MSI MPG Z790 Edge (DDR4) review - Introduction

MSI MPG Z790 EDGE (DDR4) WIFI review

Are you curious about the performance of Raptor lake with DDR4 memory? MSI has produced many DDR4 motherboards for the latest CPU series. It may save you considerable money on the entire cost, but how well will it perform? We check out the MSI MPG Z790 EDGE (DDR4) WIFI in this review. The motherboard comes with five M2 NVMe slots, a duo of x16 slots and of course WIFI 6E, and a 2.5 GigE ethernet jack. The Hybrid Architecture Process Technology is back, 13th Generation Intel Core Processors with up to 24 Cores and 32 Threads on a single CPU, this generation has improved the number of efficiency cores. Additionally, L3 Cache has been significantly increased to 36 MB, and more crucially, the memory frequency will support DDR5-5600 MHz out of the box. However, DDR4 is also possible, and we're testing a motherboard that supports exactly that. Z790 motherboards are expected to be better than Z690 boards in small ways. The chipset is expected to have more I/O lanes, but the number of PCIe 5.0 lanes on the CPU will stay the same. This gives AMD an advantage by giving SSDs their own PCIe 5.0 lanes. The 16 PCIe 5.0 lanes on a 13th Gen board can be split between the main GPU slot and the M.2 slots. For MSI; Wi-Fi 6E, the latest wireless networking solution, will be built into all Z790 Chipset motherboards. M.2 storage has also grown, and the mobo tested can now hold up to five M.2 units for even more storage. In this DIY world, some changes make life easier, like MSI's patented Magnetic and Screwless M.2 Shield Frozr, Front USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 Type-C with Power Delivery up to 60 W, and support for ARGB Gen 2 devices.

The MPG Series is one of the more premium models among gamers. With the 16+1 power phase design with 90A SPS and dual-8-pin CPU power connectors, the MPG Z790 EDGE WIFI can handle any game you throw at it.

The MPG Series does come with Gen 5.0 PCIe slot, 2.5G LAN and Wi-Fi 6E solution which provides more than enough power and bandwidth to tackle any task you throw at it. There will also be a DDR5 version available to the market, we test the DDR4 version. Remember though. should you already be on Alder Lake or see cheaper Z690 motherboards realize this, then 13th Gen Intel Core Processors are built on LGA 1700 socket which allows backward compatibility with previous 600 series motherboards by just updating the BIOS. MSI's new BIOS for the 600 series are available and ready to download.

	Cores		Clock Frequency				Cache		Power usage		Price
Intel	P	E	Base P	Turbo P	Base E	Turbo E	L2	L3	Base	Turbo	USD
Core i9-13900K	8	16	3.0GHz	5.8GHz	2.2GHz	4.3GHz	32MB	36MB	125W	253W	589
Core i9-13900KF	8	16	3.0GHz	5.8GHz	2.2GHz	4.3GHz	32MB	36MB	125W	253W	564
Core i7-13700K	8	8	3.4GHz	5.4GHz	2.5GHz	4.2GHz	24MB	30MB	125W	253W	406
Core i7-13700KF	8	8	3.4GHz	5.4GHz	2.5GHz	4.2GHz	24MB	30MB	125W	253W	384
Core i5-13600K	6	8	3.5GHz	5.1GHz	2.6GHz	3.9GHz	20MB	24MB	125W	181W	319
Core i5-13600KF	6	8	3.5GHz	5.1GHz	2.6GHz	3.9GHz	20MB	24MB	125W	181W	294

Last month at Intel Innovation, Intel introduced the 13th generation of its Core processor family, led by the 13th generation Intel Core i9-13900K, their fastest-ever desktop CPU. There are six unlocked 13th-generation Intel Core desktop processors available, with clock speeds running up to 5.8 GHz over a maximum of 24 cores and 32 threads. 

The MPG Series will have four different motherboards: the MPG Z790 CARBON WIFI, the MPG Z790 EDGE WIFI, the MPG Z790 EDGE WIFI DDR4, and the Mini-ITX MPG Z790I EDGE WIFI. MPG models will have up to 17 power phases, an Extended Heatsink with a heat pipe, and a Lightning Gen 5.0 PCIe slot. Also, the ATX motherboards will have a Screwless M.2 Shield Frozr that has been patented. The Mini-ITX model will have 3 M.2 slots. No matter which model you choose, you will not be let down. We test the MSI MAG Z790 Tomahawk (DDR4) WIFI.