ASUS TUF X470-Plus Review

Up Close

The TUF range has generally gone for a utilitarian aesthetic and the X470 Plus is no exception. The packaging is definitely of the “no fuss” variety with the model name dominating proceedings.

  

Out of the box the first thing that grabs your attention is the TUF logo which wouldn’t look out of place on a 1970s concert poster. Whilst the X470 hasn’t got the TUF Armor it does have another entry in the ASUS printed PCB range, something that helps break up the visuals better than a plain black PCB might.

  

At the top end of the motherboard is the familiar AM4 socket alongside the four DIMM slots for the up-to 3200MHz DDR4 that the TUF supports. We’re so used to seeing massive rows of chokes that the relatively few on the TUF came as a small surprise, but it means that there is much more room available around the CPU socket, something that will be of interest to the heavy overclocking brigade.

  

It seems curious for a motherboard labelled TUF to not come with fully reinforced slots for either the PCI Express cards nor the DDR4 modules. We are pleased to see that ASUS have included two full size M.2 ports though, perfect to maximise your storage speeds and capacity.

  

The decision to utilise our hated vertical SATA ports doesn’t fill us with love for the TUF either. There is something about the combination that just looks a little cheap. Given how impressive older models in the TUF range were, and how much we loved them, we have to say that this particular design doesn’t remotely put a tilt in our kilt.

  

One thing that the TUF X470-Plus doesn’t lack for is fan headers. With dedicated fan/AIO headers at the side of the TUF and two at the top by the CPU socket you can be sure that there is enough places available on the PCB to let you place your cooling in the most suitable spot.

  
  

There is just the one RGB LED strip header on the TUF, above the ATX 24 pin input. Anybody else feel that the random piece of design in the middle of the DIMM slots looks like someone in a crash helmet twerking or is our pareidolia acting up again?