Motherboards - Page 3

This year, AMD and Intel have announced and released their next-gen desktop CPUs with the new Ryzen 9000 Series and Intel Core Ultra (Series 2). New processors mean new chipsets, in this case, Intel Z890 and AMD X870, and countless new motherboards hitting retail shelves as we close the year.

During a recent tour of MSI's impressive factory in Shenzhen, China, where we saw Intel Z890 motherboards being produced at a mind-boggling scale, we got to go hands-on with a few Intel Core Ultra 200 builds with MSI's new boards. New CPUs and new motherboards are always exciting, but when you throw in a brand-new, modern BIOS redesign - it all feels 'next-gen.'

MSI is calling its revamped, redesigned, and overhauled BIOS interface and UI the Click BIOS X system. We went hands-on with two systems: an Intel Core Ultra 9 285K CPU and MEG Z890 ACE motherboard and an Intel Core Ultra 5 245K CPU and MAG Z890 TOMAHAWK WIFI motherboard.

Enthusiast-level gaming motherboards can arguably be some of the most impressive pieces of technology within a PC, especially when considering the motherboard is responsible for the correct communication between components, power regulation, etc.

MSI has been at the forefront of impressive enthusiast-level gaming motherboards for quite some time, and right at the top of the company's offerings is its GODLIKE series. Likely picked up in the name, the GODLIKE series is meant to have as many bells and whistles as a motherboard possibly can, and just like the Z790, the upcoming Z890 has followed suit with some substantial improvements.

The Z890 GODLIKE, which currently doesn't have an official release date, but I can confirm will be launched sometime in Q4, has expanded storage capabilities with support for up to 6x M.2 (2x Gen5 + 4x Gen4) and 4x SATA 6Gbp/s. Moreover, the Z890 GODLIKE has expanded on its connectivity offerings, with support for 2x USB 3.2 20G (1x Rear Type-C / 1x Front Type-C PD60W), an insane 13x USB 3.2 10G ports (8x Rear Type-A + 5x Rear Type-C), 4x USB 3.2 5G (4x Front Type-A), and 4x USB 2.0 (4x Front Type-A). Comparatively, the Z890 GODLIKE has 23 USB ports, compared to the Z790 GODLIKE's 18.

NZXT's last motherboard was the older-gen, mid-range B650E motherboard but the company has just teased its upcoming N9 X870E motherboard that will be dropping in 2025... ready for those new Ryzen 9000X3D processors.

The new NZXT N9 X870E motherboard features the AM5 socket of course, with 20+2+1 VRM and an 8-layer PCB with 110A Smart Power Stage, which is a big upgrade from the 16+2+1 and 90A design that NZXT's former B650E motherboard had. The upcoming N9 X870E motherboard also supports DDR5-8000+ memory, but we don't know what the maximum ceiling is on high-speed DDR5 memory on this mobo just yet.

On the connectivity side, NZXT provides Wi-Fi 7 and 5GbE ethernet, which is another upgrade from the Wi-Fi 6E and 2.5GbE on the former board. You can install 4 x M.2 SSDs (one of them Gen5, the other three are Gen4).

ASRock has just unleashed its new family of X870E + X870 motherboards, ready for AMD's new Zen 5-based Ryzen 9000 series CPUs... and led by the gorgeous new ASRock X870E Taichi motherboard. Check it out:

Each and every one of ASRock's new X870E + X870 motherboards features PCIe Gen5 GPU and Blazing M.2 (Gen5x4) SSD ports, as well as dual USB4 Type-C ports on the rear I/O for external connectivity at extreme speeds. The company uses a DIY-friendly approach with EZ release graphics card slot, and a tool-less M.2 heatsink installation.

ASRock even provides an additional heatsink pre-installed under the M.2 SSD, which can significantly reduce PCI-Express Gen-5 SSD temperatures to help prevent thermal throttling. All motherboards include the BIOS Flashback function, accessible via the rear I/O, allowing for effortless BIOS updates even without the CPU and memory installed.

ASUS is preparing some expensive new flagship Z890 motherboards, with a US retailer listing Z890 motherboards from ASUS including the flagship ROG Maximus Z890 EXTREME motherboard costing over $1100.

The company will have 10 models of new Z890 motherboards: with the flagship ROG Maximus Z890 Extreme, ROG Maximus Z890 Apex, ROG Maximus Z890 Hero, ROG Strix AZ890-A Gaming, ROG Strix Z890-I Gaming Wi-Fi, and the ROG Strix Z890-E.

Starting with the flagship ASUS ROG Maximus Z890 Extreme motherboard which is listed with retailer HSSL for $1111.87, priced at around $100 more than its predecessor in the ROG Maximus Z790 Extreme. Under that, we've got the ROG Z890 Apex motherboard priced at $812.29, which is almost $200 more than its predecessor which launched for $649.99.

MSI's fleet of X870 motherboards will feature "True Wi-Fi 7" with 320MHz 5.8G support on all X870 and X870E motherboards, "unlike others" the company is pointing out (and by others, MSI means GIGABYTE and ASUS).

The company is pushing a new marketing strategy that shows the advantages of using "True Wi-Fi 7" with our friends at Uniko's Hardware teasing that MSI will support the ATX 3.1 165W design with an additional 8-pin power connector, the full-fledged Wi-Fi 7 with 320MHz 5.8GHz support.

This will be combined with MSI's features like "EZ" GPU and SSD removal, a brand-new BIOS, and MSI wanting to step into the limelight with next-gen GPU support for NVIDIA's upcoming GeForce RTX 5090 and GeForce RTX 5080 graphics cards with an additional PCIe power connector on X870 and X870E motherboards.

MSI's new Z890 MPG Carbon motherboard has leaked, ready to rock and roll with Intel's upcoming Core Ultra 200 series "Arrow Lake" desktop CPUs.

The new MSI Z890 MPG Carbon motherboard will join the fleet of Z890 motherboards that MSI has planned for the weeks and months ahead, with Intel launching its Arrow Lake CPUs on October 10 with the current rumors, we won't have much longer to wait.

MSI's new Z890 MPG Carbon motherboard looks virtually identical to the X870 MPG Carbon (X870 = AMD, Z890 = Intel) motherboard, which is a good thing as they look swish. Both of the motherboards roll out with 2.5GbE and 5GbE ethernet connectivity + Wi-Fi 7, while there is a dedicated 8-pin PCIe power connector for high-end graphics cards of the future on the Z890 MPG Carbon (and the X870 MPG Carbon).

MSI has officially unleashed its beast MEG X870E GODLIKE motherboard, designed for enthusiasts to enjoy the pinnacle of PC building, overclocking, and performance. Just marvel in its beauty:

The new MSI MEG X870E GODLIKE motherboard is an absolute beast, ready for AMD's new Zen 5-based Ryzen 9000 series "Granite Ridge" CPUs. MSI is using its awesome Dynamic Dashboard in its third-gen now, with a 3.99-inch LCD screen on the motherboard, with MEG X870 GODLIKE mobo owners able to use Dynamic Dashboard III to monitor your hardware, troubleshoot your issues, check BIOS update status, display a clock, and more personalization.

MSI is taking cable management seriously with the MEG X870E GODLIKE motherboard, with EZ Link design handling most of the front panel headers, fan headers, and RGB headers into the EZ Bridge and EZ Control Hub, making for a super-clean look.

MSI has just teased its next-gen MEG X870E GODLIKE motherboard, which looks absolutely over-the-top and we love to see it, with 28 phases of VRM design ready for overclocked Zen 5-based AMD Ryzen 9000 series CPUs, and future-gen Zen chips.

The new MSI MEG X870E GODLIKE motherboard should rock a huge 288 x 304.8mm design, using the same E-ATX form factor as the current-gen X670E GODLIKE board. MSI provides an insane 28 power phases and 110A power stages, which is one more VRRM over the X670E GODLIKE which had 105A power stages.

There are 2 x 8-pin power connectors to feed into the MSI MEG X870E GODLIKE motherboard, with 4 x DDR5 DIMMs that support over DDR5-8000+ speeds and up to 256GB of DDR5 if you've got the latest 64GB DDR5 memory modules.

GIGABYTE has just introduced its new X870 EAGLE Wi-Fi 7 motherboard, featuring the X870 non-E chipset, ready for AMD's new fleet of Zen 5-powered Ryzen 9000 series CPUs.

The company is using a 6-layer PCB and robust VRM setup with 14+2+2 power phases ready for overclocking, and a reliable voltage supply to the AMD Ryzen CPU you've installed. GIGABYTE's new X870 EAGLE Wi-Fi 7 motherboard features long aluminum grooved heatsinks that are installed onto the VRM components, keeping things a little cooler.

GIGABYTE's new X870 EAGLE Wi-Fi 7 motherboard also features a small I/O shroud with an RGB-lit "EAGLE" logo that makes the board 'pop' a little more.