This ASRock 970a-g/3.1 review aims to make you realize if this brand and model is perfect for your needs. There are many motherboards set for many uses, including gaming, mining cryptocurrencies, and other activities.
Can it handle intensive tasks and offer the ideal support for your CPU?
Our review team will help you figure out whether it’s the most reliable and functional choice for you.
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ASRock 970a-g/3.1: Key Specifications
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ASRock 970a-g/3.1 Review: Quality and Efficient Motherboard
Whether for gaming or something else, the ideal motherboard may not feel like an important choice, but it’s important to get it right.
Having a good motherboard provides the foundation for designing the rest of your dream rig and will form a basis for the experience you get. Also, choosing the best motherboard for your system will determine the case size, storage options, and how much of a CPU upgrade you can potentially have.
Like a few top-quality brands out there, ASRock offers a variety of motherboard models designed to assemble different rigs based on different CPUs (Intel or AMD). In addition, you can use such motherboards for many uses, including to create rigs.
However, it’s worth knowing that components and features you find handy are part of the package when choosing. To that end, the ASRock 970a-g/3.1 delivers on its billing.
An advantage of ASRock motherboards is that they come designed to power video cards through PCI-E, coupled with special connectors for additional power from the power supply. However, this product packs a PCI, PCI-E graphics card interface, 64GB RAM, runs DDR3, and is compatible with major AMD devices.
Our review below will shed more light on its features and other capabilities:
ASRock Motherboard ATX DDR3 2400 AM3 970A-G/3.1
As with many similar devices, this ASRock motherboard has a good feel and ring, and it is well-priced considering other options on the market. Also, a look over the specs shows your money will be well-spent, thanks to a couple of slots, ports, optional Wi-Fi card, and a plethora of USB ports.
It’s AMD-compatible, and with the increasing power demands of CPUs, it comes with VRM designs.
It supports an 8 + 2 power phase design and CPU up to 220W. Also, if you’re a gamer or do some intensive work, you’ll like this motherboard’s capabilities for untied overclocking.
The 970a-g/3.1 appeals more to those who aren’t so interested in bells and whistles but, at the same time, want a solid ATX board capable of powering any 10th Gen CPU without bursting into flames. There’s no integrated Wi-Fi here, but processors and other features make up for that.
– PCI Slot: Use Different Variations
You get a lot of slots here, and the PCI (Peripheral Component Interface) is one of them. ASRock includes variations such as the PCI-Express 2.0 X4, PCI-E, PCI-Express 2.0 x1 slots, and 1x PCI slot.
They allow you to insert expansion cards into your computer and connect additional PCI devices like network cards, sound cards, modems, and video cards. If your computer doesn’t come with a PCI slot, this motherboard can make up for that.
The PCIe (Peripheral Component Interconnect Express) slots on the motherboard will accommodate add-in cards like graphics cards, SSD cards, dedicated sound cards, etc. Since PCIe slots are measured in both length and the number of data transmission lines they provide, you can have more slots and more lanes of data on this ASRock device.
In addition, the PCIe offers such a high ceiling for transfer speeds, a lower number of lanes doesn’t make a tremendous difference. With functional expansion buses, you get to enhance your PC’s capabilities when you add missing features to your computer.
– Technology: Supports AMD’s Cool ‘n’ Quiet
With this feature, you get a technology that enables the CPU in computers to monitor both hardware and software requests loaded into the processing unit and automatically adjust its voltage and frequency. When the CPU’s voltage and frequency are adjusted, it results in a lower CPU temperature and less cooling fan noise.
The Cool ‘n’ Quiet feature will extend your computer’s overall CPU life as well as the life of the computer itself.
There’s also the fact that it automatically adjusts your computer’s cooling fan according to CPU temperature fluctuations. To that end, if the temperature within the CPU rises, the fan’s speed increases, and if the temperature within the CPU decreases, the fan’s speed decreases or shuts off. The actions of this technology conserve power and reduce fan noise.
– Chipset: Hands-On Control
The ASRock 970a-g/3.1 specs include a chipset that helps you maintain control of the resources, including the bus interface with the processor, cache memory and RAM, expansion cards, etc. Inside, you have the North Bridge AMD 970 and South to coordinate data transfers between your computer’s various components.
– Ports: Wide Range of Extra Options
You get other ports on this device that make it worthwhile for your CPU and computer as a whole.
- USB ports need no Introduction, and they’re hot-swappable here. You can use them to connect with devices such as mice, keyboards, scanners, cameras, etc. On a general note, USB connectors are used to connect the motherboard and peripheral devices. ASRock includes Two USB 3.1 Ports (1 Type-A, 1 Type-C) and four USB 3.0 Ports, two at the rear and two via the header. You can use any eight USB 2.0 ports for more minor connections (four rear, four via headers).
- SATA (Serial Advanced Technology Attachment) ports are necessary and offer an interface for connecting storage devices/drives to a motherboard (HDDs, SSDs, optical drives, etc.). You get two SATA ports, six SATA3 ports, and other related supports. That gives you hot-swapping features and faster data transfer rates. Most SATA’s also offer a 6Gbps data transfer rate and allow native command queuing (NCQ). It’s a technology that enhances performance by letting the hard disc drive augment the order in which read/write commands are implemented.
– RAM: Capable DDR3 Memory Technology and Size
The RAM slots let you store programs and data being used by the CPU. The RAM size and memory here make this motherboard quite the device for your computer.
You get a storage capacity and 64 GB RAM max size of 64 GB. Depending on how it’s packaged, you get a memory module that helps you get the best out of various tasks.
Further, you get four DDR3-2400+(OC)/ DIMM Slots, dual-channel, and more to enhance the memory capacity.
– Overview
This motherboard is for anyone who would prefer to spend on a faster GPU or larger SSD instead of paying more for expensive add-in cards. It has all the essentials to make it a good fit for your computer and the tasks you need it for.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Can I overclock on this motherboard?
The general notion is that you cannot overclock on a vast number of motherboards.
However, that’s not the case here because AMD devices are more generous, allowing their CPUs and motherboard chipsets to overclock. With the chipsets on the 970a-g/3.1, there’s no reason why you can overclock, especially with different processes you can tweak.
2. What major components should you consider when buying a motherboard?
Buying a motherboard like many other essential devices out there takes some consideration. That’s because you’d want the best for your rig.
Having the right tools and equipment helps you feel confident about your ability and overall performance.
To that end, you can consider these factors:
- You need the right CPU socket: You can have a great CPU from either Intel or AMD, but whatever processor you choose, make sure that your board has the correct socket to support it. You’ll find that the latest mainstream AMD chips come with AM4 CPU sockets. For Intel, expect 10th and 11th Gen Core CPUs that require LGA 1200 sockets.
- The board size: The smaller the board, the limited the features. With motherboards, you get three main sizes, including this ATX variation from ASRock. Others are Micro-ATX and Mini-ITX; the mini is smaller than micro. Whatever the case, you can use a smaller chassis with the latter two boards, which translates to fewer RAM and card expansion slots.
- Built-in Wi-Fi or ports for connections: The ASRock 970a-g/3.1 drivers lead to more connectors, but if you want to shell out money for built-in Wi-Fi and high-end ports, do so only if you need them. You shouldn’t spend more on wireless connections if you already have Ethernet advantages. The 970a-g/3.1 enables you future-proof your PC with the USB 3.1 Gen 1 from AMD.
Final Thoughts: Is the 970a-g/3.1 Worth Getting?
Most people want a motherboard to make all their tasks and processes smooth and easy. As we observed above, size matters when picking up a motherboard, so you should have your whims about you when picking one. However, the ASRock 970a-g/3.1 is an appealing choice for obvious reasons.
With this motherboard, you don’t have to sacrifice performance or key features to get the best of any application or task. It comes with multiple PCI and PCIe slots, which is more than enough for today’s SLI/CrossFire-less GPU world.
You also get LAN capability, multiple USB ports, and SATA ports.
We noticed that it’s also affordable, which is good news for budget gamers and regular users. Since you can overclock on some aspects using this motherboard, it’s worth getting, coupled with the fact that it supports AMD chipsets and capabilities. For its specifications and features, it’s worth placing in your rig.
