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But let's get down to business. First up, the rear IO connectivity. Allow me to zoom in a little here.

From left to right that's the old fashioned PS2/mouse  keyboard connector. Then I count a total of eight USB ports of which the blue colored ones are USB 3.0 (two), then one eSATA port, two Gigabit Ethernet ports (nice) Digital audio in the form of optical & coaxial TOSLINK connectors, and then all the way to the right the analog audio connectors.

You can also spot a button for CMOS clear to the left. Well, that certainly is a good start, that back panel is stuffed full to the last square inch.

When we flip the board around we stumble into the processor area, socket AM3. To the right of the big heatsink we spot one 8-pin CPU power header, underneath the heartsick we see all ferrite core chokes / Dr MOS  quality capacitors catch the eye. MSI applies their military class component usage to this motherboard, meaning only the very best components are used which ensures lifespan, lower temperatures and thus better overclocking as well.