Prepare to be amazed! We've got a unique story about a gaming board with a fascinating past. The AMD BC250, a former crypto-mining powerhouse, is now a gaming sensation, and it's all thanks to its PS5-based origins.
This little board, priced at a mere $120, packs a punch. It's an ex-PlayStation 5 APU, a cut-down version of the PS5's chip, and it's capable of running some impressive games. Imagine playing Cyberpunk 2077 at a steady 40FPS! That's right, this board is a hidden gem for gamers on a budget.
The YouTuber, Budget-Builds Official, decided to give it a go. They received the BC250 board, which arrived as a server-style motherboard, complete with power headers, I/O ports, and a massive passive heatsink. These boards were originally designed for PS5-powered crypto-mining rigs, but now they're finding a new life in the gaming world.
Inside, the BC250 boasts a cut-down PS5 APU, featuring Zen 2 CPU cores and RDNA 2 GPU cores. It also has 16GB of GDDR6 unified memory, shared between the CPU and GPU. The YouTuber created a custom system for the board, including a 1000W Corsair PSU, a CMOS battery, and external SSD storage. They connected all the necessary peripherals - a mouse, keyboard, and monitor - and booted up the system.
The BC250 board booted into a Linux environment, and it was recognized immediately as the AMD BC250. It identified its 6 cores and 12 threads of CPU power, along with an integrated Radeon GPU. The YouTuber tried their luck with some games, and while Half-Life 2 and a few benchmark tests didn't work due to Linux driver conflicts, several other titles did.
Cyberpunk 2077, GTA V Enhanced Edition, Counter-Strike 2, Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord, and Hitman 3 all ran smoothly on this board. The YouTuber even captured some impressive performance numbers, considering the BC250's cut-down nature and its affordable price tag.
Here are the benchmark results for the AMD BC250 board:
- GTA V Enhanced Edition (1440p, high settings): 65FPS without ray tracing; 25-30FPS with ray tracing enabled.
- Cyberpunk 2077 (1080p, medium/high): 42FPS average.
- Counter-Strike 2 (1440p, competitive settings): 130FPS average.
- Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord (1080p, very high): 79FPS average.
- Hitman 3 (1080p, high): 47FPS average.
Now, let's compare the specs of the AMD BC250 board with its cut-down PS5 APU to the full PS5 APU. The full PS5 APU boasts 8C/16T of APU power, while the BC250 has 6C/12T. The full PS5 APU also has 36 CUs of RDNA 2 GPU, compared to the BC250's 24 CUs. Both have 16GB of unified memory, which can't be upgraded, and the VRAM operates as shared memory between the CPU and GPU. Additionally, the BC250 lacks regular SATA ports, so M.2 SSDs are a must.
The YouTuber did encounter some issues with RAM-intensive games like Oblivion Remastered, and there were also some Linux Wi-Fi driver problems. But overall, the BC250 is an impressive little board, especially for its price.
And here's where it gets controversial... Should we be repurposing hardware like this? Is it ethical to take a crypto-mining board and turn it into a gaming machine? What do you think? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments! We'd love to hear your opinions on this unique gaming setup.
