Parts shortage causes Gigabyte to avoid controversial phase doublers with other manufacturers expected to follow

Enthusiasts that are looking for motherboards that support high-end processors or stable overclocking know to look for motherboards with good quality multi-phase VRMs with a matching controller. These are often reported as their phase layouts, such as 6+2 phase or 8+2 phase.

However, manufacturers often use phase doublers to split the power delivery across multiple phases and use a cheaper PWM controller that wasn’t designed for as many phases as it is now controlling. Using a doubler doesn’t mean the design is poor quality, but many of those pushing their hardware to its limits insist on using motherboards without doublers.

Overclock3d has received information regarding a shortage of these phase doublers and noted that Gigabyte has redesigned two of their mid-range B550 AM4 motherboards with PWM controllers that match the true number of phases. These redesigns would be more efficient than the originals and may be preferred by some despite a potential increase in price.

More detail regarding the changes and the redesigned models is available at the Overlock3d link below.