, X870E.. For Intel, in turn, the list of chipsets looks like this: X299, H410, B460, H470, Z490, H510, B560, H570, Z590, H610, B660, H670, Z690, B760, Z790, Z890.

A chipset is a set of chips on the motherboard through which the individual components of the system interact directly: the processor, RAM, drives, audio and video adapters, network controllers, etc. Technically, such a set consists of two parts — the north and sou...th bridges. The key element is the northbridge, it connects the processor, memory, graphics card and the southbridge (together with the devices it controls). Therefore, it is often the name of the north bridge that is indicated as the chipset model, and the south bridge model is specified separately (see below); it is this scheme that is used in traditional layout motherboards, where bridges are made in the form of separate microcircuits. There are also solutions where both bridges are combined in one chip; for them, the name of the entire chipset can be indicated.

Anyway, knowing the chipset model, you can find various additional data on it — from general reviews to special instructions. An ordinary user, usually, does not need such information, but it can be useful for various professional tasks.

Model of the south bridge installed in the motherboard.

This component of the "motherboard" is one of the constituent parts of the chipset. See above for details on the chipset; here we note that the south bridge is responsible for the interaction of the motherboard with peripheral devices: expansion cards (sound, network), drives, external USB peripherals, etc. Knowing the name of this module, if necessary, you can easily find detailed information about its characteristics and capabilities. An ordinary user, usually, does not need such information, but it can be useful for various professional tasks.

The type of BIOS installed on the motherboard. Note that only “classic” BIOSes are taken into account here — from Ami, from Award and from Intel; a more advanced UEFI BIOS has been moved to a separate item (see below).

The BIOS is the basic input/output system, the motherboard's own software firmware stored in its permanent memory; it allows all the hardware components of the system to interact with each other, even if the computer does not have an OS installed. In other words, it is the “bios” that controls the computer from the moment it is turned on until the operating system boots. This firmware also includes a set of tools for changing the basic settings.

Speaking about specific varieties, it is worth saying that the mentioned "classic" firmware do not have fundamental differences between themselves; in addition, the set of features is largely determined not by the type of BIOS, but by the model of the motherboard. Therefore, the type of BIOS is not a key choice; even for professionals and enthusiasts, it rarely turns out to be fundamental.

Motherboard support for DualBIOS technology.

Crashes and errors in the BIOS (see BIOS) are one of the most serious problems that can occur with a modern PC — they not only make the computer unusable, but also very difficult to fix. DualBIOS technology is designed to make it easier to deal with such problems. Motherboards made using this technology have two chips for writing the BIOS: the first chip contains the main BIOS version, which is used to boot the system in normal mode, the second one contains a backup copy of the BIOS in the original (factory) configuration. The backup chip comes into operation if an error is detected in the main BIOS: if an error is detected in the programme code, it is restored to the original factory version, but if there was a hardware failure, the backup chip takes control of the system, replacing the main one. This allows you to keep your system up and running even in the event of serious BIOS problems without resorting to complex recovery procedures.

The maximum RAM clock speed supported by the motherboard. The actual clock frequency of the installed RAM modules should not exceed this indicator — otherwise, malfunctions are possible, and the capabilities of the “RAM” cannot be used to the fullest.

For modern PCs, a RAM frequency of 1500 – 2000 MHz or less is considered very low, 2000 – 2500 MHz is modest, 2500 – 3000 MHz is average, 3000 – 3500 MHz is above average, and the most advanced boards can support frequencies of 3500 – 4000 MHz and even more than 4000 MHz.

The maximum amount of RAM that can be installed on the motherboard.

When choosing according to this parameter, it is important to take into account the planned use of the PC and the real needs of the user. So, volumes up to 32 GB inclusive are quite enough to solve any basic problems and run games comfortably, but without a significant reserve for an upgrade. 64 GB is the optimal option for many professional use cases, and for the most resource-intensive tasks like 3D rendering, 96 GB or even 128 GB of memory will not be a limit. The most “capacious” motherboards are compatible with volumes of 192 GB or more - they are mainly top-end solutions for servers and HEDT (see “In the direction”).

You can choose this parameter with a reserve – taking into account a potential RAM upgrade, because installing additional RAM sticks is the simplest way to increase system performance. Taking this factor into account, many relatively simple motherboards support very significant amounts of RAM.

The ability of the motherboard to work with RAM modules that support AMP technology (AMD Memory Profiles). This technology was developed by AMD; it is used in motherboards and RAM blocks and only works if both of these system components are AMP compatible. A similar technology from Intel is called XMP.

The main function of AMP is to facilitate system overclocking (“overclocking”): special overclocking profiles are “sewn” into memory with this technology, and if desired, the user can only select one of these profiles without resorting to complex configuration procedures. This is not only easier, but also safer: every profile added to the bar is tested for stability.

The ability of the motherboard to work with RAM modules that support XMP (Extreme Memory Profiles) technology. This technology was developed by Intel; it is used in motherboards and RAM blocks and only works if both of these system components are XMP compliant. A similar technology from AMD is called AMP.

The main function of XMP is to facilitate system overclocking (“overclocking”): special overclocking profiles are “sewn” into the memory with this technology, and if desired, the user can only select one of these profiles without resorting to complex configuration procedures. This is not only easier, but also safer: every profile added to the bar is tested for stability.