MSI Z97 MPower Max AC Preview
Category : Z97
Published by Hiwa Pouri on 23.06.14
With the Z97 MPower Max AC, MSI has a rather interesting motherboard in its portfolio, since there are features relevant for overclockers as well as gamers. For overclockers there is for example a 20 phase power design and gamers will love the beefed-up audio as well as quite a bunch of other features. 
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On the next few following pages we are going to show you if MSI has been able to convince us with their new Z97 MPower Max motherboard design.
| Page 1 - Introduction | Page 4 - Layout |
| Page 2 - Specs and Delivery | Page 5 - Connectors and I/O |
| Page 3 - Features | Page 6 - Conclusion |
Specs and Delivery
| Chipset | Intel Z97 |
| Memory | Dual Channel DDR3, 4 x DIMM, Max. 32
GB DDR3, non-ECC, un-buffered memory DDR3 3300 / 3200 / 3100 / 3000 / 2800 / 2666 / 2600 / 2400 / 2200 / 2133 / 2000 / 1866 / 1600 / 1333 / 1066 MHz |
| Multi-GPU |
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| Slots |
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| Audio | Realtek ALC1150
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| Storage | Intel Z97 chipset
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| Network |
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| Internal Connectors |
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| Extrenal Connectors |
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| Forfactor | ATX (30.5cm x 24.4cm) |
| BIOS | 2 x 64Mb flash ROM, UEFI AMI BIOS |
- Drivers & Utilities Disc
- Motherboard User Guide
- I/O Shield
- 6x SATA Cable
- Network Driver & Utilities Disc
- Software & Application User Guide
- USB 3.0 Bracket
- E-SATA Bracket
- M-Connectors
- 2x Antenna
- mPCIe card with Wi-Fi/Bluetooth module
- SLI Cable
- 4x V-Check Cable
- Door Hanger
- Molex to 2x SATA Power converter
| Page 1 - Introduction | Page 4 - Layout |
| Page 2 - Specs and Delivery | Page 5 - Connectors and I/O |
| Page 3 - Features | Page 6 - Conclusion |
Features
Military Class 4 Components |
MSI's fancy name for high quality components, the Military Class 4 Components certified motherboards, are equiped with Hi-CCAP, Super Ferrite Choke and Dark CAPs for better stability, durability, efficiency and current as well as DrMOS 4, which is the name of the new MOSFETs which should deliver more than 600+ Watts for extreme overclocking. |
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DigitALL Power PWM |
For quite some years and like all the large motherboard manufacturers, MSI has been also equipping its motherboards with digital power design. |  |
OC PCB |
The Z97 MPower does not just give you 20-phases for those that like to go crazy on the CPU voltages but is also using 50% more layers for Xtreme overclocking. So, if you are an extreme overclocker with some LN2 to spare, you know what it means when you are running to break the world record and the mainboard starts to fail because some part of it is wet and you need to unmount the whole system. The rest of the features and design solutions include a clean CPU socket area which should have more compatibilty with LN2 containers, V-Check points for voltage monitoring and buttons for overcloking on the fly for Bclk and multiplier. While many overlcockers will not exactly like the "overclock on the fly" features which can be done easily in the BIOS, it can be used when system is at the limit and when benchmarks finish and the system come back into idle from load and also it helps in some benchmarks like 3Dmark Vantage or 3Dmark 06, when in order to get higher score you need to run higher game tests as well as for CPU tests when you underclock the CPU frequency. |  |
Audio Boost |
MSI equips its latest and greatest motherboard with an improved audio solution which includes the Realtek ALC1150 chip, studio level 600 Ohm headphone amplifier. At the I/O shield we find golden audio jacks which is to improve the audio signals as well as EMI shielded audio codec, high quality capacitors and the PCB separation. |
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Wi-Fi/Bluetooth Module |
MSI bundles its motherboard with an unpluggable mPCIe card equiped with a Wi-Fi/Bluetooth module from Intel. The latter supports 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0 and Intel WiDi. | |
M.2 Support |
The new MPower Z97 motherboard from MSI features an M.2 slot which is placed between the two PCIe slots. This motherboard can be equipped with SSDs in M.2 format and it is wired directly to the Z97 PCH via two PCI Express lanes, therefore offering x2 bandwidth. In other words up to 10 Gbps can be pushed over the bus through this slot, almost doubling the performance compared to the SATA-III port. |  |
| Page 1 - Introduction | Page 4 - Layout |
| Page 2 - Specs and Delivery | Page 5 - Connectors and I/O |
| Page 3 - Features | Page 6 - Conclusion |
Layout
Like we mentioned in the introduction the MSI Z97 MPower Max motherboard comes with a Twin Frozr IV based design. Therefore the PCB has a matte black finish with a few yellow touches on the heatsinks. The heatsinks themselves have been shaped with a lot of attention to detail and come with a matte black color scheme. Combined it makes the design unique and good looking. The layout itself has been well thought and there are plenty of useful features, like eight USB 3.0 ports on the back, SATA 6Gbps Ports, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, overclocking features and more. |
  
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MSI equipped the Z97 MPower Max with a 20-phase digital power design with an IR3563B from International Rectifier taking care of the CPU VRM. Unlike the previous MPower (Z77), the Z97 MPower Max power design has one DRMOS for two phases rather than one DRMOS for one phase. All those solid capacitors are part of MSI's Military Class IV group of components so that is one pretty strong power design.
The memory gets a 3-phase digital power design driven by an UPI uP1606R, which is one more phase than usual.
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As far as the memory goes, you can find four DIMM-slots on the Z97 MPower motherboard. Officially supported are the DDR3 3300 /3200 / 3100 / 3000 / 2800 / 2666 / 2600 / 2400 / 2200 / 2133 / 2000 / 1866 / 1600 / 1333 / 1066 MHz (O.C.). 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, even if you choose to install memory with big heatspreaders. Also supported are the Xtreme Memory Profiles (XMP) in version 1.3. Overclocking the memory on this board with old ICs (PCS,BBSE), which are what all overlcockers are still using, is not really nice because of the BIOS issue. On the other hand, overclocking with the new Samsung ICs or the Hynix CFR, BFR, MFR is not bad for gaming and daily use PCs, but not for getting any serious high memory frequency results.
PCH as well as current converters are being held at adequate temperatures via passive heatsinks. The current converters heatsink is made from a single aluminium block which uses a single 8mm nickel-plated copper heatpipe. The PCH heatsink has not been integrated into the heatpipe loop and is quite simple and flat. The cooling blocks have been very well made and also they are very well attached to the board to provide enough pressure on the components they have to cool down. They are entirely black colored with yellow stripes to remind the Twin Frozr IV graphics card cooler and the PCH cooler features an "M" that stands for M-Power Max.
| Page 1 - Introduction | Page 4 - Layout |
| Page 2 - Specs and Delivery | Page 5 - Connectors and I/O |
| Page 3 - Features | Page 6 - Conclusion |
Connectors and I/O
In total, MSI equipped the Z97 MPower Max motherboard with eight SATA 6Gbps connectors. This means you get six native SATA-III ports from the PCH and two SATA-III from another chip which is in this case an ASM1061 from ASMedia. With this motherboard you get three PCIe 16x Gen 3.0 and four PCIe 1x Gen 2.0 slot and all of them have been painted black. From top to bottom for the PCIe 16x you have: 16 lanes, 8 lanes and 8 lanes. This means you can do 8x/8x SLI/CrossFire and 8x/4x/4x CrossFireX (3-way). Basically these are the standard options you get with any Intel's Z97 based motherboard, that does not feature a PLX chip. The placement of the PCIe connectors has been well thought. There are for example two slots inbetween the two main PCIe x16 in order to provide a multi-GPU configuration with fresh air.Something that is almost standard nowadays with premium motherboards are the practical onboard power- and reset-buttons as well as a debug LED. MSI also added some extra stuff like two physical BIOS chips as well as a switch to select which one you actually want to use. Furthermore there is an OC Genie button, voltage reading points and a Go-BIOS button. This last one is here to help you get into the BIOS on next boot after pressing it.
The BIOS can be cleared by removing the battery or simply by pushing the clr_CMOS button located in the back panel.
In total, you will find five fan headers on the MSI Z97 MPower Max, which is enough to provide an overclocking rig or even a high-end gaming machine with plenty of fresh air. A closer look at the pictures below shows where they have been placed. All the fan headers are PWM (4-pin) type.
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Looking at the external connectors placed directly at the I/O-panel, MSI has equipped the new Z97 MPower motherboard with a P/S2 connector, eight USB 3.0 ports, one Gigabit Ethernet port, one HDMI connectors, a DisplayPort, two USB 2.0 ports, the CLR_CMOS button as well as an optical out and the analogue audio panel.
| Page 1 - Introduction | Page 4 - Layout |
| Page 2 - Specs and Delivery | Page 5 - Connectors and I/O |
| Page 3 - Features | Page 6 - Conclusion |
Conclusion
| General | + | - | |
| A closer look at the motherboard lineup from MSI reveals that the Z97 MPower Max is the second best equipped model. Therefore it comes with some really neat features, like for example a highly powerful power design regarding CPU and memory. The detailed 20-phase power design is going to be more than enough for any overclocker, no matter what CPU/GPU related record he wants to break. MSI also equipped this board with some features for gamers. A beefed-up audio solution as well as integrated WiFi and Bluetooh. Unfortunately, it lacks a SATA Express slot, which is the only drawback so far. Apart from the features for gamers, the bundle is rich and there is more than you will ever need with this board. |
- Design - Features - Bundle |
- No SATA Express Connector | |
| Layout | + | - | |
| Overall, the layout of the MSI Z97 MPower Max has been well thought. Once more
you get practical angled SATA
connectors which can be found on almost all better motherboards on the
market today. Other
than that, there is also an angled USB3 connector. There are also
practical power- and reset-buttons along with a clr_CMOS button which one is
located at the I/O panel. Furthermore there is even a debug display which
is very useful in case you should have issues with a component in your
system or the board itself. In total, you will find three PCI Express Gen3 x16
slots, which have been very well positioned. Between the two main PCIe
x16 you will find two slot space to provide good airflow for a dual
graphics card setup. It also features four PCIe Gen2 x1 slots. MSI also provided their board with an unpluggable PCIe Wi-Fi/Bluetooth module. The rest is almost standard (eight USB3, eight SATA3, one internal USB3 connector (for two USB3 ports)). As this is MSI's overclocking motherboard, you also get voltage reading points, OC Genie buttons and two physical BIOS with a DIP switch to select the one you want. |
-Angled SATA and USB3 connectors
- Power/Reset-Button onboard - Debug display / CLR_CMOS - 6x USB 3.0 - Bluetooth/Wi-Fi - 2x BIOS |
| Page 1 - Introduction | Page 4 - Layout |
| Page 2 - Specs and Delivery | Page 5 - Connectors and I/O |
| Page 3 - Features | Page 6 - Conclusion |
Author: m.buechel@ocaholic.ch Luca Rocchi l.rocchi@ocaholic.ch