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MSI MPG Z390 Gaming PRO Carbon AC LGA1151 (Intel 8th and 9th Gen) M.2 USB 3.1 Gen 2 DDR4 HDMI DP Wi-Fi SLI CFX ATX Z390 Gaming Motherboard

4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 1,303 ratings

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MPG Z390 GAMING PRO CARBON AC

About this item

  • Supports 9th i9-9900K, i7-9700K, i5-9600K and 8th Generation Intel Core / Pentium Gold / Celeron processors for LGA 1151 socket
  • Supports dual channel DDR4 Memory, up to 4400(OC) MHz
  • Intel 802.11ac Wi-Fi, 2x TURBO M.2, Intel Optane Memory Ready, M.2 Shield Frozr, Turbo USB 3.1 GEN2, Pre-installed I/O Shielding
  • MYSTIC LIGHT: 16.8 million colors / 29 effects. Connect RGB or RAINBOW LED strips with addressable headers and create an RGB gaming PC. Control Mystic Light SYNC enabled products
  • Built for high-performance gaming - ATX form factor ready for multi-GPU
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MSI MPG Z390 Gaming PRO Carbon AC LGA1151 (Intel 8th and 9th Gen) M.2 USB 3.1 Gen 2 DDR4 HDMI DP Wi-Fi SLI CFX ATX Z390 Gaming Motherboard
MSI MPG Z390 Gaming PRO Carbon AC LGA1151 (Intel 8th and 9th Gen) M.2 USB 3.1 Gen 2 DDR4 HDMI DP Wi-Fi SLI CFX ATX Z390 Gaming Motherboard
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PriceCurrently unavailable.-12% $147.54
Typical:$167.50
$81.41-7% $249.99
Typical:$269.99
$299.09$199.99
Delivery
Get it as soon as Monday, Apr 1
Get it as soon as Monday, Apr 1
Get it Apr 1 - 3
Get it Apr 9 - 16
Customer Ratings
For gaming
4.6
3.9
3.3
4.5
4.3
4.8
Easy to install
4.4
3.9
4.7
4.3
4.3
Value for money
4.2
4.4
4.4
4.1
4.1
Tech Support
4.2
3.8
3.7
3.3
Stability
4.2
4.2
3.8
Sold By
Hyperdealz, LLC
Amazon.com
Kekosh
Memorybank
oddpricecom
platform
windows 10
windows, windows, windows
windows
xbox
windows 10, windows 7, windows 8 1, windows 8 pro
windows 10, windows 7, windows 8 1, windows 8 pro
cpu socket
LGA 1151
LGA 1200
LGA 1151
LGA 1151
LGA 1151
LGA 1151
memory slots
4
4
2
4
4
4
memory capacity
64 GB
1 GB
1 GB
64 GB
10000 TB
10000 TB
compatible processors
8th Generation Intel Core, 9th Generation Intel Core, Intel Celeron, Intel Pentium Gold
10th Generation Intel Core
8th Generation Intel Core
9th Generation Intel Core
8th Generation Intel Core
8th Generation Intel Core
card interface
integrated
pci e
agp, agp
pci e x16, pci e x4
pci e, pci e
pci e, pci e

From the manufacturer

Intel Z390 Motherboard
Intel Wi-Fi 1.73G

Intel Wi-Fi 1.73G

Included Intel Wi-Fi / Bluetooth solution uses smart MU-MIMO technology, delivering AC speeds up to 1.73Gbps.

M.2 Shield Frozr

M.2 Shield Frozr

Fast SSDs can slow down when they get too hot. M.2 Shield Frozr extends the motherboard’s heatsink over an M.2 SSD to prevent thermal throttling and sustain maximum drive performance.

Mystic Light

Mystic Light

Personalize your PC with 16.8 million colors and 29 effects through with the Mystic Light App or a mobile device.

Audio Boost 4 with Nahimic 3

Audio Boost 4 with Nahimic 3

Isolated audio circuitry, a high quality ALC1220 audio processor, dedicated amplifier, and high quality audio capacitors delivery immersive sound.

Pre-installed I/O Shielding

Pre-installed I/O Shielding

Make the assembly process easier and safer with MPG Z390 Gaming Pro Carbon AC. The pre-installed rear I/O is grounded and protects the I/O ports from potential electrostatic discharge damage from the external environment.

Become an MSI Dragon Fan and Get Rewarded

Become an MSI Dragon Fan and Get Rewarded

MSI is keen to hear from you! Share your product experience and get rewarded. Your feedback is appreciated. Become an MSI Dragon Fan today!

Visit MSI US website for more information on rewards.

Z390 GAMING PRO CARBON AC

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MEG Z390 ACE

MEG Z390 Ace

Z390 GAMING PRO CARBON AC

Z390 Gaming Pro Carbon AC

Z390 GAMING PRO CARBON

Z390 Gaming Pro Carbon

MPG Z390 GAME EDGE AC

MPG Z390 Game Edge AC

MAG Z390 TOMAHAWK

MAG Z390 TOMAHAWK

Customer Reviews
4.2 out of 5 stars
185
4.5 out of 5 stars
499
4.6 out of 5 stars
1,303
4.5 out of 5 stars
692
4.6 out of 5 stars
1,975
4.5 out of 5 stars
375
Intel 9th/8th Gen CPU Support
Intel Core/Pentium/Celeron Intel Core/Pentium/Celeron Intel Core/Pentium/Celeron Intel Core/Pentium/Celeron Intel Core/Pentium/Celeron Intel Core/Pentium/Celeron
Chipset
Intel Z390 Chipset Intel Z390 Chipset Intel Z390 Chipset Intel Z390 Chipset Intel Z390 Chipset Intel Z390 Chipset
Graphics Interface
4x PCIe 3.0 x 16 slots 3 x PCI-E 3.0 x 16 slots 3 x PCI-E 3.0 x 16 slots 3 x PCI-E 3.0 x 16 slots 3 x PCI-E 3.0 x 16 slots 3 x PCI-E 3.0 x 16 slots
Display Interface
DisplayPort / HDMI DisplayPort / HDMI DisplayPort / HDMI DisplayPort / HDMI
Memory Support
4 DIMMs, Dual Channel DDR4 4 DIMMs, Dual Channel DDR4 4 DIMMs, Dual Channel DDR4 4 DIMMs, Dual Channel DDR4 4 DIMMs, Dual Channel DDR4 4 DIMMs, Dual Channel DDR4
Expansion Slots
1 x PCIe x 1 slots 3 x PCIe 3.0 x 1 slots 3 x PCIe 3.0 x 1 slots 3 x PCIe 3.0 x 1 slots 3 x PCIe 3.0 x 1 slots 2 x PCI-E 3.0 x1 slots
M.2 / SATA
3x M.2 32Gb/s; 6x SATA 6Gb/s 3x M.2 32Gb/s; 6x SATA 6Gb/s 2 x M.2 32Gb/s; 6 x SATA 6Gb/s 2 x M.2 32Gb/s; 6 x SATA 6Gb/s 2 x M.2 32Gb/s; 6 x SATA 6Gb/s 2 x M.2 32Gb/s; 6 x SATA 6Gb/s
SATA RAID
RAID 0, 1, 5, 10; SATA1-SATA6 RAID 0, 1, 5, 10; SATA1-SATA6 RAID 0, 1, 5, 10; SATA1-SATA6 RAID 0, 1, 5, 10; SATA1-SATA6 RAID 0, 1, 5, 10; SATA1-SATA6 RAID 0, 1, 5, 10; SATA1-SATA6
LAN
2 x Killer E2500 Gigabit LAN Killer E2500 Gigabit LAN Intel I219-V Gigabit LAN Intel I219-V Gigabit LAN Intel I219-V Gigabit LAN Intel I219-V Gigabit LAN
Audio
8-Channel (7.1) HD Audio 8-Channel (7.1) HD Audio 8-Channel (7.1) HD Audio 8-Channel (7.1) HD Audio 8-Channel (7.1) HD Audio 8-Channel (7.1) HD Audio
Wi-Fi / BT
Killer Wi-Fi AC 1550 Intel Wireless-AC 9560 Intel Wireless-AC 9560 Intel Wireless-AC 9462
Form Factor
E-ATX ATX ATX ATX ATX ATX

What's in the box

  • Gaming motherboard
  • cables and connectors
  • quick setup guide
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    Product information

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    Warranty & Support

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    MSI

    MSI MPG Z390 Gaming PRO Carbon AC LGA1151 (Intel 8th and 9th Gen) M.2 USB 3.1 Gen 2 DDR4 HDMI DP Wi-Fi SLI CFX ATX Z390 Gaming Motherboard


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    Product guides and documents

    Product Description

    GAMING motherboards offer the best possible gaming experience. Outsmart and outperform your opponents in-game using an array of unique MSI GAMING tools. Clever hardware & software tools, created to keep you one step ahead of the competition and boost your skills. This MSI GAMING motherboard supports all the latest storage standards. This allows you to connect any ultra-fast storage device, giving you in-game benefits. Start games faster, load levels faster and have a real advantage over your enemies.

    Customer reviews

    4.6 out of 5 stars
    4.6 out of 5
    1,303 global ratings

    Customers say

    Customers are happy with the quality, appearance and ease of installation of the motherboard. They say it's a solid board, easy to follow the manual and that the interior cable management is easy. They also appreciate the great BIOS setup and the fast onboard Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.

    AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

    120 customers mention86 positive34 negative

    Customers like the quality of the motherboard. They mention that it is dependable, solid, and easy to install. Some say that it runs perfectly fine, overclocks just fine, and has a very high quality feel to the board and the components. Overall, customers are satisfied with the build quality, feature set, and software of the product.

    "...Overall, I am quite impressed with this board, it has fantastic build quality, and for someone who built their last rig in 2015(pre mainstream RGB)..." Read more

    "...Overall, I am very satisfied with the build quality, feature set, and the software of this motherboard...." Read more

    "...Extremely impressed with astonishing build quality, thoughtful accessories, and detailed manual with easy to follow Ikea-like diagrams detailing..." Read more

    "...and one day the 3080, which is on the bottom of the 3090, lost the connection (not showing up on the PC device)...." Read more

    42 customers mention37 positive5 negative

    Customers find the installation process of the motherboard to be easy. They mention that the manual is detailed and easy to follow, making installation a lot easier. They also say that the interior cable management is easy to do and looks clean. Customers also mention that all their components snap in without a hitch. They appreciate the easy OC UI and the mystic light software for RGB control.

    "...It makes for a far better installation as well as boost the feeling of overall quality...." Read more

    "...-MSi mystic light software for RGB control is easy to operate but don’t run it with other RGB control software or there may be potential..." Read more

    "...build quality, thoughtful accessories, and detailed manual with easy to follow Ikea-like diagrams detailing such things as proper memory slottage,..." Read more

    "Its stable and the sound quality is fine. Its easy to set up and has foles on a usb drive for the bios and drivers to install that it comes with...." Read more

    39 customers mention39 positive0 negative

    Customers are satisfied with the appearance of the motherboard. They mention that it looks good, clean, and has a great design. They also appreciate the sleek mono color scheme and the carbon detail looks fantastic. The board is well-made, has plenty of USB ports, and is laid out nicely. Customers also say that the components are smartly designed and clearly labeled. Overall, they find the product to be good for gaming and decent for show.

    "...their last rig in 2015(pre mainstream RGB) this board provides the option for a sleek, carbon/blacked out look similar to my ASUS Z97-AR while at..." Read more

    "...was straightforward, with the layout logical and the components smartly designed and clearly labeled. RGB understated and ultra cool...." Read more

    "...The LED lights are cool looking, but I would prefer to turn them off so they don't attract attention in the window at night...." Read more

    "...Happy so far looks great." Read more

    32 customers mention24 positive8 negative

    Customers like the wifi performance of the motherboard. They say it has fast onboard Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, with an external antenna. The network chip is fast, and the connector device helps extend the range of built-in WiFi. The motherboard has multiple fan headers and includes a Corsair RGB header.

    "...-Includes a Corsair RGB header-Onboard Wi-Fi and Bluetooth Support which is helpful if you don’t have Ethernet, antenna is also included..." Read more

    "...to my previous usb 3.0 netgear wireless solution, with near instant page loads and ultra low latency for gaming...." Read more

    "...What I did like is this MB has Bluetooth and WiFi built in. Bluetooth is so widely used these days I'm disappointed that so many motherboards don't..." Read more

    "...with the motherboard not functioning properly the wifi and Bluetooth feature didn’t work but MSI took care of it I submitted a ticket through the..." Read more

    31 customers mention27 positive4 negative

    Customers find the BIOS of the motherboard easy to use. They mention that it has great features and is intuitive. Customers also appreciate the good documentation and the cool MSI software.

    "...-BIOS is intuitive and easy to figure out and navigate-Includes a Corsair RGB header..." Read more

    "...with astonishing build quality, thoughtful accessories, and detailed manual with easy to follow Ikea-like diagrams detailing such things as proper..." Read more

    "...It also has a very good BIOS GUI that is very user friendly and easy to navigate...." Read more

    "...over the new 2.5 network chip is fast, makes for a great companion to the NAS on premise...." Read more

    26 customers mention22 positive4 negative

    Customers like the value of the motherboard. They mention it's a great product and a good buy.

    "...quality, look and feel of this board, and at $270 it is a fantastic bang for your buck, you get A LOT of extras for the additional $100 you spend..." Read more

    "...this motherboard even if it’s a bit on the pricy side, it has an excellent value and you won’t regret it...." Read more

    "...Overall I love the board, its value is off the charts with no real cons to speak of other than nitpicky things like having to flash bios...." Read more

    "...had everything I was looking for in a motherboard, including a decent price point...." Read more

    16 customers mention9 positive7 negative

    Customers are mixed about the lighting on the motherboard. Some mention that the lights on it are a nice touch, the VRMs are lit by RGB lighting when the board is powered on, and the RGB lighting accents the board extremely well. They also like the back lighting behind the right side of the motherboard, and say the mystic light is great to control their RGB equipment. However, other customers say that the RGB LED control is wonky and the Mystic Light is a nightmare. They do not get a LED readout of POST, only little LED indicators.

    "...The VRMs are lit bu RGB lighting when the board is powered on...." Read more

    "...The manual clearly states this. The other is that you do not get a LED readout of POST, only little LED indicators...." Read more

    "...-Has RGB backlighting and 2 small strips of RGB on the front (If you don’t like RGB, it can be switched off)..." Read more

    "...ICUE software recognized this mobo, and after that, the RGB leds on the mobo went out and didn't come back on...." Read more

    13 customers mention7 positive6 negative

    Customers are mixed about the sound quality of the motherboard. Some mention that the onboard sound is better than expected, while others say that it got louder. They also mention that there were some driver issues with sound quality, and the sounds generated by the system were slow, choppy, and distorted. Some customers also report intermittent white noise and buzzing sounds.

    "...(up to 2200rpm, and very quiet, I literally cant hear anything from outside my case and while the..." Read more

    "...Only con so far is the Audio Boost 4 with Nahimic 3 (Hence the loss of one star)...." Read more

    "Its stable and the sound quality is fine. Its easy to set up and has foles on a usb drive for the bios and drivers to install that it comes with...." Read more

    "...The sounds generated by the system were slow, choppy and distorted...." Read more

    Fantastic looking, well built mid range Z490 motherboard...but MSI BIOS stinks
    5 Stars
    Fantastic looking, well built mid range Z490 motherboard...but MSI BIOS stinks
    **UPDATE**Since posting this original review I have updated my build with an EK AIO 360 D-RGB as well as replacing my casefans with 3 EK Vardar Evo D-RGB case fams and it runs superbly, I highly recommend. On top of these EK fans being EXTREMELY low noise(I come from Noctua fans all around in my previous build and a Noctua NH-D15 on both my previous and this build remember) they move a LOT of air AND the RGB looks fantastic on them(up to 2200rpm, and very quiet, I literally cant hear anything from outside my case and while the glass side helps that, even when its removed the noise is minimal outside the pump). I mounted the AIO as a front mount intake(my case cant fit a 360 radiator anywhere else) with the fans being closest to the front of the case and pulling fresh air through them, then the radiator into my case, and with 2 top and 1 rear exhaust. I also have 1 Noctua NF-P12 redux 1700rpm PWM fan running as a bottom intake. I have attached photos and a video of the new AIO and fans. The Noctua NH-D15 chromax was a great cooler, but unfortunately it pressed up against the glass of my case where I couldnt tightly screw the window on, and if I did it was at the risk of bending my motherboard or damaging my CPU/socket. I also decided to move away from the NH-D15 because of its size, in a case like the Meshify C it makes it EXTREMELY difficult to do damn near anything with that cooler being so big, and the case being one of the smallest Mid Towers. I am extremely happy with the results.**Original Review**Ever since I started building my own computers when I was 12 years old I have been a lifelong ASUS motherboard consumer outside of purchasing 1 ABIT board early on when they were making solid product. Unfortunately, it seems as though the lead ASUS used to have in functionality, build quality and appearance seems to have faded with time and companies like MSI and Gigabyte(AORUS) have caught up. I am now 32, and this is the first non-ASUS motherboard I have owned in about 2 decades and surprisingly, I have very little negative to say about it. Overall, I am quite impressed with this board, it has fantastic build quality, and for someone who built their last rig in 2015(pre mainstream RGB) this board provides the option for a sleek, carbon/blacked out look similar to my ASUS Z97-AR while at the same time also offering hints of RGB for those that want it. The carbon theme on this board was executed PERFECTLY, even looking at motherboards in the next price bracket, ‘enthusiast’ level boards if you will, nothing looks better, and no quality gained from a board such as the Z490 Gaming Carbon. I am well aware this isnt an entry level board, but its also not high end, however the bang for buck you get with this board makes me believe it will easily be one of the most popular of the Z490 socket motherboards.This motherboard is paired with:i9-10850K32GB DDR4 3600MHz C16 Ballistix RGBCorsair RM850xEVGA GTX 960 SSC 2GB(gone soon)WD Black SN750 NVMe 500GBADATA XPG SX8200 Pro NVMe 500GBNoctua NH-D15 Chromax.Black(gone soon)Inside a Fractal Design Meshify C Tempered Glass case.The I/O sheild being built in is a GREAT move, and something ALL MOTHERBOARDS no matter the price should do. It makes for a far better installation as well as boost the feeling of overall quality. On top of that, MSI makes sure to include USB capabilities for most of the current USB standards outside of Thunderbolt3. USB 2.0, USB 3.2 Gen 2, and USB 3.2 2x2 Type-C all make an appearance on the rear I/O. Also included is a 2.5G Realtek network card, as well as Intels AX200 Wifi6 card built in with relocatable antennas. The VRMs are 12+2, 12 for the CPU and 2 for the memory, and are covered by heatsinks matching the theme of the board. The heatsinks have a heatpipe running between them, and many fins for additional cooling. The carbon fiber theme of the board is in abundance in this area of the board, and MSI does a good job to make it look like real carbon fiber. The VRMs are lit bu RGB lighting when the board is powered on. One thing I did find a bit out of place were the 2 M.2 heatsinks...they dont go much with the straight edge carbon fiber theme of the rest of the board in my opinion. However, being that I have a Western Digital Black NVMe SSD (SN750) with EK Heatsink I have found that it matches the theme of the board as if it were made specifically for it. I will attach photos. I am also currently running a Noctua NH-D15 Chromax.Black which goes great with the overall theme but makes things difficult to plug in around the board in a Fractal Meshify C case. I will be changing this to the EK AIO 360 soon. The motherboard has your typical 8+4 power for the CPU on the top left of the board, and has a bunch of fan headers(6 to be exact) for those like me who are utilizing air as their method of cooling. MSI also does a good job of including ARGB, RGB and Corsair RGB headers throughout the board, there are 2 of each. In the bottom right of the board you find the chipset and chipset cooler, which reads ‘Carbon’ and has the MSI dragon surrounded by Carbon Fiber and sharp diagonal heatsink-esque edges. This is lit by RGB lighting when the board is powered on. This and the VRMs are the only two places the motherboard has RGB lighting built intoIt, and for anyone going for the all black theme it can be turned off in Dragon Center. The top 2 PCIe x16 slots are well built and have metal shields while the third does not.I could go on and on about the quality, look and feel of this board, and at $270 it is a fantastic bang for your buck, you get A LOT of extras for the additional $100 you spend over an entry level Z490 board. However, before closing I do have to comment on MSI’s horrendus excuse for a BIOS. While I understand what MSI was trying to accomplish with a very graphical, mouse clickable BIOS, for users who have used a more classic style ‘Advanced’(NON EZMODE) BIOS for YEARS, this clickable graphical BIOS is a bloated pain in the ass, and far less customizable as it should be. In my opinion, the ADVANCED mode should be just that, FOR ADVANCED USERS, and shouldnt cater to users who dont typically know what theyre doing and need clickable icons as help. That kind of thing is fine and great for EZMODE, but should be removed all together from advanced. There are standard settings you can find using a little bit of logic on almost all other motherboard companies that are near impossible to find because of MSIs atrocious BIOS.PS: i am waiting for Nvidia to release their 30Series cards before upgrading from my GTX 960. I KNOW...ITS OLD.
    Thank you for your feedback
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    Top reviews from the United States

    Reviewed in the United States on August 8, 2020
    Style: MPG Z490 GAMING CARBON WIFIVerified Purchase
    Customer image
    5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic looking, well built mid range Z490 motherboard...but MSI BIOS stinks
    Reviewed in the United States on August 8, 2020
    **UPDATE**Since posting this original review I have updated my build with an EK AIO 360 D-RGB as well as replacing my casefans with 3 EK Vardar Evo D-RGB case fams and it runs superbly, I highly recommend. On top of these EK fans being EXTREMELY low noise(I come from Noctua fans all around in my previous build and a Noctua NH-D15 on both my previous and this build remember) they move a LOT of air AND the RGB looks fantastic on them(up to 2200rpm, and very quiet, I literally cant hear anything from outside my case and while the glass side helps that, even when its removed the noise is minimal outside the pump). I mounted the AIO as a front mount intake(my case cant fit a 360 radiator anywhere else) with the fans being closest to the front of the case and pulling fresh air through them, then the radiator into my case, and with 2 top and 1 rear exhaust. I also have 1 Noctua NF-P12 redux 1700rpm PWM fan running as a bottom intake. I have attached photos and a video of the new AIO and fans. The Noctua NH-D15 chromax was a great cooler, but unfortunately it pressed up against the glass of my case where I couldnt tightly screw the window on, and if I did it was at the risk of bending my motherboard or damaging my CPU/socket. I also decided to move away from the NH-D15 because of its size, in a case like the Meshify C it makes it EXTREMELY difficult to do damn near anything with that cooler being so big, and the case being one of the smallest Mid Towers. I am extremely happy with the results.

    **Original Review**

    Ever since I started building my own computers when I was 12 years old I have been a lifelong ASUS motherboard consumer outside of purchasing 1 ABIT board early on when they were making solid product. Unfortunately, it seems as though the lead ASUS used to have in functionality, build quality and appearance seems to have faded with time and companies like MSI and Gigabyte(AORUS) have caught up. I am now 32, and this is the first non-ASUS motherboard I have owned in about 2 decades and surprisingly, I have very little negative to say about it. Overall, I am quite impressed with this board, it has fantastic build quality, and for someone who built their last rig in 2015(pre mainstream RGB) this board provides the option for a sleek, carbon/blacked out look similar to my ASUS Z97-AR while at the same time also offering hints of RGB for those that want it. The carbon theme on this board was executed PERFECTLY, even looking at motherboards in the next price bracket, ‘enthusiast’ level boards if you will, nothing looks better, and no quality gained from a board such as the Z490 Gaming Carbon. I am well aware this isnt an entry level board, but its also not high end, however the bang for buck you get with this board makes me believe it will easily be one of the most popular of the Z490 socket motherboards.

    This motherboard is paired with:
    i9-10850K
    32GB DDR4 3600MHz C16 Ballistix RGB
    Corsair RM850x
    EVGA GTX 960 SSC 2GB(gone soon)
    WD Black SN750 NVMe 500GB
    ADATA XPG SX8200 Pro NVMe 500GB
    Noctua NH-D15 Chromax.Black(gone soon)
    Inside a Fractal Design Meshify C Tempered Glass case.

    The I/O sheild being built in is a GREAT move, and something ALL MOTHERBOARDS no matter the price should do. It makes for a far better installation as well as boost the feeling of overall quality. On top of that, MSI makes sure to include USB capabilities for most of the current USB standards outside of Thunderbolt3. USB 2.0, USB 3.2 Gen 2, and USB 3.2 2x2 Type-C all make an appearance on the rear I/O. Also included is a 2.5G Realtek network card, as well as Intels AX200 Wifi6 card built in with relocatable antennas. The VRMs are 12+2, 12 for the CPU and 2 for the memory, and are covered by heatsinks matching the theme of the board. The heatsinks have a heatpipe running between them, and many fins for additional cooling. The carbon fiber theme of the board is in abundance in this area of the board, and MSI does a good job to make it look like real carbon fiber. The VRMs are lit bu RGB lighting when the board is powered on. One thing I did find a bit out of place were the 2 M.2 heatsinks...they dont go much with the straight edge carbon fiber theme of the rest of the board in my opinion. However, being that I have a Western Digital Black NVMe SSD (SN750) with EK Heatsink I have found that it matches the theme of the board as if it were made specifically for it. I will attach photos. I am also currently running a Noctua NH-D15 Chromax.Black which goes great with the overall theme but makes things difficult to plug in around the board in a Fractal Meshify C case. I will be changing this to the EK AIO 360 soon. The motherboard has your typical 8+4 power for the CPU on the top left of the board, and has a bunch of fan headers(6 to be exact) for those like me who are utilizing air as their method of cooling. MSI also does a good job of including ARGB, RGB and Corsair RGB headers throughout the board, there are 2 of each. In the bottom right of the board you find the chipset and chipset cooler, which reads ‘Carbon’ and has the MSI dragon surrounded by Carbon Fiber and sharp diagonal heatsink-esque edges. This is lit by RGB lighting when the board is powered on. This and the VRMs are the only two places the motherboard has RGB lighting built into
    It, and for anyone going for the all black theme it can be turned off in Dragon Center. The top 2 PCIe x16 slots are well built and have metal shields while the third does not.

    I could go on and on about the quality, look and feel of this board, and at $270 it is a fantastic bang for your buck, you get A LOT of extras for the additional $100 you spend over an entry level Z490 board. However, before closing I do have to comment on MSI’s horrendus excuse for a BIOS. While I understand what MSI was trying to accomplish with a very graphical, mouse clickable BIOS, for users who have used a more classic style ‘Advanced’(NON EZMODE) BIOS for YEARS, this clickable graphical BIOS is a bloated pain in the ass, and far less customizable as it should be. In my opinion, the ADVANCED mode should be just that, FOR ADVANCED USERS, and shouldnt cater to users who dont typically know what theyre doing and need clickable icons as help. That kind of thing is fine and great for EZMODE, but should be removed all together from advanced. There are standard settings you can find using a little bit of logic on almost all other motherboard companies that are near impossible to find because of MSIs atrocious BIOS.

    PS: i am waiting for Nvidia to release their 30
    Series cards before upgrading from my GTX 960. I KNOW...ITS OLD.
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    Reviewed in the United States on November 6, 2019
    Style: MPG Z390 GAMING PRO CARBON ACVerified Purchase
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    MH
    5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent feature packed motherboard, excellent purchase
    Reviewed in the United States on November 6, 2019
    The Msi MPG Z390 Gaming Pro Carbon AC is a feature packed motherboard that is very sure-friendly. I used this motherboard in my most recent PC build since it included all the necessary features a good motherboard should have plus a bunch of useful other ones.
    Pros/Features:
    -This motherboard comes with 6 PWM fan headers
    -2 M.2 NVME slots with 1 M.2 frozr heatsink (please note that a single SATA lane will be disabled for each M.2 slot occupies
    -Z390 chipset with powerful VRM (Z390 supports 9th gen intel chips and also has backwards compatibility for 8th gen)
    -8+4 pin CPU power for extreme over locking (4 pin power plug is optional and is not required for your system to function
    -BIOS is intuitive and easy to figure out and navigate
    -Includes a Corsair RGB header
    -Onboard Wi-Fi and Bluetooth Support which is helpful if you don’t have Ethernet, antenna is also included (You have to download the WiFi and Bluetooth driver off Msi’s support page for this motherboard)
    -Motherboard has usb 3.1 gen 2 integrated ports and an Usb-c port. There are a total of 6 USB ports on the I/O
    -Supports video output with one DisplayPort and HDMI out (This is useful if you are currently running on integrated graphics instead of a discrete graphics card)
    -Has RGB backlighting and 2 small strips of RGB on the front (If you don’t like RGB, it can be switched off)
    -MSi mystic light software for RGB control is easy to operate but don’t run it with other RGB control software or there may be potential incompatibility issues
    -MSi offers a free limited 3-year warranty with this product but be sure to register your motherboard in order to activate it
    Other details:
    -A 3-slot SLI bridge is included (This is NOT a NVlink bridge and doesn’t work with Rtx Cards)
    -A minor potential problem to note is that the two rgb strips on the front of the motherboard sometimes don’t turn off with your PC and will remain on at the last color they were set to as seen in the image above.
    Overall, I am very satisfied with the build quality, feature set, and the software of this motherboard. I would recommend this motherboard even if it’s a bit on the pricy side, it has an excellent value and you won’t regret it. This motherboard is perfect for people building their first PC.

    Update: I originally purchased this product in April of 2019 and 7 months later it is still running strong with zero software or harder issues. I still highly recommend this excellent motherboard.

    My build is listed below:
    Intel core i7 8700k
    Corsair H100i RGB AIO liquid cooler
    32 GB corsair vengeance RGB Pro DDR4 Ram
    MSi MPG Z390 Gaming Pro Carbon AC
    MSi Nvidia 2070 Gaming Z graphics card
    Corsair Rm650x power supply
    Samsung 970 evo plus 500GB NVME M.2 SSD
    4TB WD blue HDD
    Corsair 275R case
    Corsair LL120 rgb fans
    Corsair commander pro
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