Motherboards are among the most critical and expensive computer components. They have many functions; the most important is to link all of your features and provide communication for your project. It is crucial to understand what motherboard you want before acquiring computers since they might differ in price from low to high, depending on your desire. Let us know “Why Are Motherboards So Expensive?”
Motherboards are expensive since they must service many different sections and functionality. However, expensive motherboards aren’t just that. The electrical capability and reliability of a good motherboard may be higher. The basic technology and construction of the motherboard will affect the computer’s reliability, compatibility, and gaming prowess. This article explains why motherboards are so expensive, their features and benefits and if it’s worth purchasing one.
Reasons Behind the High Cost of Motherboards
More expansion options and a richer user interface: The board is the computer’s nervous system, where everything is connected and what connects all the components. Thus, it’s pretty crucial in terms of PC performance. If you need to repair your motherboard, you must replace all the other components.
Features:
Higher-end motherboards have significantly more features than lower-end models. Better cooling hardware, dual-BIOS, and other features include a diagnostic display on the board. While some are only gimmicks, most are practical and related to performance advancement.
They have a short lifespan:
Even the best motherboards have a finite lifetime. The average is roughly five years; however, this might differ depending on how you use your computer. As a result, you will almost certainly need to replace your motherboard at least once throughout the life of your system, which raises the total cost.
High Demand:
Many people use powerful computers for gaming and remote work. As a result, computer hardware has grown in popularity on the market. There has been a growth in cryptocurrencies like Ethereum, where certain currencies depend on high-end graphics cards for lucrative mining. Because of these reasons, there is a growing need for motherboards among PC experts and users.
They are one of the most complicated pieces of hardware in a computer, which means they are more expensive to produce and have more parts than other older constituents.
A motherboard is a vital computer component that links several other constituents. The pricing of motherboards varies depending on the model. Due to better materials, higher-end models will cost more. As a result, the cost of a motherboard is impacted by its market crucial.
They are available in various sizes:
Not all computers are the same. Some people want a lot of power, while others choose something tiny and portable. Motherboards exist in different sizes, ranging from small Mini-ITX boards to large Extended ATX ones, and each has different prices.
Several companies manufacture them:
Dozens of several firms make motherboards. They vary in size from massive multinational businesses to tiny makers. Each firm has its overhead expenditures that must be recouped through the pricing of its goods.
Improved cooling:
More expensive boards allow for great cooling with more giant fans and heatsinks, mostly when overclocked, since constituents run hotter than usual, even while voltage and clock rates stay constant. It shows it will survive longer since there will be fewer chances of overloading your hardware and crashing.
Is a High-Priced Motherboard Worthwhile?
To assess if an expensive motherboard is worth it, consider the functions you will generally be able to access and the number of them accessible currently. Some characteristics include the following:
Overclocking the CPU
Overclocking is a valuable tool since it allows you to extract added performance from your CPU. If you aim to get higher frame rates in a particular game to match your monitor’s refresh rate, 200MHz might be the difference between success and failure.
Memory Generation and DIMM Slot Count
Higher-end Intel boards often support DDR5, whereas lower-cost boards use the DDR4 standard. DDR5 sticks are still expensive, and although costs are expected to reduce as manufacturing scales up, this might take some time. So, a budget-conscious build is preferable with DDR4 because of the significant cost savings that may be realized.
The more expensive motherboards are worthwhile since they have more USB ports. It means you can connect to the device more effectively while using it. It also gives more space for drives and storage. These features will significantly boost the performance of your machine.
You don’t have to pay a bunch if you want a system with a good number of functions, some upgradeability, and a great design.
While it was once wise to spend more on your motherboard, advances in technology have narrowed the gap between cheap and expensive models to the point where you can get away with a well-researched, cheaper choice and have an experience 99% as good as an expensive one. The motherboard you choose relies on the functions and aesthetics your value as a customer.
There are other aspects to consider while making your decision. Like, upgrading requires paying more money for a new motherboard. Alternatively, to maximize your overclocking performance, you’ll need to pick a board with enough power phases and cooling for your VRMs.
Expensive Motherboard Features and Benefits
Expensive motherboards may be pretty handy for gamers since they have more room for expansion cards, allowing you to connect several graphics cards and sound cards to increase your gaming experience.
Offering a centralized connecting point for all of your computer’s components.
Expensive motherboards often have high-quality audio outputs, providing better sound while playing games or viewing movies.
Regulating how data is conveyed between constituents.
The overclocking limit has been raised.
High-quality capacitors and chokes in the motherboard’s VRM section.
The motherboard is thicker and has more complicated PCB traces to allow faster communication across the board.
What is the Price of a Motherboard?
Standard motherboards, in their most primary form, start at
$50. High-end motherboards for rigorous overclocking or powerful CPUs may cost up to $900. Because board prices vary across brands, ASRock often costs less than Asus.
Motherboards in the $100 to $200 price range are perfect for ordinary gaming PCs since they provide sufficient functionality and the best performance. High-end CPUs, like the AMD Ryzen Threadripper, need specialized motherboards due to their size and speed.
A modern gaming system can run most games at their top settings for roughly $900 to $1,000, but the graphics card and processor are where most of the money is spent (CPU). Different methods exist to invest a significant sum of money in a computer.
Factors Affecting the Price of a Motherboard
To find out how much motherboard prices are, consider its characteristics. Different factors determine their price. These include the following:
The Chipset:
A motherboard’s chipset is its beating heart. It essentially determines the design of your PC. The chipset determines what CPU socket your computer will support, the number of PCIe lanes and their version, the number of expansion slots, and so on.
CPU Socket:
Motherboards with CPU sockets for newer generation CPUs are sometimes expensive.
Expansion Slots:
The number of PCIe and M.2 slots on your motherboard influences its pricing. The M.2 slots for NVMe SSDs use PCIe lanes.
Overclocking Capability:
Not all motherboards support overclocking. Only the Z series motherboards from Intel allow overclocking, but the B and X motherboards from AMD support it.
USB Ports, Version, and Headers: The number and version of USB ports on your motherboard considerably influence the pricing. A decent motherboard has not just the newer USB 3.2 Gen 22 ports with a 20 Gbps transfer rate but also USB headers for connecting the front USB ports of your PC case.
The appearance and design of a motherboard and the amount of customization it allows in the form of RGB headers, fan headers, and AIO cooler compatibility all influence the pricing of a motherboard.
Conclusion
A variety of factors determine the price of a motherboard. Each generation becomes more costly as more and better features are added. The present global scenario and epidemic have resulted in significant price increases for components, mostly motherboards and power supplies.
The question of which motherboard to purchase has arisen. Purchasing a reliable motherboard should be a top priority. However, with varying costs, it might be challenging to determine if you are getting a good motherboard or not. When there is a surge in demand for motherboards and no corresponding increase in supply, prices tend to rise.
FAQs
What happens if you purchase a low-cost motherboard?
A motherboard’s purpose is to link the many constituents that make a computer function. The lower the motherboard cost, the more it will concentrate on the fundamental functionality needed to build a computer.
What makes the more expensive motherboards better?
More expensive motherboards will include more power supply phases and better cooling for the VRMs on the board that controls the voltage to the CPU. So, more expensive motherboards are beaten for consumers looking for optimum performance from their components.
Why do Intel motherboards cost so much more?
VRMs are one of the main reasons that Intel CPUs will cheerfully use 2-3X the power of their AMD counterparts. It requires far more powerful VRMs, which are more expensive.
