Review: This premium MSI motherboard is perfect for 12th Gen Intel CPUs
The 12th Gen Intel family of processors is finally upon us, and we’ve got some shiny new motherboards to play around with. If you’re wanting to upgrade or build a new PC with the latest CPUs from Intel, you’ll need to consider the Z690 chipset. Partnered manufacturers have numerous Z690 motherboards already available and today we’re taking a look at one from MSI.
The MSI MPG Z690 Carbon WiFi is one of these launch motherboards with a list of enticing specifications. You’ve got PCIe 5.0 and DDR5 support, not to mention five M.2 slots, a hefty VRM setup with an 18+1+1 power delivery design, and a stunning subtle design that will work well with most PC cases. It’s certainly poised for a seat on the best motherboards list, but it might be too much for some.
MSI MPG Z690 Carbon WiFi
Bottom line: MSI did a stellar job with the MPG Z690 Carbon WiFi. It has everything you need for a powerful 12th Gen Intel PC build, including five M.2 slots, solid power delivery, and DDR5 support.
The Good
- Stunning board design
- Plenty of I/O
- DDR5 and PCIe 5.0 support
- Excellent performance
- Five M.2 slots
The Bad
- Only 2.5Gb LAN
- Pricey
- Overkill for most PC builds
- Four USB 2.0 ports
MSI MPG Z690 Carbon WiFi: Price and availability
Source: Daniel Rubino / Windows Central
But really, when you’re above $200 for a motherboard, there’s little wiggle room between motherboards in terms of performance and this board should be right up there with the best. It may seem like quite a chunk of a budget, but the motherboard is what connects everything together inside the chassis.
MSI MPG Z690 Carbon WiFi: What’s good
Source: Daniel Rubino / Windows Central
Look at the unboxed motherboard and you’ll realize it’s a stunner. Only shades of black and dark gray are used throughout the PCB and shrouds, and you wouldn’t even think there was RGB lighting installed. In terms of specifications, the MSI MPG Z690 Carbon WiFi is anything but subtle. To handle 12th Gen Intel processors, MSI uses an 18+1+1 phase design with 75A MOSFETs, allowing for some serious headroom for overclocking.
Category | MSI MPG Z690 Carbon WiFi |
---|---|
Size | ATX |
CPU | Intel 12th Gen |
Socket | LGA 1700 |
Power delivery | 18+1+1 |
RAM | 4x DDR5 DIMM (up to DDR5-6666+), 128GB limit |
Chipset | Intel Z690 |
Expansion | 2x PCIe 5.0 x16 (x16 or dual x8) 1x PCIe 4.0 x16 |
Storage | 6x SATA (6Gbps) 4x M.2 2242/2260/2280 (PCIe 4.0 x4, SATA) 1x M.2 2242/2260/2280 (PCIe 3.0 x4) |
Audio | Realtek ALC4080 |
Rear ports | BIOS FlashBack Button 5x USB-A 3.2 Gen 2 1x USB-C 3.2 Gen 2×2 4x USB 2.0 1x DisplayPort 1x HDMI 1x 2.5Gb LAN 1x Optical S/PDIF out 5x Gold-plated audio jack |
NVIDIA SLI | ✓ |
AMD CrossFire | ✓ |
Dimensions | 305 x 244 mm |
Launch price | $400 |
A dual 8-pin header setup is located in the top-left of the board for supplying clean and reliable power, though you could get away with using just one if you don’t plan on pushing the system hard. MSI, like ASUS, includes an LED debugging screen that’s invaluable to quickly diagnose boot issues.
Along the side are the usual USB 3.0 and USB-C headers, as well as fan headers and the 24-pin ATX power input. Below the CPU socket are the PCIe and M.2 slots, the latter of which are covered by heatsinks that actually do aid in keeping drives cool. To the right of this configuration of slots are six SATA 6Gb/s ports for 3.5-inch and 2.5-inch drives.
The MSI MPG Z690 Carbon WiFi is a great deal for early platform adopters.
MSI did a solid job with the heatsinks that cover the voltage regulator modules (VRMs), which can get rather toasty when under load, especially with an overclocked Intel Core i9-12900K. There are also heatsinks for the M.2 slots that come in handy if you’re making use of PCIe 4.0 SSDs.
To put the MSI MPG Z690 Carbon WiFi to the test, we installed the board in two test rigs, both with an Intel Core i9-12900K, similar RAM modules, and an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080. The results were in line with expectations and traded blows against the ASUS ROG Maximus Z690 Hero, though the latter did manage to edge out, especially after overclocking was carried out.
MSI MPG Z690 Carbon WiFi: What’s not good
Source: Daniel Rubino / Windows Central
If you’ve got power-hungry accessories, these USB 2.0 ports may struggle to keep up. But if you don’t really need that additional bandwidth, the motherboard itself is a little overkill for most PCs. Not everyone needs such great overclocking support. As aforementioned, $200 is when you’ll start to encounter plenty of solid motherboards with a great list of features.
And you will need to have that antenna plugged in to use the Bluetooth without dropouts and quality issues.
MSI MPG Z690 Carbon WiFi: Competition
Source: Rich Edmonds / Windows Central
Category | MSI MPG Z690 Carbon WiFi | ASUS ROG Maximus Z690 Hero |
---|---|---|
Size | ATX | ATX |
CPU | Intel 12th Gen | Intel 12th Gen |
Socket | LGA 1700 | LGA 1700 |
Power delivery | 18+1+1 | 20+1 |
RAM | 4x DDR5 DIMM (up to DDR5-6666+), 128GB limit | 4x DDR5 DIMM (up to DDR5-6400+), 128GB limit |
Chipset | Intel Z690 | Intel Z690 |
Expansion | 2x PCIe 5.0 x16 (x16 or dual x8) 1x PCIe 4.0 x16 |
2x PCIe 5.0 x16 (x16 or dual x8) 1x PCIe 4.0 x16 |
Storage | 6x SATA (6Gbps) 4x M.2 2242/2260/2280 (PCIe 4.0 x4, SATA) 1x M.2 2242/2260/2280 (PCIe 3.0 x4) |
6x SATA (6Gbps) 2x M.2 2242/2260/2280 (PCIe 4.0 x4, SATA) 1x M.2 2242/2260/2280 (PCIe 3.0 x4) ROG Hyper M.2 expansion card (1x M.2 2242/2260/2280 (PCIe 5.0, SATA) ROG Hyper M.2 expansion card (1x M.2 2242/2260/2280 (PCIe 4.0, SATA) |
Audio | Realtek ALC4080 | Realtek ALC4082 |
Rear ports | BIOS FlashBack Button 5x USB-A 3.2 Gen 2 1x USB-C 3.2 Gen 2×2 4x USB 2.0 1x DisplayPort 1x HDMI 1x 2.5Gb LAN 1x Optical S/PDIF out 5x Gold-plated audio jack |
BIOS FlashBack Button Clear CMOS button 1x 2.5G LAN 1x ASUS Wi-Fi 2x Thunderbolt 4 6x USB-A 3.2 Gen 2 (up to 10Gbps) 1x USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 2x USB-A 2.0 1x HDMI 1x Optical S/PDIF out 5x Gold-plated audio jack |
NVIDIA SLI | ✓ | ✓ |
AMD CrossFire | ✓ | ✓ |
Dimensions | 305 x 244 mm | 305 x 244 mm |
Launch price | $400 | $600 |
We’d recommend sticking with the Z690 chipset for the latest 12th Gen Intel processors, especially if you plan to overclock the CPU or RAM. It really boils down to your personal preference on which brand you have had the best experience with and which board has a design that fits your PC case and other components best.
MSI MPG Z690 Carbon WiFi: Should you buy it?
Source: Daniel Rubino / Windows Central
You should buy this if …
- You have a 12th Gen Intel CPU
- You want to use DDR5 and PCIe 5.0
- You plan to do some overclocking
- You prefer to use PCIe NVMe SSDs
- You don’t mind spending $400 on a motherboard
You shouldn’t buy this if…
- You want to use DDR4 RAM
- You want a budget-friendly motherboard
- You don’t plan to overclock your CPU
- You want a flashier design with plenty of RGB
You’ll struggle to see a notable difference in benchmarks and games between motherboards with the Z690 chipset. There will be some discrepancies like with the ASUS ROG Maximus Z690 Hero, but this is a considerably more expensive motherboard with a hefty VRM setup. This allows for far more potent overclocking.
But the MSI MPG Z690 Carbon WiFi is an extremely capable foundation for a PC build. It has pretty much everything you’ll need without unnecessary bloat or inflated price. I’m talking dual PCIe 5.0 slots, DDR5 support, five M.2 slots, 2.5Gb LAN and Wi-Fi 6E networking, and an 18+1+1 power delivery design that can handle an overclocked Intel Core i9-12900K.
We like the design of the motherboard, which provides a more subtle look that focuses attention on all the RGB lighting inside the chassis for showcasing all your other components. There are some onboard LEDs, but they’re far from obnoxious. Not all Z590 motherboards support DDR5 RAM and have multiple PCIe 5.0 slots so MSI has a strong offering with the MPG Z690 Carbon WiFi.
We may earn a commission for purchases using our links. Learn more.
Best motherboards for Intel Core i9-12900K 2021
There are plenty of motherboards with the Z690 chipset, but only a small collection of the more pricey options are capable of handling this processor with some overclocking. We’ve rounded up a few recommendations right here for the Core i9-12900K.