Layout

The MSI Z170I Pro Gaming AC motherboard comes with a great looking design. The PCB has a matte black finish and the heatsinks feature red covers. The layout has been well thought and there are plenty of useful features, like one header to attach external USB 3.0 ports, SATA 6Gbps Ports and an M.2 Gen 3 x4 slot.





MSI equipped the Z170I Pro Gaming AC motherboard with a 5-phase digital power design, which is taking care of the CPU VRM. As it's the case with all mid-range to high-end boards from MSI the solid capacitors are part of MSI's Military Class group of components so we are looking at an overall capable and reliable power design, as there are for instance black solid caps this motherboard next to dark chokes.



As far as the memory goes, you can find two DIMM-slots on the Z170I Pro Gaming AC motherboard. Officially supported are DDR4 4200 (O.C.) / 4000 (O.C.) / 3866 (O.C.) / 3600 (O.C.) / 3200 (O.C.) / 2800 (O.C.) / 2666 (O.C.) / 2400 (O.C.) / 2133 MHz. There is enough space between the DIMM-slots and the CPU socket which means that you will not run into any issues with large coolers. Also supported are Xtreme Memory Profiles (XMP) in version 2.0.



The PCH as well as the current converters are being held at adequate temperatures via passive heatsinks. The heatsink for the current converters is made from a single aluminium block. The PCH heatsink has also been made from aluminium and is pretty simple and flat. The cooling blocks have been well made and also they are perfetcly attached to the board to provide enough pressure on the components they have to cool. The aluminium blocks are black with red sheet metal covers, overall resembling a completly new design.

Page 1 - Introduction	Page 4 - Layout
Page 2 - Specs and Delivery	Page 5 - Connectors and I/O
Page 3 - Features	Page 6 - Conclusion