MSI MAG B550 Tomahawk Motherboard Review

Peter Donnell / 5 years ago

While the MSI Tomahawk range is one of the more affordable boards in the MSI line up, it’s is still designed with gamers in mind. That means they’ve put the effort into cramming in as much as a gamer could want or need, but still keep an eye on the cost too. They’re not always the most attractive boards either in my opinion, but that doesn’t mean to say they can’t be impressive overall. B550 is the mid-range option for AMD users right now, with X570 still offering the full-fat experience.

MSI MAG B550 Tomahawk Motherboard Review

B550 may be the mid-range, but you still get a sample platter of all the premium features too. You still get some PCIe Gen 4 on one of the PCIe lanes and on one M.2 slot. The board still has a good power delivery setup for hitting those boost clocks and even overclocking. You get super-fast networking, RGB lighting, and great audio. Affordable it may be, but the Tomahawk still has plenty to offer.

Features

Support for 3rd Gen AMD Ryzen™ Processors and future AMD Ryzen™ processors with BIOS update
Supports DDR4 Memory, up to 4866+(OC) MHz
Lightning Fast Game experience: PCIe 4.0, Lightning Gen 4 x4 M.2 with M.2 Shield Frozr, AMD Turbo USB 3.2 Gen 2
Premium Thermal Solution: Extended Heatsink Design with additional choke thermal pad rated for 7W/mk and PCB with 2oz thickened copper are built for high-performance system and non-stop gaming experience.
Enhanced Power Design: 10+2+1 Duet Rail Power System, Digital PWM, Core Boost, DDR4 Boost.
Latest Network Solution: Onboard 2.5G LAN plus Gigabit LAN with LAN Manager deliver the best online experience without lag.
Mystic Light: 16.8 million colours / 29 effects controlled in one click. Mystic Light Extension supports RGB and RAINBOW LED strip.
Pre-installed I/O Shielding: Better EMI protection and more convenience for installation.
Audio Boost: Reward your ears with studio grade sound quality for the most immersive gaming experience.
Multi-GPU: With Steel Armor PCI-E slots. Supports 2-Way AMD Crossfire™

For in-depth specifications, please visit the official MSI MAG B550 Tomahawk Motherboard product page here.

What MSI Had to Say

“MAG B550 TOMAHAWK features high-bandwidth and low-latency 2.5G plus Gigabit LAN for power users. Onboard 2.5Gbps connectivity provides incredible data transfer speed faster than ever before. MSI LAN Manager automatically classifies and prioritizes the latency-sensitive for your applications, giving you the best online experience with low latency.” – MSI