MSI MAG Z790 TOMAHAWK WIFI Motherboard ATX - Supports Intel Core 12/13th Gen Processors, LGA 1700, DDR5 Boost (7200+MHz/OC), 1 x PCIe 5.0 x16, 1 x PCIe 4.0 x16, 5 x M.2 Gen4, 2.5Gbps LAN, Wi-Fi 6E

Product Information

Available only on processors featuring integrated graphics. Graphics specifications may vary depending on the CPU installed. Flash the BIOS with only a connected power supply by following a few steps. CPU and memory not required. MSI motherboards prioritize safety with the embedded Overcurrent Protection (OCP), ensuring crucial

Z790 Tomahawk Max WiFi review MSI MAG Z790 Tomahawk Max WiFi review

The PCIe slot complement is around par, as M.2 slots take up PCB space that used to be reserved for expansion card slots. The primary PCIe slot supports Gen 5 speeds. It's joined by a PCIe 4.0 x16 slot (x4 electrical) and a PCIe 3.0 x1 slot. Both are positioned away from the primary slot allowing you to use them unhindered by a triple slot graphics card. Synthetics provide a great way to determine how a board runs, as identical settings should produce similar performance results. Turbo boost wattage and advanced memory timings are places where motherboard makers can still optimize for either stability or performance, though, and those settings can impact some testing.

Now its time for my usual memory test. As has been the case across my testing, I was able to hit DDR5-8000 but moving past that required unreasonable levels of IMC voltage. Soon I'll be getting my hands on a Teamgroup DDR5-8200 kit, and that's something that will require a capable BIOS to run properly. If at all! AUDIO BOOST 5: Reward your ears with studio grade sound quality for the most immersive gaming experience The Handbrake video encoding test benefits greatly, the file compression test even more so, while in other cases the differences are within a margin of error.

Z790 TOMAHAWK WIFI - MSI USA MAG Z790 TOMAHAWK WIFI - MSI USA

That’s a very well-rounded set of options, especially at this price where USB4 or Thunderbolt 4 is not expected. They’re the kinds of features that makers use to justify boards costing twice as much. MSI didn't resort to a cheap audio codec either. It includes Realtek ALC4080 audio with a complete set of analogue ports and S/PDIF. It's more about the implementation than the base codec, and to that end MSI equipped the Tomahawk Max WiFi with high quality capacitors and de-pop protection circuitry. It's tough to expect much more in this price range. MSI MAG Z790 Tomahawk Max WiFi performance The Tomahawk Max WiFi is the fourth Z790 refresh board I've tested. I've been quite surprised at how similarly the boards perform to one another, even when they are left at their auto settings with a bit of a free-for-all when it comes to Intel's power limits and turbo ratios. But having said that, these are third generation boards. The underlying microcode and hybrid architecture are well known quantities at this point, and it's not surprising to see that the motherboard makes next to no difference compared to a CPU or GPU upgrade or downgrade. A stable baseline is a good thing. If nothing else, a solid and reliable Z790 mid-range board like the Z790 Tomahawk Max Wifi showed that it'll happily mate with a high end combination like an i9 14900K and RTX 4090, even though such a combination will be rare in the real world. The MSI BIOS presents you with a simplistic CPU TDP selection upon first boot. There's a default 'Boxed Cooler' setting which enforces Intel's power limits, a 'Tower Cooler' option which raises TDP to 288W, and finally a 'Water Cooling' option which removes all limits. Not that you'll ever need it, but this allows a hypothetical 4096W!Most, but not all boards around this price incorporate WiFi 7. It's one of the highlights of this generation of motherboards. WiFi 7 is joined by Intel 2.5GbE. Run into trouble when updating your BIOS or somehow corrupted it? Don’t worry, MSI motherboards offer multiple options to successfully boot your system again.

MSI Intel MAG Z790 TOMAHAWK WIFI DDR5 ATX Motherboard - Scan

The Z790 Tomahawk comes with seven SATA ports. For bulk storage, SATA still has a place and those seven ports alone may be a deal maker for some users. Some boards costing a lot more come with only four SATA. The board itself doesn't include any RGB lighting, however, there are three ARGB headers and a single RGB header. There are eight fan headers too, so the Tomahawk Max WiFi will happily accommodate a system with RGB and watercooling.

VRM temperatures on our board peaked at almost 58 degrees Celsius, just below the 500W actively cooled Taichi and around 10-plus degrees hotter than the Aorus Master and Hero. These temperatures are well within the specifications of the power delivery bits, so there’s nothing to worry about on this front. The combination of 90A SPS MOSFETs and the ample heatsinks is a great match. way to control additional RGB strips and other RGB peripherals added to a system, without needing a Memory Support 5333/ 5200/ 5066/ 5000/ 4800/ 4600/ 4533/ 4400/ 4266/ 4000/ 3866/ 3733/ 3600/ 3466/ 3333(O.C.)/ 3200/ 3000/ 2933/ 2800/ 2666/ 2400/ 2133(By JEDCE & POR)

Z790 TOMAHAWK WIFI DDR4 - MSI MAG Z790 TOMAHAWK WIFI DDR4 - MSI

Form factor in specifications shows E-ATX. According to MSI (https://www.msi.com/Motherboard/MAG-Z790-TOMAHAWK-WIFI-DDR4/Specification) motherboard is in fact ATX, 243.84mmx304.8mm The advanced SMT(Surface Mount Technology) welding process reduces the defect rate of slot solder joints, electromagnetism, and interference.

You want support for lot of storage. The Z790 Tomahawk Max WiFi includes four M.2 slots and eight SATA ports, so if you've got a lot of drives, it's one of few to offer that much capacity. The MSI Z790 Tomahawk Max WiFi is an excellent offering with a high quality set of features that make it a very competitive offering in its price range. MSI deserves credit for not pushing the price of the Max version above its non-Max predecessor. That's a pretty rare thing for any product in today's inflation hit economy, so well done MSI. The grounding structure of power phases is the MSI's exclusive design. This patented design enables Unleash and sustain the maximum performance with a premium VRM design built with a total of 16 Phases Mirrored Power Arrangement with 90A SPS. A typical gamer needs to ask themselves what they value most in a motherboard. As the performance differences between third generation motherboards mostly falls within a margin of error, your choice will come down to features, aesthetics and if you're so inclined, brand loyalty. If features are at the top of your list, then the inclusion of WiFi 7, 4x M.2 plus 8x SATA, a high quality VRM capable of powering anything from the 12th, 13th and 14th Generations, and rear mounted USB 20Gbps port should all rate highly.