MSI Z87 MPower MAX motherboard review - Introduction

MSI Intel 8 Series Platforms

We review, test and benchmark the MSI Z87 MPower MAX series motherboard. The Z87 enthusiast themed mainboard is intended for Intel's 22nm Haswell processors on Socket LGA1150. It is the new flagship product amongst the MSI gaming series LOADED with features and overclock potential, it has the latest Killer E2200 chip and 'AudioBoost' audio.

Oh and of course that lovely two-tone black yellow color scheme. The MSI MPower MAX as tested today comes chucked full with extra features and overclock potential, it has the latest Killer E2200 chip. This motherboard comes even with a very impressive VRM design. Oh and is 8 SATA 6 GBps ports and one mSATA ports enough for ya ? Or what about three PCI Express x16 slots KillerNIC integrated LAN and SLI / CrossFireX multi-GPU support ? It doesn't stop there though, you'll receive a WIFI controller and even Intel WIDI host (Wireless Display). Z87 is of course the Intel chipset being released for the all new Haswell processors. These motherboards will have a slightly altered feature set. The end result is a cool motherboard on a black and yellow design whilst being armed with a Killer NIC, a dedicated IC that should ensure low PING times for online gamers by prioritizing your band-with whilst giving you the option to monitor your network traffic.

The overclockers amongst you will be happy as well, the Z87 MPower MAX will feature 20 (8+12) VRMs to maximize your overclock. Based on new Military class IV you'll spot Hi-C Caps, Super Ferrite Chokes but also a Digital PWM, Enhanced Dual BIOS and the OC essential features which include Clear CMOS switch located at the I/O plate. There's a Debug LED, Easy button 3, Multi BIOS II, V-Check Points and even much more. Though still based on a Realtek chip, MSI integrates AudioBoost by which they isolated the audio circuitry from. A built-in headphone amplifier allows you to use studio-grade headgear and get the most amazing sound quality out of your gaming PC.

• Studio level integrated 600Ω headphone amplifier
• Golden audio jacks for pure audio signals
• EMI shielded audio codec
• High quality audio capacitors
• Illuminated audio PCB separation

Included as well is the support of 802.11 b/g/n and Bluetooth 4.0 as well as Intel WiDi (stands for Wireless Display) and a WiDi receiver (not included) you can watch movies on your TV (wireless) without the need for any cables. Anyway, have a peek at this spectacular looking and feature rich motherboard, it's an all new design and then let's fire up this review.