Why you can trust Tom’s HardwareOur expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the best for you.Find out more about how we test.
Firmware, Software and Test System
Firmware
Like previous ASRock boards, the X870E Taichi starts in Easy Mode, which is primarily informative, but it lets you change several options (XMP, profiles, boot order, access to Fan-Tastic Tuning, etc.). The black background and light blue accent colors on the Easy and Advanced modes are easy to read. Advanced mode has the same theme but displays headings across the top, with subheadings and details below.
Here, you can tweak everything, as ASRock includes every option you can think of. Overclocking is easy, with most options at your fingertips. The layout is logical and the mouse movement is smooth. We have no significant complaints about the ASRock firmware, though it feels a bit dated compared to the updated Gigabyte and MSI UEFIs on X870/X870E.
Software
ASRock provides several different software options. It has the App Shop to install drivers and software, the Nahimic 3 audio control panel, the A-Tuning application to overclock your system and control fans, the Polychrome RGB software, and more. There’s also a Blazing OC Tuner and a pop-up to install drivers when you first boot the system. ASRock’s software provides everything users need to manage and tweak their system.
Test System / Comparison Products
We’ve updated our test system to Windows 11 (23H2) 64-bit OS with all updates applied as of late September 2024 (this includes the Branch Prediction Optimizations for AMD). Hardware-wise, we’ve updated the RAM kits (matching our Intel test system), cooling, storage, and video card. Unless otherwise noted, we use the latest non-beta motherboard BIOS available to the public. Thanks toAsusfor providing theRTX 4080 TUFgraphics card andCrucialfor the2TB T705SSDs. The hardware we used is as follows:
AMD Ryzen 9 9900X
Windows 11 64-bit (23H2 - 22631.4169)
Integrated Networking (GbE to 10 GbE)
GeForce 561.09
Synthetic Benchmarks and Settings
Procyon
Version 07-07-2025 64
Office 365, Video Editing (Premiere Pro 24.6.1), Photo Editing (Photoshop 25.1.2, Lightroom Classic 13.5.1)
3DMark
Speed Way and Steel Nomad (Default)
Open GL Rendering Benchmark - Single and Multi-threaded
Full benchmark (all 3 tests)
Application Tests and Settings
Mixed 271MB WAV to mp3: Command: -b 160 –nores (160Kb/s)
HandBrake CLI
Version: 1.8.2
Sintel Open Movie Project: 4.19GB 4K mkv to x264 (light AVX) and x265 (heavy AVX)
Custom benchmark
Integrated benchmark (Command Line)
Game Tests and Settings
Ultra RT: - 1920 x 1080, DLSS - Balanced.
F1 2024
Ultra High Preset - 1920 x 1080, 16xAF/TAA, Great Britain (Clear/Dry), FPS Counter ON
MORE:All Motherboard Content
Current page:Firmware, Software and Test System
Joe Shields is a Freelance writer for Tom’s Hardware US. He reviews motherboards.
