A micro-ATX size offers up easier integration of the various ports and slots than, say, mini-ITX. The four DIMM slots ought to be coloured in dual-channel mode, though if you do put two sticks next to each other – in single-channel configuration – a BIOS screen pops up and informs you of the potential faux pas
Read more @ Hexus
The Z370 TOMAHAWK is designed to fulfill the needs of those who can’t or won’t dish out over $200 for a motherboard. That market is huge, and MSI has done a good job of addressing platform cost in regards to Intel’s latest 8th Generation platform.
Read more @ TweakTown
Just one mini-ITX motherboard currently exists for Intel X299 and with constraints like SO-DIMM only memory and steep pricing, system builders willing to put up with a larger footprint would be wise to consider micro-ATX as an alternative. Today we review one of only three micro-ATX motherboards for X299 – the MSI X299M Gaming Pro Carbon AC.
Read more @ KitGuru
One of those is MSI’s X399 SLI PLUS, which aims to bring the X399 motherboard into the reach of many more users by cutting out a lot of fluff and focusing just on the essentials. The motherboard features a simple aesthetic look; solid black. There are RGB LEDs built into many areas of the motherboard, so you can choose the color of your build.
Read more @ TweakTown
Around back we find a classic PS/2 port for legacy mice and keyboards, two USB 2.0 ports, a DisplayPort 1.2 connector with a meager 24 Hz refresh rate at 4096X2304, USB 3.1 Gen2 ports in Type A and Type-C versions fed by a dual-lane PCIe 3.0 controller, four SATA 3.0 ports (MSI calls these 3.1 Gen1), an HDMI 1.4 output with a still-meager 30 Hz refresh rate at 4096×2160, five analog audio jacks, and a digital optical audio output.
Read more @ Tom’s Hardware
Of course, pure gaming systems will benefit from Z370 more these days, if all you care about is FPS. However, for content creators, X299 is the way to go. If you’re focusing on recording, streaming, editing, and similar workflows, the extra grunt of an X299 is perfect for you, as you’re not going to bottleneck your workflow.
Read more @ eTeknix
While we love to lust over boards such as the Asus Maximus X Hero or MSI Z370 Godlike Gaming, the fact is few of us need the extra features or indeed have that amount of cash to throw at a motherboard. It’s easy to question spending more when cheaper boards overclock just as well and still offer a great EFI, fan control, RGB lighting, and all the usual ports and connectors?
Read more @ Bit-Tech
Under-board features nearly end at that point, as the only other two things of interest are the M.2 connector and the Gigabit Ethernet PHY. Various power regulation components are also scattered about, but we were a little surprised to see that the board only supports a single PCIe 3.0 x4 M.2 drive. Legacy SATA M.2 drives are excluded, according to MSI.
Read more @ Tom’s Hardware
The MSI Z370 Gaming Pro Carbon AC motherboard features a black PCB with carbon fibre overlay accenting it’s chipset heat sinks and rear panel cover. MSI also placed RGB LED-enabled components across the board’s surface and under the board for an interesting ground effects type look.
Read more @ PC Perspective
Equipped with support for Turbo M.2, Intel Optane, high-performance DDR4 memory, and with plentiful overclocking options, it should deliver some impressive benchmarks today. Of course, you get plenty of bonus features too, like Lightening USB, RGB lighting, Hotkey, X-Boost, and WTFast to help sweeten the deal.
Read more @ eTeknix