MSI MPG Z490 Gaming Edge Wifi DDR4 Intel Motherboard

The MSI MPG Z490 Gaming Edge WiFi DDR4 is an ATX-form-factor motherboard built on Intel's Z490 chipset and designed for 10th Generation Intel Core, Pentium Gold, and Celeron processors using the LGA1200 socket. Its 12+1+1 Duet Rail Power System, paired with an 8-pin plus 4-pin ATX 12V CPU power connector arrangement and MSI Core Boost technology, is engineered to deliver stable power delivery for both stock and overclocked workloads on compatible unlocked processors. Memory support spans four DDR4 DIMM slots capable of holding up to 128 GB total. In single-DIMM-per-channel single-rank configurations, memory can reach up to 4800+ MHz (OC) via Intel XMP profiles, with dual-channel mode supported across all configurations. Non-ECC, unbuffered memory is required. Storage options include six SATA 6 Gb/s ports and two M.2 Key-M slots, both supporting PCIe 3.0 x4 and SATA 6 Gb/s devices. The primary M.2 slot (M2_1) accommodates 2242, 2260, 2280, and 22110 form factors; the secondary (M2_2) supports up to 2280. Intel Optane Memory is also supported. RAID 0, 1, 5, and 10 are available for SATA arrays, while RAID 0 and 1 are supported for M.2 PCIe devices. Note that certain SATA ports become unavailable when specific M.2 slots are populated with SATA devices. Connectivity is a standout area. Wired networking is handled by a Realtek RTL8125B-CG 2.5G LAN controller. Wireless is provided by the Intel AX201, supporting Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax, pre-certified), MU-MIMO, dual-band 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz (up to 160 MHz channel width) with theoretical throughput up to 2.4 Gbps, plus Bluetooth 5.1. USB on the rear panel includes one USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 20 Gbps Type-C port (via ASMedia ASM3241), one USB 3.2 Gen 2 10 Gbps Type-A port, four USB 3.2 Gen 1 5 Gbps Type-A ports, and two USB 2.0 ports, along with DisplayPort and HDMI video outputs. Audio is managed by a Realtek ALC1200-VD1 codec delivering 7.1-channel HD audio with optical S/PDIF output. Expansion slots consist of one PCIe 3.0 x16 slot (CPU-direct) and one PCIe 3.0 x16 physical slot running at x4 (PCH), plus two PCIe x1 slots. AMD 2-Way CrossFire is supported. Thermal management uses an aluminum heatsink with extended coverage and M.2 Shield Frozr thermal pads over both M.2 slots. MSI Mystic Light supports 16.8 million colours and 29 effects, with headers for both 4-pin RGB and 3-pin ARGB/Rainbow LED strips. A pre-installed I/O shield and nine standard ATX mounting holes are included. The board carries a 3-year warranty and supports Windows 10 64-bit. Key Verified Specifications: - Socket: LGA1200 | Chipset: Intel Z490 - Memory: 4x DDR4, up to 128 GB, up to 4800+ MHz (OC, 1DPC 1R), XMP supported - Storage: 6x SATA 6 Gb/s; 2x M.2 PCIe 3.0 x4 / SATA - USB: 1x USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 20 Gbps Type-C (rear); 1x USB 3.2 Gen 2 10 Gbps Type-A (rear) - LAN: Realtek 2.5G | Wi-Fi: Intel AX201 Wi-Fi 6 + Bluetooth 5.1 - Audio: Realtek ALC1200-VD1, 7.1-ch HD, S/PDIF - Form Factor: ATX, 12 in. x 9.6 in. (30.5 cm x 24.4 cm) - Warranty: 3 Years