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$450Nov 93 videos
MSI MAG B550 Tomahawk
Veteran AM4 B550 ATX board with PCIe 4.0 support, six SATA ports and two M.2 slots.
- AM4
- B550
- ATX
- DDR4
- 2
PCPR score
7.1
Fair
Best price we’ve seen
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R1
The short version
The MAG B550 Tomahawk is a long-running AM4 ATX board for Ryzen 3000 and 5000 processors. It offers PCIe 4.0 on the GPU slot and the CPU-attached M.2 slot, six SATA ports and a rear USB-C 10Gbps port, with DDR4 up to 128 GB. It has no onboard Wi-Fi, so it suits upgraders and budget Ryzen 5000 builds.
Pros
- PCIe 4.0 GPU and CPU M.2 slot
- Six SATA ports
- DisplayPort and HDMI outputs
- Flash BIOS button
Cons
- No onboard Wi-Fi
- Only two M.2 slots, one at PCIe 3.0
- DDR4 only, on a legacy socket
Best for
- Ryzen 5000 upgrades on an existing AM4 platform
J3
Full specifications
Core
- Socket
- AM4
- Chipset
- B550
- Form factor
- ATX
Memory
- Memory type
- DDR4
- Memory slots type
- DIMM
- Memory slots
- 4
- Max memory
- 128 GB
- Max memory speed (OC)
- 5,100 MT/s
Expansion
- M.2 slots
- 2
- M.2 PCIe 5.0 slots
- 0
- M.2 PCIe 4.0 slots
- 1
- M.2 PCIe 3.0 slots
- 1
- Supports M.2 22110
- Yes
- SATA ports
- 6
- PCIe x16 slots
- 2
- Primary PCIe slot version
- 4.0
- PCIe x1 slots
- 2
Connectivity
- Wi-Fi
- None
Ports & I/O
- USB4 / Thunderbolt ports
- 0
- Rear USB-C ports
- 1
- Rear USB-A ports
- 5
- Front USB-C header
- Yes
- USB 3 headers
- 1
- USB 2 headers
- 2
- HDMI outputs (iGPU)
- 1
- DisplayPort outputs (iGPU)
- 1
Cooling
- Fan headers
- 8
- ARGB headers (5V)
- 2
- RGB headers (12V)
- 2
Power
- CPU power
- 1 x 8-pin
Fit
- Back-connect (BTF / Project Zero)
- No
Features
- BIOS flashback
- Yes
- BIOS note
- Ryzen 5000 needs BIOS support; the Flash BIOS button updates without a CPU.
Physical
- Color
- Black
Compatibility notes
- Supports Ryzen 5000 and 3000 desktop CPUs; not Ryzen 5 3400G or Ryzen 3 3200G.
- When M.2_2, PCI_E2 and PCI_E3 are used together, PCI_E3 is unavailable and M2_2 runs at x2.
P1
Where to buy
- Buy from the maker
MSI official page
Direct link
- Check price on Amazon
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AV1
Video reviews
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AV2
What reviewers and owners say
r/hardware · u/tkghpera
CriticalA first-time builder reports the BIOS flash button fails to light up with two different USB drives when trying to update for a Ryzen 5800X, leaving the board unusable.
2024-08-16
Read the source
Summaries are written in our words. Follow the links for each source’s own review.
R9
Common questions
Does the B550 Tomahawk have Wi-Fi?
No, this non-WiFi model has no wireless module; add a PCIe or USB adapter if needed.
Can it run Ryzen 5000?
Yes, MSI lists Ryzen 5000 and 3000 desktop CPU support.
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