ASRock B850M Pro-A VS MSI B840 Gaming Plus WiFi

Both boards share the same AM5 socket, a single-CPU design, HDMI 2.1 output, dual BIOS protection, and a 3-year warranty, making them comparable on the fundamentals. The most consequential split, however, is connectivity and form factor. The MSI B840 Gaming Plus WiFi is a full ATX board (304.8 mm wide) with built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, while the ASRock B850M Pro-A is a Micro-ATX board (244 mm wide) with neither — meaning buyers who want wireless on the ASRock must budget for a separate adapter and verify their case has an available slot for it.

The chipset difference is worth understanding in context: B850 is AMD's higher-tier mid-range chipset, while B840 sits a step below. Yet both boards are rated as easy to overclock, so in practice the day-to-day tuning experience appears similar. Where the MSI pulls further ahead in usability is its easy BIOS reset feature — a physical or dedicated mechanism that lets users recover from a bad overclock without dismantling the system. The ASRock lacks this, which is a minor but real inconvenience for builders who push settings aggressively. Both boards carry dual BIOS as a safety net, but the MSI's reset convenience adds an extra layer of confidence.

For builders prioritizing a compact build or a cleaner aesthetic, the ASRock's Micro-ATX size and absence of RGB keep things minimal. But taken as a whole, the MSI B840 Gaming Plus WiFi holds a clear general-info edge: it offers a larger, more feature-rich platform with wireless connectivity, RGB, and easier BIOS management out of the box — advantages that don't require any additional spending or workarounds.

Both the ASRock B850M Pro-A and MSI B840 Gaming Plus WiFi support a maximum memory amount of 256GB, ensuring plenty of capacity for demanding applications. They also both feature 4 memory slots and 2 memory channels, allowing for dual-channel memory setups with the possibility of expanding memory capacity in the future.

In terms of RAM speed, the ASRock B850M Pro-A supports a maximum RAM speed of 8000 MHz, while the MSI B840 Gaming Plus WiFi is limited to a maximum of 5600 MHz for standard RAM speed. Both motherboards are capable of overclocking the RAM to 8000 MHz, allowing for potential performance gains with high-speed memory modules.

Neither motherboard supports ECC memory, so users seeking error-correcting code memory for enhanced stability will need to look elsewhere. Both motherboards are built with DDR5 memory support, ensuring compatibility with the latest memory standards for high-performance computing.

The ASRock B850M Pro-A and MSI B840 Gaming Plus WiFi both offer similar USB port configurations, with each having 1 USB 3.2 Gen 2 port (USB-A), 2 USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports (USB-A), and 1 USB 3.2 Gen 2 port (USB-C). Both motherboards also feature 4 USB 2.0 ports and do not include any USB 3.2 Gen 2x2, USB 4 40Gbps, or USB 4 20Gbps ports. Neither motherboard has Thunderbolt 3 or Thunderbolt 4 ports, and both have USB Type-C connectivity available through the USB 3.2 Gen 2 USB-C port.

For video outputs, the ASRock B850M Pro-A has both an HDMI output and a DisplayPort output, while the MSI B840 Gaming Plus WiFi has an HDMI output but no DisplayPort. Neither board includes a VGA connector, DVI outputs, or eSATA ports.

Both boards are equipped with a single RJ45 port for Ethernet connectivity, but neither motherboard features PS/2 ports, ensuring modern USB-based peripherals are the focus of the connectivity options.

The ASRock B850M Pro-A and MSI B840 Gaming Plus WiFi differ slightly in their connector options. Both boards feature 4 SATA 3 connectors, and both include 4 USB 2.0 ports through expansion. However, the ASRock B850M Pro-A offers 4 USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports and 4 USB 3.0 ports through expansion, while the MSI B840 Gaming Plus WiFi has only 2 USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports and 2 USB 3.0 ports through expansion. Both boards provide 3 M.2 sockets, but the ASRock model offers more fan headers, with a total of 5, compared to the MSI board's 6 fan headers.

Both motherboards support a TPM connector, ensuring compatibility with trusted platform modules for security. Neither board includes mSATA connectors, and both lack U.2 sockets and SATA 2 connectors. The ASRock B850M Pro-A is the only board with a greater number of USB 3.2 Gen 1 and USB 3.0 ports through expansion, offering a slight edge in that area.

The ASRock B850M Pro-A and MSI B840 Gaming Plus WiFi offer different configurations for expansion slots. The ASRock B850M Pro-A features a PCIe 5.0 x16 slot and a PCIe x4 slot, but lacks PCIe 4.0 x16, PCIe 3.0 x16, PCIe x1, and PCIe x8 slots. In contrast, the MSI B840 Gaming Plus WiFi includes both a PCIe 4.0 x16 slot and a PCIe 3.0 x16 slot, along with 3 PCIe x1 slots. However, it does not include a PCIe x4 or PCIe x8 slot.

Both motherboards lack PCI slots and PCIe 2.0 x16 slots. Additionally, neither board includes support for PCIe 2.0 x16 slots, indicating similar limitations in older PCIe slot compatibility.

In terms of versatility, the MSI board offers more options for expansion with its multiple PCIe x1 slots and two PCIe x16 slots, whereas the ASRock board focuses on newer, faster PCIe 5.0 technology with just a single PCIe x16 slot.

Both the ASRock B850M Pro-A and MSI B840 Gaming Plus WiFi offer 7.1 audio channels, providing support for high-quality sound output. Each motherboard also includes 3 audio connectors, ensuring adequate connectivity for audio devices. Neither motherboard has an S/PDIF Out port, meaning they do not support direct digital audio output to compatible devices like external receivers or sound systems.

Overall, the audio specifications for both motherboards are identical, offering similar functionality in terms of sound channels and connectors.

The ASRock B850M Pro-A and MSI B840 Gaming Plus WiFi both support RAID 1 and RAID 0, allowing users to configure drives for data redundancy or performance. However, there is a key difference in RAID 10 support: the ASRock B850M Pro-A supports RAID 10 (1+0), while the MSI B840 Gaming Plus WiFi does not. Both motherboards do not support RAID 5 or RAID 0+1, limiting their RAID options to just RAID 1 and RAID 0 configurations.

Overall, the storage capabilities of both boards are quite similar, with the ASRock model offering slightly more flexibility in terms of RAID configuration options due to the support for RAID 10 (1+0).