MSI MPG Z590 Gaming Force motherboard review and testing. Experimenting with overclocking the Intel Core i7-11700K

MSI’s efforts to capture the attention of new customers have led to the inclusion of the Gaming Force product in the lineup. The emphasis is on a catchy design, the color of radiators and stickers is far from the monochrome colors that are widely used on the market. The board was not developed from scratch, but was based on a model that has long been familiar to brand adherents – MPG Z590 Gaming Carbon WiFi, depriving it of some of the nodes. So, there is no pre-installed wireless network adapter here, there is no separate platform for it. The lighting system will not support Ambient Link. Otherwise, they are virtually identical. The MPG product series immediately follows the flagship MEG, we have already met its representative in the person of MSI MEG Z590 Ace, and therefore it will be easier to draw parallels between them. I note a powerful stabilizer, accompanied by a pair of CPU power sockets, and a POST code indicator that can help with overclocking. There are no additional buttons on the board, no pads for measuring voltages, and the number of M.2 slots turned out to be reduced to three, and the microcircuit with the firmware is one.

In detail, the conversation about everything will go further, first I propose to study the table with the main features.

As in other products, the main resource limitations have affected the ports for drives. The SATA5 and SATA6 outputs will be deactivated if any device is used using the lower M.2, and SATA2 will be disabled if an adapter with this type of interface is installed in the second (central) M.2. The top slot uses exclusively PCI-E lines from the latest generation of older CPUs, that is, it will not work with Comet Lake-S products.

Packaging and equipment

A cardboard box of decent density is painted in bright colors, the design is atypical for the restrained trend of recent years.

On the back side, the idea in the presentation of information repeats the features of the boards of the series with the “Carbon” suffix. There is a photo of the product, a schematic image of the rear panel, a plate with the main features, and key features of the product are placed on the sides. I want to highlight the slogan about supporting the delivery of 720 watts of energy to the processor.

Equipment:

• user manual (in English);
• three stands and three mounting screws for M.2 devices;
• multilingual quick installation guide;
• buyer registration card;
• a small promotional booklet with MSI products;
• MSI Shout Out promo flyer;
• MSI Reward Program promotional flyer shares;
• two stickers for the body and batteries with the MPG logo, the same number with the branded dragon;
• eight pairs of labels for labeling FAN, RGB and SATA cables;
• four SATA 6Gb / s cables, two of which have an L-shaped connector on one of the ends;
• three extension cords for connecting LED strips (a splitter for a pair of type 5050, one for type WS2812B and one more for Corsair strips, the shortest one);
• a pair of branded screwdrivers (flat and cross slots);
• flash drive with drivers and proprietary software (16 GB);
• compact retractable double-sided brush;
• MSI Gaming Series logo sticker.

Appearance

Design should hook the buyer. And yet, behind the extravagant appearance, a solid product is hidden, it is felt even by weight. The heatsinks are thick, there is a heat pipe in the CPU voltage regulator sector to evenly distribute heat over the entire area of ​​the coolers. I also want to highlight the location of the sites for the fans and their total number. Immediately four are located at the lower right corner, the remaining four are dispersed over the top of the device.

A reliable screw clamp is used throughout. The number of textolite layers is six pieces, which directly indicates the high status of the novelty, moreover, the thickness of the copper conductors is doubled.

The backlight is provided by a plastic overlay over the input-output ports on the back and an area near the Intel Z590 chip.

There are three removable coolers in total, the central one is combined with a radiator for the hub, so you should not be surprised at the actual room temperature of the crystal during the first hours of computer operation, especially if the accompanying M.2 socket is not used for its intended purpose.

The LEDs are soldered in two rows. The glow is quite bright and noticeable even during the day.

We talked about the limitations of the operation of storage slots in the introduction, now the places for installing them in the M.2 format are more obvious. So, the longest products of type 22110 will only be on top, eight centimeters are redistribution below. If you need to mount shorter devices, the kit includes the necessary stands and screws.

At the right end, six longitudinal SATA outputs and a transverse rack for a USB case cable for symmetrical Type C are soldered.

The bottom edge has a platform for a USB 3.2 Gen 1 cable and two with pins for classic USB 2.0. There is also a port with additional power for the needs of the video subsystem, if several powerful video accelerators are used.

PCI-E x16 slots with additional security are associated with the socket, the other three interact with the chipset. There are four PI3EQX16012 ICs from Diodes Incorporated to help split the 16 lanes between the corresponding pair of jacks.

The sound subsystem is based on the new codec from Realtek ALC4080 in the company of special-purpose capacitors from Nippon Chemi-Con Corporation. Op-amp – Savitech SV3H712, also the first time I saw it, and it has 28 contacts unheard of for such a chip.

I note the presence of the LED_SW1 backlight switch and the Thunderbolt header.

Simplified troubleshooting is possible with the four multi-colored EZ Debug LEDs. The POST code pointer has a white indication, in addition to direct duties, during OS operation it will be able to display one of the temperatures available in UEFI, the processor is initially selected.

The true finning of the radiator is beyond doubt, it is not a simple monolithic bar. The visor is equipped with ventilation holes both from below and from above to avoid stagnation of air heated by the radiator.

At first glance, it may seem that here the stabilizer actually repeats the one seen in the MEG Z590 Ace, and this is true, but with a number of clarifications. The PWM controller is the same – ISL69269, but eight doublers are missing, that is, the number of power elements in each of the eight phases is simply doubled. They are less powerful and coincide with those used for the needs of the graphics subsystem – RAA220075 (Renesas Electronics). In total, you can count seventeen pieces, that is, one “phase” is implemented for the iGPU, not two. SA Voltage will work with the NCP252160 (ON Semiconductor Corp), which is also a link in the differences. But the voltages IO plus IO 2 are formed by the same TPS56C230 (Texas Instruments). In addition, the number of capacitors has decreased. We will find out how much all this affected the performance of the product during testing.

Everywhere there is enough space for thermal pads. Concern about the appearance of the final product even led to the need to cut off a few corners! The heat pipe is located at the base and therefore the efficiency of its work will be undeniable.

PS / 2 went into oblivion, but I already remembered the wireless controller at the very beginning – it is in another model of the manufacturer, nothing is provided for antennas right there. The range of ports is quite comprehensive. There are no buttons, except for forcing a firmware update, they should be looked for in a more prestigious series.