Conclusion
The review tested the ASRock X870E CHALLENGER WiFi motherboard. This is a full-sized ATX board that supports AM5, DDR5, and Gen5 PCIe and NVME. The connectivity is exactly what you expect from an X870E motherboard. Performance overall is identical to the next-tier ASRock X870E Phantom Gaming NOVA WiFi and also to the more premium MSI MPG X870E CARBON WiFi MAX. The design is minimalistic; however, it fits well within the price structure. We did like the all-black look and polished features versus the recently reviewed X870 CHALLENGER WiFi White motherboard from ASRock.
Installation and Use
There were no issues with this motherboard. Components fit easily, and the spacing is well thought out. First Boot was without a hitch, and BIOS navigation was very straightforward. CPU and RAM are well spaced. The M.2 slots, of course, do conflict with the GPU, but the clearances are adequate if the NVME native heatsinks are thin(or your drives have no heatsink). The standard clasp on the PCIe slots is tricky to get to due to the space tolerances. (a pencil with an eraser end helps a lot) We realize how nice it is to have the EZ release buttons seen on other boards currently. All the secondary M.2 slots are Gen4 x 4 without needing any BIOS adjustment, thanks to the second PROM21 chipset.
Installation of Windows and BIOS flashing were uncomplicated. You do need to have a flash drive with the wireless drivers to proceed with installation, however. All benchmarks ran without issue, and temperatures were within specifications.
Final Points
ASRock has designed a very competent X870E motherboard in the X870E CHALLENGER WiFi. The design has been polished a bit versus the X870 variant we just reviewed. This board performs on par with the X870E Phantom Gaming NOVA WiFi, which, on its release, was priced $100 more than this board. Other than RGB, one extra Gen3 M.2 slot, and a PCIe EZ release button, the two boards are identical. The X870E CHALLENGER WiFi has a larger BIOS chip as an enticement, though. (If you price these two boards currently, they are set at $229; that’s a big discount on the NOVA!) The overall design and performance of the ASRock X870E CHALLENGER should warrant a gook look, especially at the current price.
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