ASRock AB350M-HDV AM4 AMD Promontory B350 USB 3.1 HDMI Micro ATX AMD Motherboard

Pros: * With a BIOS update, two of the USB 3.0 ports function as 3.1 (Gen2). Not too often is a product better than advertised.
* Overall good layout and easy to set up.
* For a cheap board, the BIOS/EFI is very in-depth
* I haven't tried overclocking, but the 8-pin CPU connector, VRM heatsink, and sufficient OC options make this board a good option for those who want to overclock on a budget. However, I wouldn't expect people to breach 3.8GHz.
* The BIOS has a built-in network update tool, which is convenient (especially for something as young as Ryzen). But, you have to use Ethernet and you'll want to use the European servers - as of writing, the US one doesn't work.
* BIOS has QR codes to reference an online manual which is a fancy idea, but...

Cons: * ... the manual doesn't contain all of the features. There are a handful of new things I've never seen before with no documentation as to what they do.
* BIOS menu layout has room for improvement. It's not bad, but can be a little cumbersome or confusing.
* BIOS also has some typos in it.
* Only two of the 3 fan connectors have variable speed, of which are strictly limited to PWM (4-pin) fans. If you have a 3-pin fan, it will run at full speed and there's nothing you can do to slow it down; programs SpeedFan don't work anyway. This isn't the first time I've had this issue with ASRock boards, so this problem didn't surprise me, but it's still annoying.

Overall Review: * It's plain - there are no cheesy themes, it's not flashy, it's not in-your-face. It's very neutral. Sometimes I feel awkward building a PC for an older couple when the computer greets them with flashy logos acting like it's some classified military weapon or a turbocharged car.
* There was PLENTY of room to fit jacks for the rear, side, and center/sub analog channels, yet they didn't include those. It's awkwardly blank below the audio jacks.
* I don't know why ASRock didn't make this a DTX board. Swap the PCIe slots, chop off the last inch or so of the board, maybe solder some components to the back, and this would've fit in many ITX/DTX cases. Seems like a major loss in potential sales.


Despite this board being a very good value and working great, I was very close to docking an egg because so much about this seems very rushed. It feels as though this board is just a functional prototype.

Pros: The only Pro I can think of, is its PCIe slot design/arrangement. Most AM4 MicroATX boards have 3 PCIe slots, one of which is covered up by the GPU. This board ensures all 3 slots are usable.

Due to the ASRock AB350M Pro4 motherboard constantly freezing, I am unable to identify any further positive features.

Cons: The ASRock AB350M Pro4 motherboard is a Nightmare to deal with. It randomly freezes, locking up your machine, stalling at a black screen.

I bought this motherboard last Nov as a Christmas build for the family. For the first few days of use, it was fine. After 48 hours the AB350M Pro4 was locking up, frozen at a black screen.

I tried everything:

- Swapped out the ram twice
- Tried multiple RAM speeds (2133, 2400, 2666)
- Used a different power supply
- Installed 2 different operating systems in addition to the original
- Reseated the cooler and thermal paste

After all this wasted time and effort, I stumbled across the pile of mounting negative reviews for this motherboard here on NewEgg. Nearly every review was describing the same problems I was having, and a few even performed similar complete system reconfigurations to try and narrow down the source of the system lock-ups. The ASRock AB350M Pro4 motherboard was the problem.

I was saddened when I read of other users receiving RMA'd replacement boards with the exact same problems as their originally purchased board. This is terrible customer support on the part of ASRock. This company already has my money. Now they think its okay to take more of my time on top of what was already taken? Given the high number of low review scores all reporting "the same exact problem", this situation goes beyond your typical DOA or user-error prone purchase situation.

ASRock designed the board. Their engineers should be open and communicate with their customers on why this is happening, and provide proven solutions. If this is the result of a systemic manufacturing defect, then recall the product and offer an alternative as a replacement. Instead, all we get are the same pre-written "We sincerely apologize" responses from ASRock, urging *us* to troubleshoot the matter on our own, sending customers on a costly parts swapping wild-goose-chase.

In the end I felt ASRock was not standing by their own products or their customers, so I chose to eat the cost and avoid the RMA process to save additional stress and lost time.

I have since bought an "ASUS TUF B350M-PLUS Micro ATX" board, and I am very happy with it.

Overall Review: I would not recommend this product to others. Do not buy the ASRock AB350M Pro4 motherboard.