ASRock B650E Taichi Lite Motherboard Review – Less Flashy, Much Powerful, More Affordable

The ASRock B650E Taichi LITE motherboard comes in a large cardboard package. The front is themed in black and gold. You can also note the Taichi logo on the front and sides which looks great. The front side also lists down support for AMD's Ryzen 7000 "Zen 4" processors, DDR5 memory, and PCIe Gen 5.0.

The backside of the package lists the specifications and special features of the motherboard such as the 24+2+1 Power Phase design that uses 105A SPS, Enhanced USB4 Type-C ports, Blazing M.2 Gen5 Fan heatsink, and several other features.

Inside the package is another box that contains the accessories at the bottom. It is very easy to access although the accessories and each of them are nicely packed in two compartments.

Following is the full list of accessories in the package.

• 1 x User Manual
• 4 x SATA Data Cables
• 1 x Wireless Dongle USB Bracket
• 1 x ASRock WiFi 2.4/5/6 GHz Antenna
• 3 x Screws for M.2 Sockets
• 1 x Standoff for M.2 Socket

The motherboard is housed above the accessories and has anti-static wrapping to protect it from any built-up electrical resistance that can affect the board. One of the most important accessories (not shipped with the B650E Taichi) is the Blazing M.2 Fan heatsink which is an entirely separate heatsink unit with an active fan cooler and a thermal pad underneath it for PCIe M.2 SSDs. The whole unit has a single 4-pin connector coming out from it to power the fan. It is up to you if you want to use it passively or with the active fan cooler. The heatsink comes standard with the high-end X670E Taichi but for the B650E Taichi, you have to buy it separately.

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Despite being a LITE motherboard, the ASRock B650E Taichi LITE retains its high-end feel with the high-end VRM solution and a full-ATX design.

The ASRock B650E Taichi is styled in black and grey. The motherboard comes with the standard ATX form factor so compatibility won't be an issue on a wide range of PCs. Instead of using gears on the heatsink, the motherboard heatsinks and PCB are painted with gears to retain the Taichi look and theme.

The board uses the LGA 1718 socket to support AMD Ryzen 7000 processors. The socket is compatible only with Ryzen 7000 CPUs for now but will also support future iterations on the AM5 platform.

Next to the socket are four DDR5 DIMM slots that can support up to 128 GB of dual-channel memory. These slots are rated to support EXPO profiles up to 6400 MHz (OC Plus). The DIMM slots feature metallic shielding around them for extra durability. Each slot is labeled, making it easier to install DIMMs in the proper orientation. DDR5 memory comes with a different latch position so forcing a DDR4 module into a DDR5 slot will cause permanent damage.

The ASRock B650E Taichi LITE features a 24+2+1 (VCore/ VccGT/VccAUX)  phase digital power delivery that makes utilizes the Renesas RAA229628 PWM controller and RAA22010540 (105A) MOSFETs for the VCore & SOC.

The Vcc GT and Vcc AUX MOSFETs are spec'd at 60A & 70A respectively.

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Unlike the Taichi, the Taichi LITE doesn't feature a backplate heatsink, and the heatsinks for the VRMs are also toned-down. The B650E Taichi actually had an active cooling solution embedded within the VRM heatsinks which isn't the case with the Taichi LITE. Some may see it as a plus as active cooling solutions lead to unwanted noise.

The CPU is supplied power through an 8+8 pin power connector configuration. This will feed the CPU with up to 300 Watts of power. The AMD Ryzen 7000 CPUs are very power-hungry with the maximum package power rating of 230W &  more if you are planning to overclock these chips.

Getting a closer look at the VRM heatsinks reveals an aluminum fin design on both heatsinks. Each heatsink has thermal pads located underneath for efficient transfer of heat.

There's a large heat pipe that runs between the two topmost VRM heatsinks and provides good heat dissipation. you can see through the I/O area and the VRM heatsink and there's mostly a hollow part beneath the two. The heatsink has really been slimmed out as a cost-saving measure.

Expansion slots include two PCI Express x16 (1 x Gen 5.0 x16 or 2 x Gen 4.0 x4) and three M.2 slots.

ASRock is using a metallic cover on the sides of the expansion slots which provides protection to some extent. It adds more retention and shearing resistance by reinforcing the slots with metal plates. Aside from adding more protection, they do look really sweet.

All three M.2 slots are cooled off by the thermal pad and aluminum baseplate cooling. This will ensure stable operation for M.2 storage devices. The thermal adhesive has a plastic cover over them which needs to be removed before being used with the storage devices.

The topmost M.2 slot will house the primary PCI Gen 5.0 M.2 at the top which offers even more cooling performance through a larger heat sink.

This can also house the Blazing M.2 cooler that was detailed above. The third M.2 slot shares lanes with the 2nd PCIe Gen 4.0 slot so either will be disabled depending on your usage. Following is the M.2 config on the motherboard:

CPU:

• - 1 x Blazing M.2 Socket (M2_1, Key M), supports type 2230/2242/2260/2280/22110 PCIe Gen5x4 (128 Gb/s) mode

Chipset:

• - 1 x Hyper M.2 Socket (M2_2, Key M), supports type 2280 PCIe Gen4x4 (64 Gb/s) mode
• - 1 x Hyper M.2 Socket (M2_3, Key M), supports type 2280 PCIe Gen4x4 (64 Gb/s) mode

The B650E PCH is housed beneath a small heatsink with the ASRock logo etched over it. This is big enough for the tiny B650E chipset which doesn't produce a whole lot of heat.

There's support for Polychrome Sync RGB but you won't find any RGB LEDs on the front of the PCB. There are a few underneath the board but that's about it.

Storage options include just four SATA III ports rated to operate at 6 GB/s. These can support 4 different storage devices at once. There are also three USB 3.2 front panel connectors (1 x Gen 2x2 + 2 x Gen 1). 4x USB 2.0 connectors are also included.

ASRock is using a Realtek ALC4082 Audio Codec for audio output through a 5.1 channel HD audio jack that comes with WIMA audio capacitors (front outputs) and an ESS SABRE9218 DAC (front panel).

The LED DEBUG along with the Power On/Off and Reset switches can be found below the PCH heat sink. The full list of connectors on the motherboard is listed as follows.

• - 1 x SPI TPM Header
• - 1 x Power LED and Speaker Header
• - 1 x RGB LED Header
• - 3 x Addressable LED Headers
• - 1 x CPU Fan Connector (4-pin)
• - 1 x CPU/Water Pump Fan Connector (4-pin) (Smart Fan Speed Control)
• - 6 x Chassis/Water Pump Fan Connectors (4-pin) (Smart Fan Speed Control)
• - 1 x 24 pin ATX Power Connector (Hi-Density Power Connector)
• - 2 x 8 pin 12V Power Connectors (Hi-Density Power Connector)
• - 1 x Front Panel Audio Connector (15μ Gold Audio Connector)
• - 2 x USB 2.0 Headers (Support 4 USB 2.0 ports)
• - 1 x USB 3.2 Gen1 Header (Supports 2 USB 3.2 Gen1 ports)
• - 1 x Front Panel Type C USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Header (20 Gb/s) (ReDriver)
• - 1 x Dr. Debug with LED
• - 1 x Power Button with LED
• - 1 x Reset Button with LED

ASRock is using a 2.5G Killer E3100G LAN switch along with the latest 802.11ax WiFi 6E module to power connectivity. The motherboard comes with the following I/O connectors:

• - 2 x Antenna Ports
• - 1 x HDMI Port
• - 1 x Optical SPDIF OutPort
• - 1 x USB4 Type-C Port (40 Gb/s)
• - 3 x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-A Ports (10 Gb/s) (ReDriver) (USB32_12 are Lightning Gaming Ports. USB32_11 supports Ultra USB Power.)
• - 8 x USB 3.2 Gen1 Ports (ASMedia ASM1074 hub)
• - 1 x RJ-45 LAN Port
• - 1 x Clear CMOS Button
• - 1 x BIOS Flashback Button
• - 1 x Line Out Jack (Gold Audio Jack)
• - 1 x Microphone Input Jack (Gold Audio Jack)