So, you’ve zeroed down on a suitable processor capable of filling your Chia drives as fast as possible within a reasonable budget. Or you have already filled up more storage than you will ever need in a lifetime with Chia plots. Now all you need is the best motherboard for Chia plotting and farming.
Both scenarios require different motherboard specs, though, for some farmers, a plotting system can double up for farming until you need to add more disks.
In either case, a motherboard that does not hinder the plotting power of a processor or the maximum HDD capacity of your farming system is critical if you are looking to make the best bang for your buck.
Let’s look deeper into the best motherboards for Chia plotting and farming. We’ll be going over both separately, and you can check out each section according to your requirements.
Best motherboards for Chia plotting
Plotting can be one of the most demanding phases of Chia farming regarding hardware requirements. Selecting the correct motherboard requires careful consideration of several factors, which we have listed below
What to look out for:
RAM support
The official and Mad max plotters require large amounts of system memory while plotting. Buying a motherboard that supports the maximum RAM your processor can handle will ensure you do not miss out on maximizing your processor’s plotting potential.
A motherboard with 4 DIMM slots is recommended on consumer motherboards, allowing you to expand up to 128GB. 8 DIMMS will net you quad-channel memory support for up to 256GB capacities for workstation motherboards, depending on your processor.
M.2 slots
If you plan on using NVMe drives as your primary plotting drives, identifying a motherboard that supports several drives is necessary for maximizing your plotting potential.
While an NVMe to PCIe adapter like ASUS’s Hyper M.2 is an option for using multiple NVMes at once, having a system with several M.2 slots can save you from populating several PCIe slots.
PCIe expansion
Buying a processor with a large number of latest-gen PCIe lanes will not guarantee support for a large number of expansion cards. The motherboard allocates these lanes between PCIe slots, M.2 slots, SATA ports, USB, and more.
Getting a system with several PCIe slots can be great as it enables functionality such as 10Gb networking and supports additional M.2 and U.2 expansion cards for NVMe drives. Those looking to double their system as farmers can also use PCIe slots to connect their HDDs via an LSI Logic SAS/SATA RAID card.
Based on these factors, we have narrowed down the following motherboards that are the best for Chia plotting.
AMD Ryzen Motherboards
Gigabyte X570 Aorus Master: Best Intel motherboard for traditional plotting
- CPU Socket: AM4
- Form Factor: ATX
- Max Memory: 128GB (4* DIMMs)
- PCIe Expansion: 2x PCIe 4.0/3.0 x16 (x16, x8/x8), 1x PCIe 4.0/3.0 x16 (x4), 2x PCIe 4.0/3.0 x1
- M.2 Slots: 3 with heatsinks
- SATA ports: 6
- LAN: Realtek 2.5GbE + Intel 1 GbE
- WiFi: Intel WiFi 6 802.11ax
Pros
- Triple M.2 slots and several PCIe lanes make it possible to add several NVMe SSDs for plotting.
- A 14-phase VRM solution makes it easy to gain additional performance through overclocking.
- In-built 2.5Gb Ethernet makes it easy to transfer plots over a local network.
Cons
- Expensive
If you’re looking to run multiple plots simultaneously on a processor like the Ryzen 5 5950X, then the X570 Aorus Master is the perfect motherboard to pair it up with.
It features three full-size PCIe slots that support 16, 8, and 4 lanes of Gen 4 PCIe connectivity. You can use PCIe slots for adding additional SSDs via an expansion card like the Asus Hyper M.2 and a GPU like the Nvidia GT 710, which is necessary due to the lack of an iGPU on these platforms.
The three M.2 slots are great for adding multiple high-speed NVMe SSDs like the Corsair MP600 Pro 2TB. Every M.2 slot comes with an included heatsink which can improve the thermals, performance, and lifespan of your SSDs.
Gigabyte’s X570 Aorus Master also allows you to use your plotting system as a farmer. Using a case like the Fractal Design Define 7XL, you can easily add 20 drives with the help of an LSI Raid card and SAS Expander.
The onboard 2.5Gb LAN also makes it easier to transfer plots out of your plotter and saves you from occupying an additional PCIe slot for Ethernet.
Recommended processors:
| Processor | Specs | |
| Ryzen 9 5950X | - 16-Core - 3.4 GHz base - 4.9 GHz boost | |
| Ryzen 9 5900X | - 12-Core - 3.7 GHz base - 4.8 GHz boost | |
| Ryzen 9 3950X | - 16-Core - 3.5 GHz base - 4.7 GHz boost | |
| Ryzen 9 3900X | - 12-Core - 3.8 GHz base - 4.6 GHz boost |
Possible Configurations
| Plotting Build | Hybrid Build | Plotting-cum-gaming build | ||
| PCIe | x16 Slot 1 | ASUS Hyper M.2 with 4x NVMe (1 TB recommended) | ASUS Hyper M.2 with 4x NVMe (1 TB recommended) | ASUS Hyper M.2 with 2x NVMe (2 TB recommended) |
| x16 Slot 2 | – | – | GPU | |
| x16 Slot 3 | 10Gb Network Card | LSI Logic SAS/SATA RAID card + SAS Expander (Connected via Molex) | 10Gb Network Card or LSI Logic SAS/SATA RAID card + SAS Expander (Connected via Molex) | |
| x1 slot | GPU via PCIe Riser | GPU via PCIe Riser | – | |
| M.2 | 3x NVMe (2TB recommended) | 3x NVMe (2TB recommended) | 3x NVMe (2TB recommended) |
Asus TUF Gaming X570-Pro: Best AMD motherboard for Mad Max plotting
- CPU Socket: AM4
- Form Factor: ATX
- Max Memory: 128GB (4* DIMMs)
- PCIe Expansion: 1x PCIe 4.0/3.0 x16, 1x PCIe 4.0/3.0 x4, 2x PCIe 4.0/3.0 x1
- M.2 Slots: 2 with one heatsink
- SATA ports: 8
- LAN: Intel 2.5GbE
- WiFi: Intel WiFi 6 AX200
Pros
- High-quality 12+2 DrMOS power stages give excellent overclocking headroom for additional performance.
- Relatively affordable price for an X570 motherboard
- Eight SATA ports for connecting more HDDs
Cons
- Lesser PCIe and M.2 expansion options make it a bad choice for traditional plotting.
The Mad Max Chia plotter significantly reduces the dependence of plotting on NVMe SSDs, making it easier to use consumer hardware for plotting.
Although a well-optimized plotting schedule with the official Chia plotter may yield more TiB/day, the Mad Max plotter is much easier to set up.
Asus’ TUF x570-Pro offers everything you need to start with the Mad Max plotter. We need only a single NVMe here, so there is no need to spend extra on PCIe and M.2 slots.
Another vital component to consider here is memory. As we create a ram disk, overclocking the memory to around 3600 MHz should give us high speeds while remaining stable.
To ensure good memory OC, refer to our recommended list of 128GB memory kits in the motherboard’s QVL.
Speaking of overclocking, the motherboard’s excellent VRM solution should net you good results, though you will need, at minimum, a capable liquid AIO cooler like Arctic’s Liquid Freezer II 280.
For more extreme overclocks of processors like the Ryzen 9 5950X, the 420mm variant of the Liquid Freezer II will provide decent thermal headroom.
Recommended processors:
| Processor | Specs | |
| Ryzen 9 5950X | - 16-Core - 3.4 GHz base - 4.9 GHz boost | |
| Ryzen 9 5900X | - 12-Core - 3.7 GHz base - 4.8 GHz boost | |
| Ryzen 9 5800X | - 8-Core - 3.8 GHz base - 4.7 GHz boost | |
| Ryzen 9 3950X | - 16-Core - 3.5 GHz base - 4.7 GHz boost | |
| Ryzen 9 3900X | - 12-Core - 3.8 GHz base - 4.6 GHz boost |
Recommended memory kits
- Corsair Vengeance LPX 128GB 3600MHz CL18
- G.Skill 128GB Trident Z Neo 3600MHz CL18
- G.Skill 128GB Trident Z Neo 3200MHz CL16
- G.Skill RipJaws V 128GB 3600MHz CL18
Possible Configurations
| RAM + SSD | SSD only | ||
| RAM | 128GB | 32GB | |
| PCIe | Slot 1 | GPU | GPU |
| Slot 2 | 10Gb Network Card | 10Gb Network Card | |
| M.2 | 1x NVMe (1TB recommended) | 2x NVMe (1 TB recommended) |
Intel Motherboards
Asus ROG Strix Z590-E Gaming: Great if overclocking or secondary use is gaming
- CPU Socket: LGA1200
- Form Factor: ATX
- Max Memory: 128GB (4* DIMMs)
- PCIe Expansion: 2x PCIe 4.0/3.0 x16 (x16, x8/x8, x8/x4), 1x PCIe 3.0 x16 (x4) (PCIe 3.0 for 10th Gen Intel)
- M.2 Slots: 4 with heatsinks (3 for 10th Gen Intel)
- SATA ports: 6
- LAN: 2x Intel 2.5GbE
- WiFi: Intel WiFi 6 802.11ax
Pros
- An abundance of M.2 slots makes it ideal for plotting over multiple NVMe SSDs in parallel
- 14 +2 DrMOS power stages combined with OptiMem technology allow for overclocking, netting extra performance
- Dual 2.5Gb Ethernet allows for easy plot transfer to a farming system
Cons
- Expensive and not a good choice if overclocking or gaming is not a priority
- It does not support PCIe 4.0 speeds with 10th Gen Intel processors
- Overclocking features limited for 10th Gen Intel processors
While Intel processors may not be the ideal choice for Chia plotting, mainly due to their weak multi-threaded performance, their high single-threaded clocks and overclocking potential make them a decent choice.
Intel processors also have iGPUs, which saves you one PCIe slot. However, some models have the F suffix in their model names. These lack an iGPU, so you will need to pick up something like the Nvidia GT 710 to drive a display.
The ROG Strix Z590-E is a good option for traditional and Mad Max plotting as it features many M.2 slots, good VRMs, and memory traces that can aid overclocking.
You can also use the extra PCIe slots to add additional HDDs if you want to repurpose your plotting system as a farmer.
As mentioned before, picking the right set of NVMe SSDs and RAM kit are vital to ensuring the best plotting results for either type of plotting. The 2TB Corsair MP600 Pro should be good enough for plotting. We have a list of QVL-certified RAM kits below if you want to go the Mad Max route.
Intel chips tend to get pretty hot thanks to the company’s outdated reliance on 14nm technology. A decent AIO liquid cooler, like the 280mm Arctic Liquid Freezer II variant, should handle it easily.
Recommended processors:
| Processor | Specs | |
| Intel i9-11900K | - 8-Core - 3.5 GHz base - 5.3 GHz boost | |
| Intel i7-11700K | - 8-Core - 3.6 GHz base - 5 GHz boost | |
| Intel i9-10900K | - 10-Core - 3.7 GHz base - 5.3 GHz boost | |
| Intel i9-10850K | - 10-Core - 3.6 GHz base - 5.2 GHz boost | |
| Intel i7-10700K | - 8-Core - 3.8 GHz base - 5.1 GHz boost |
Recommended memory kits
- HyperX Fury RGB 128GB 3466MHz CL17
- Corsair Vengeance RGB Pro SL 128GB 3200MHz CL16
- Corsair Vengeance LPX 128GB 3200MHz CL16
Possible Configurations for traditional Plotters
| Plotting Build | Hybrid Build | Plotting-cum-gaming build | ||
| PCIe | x16 Slot 1 | ASUS Hyper M.2 with 4x NVMe (512GB recommended) | LSI Logic SAS/SATA RAID card | GPU |
| x16 Slot 2 | – | LSI Logic SAS/SATA RAID card | LSI Logic SAS/SATA RAID card + SAS Expander (Connected via Molex) | |
| x16 Slot 3 | 10Gb Network Card | 10Gb Network Card | 10Gb Network Card | |
| M.2 | 4x NVMe (1 TB recommended) [3x with 10th Gen] | 4x NVMe (2TB recommended) [3x with 10th Gen] | 4x NVMe (2TB recommended) [3x with 10th Gen] |
Possible Configurations for Mad Max plotter
| RAM + SSD | SSD only | ||
| RAM | 128GB | 32GB | |
| PCIe | Slot 1 | GPU | GPU |
| Slot 2 | 10Gb Network Card | 10Gb Network Card / U.2 expansion card | |
| M.2 | 1x NVMe (1TB recommended) | 2x NVMe (1 TB recommended) |
Gigabyte Z590 Aorus Elite: Budget Intel pick, great for a standalone plotting system
- CPU Socket: LGA1200
- Form Factor: ATX
- Max Memory: 128GB (4* DIMMs)
- PCIe Expansion: 1x PCIe 4.0/3.0 x16 (x16), 1x PCIe 3.0 x16 (x4), 1x PCIe 3.0 x1 (PCIe 3.0 for 10th Gen Intel)
- M.2 Slots: 3 with two heatsinks (2 for 10th Gen Intel)
- SATA ports: 6
- LAN: 1x Realtek 2.5GbE
- WiFi: Intel WiFi 6 802.11ax
Pros
- Provides excellent value at an affordable price
- M.2 and PCIe slots are enough to run either Chia plotter
- A decent 12+2 phase VRM solution can handle overclocking
- Realtek 2.5Gb LAN can help transfer plots over the local network
Cons
- 10th Gen processors disable the top M.2 slot and support slower PCIe 3.0.
The Gigabyte Z590 Aorus Elite is one of the most affordable Z590 motherboards, pricing much lower than the Strix from Asus.
Unless you want to push the processor via extreme overclocking or use your plotting PC for gaming, we recommend this motherboard.
It still provides much of the M.2 and PCIe slots required for both the traditional and Mad Max plotters. Gigabyte also equipped the motherboard with a beefy VRM solution to overclock the processor for faster plotting.
The onboard Realtek LAN is good enough to transfer plots to a farming system connected to your local network. You can also use this motherboard if you plan on using your plotter for Chia farming.
Recommended processors:
| Processor | Specs | |
| Intel i9-11900K | - 8-Core - 3.5 GHz base - 5.3 GHz boost | |
| Intel i7-11700K | - 8-Core - 3.6 GHz base - 5 GHz boost | |
| Intel i9-10900K | - 10-Core - 3.7 GHz base - 5.3 GHz boost | |
| Intel i9-10850K | - 10-Core - 3.6 GHz base - 5.2 GHz boost | |
| Intel i7-10700K | - 8-Core - 3.8 GHz base - 5.1 GHz boost |
Recommended memory kits
- G.Skill RipJaws V 128GB 3600MHz CL18
- HyperX Fury RGB 128GB 3466MHz CL17
- HyperX Predator 128GB 3200MHz CL16
Possible Configurations for traditional Plotters
| Plotting Build | Hybrid Build | Plotting-cum-gaming build | ||
| PCIe | x16 Slot 1 | ASUS Hyper M.2 with 4x NVMe (512GB recommended) | LSI Logic SAS/SATA RAID card | GPU |
| x16 Slot 2 | – | LSI Logic SAS/SATA RAID card | LSI Logic SAS/SATA RAID card + SAS Expander (Connected via Molex) | |
| x1 Slot 3 | 2.5Gb Network Card | 2.5Gb Network Card | 2.5Gb Network Card | |
| M.2 | 3x NVMe (2 TB recommended) [2x with 10th Gen] | 3x NVMe (2TB recommended) [2x with 10th Gen] | 3x NVMe (2TB recommended) [2x with 10th Gen] |
Possible Configurations for Mad Max plotter
| RAM + SSD | SSD only | ||
| RAM | 128GB | 32GB | |
| PCIe | Slot 1 | GPU | GPU / U.2 expansion card |
| Slot 2 | 10Gb Network Card | 10Gb Network Card | |
| M.2 | 1x NVMe (1TB recommended) | 2x NVMe (1 TB recommended) |
Best motherboards for Chia farming
Chia’s claim of being the greenest crypto comes from the minimal resources consumed to run plots in a farm. While plotting may be hardware intensive, it is only needed for creating plots.
Like plotting, there are a few points you need to note before picking a motherboard up for plotting.
What to look out for:
PCIe slots
If you look at a typical consumer motherboard, most will have 6, sometimes 8, SATA ports. Connecting additional hard drives can only be possible using a particular expansion card like this LSI Logic 9211-8i SAS/SATA RAID controller.
Each controller consumes a single PCIe 16x/8x slot on your motherboard and allows you to connect up to eight SATA drives via a Mini SAS to SATA cable. While it needs eight PCIe 2.0 lanes to operate at maximum bandwidth, you can run it in a 4-lane slot for hard disks.
Adding two of these and your motherboard’s SATA connectors will let you connect up to 22 drives. A case like Fractal Design’s Define 7XL allows for up to 20 HDDs, which is perfect for this setup.
If you are running short on PCIe slots, a SAS expander like Intel’s RES2SV240NC connected to a Molex cable for power should allow you to add up to 14 drives with an additional six connected to the internal port of the motherboard.
For those preferring to use external hard disks, a PCIe to USB 3.0 expansion card paired with Sabrent’s 16-port USB hub can be an excellent option for connecting many drives.
Dedicated farming systems will also need access to high-speed networking from a plotting system. A 10GbE local network should be accessible with an add-in card like the Asus XG C100C.
ECC Memory
Having ECC memory on your farming system will ensure the system’s stability. ECC, or Error Correcting Code memory, reduces the possibility of data corruption by correcting random bit flips that can occur during regular operation.
If you are solo farming, then even a single crash can reduce your chances of winning a block, and with a large farming array, it becomes difficult to troubleshoot individual systems.
Although a few consumer motherboards and processors support ECC memory, we highly recommend using them for a farming build.
Intel Motherboards
Gigabyte C246M-WU4: Best motherboard for Chia farming
- CPU Socket: LGA1151
- Form Factor: mATX
- Max Memory: 128GB (4* DIMMs)
- PCIe Expansion: 2x PCIe 3.0 x16 (x16, x8/x8), 2x PCIe 3.0 x1
- M.2 Slots: 2
- SATA ports: 8
- LAN: 2x Intel 1GbE
- USB: 1 x USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type-A, 7 x USB 3.1 Gen 1 ports (2 internal)
Pros
- Supports ECC memory for 8/9th Gen Intel Xeon and Core i3, Pentium, and Celeron processors.
- It has two full-size PCIe slots for further expansion
Cons
- Expensive
Intel’s 8th and 9th Generation i3, Pentium, and Celeron surprisingly support ECC memory. Combined with onboard graphics, low power consumption, and price, these processors are the ideal choice for a Chia farming build.
Chances are that you would have picked a processor in the 8th or 9th Gen Intel lineup that supports ECC memory. If not, you can still use this motherboard for 8/9th Gen processes as they offer a decent set of features for the price.
Recommended processors:
| Processor | Specs | |
| Intel Core i3-9300 | - 4-Core - 3.6 GHz base - 4.2 GHz boost | |
| Intel Core i3-8100 | - 4-Core - 3.6 GHz | |
| Intel Pentium Gold G5420 | - 2-Core - 3.8 GHz | |
| Intel Celeron G4930 | - 2-Core - 3.2 GHz |
Recommended memory kits
Possible Configurations for traditional Plotters
| Internal Build 1 | Internal Build 2 | USB Build | ||
| PCIe | x16 Slot 1 | LSI Logic SAS/SATA RAID card | LSI Logic SAS/SATA RAID card + SAS Expander (Connected via Molex) | PCIe to USB 3.0 expansion card |
| x16 Slot 2 | LSI Logic SAS/SATA RAID card | 10Gb Network Card | 10Gb Network Card | |
| x1 Slot | 2.5G Network Card | – | – | |
| M.2 | 1x SATA (128GB recommended) | 1x SATA (128GB recommended) | 1x SATA (128GB recommended) |
We hope you found our guide helpful. If you want to get started, we have a guide on getting started with Chia plotting in Linux, which takes you through the installation of the Chia client.
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Comments
For farming, have you looked into the “Mining” motherboards, there are cards with 4 SATA ports from a single PCI-E 1x connector and one of those “mining” motherboards had *17* such slots + 1 16x slot for the GPU.
A250 Mining Expert comes to mine, but I might be misremembering the name of the board – and it was NOT very expensive, plus they’re going to be COMMON used at this point after the Etherium move to Proof of Stake killed most GPU mining.
That’s a great way to connect multiple drives to a single motherboard. 1x PCIe to SATA devices are readily available for cheap and the motherboard you mentioned can support a maximum of 96 HDDs. However, mining motherboards with multiple adapters can be tricky to mount in a cabinet. They will require an open-air system similar to GPU mining, a viable option for smaller farms. The lack of SAS connectivity makes it difficult to attach DAS and JBODs to your farming rig, especially if you are dealing with many drives.