MSI MPG Z890 CARBON WIFI Motherboard Review – A Powerful Gaming Motherboard

MSI MPG Z890 CARBON WIFI Unboxing & Close Up Inspection

The MSI MPG Z890 CARBON  WIFI motherboard comes in a standard cardboard package. The front features a picture of the motherboard along with the MSI Dragon logo. The packaging also lists down a few features such as Killer 5 Gigabit LAN, Killer WIFI7, Core Ultra Series 2 support, and Z890 chipset.

The backside of the package lists the specifications and special features of the motherboard such as the 20-phase Direct VRM & Premium Thermal Design, EZ M.2/PCIe design, Lightning Gen5 slots, Thunderbolt 4, WIFI7 and 5G LAN.

Inside the package is another box that contains the accessories and is located right below the box holder for the board itself. You get:

• Quick Installation Guide
• Cable Sticker
• Shout out Flyer
• EZ Wi-Fi Antenna
• 1 x EZ M.2 Clip II
• EZ M.2 Clip II Remover
• M.2 Screw / Standoff set
• USB Drive
• 2 x SATA Cables
• 1 to 3 EZ Conn-Cable (V2)
• ARGB Extension Cable
• 1 to 2 RGB Extension Cable
• EZ Front panel cable

With all the accessories done, it's time to put that box aside and take the motherboard out of its package.

The MSI MPG Z890 CARBON WIFI motherboard is an ATX offering that measures 244 x 305 mm. The motherboard carries an all-black color scheme with a few hints of silver on the logos.

The CARBON WIFI is part of the MSI MPG "MSI Performance Gaming" lineup which is aimed at gaming audiences. The CARBON is simply the top solution in the MPG series and packs the best solution for gaming audiences.

The board uses the LGA 1851 socket to support Intel Core Ultra 200S "Arrow Lake" processors. At launch, the LGA 1851 socket will only support the Arrow Lake CPUs though we can expect a brand new family in the coming years.

Next to the socket are four DDR5 DIMM slots that can support up to 256 GB of dual-channel (24/48/64 GB modules) memory.

These slots are rated to support XMP profiles up to 9200 MT/s (OC Plus). Each slot is labeled, making it easier to install DIMMs in the proper orientation. DDR5 memory comes with a different latch position so forcing a DDR4 module into a DDR5 slot will cause permanent damage. Each slot is also combined with a reinforced design to make sure signal integrity remains good while keeping the slots durable for long-term usage.

The full QVL list can be found here. The motherboard supports 5600 MT/s natively and 6400 MT/s for Arrow Lake K CPUs. The 9200 MT/s apply to 1DCP (1 Rank) configurations.

The MSI MPG Z890 CARBON WIFI motherboard features a 20+1+1+1 (VCore/ SA/GT/VNNAON)  phase Direct VRM power delivery that utilizes the RAA-229131-W310AKX PWM controller, and R2209004-HBD power stages. The power stages are rated at 110A. The board comes equipped with a BCLK generator.

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The VRMs and power delivery solution are scattered around the LGA 1851 socket. The board uses an 8-layer NPG-170D server-grade PCB with 2oz Thickened copper in a low-loss design, retaining signal integrity for stable CPU and memory operations.

The VRMs receive ample cooling from the Frozr heatsinks which come with an extended design.

The CPU is supplied power through an 8+8 pin power connector configuration. This will feed the CPU with up to 300 Watts of power. Intel's Arrow Lake "Core Ultra 200S" Desktop CPUs can sip up to 250W of power by default.

Coming to the cooling solution, the Extended Frozr heatsink features two aluminum blocks that are connected together using a heat pipe solution.

Underneath the VRM heatsink are 7W/mK Thermal pads which transfer heat from the VRMs to the heatsink.

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Expansion slots include three full-length PCI Express x16 (1 x Gen 5.0 x16 1 x Gen 5.0 x8 / 1 x Gen 4.0 x4), and five M.2 slots.

CPU:

• PCI_E1 Gen PCIe 5.0 supports up to x16 (From CPU)
• PCI_E2 Gen PCIe 5.0 supports up to x8 (From CPU)
• PCI_E1 supports BIOS adjustment to x8+x4+x4
• PCI_E2 supports BIOS adjustment to x4+x4

Chipset:

• PCI_E3 Gen PCIe 4.0 supports up to x4 (From Chipset)

The motherboard utilizes a full metallic slot which makes use EZ PCIe release mechanism to make installing and removing graphics cards easy.

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The motherboard also has a vast array of M.2 slots, all of which are featured under dedicated M.2 Shield Frozr heatsinks.

One of the larger heatsinks also works as a cover plate for the motherboard's lower portion. It has a matte black finish with a large MPG logo and underneath, you can find dual-sided thermal pads. You need to remove the plastic sticker from the thermal pads before installing a new SSD for proper heat transfer. The slot comes with an EZ M.2 Shield Frizr II design, making for a toolless design.

The primary M.2 Shield Frozr heatsink is the bigger one and provides better cooling to a Gen5 M.2 SSD. This has the same tooless EZ mechanism. The PCH heatsink features a solid aluminum frame which provides dedicated cooling to the Z890 chipset.

Following is the full list of M.2 ports and their details on the MSI MPG Z890 CARBON WIFI motherboard:

CPU:

• M.2_1 Source (From CPU) supports up to PCIe 5.0 x4, supports 2280/2260 devices
• M.2_2 Source (From CPU) supports up to PCIe 4.0 x4, supports 2280/2260 devices

Chipset:

• M.2_3 Source (From Chipset) supports up to PCIe 4.0 x4, supports 2280/2260 devices
• M.2_4 Source (From Chipset) supports up to PCIe 4.0 x4, supports 22110/2280/2260 devices
• M.2_5 Source (From Chipset) supports up to PCIe 4.0 x4 / SATA mode, supports 2280/2260 devices
• 4x SATA 6G

The Z890 PCH is housed beneath a large heatsink with the MPG logo. The PCH cover has a matte black coating.

The motherboard offers two RGB accent zones with the first one being the Dragon emblem on the IO shield which can be customized using the MSI Mystic RGB software. The second is the primary M.2 Gen5 Frozr heatsink which lights up the "CARBON" logo and is connected using a magnetic 4-pin header.

Storage options include four SATA III ports rated to operate at 6 GB/s. These can support 4 different storage devices at once. These SATA ports are located under the SSD heatsink cover housing. There are also 3 USB 3.2 front panel connectors (4x Gen1 Type-A & 1x Gen2x2 Type-C). 2 USB 2.0 (four ports) front panel connectors are also included.

MSI uses a 7.1 CH HD audio design with the latest Realtek ALC1220P CODEC. There is a large selection of connectors on the motherboard including a DEBUG LED and a Digital DEBUG LED. MSI also features a dedicated 8-pin PEG connector for the PCIe slots which can provide additional juice and reduce the strain on the ATX connector.

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The full list of connectors on the motherboard is listed as follows.

• 1x Power Connector(ATX_PWR)
• 2x Power Connector(CPU_PWR)
• 1x Power Connector(PCIE_PWR 8pin)
• 1x Front Type-C Quick Charge Connector(PD_PWR1)
• 1x CPU Fan
• 1x Combo Fan (Pump_Sys Fan)
• 5x System Fan
• 1x EZ Conn-header (JAF_2)
• 2x Front Panel (JFP)
• 1x Chassis Intrusion (JCI)
• 1x Water Flow connector
• 1x Front Audio (JAUD)
• 1x Thermal Sensor connectors(T_SEN)
• 3x Addressable V2 RGB LED connector (JARGB_V2)
• 1x RGB LED connector(JRGB)
• 1x TPM pin header(Support TPM 2.0)
• 4x USB 2.0 ports
• 4x USB 5Gbps Type A ports
• 1x USB 20Gbps Type C ports

MSI is using the latest WIFI 7 Module to power wireless connectivity with a 320MHz channel bandwidth and Bluetooth 5.4. In terms of Ethernet, there are dual ports including one 5GbE & one 2.5GbE connector.

The motherboard comes with the following I/O connectors:

• USB 10Gbps Type-A
• Flash BIOS Button
• Clear CMOS Button
• Smart Button
• 2.5G LAN
• 5G LAN
• Audio Connectors
• HDMI
• Thunderbolt 4
• USB 10Gbps Type-C
• USB 10Gbps Type-A
• Wi-Fi / Bluetooth
• Optical S/PDIF Out

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