INTRODUCTION

    Whenever Intel or AMD launch a new CPU there are always numerous motherboard models to follow, some based on their flagship chipsets and others based on less powerful (and feature rich) ones which also tend to be quite more affordable. The same of course happened when Intel launched their latest Core Ultra 200S CPUs and even though I've reviewed some motherboards based on the flagship Z890 chipset I didn't take a closer look at the more recent models based on the B860 chipset. That at least was the case until ASRock sent over their B860 LiveMixer WiFi model and well, that's what we'll be talking about today.

    ASRock Inc. is established in 2002, specialized in the field of motherboards. ASRock strives to build up its own brand. With the 3C design concept, “Creativity, Consideration, Cost-effectiveness”, the company explores the limit of motherboards manufacturing while paying attention on the eco issue at the same time, developing products with the consideration of eco-friendly concept. ASRock has been growing fast and become world third largest motherboard brand with headquarter in Taipei, Taiwan and branches in Europe and the USA. The young and vibrant company targets from mainstream to enthusiast MB segments for different kinds of users, owning reputation around the world market with its reliability and proficiency.

   The ASRock B860 LiveMixer WiFi is an ATX sized motherboard based on the LGA1851 socket by Intel (Core Ultra 200S CPU support) which as its name suggests is aimed towards content creators/streamers (thus ASRock points out they've tested it with numerous video capture devices) . As for specifications the B860 LiveMixer WiFi sports an 12+1+1+1+1 power system (with Dr.MOS for VCore+GT+SA), 20K Caps with 1000uF Capacitance, four UDIMM DDR5 RAM slots (XMP and EXPO compatible - up to 256GB in capacity and speeds up to 8666+MHz), two PCIe x16 slots (1xPCie 5.0 x16 / 1xPCIe x16 @ x4), three M.2 slots complete with heatsinks (1xPCIe 5.0 / 2xPCIe 4.0), four native SATA 6G ports (RAID 0/1/5/10 supported), Realtek Dragon RTL8125BG 2.5Gbps LAN, 802.11axe Wi-Fi 6E (Dual-Band 2x2, MU-MIMO, Bluetooth v5.3) and the Realtek ALC1220 7.1 channel HD audio codec (Nahimic Audio enhancements). As for I/O connectivity her we find a single HDMI v2.1 video out (TMDS/FRL, 4K@120Hz maximum resolution), USB-C 40Gb/s Thunderbolt 4 port (HDCP 2.3 with a maximum resolution of 5K@120Hz / 8K@60Hz), USB-C 3.2 Gen1 port (front via internal header), ten USB-A 3.2 Gen ports (6 rear, 4 internal/front), 10 USB-A 2.0 ports (6 rear, 4 internal/front), two Antenna ports, 2.5Gbps RJ45 port and the Realtek ALC1220 High Definition onboard audio ports.