ASUS B150I PRO
GAMING/AURA
RRP: $124.99 | Website: www.asus.com
Test Machine
• INTEL Core i3 6300
• Crucial DDR4 2133 C12
• EVGA GTX 780Ti K|NGP|N
Edition
• SAMSUNG PX941 512GB
• CORSAIR AX1500i
• Windows 10 x64
I
t seems just about every
vendor these days has a
B chipset board which for
some reason or another is
positioned as an alternative
for PC gamers, particularly
those on a budget. The theory
here being that, you can outfit
the board with a series of
third party chips which will
add some of the features most
gamers need.
We can appreciate the logic
given that the B150 chipset
alone is a whole $19 cheaper
than its Z170 stablemate. At
this price point where every
dollar counts, $19 is
24 The OverClocker Issue 38 | 2016
plenty of money and as such it
does make some fiscal sense
to opt for this chipset instead.
ASUS has done just this
with the B150I Pro Gaming/
AURA. This is the non-WiFi
model which solely relies on
the capable INTEL I219V LAN
controller which is enhanced
via ASUS’s own GamFirst IV
beta software. As you’d expect
this manages network traffic
setting priorities appropriately
for the system.
Audio is via the SupremeFX
solution which is in part a
combination of the Realtek
ALC1150 codec, paired once
again with Nichicon audio
capacitors and a headphone
amp for high impedance
headphones. The audio portion
of the board also has the
SupremeFX Lighting. An
Important feature given that
the main draw for this board is
the Aura RGB lighting which is
positioned towards the case
modders among us.
Worth mentioning as well is
Sonic Radar II which is a
softgware layer that can help
your gaming audio
experience apprently.
Even within the cramped
space, ASUS has managed
to add support for M.2 2280
length drives. You will have
to install said drive on the
underside of the board
however, so be sure that your
chosen enclosure has enough
clearance between the two
surfaces. As previously
mentiond, there is no Wi-fi
support, but you get five USB
3.0 ports - three of which are
located at the rear of the board