Photo suggests not all Intel B660 motherboards will feature PCIe Gen 5.0 support

While all Intel Z690 motherboards support PCIe 5.0 connectivity, it seems that won't be the case for the upcoming B660 boards. A new leak this week suggests that some motherboards, like the Asus B660 Prime Plus D4, will use PCIe 4.0 instead. 

A photo shared by VideoCardz shows the shipping label for a set of ASUS PRIME B660 Plus D4 motherboards. In the features listed, we see PCIe Gen4 listed, rather than PCIe Gen5, indicating that B660 motherboards won't use the latest standard.

Image credit: VideoCardz

This news comes as a bit of a surprise. Based on what Intel previously shared about the Z690 chipset, the PCIe 5.0 lanes are directly attached to the CPU. We thought that would also be the case for the upcoming B660 motherboards, but this new evidence suggests otherwise.

The label also confirms that some B660 motherboards will forgo DDR5 memory support and stick to DDR4, something we've already seen with selected Z690 motherboards hitting the market.

KitGuru says: With B660 motherboards being aimed at the mid-range market, these cutbacks are expected, as users on a tighter budget are unlikely to shell out for cutting-edge PCIe 5.0 devices, or pay the premium for DDR5 memory. 

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