The MSI Gaming Pro Carbon Z390 is a motherboard that features 16 slots reinforced with metal, making it a robust and durable option for enthusiasts and overclockers. The first M.2 slot is found just above the PCI slots and supports drives of these sizes, while the second M.2 slot towards the bottom is hidden behind a piece of metal that helps to dissipate heat. Both M.2 slots support PCIe or solder storage due to limitations of the platform.

It's worth noting that if both M.2 slots have PCIe storage installed, then SATA ports 5 and 6 will not be usable. The motherboard also features four and eight-pin power connectors, CPU fan header, RGB header, and Corsair connector along the top of the board. Along the right-hand side, there are six SATA 3 connectors, two USB 3.1 Gen 1 connectors, a single USB 3.1 Gen 2 type-C connector, the 24-pin power connector, and system and pump fan headers.

Along the bottom of the board, there is the front panel audio, two more RGB headers, three more system fan headers, two internal USB 2 headers, Thunderbolt connector, and front panel connectors. The fifth system fan header is found just above the top M.2 slot, and there is a TPM connector just above the second PCA. The motherboard also features support for RAID zero, one, 5, or 10 using the CER ports.

The board supports Intel's Optane with either M.2 slot, which can cache frequently accessed items from a hard drive, resulting in faster overall performance. There is also the option to run the two M.2 slots in RAID zero or one to boot into the BIOS. To access the BIOS, press the delete key during boot. The author found it easy to navigate through and make changes, similar to other MSI motherboards they have used.

However, there is no BIOS flashback button on this board, a feature that was available on previous MSI boards but not on this one. This means that the system must be running or even not running for some time before updating the BIOS can take place. The author suspects that this feature may be reserved for AMD's Ryzen platform, where they have guaranteed support until 2020. However, with Intel, it's uncertain whether future updates will maintain this feature.

The motherboard is compatible with new 9th Gen Intel CPUs, including the I9-9900K, i7-9700K, and i5-9600K. This marks a notable change in Intel's mainstream lineup, as it now features an 8-core option, finally matching AMD's Ryzen and Core count. The clock speeds out of the box are slightly ahead of those from the 8th Gen CPUs.

Interestingly, Intel has taken another page from AMD's book by using soldered AHS (Accelerated Hynox Silicon) on these new processors. This should theoretically help with thermal performance, but further testing will be necessary to confirm this. However, it's worth noting that older boards designed for the 8th Gen CPUs may not provide enough power to support these new high-performance chips.

The MSI Gaming Pro Carbon Z390 is expected to retail at around $339 Australian dollars or $369 Australian dollars for the AC model with Wi-Fi built-in. However, prices may change over time, and it's recommended to check the links in the description for up-to-date pricing. The board seems like a solid option in the mid-to-upper range market, offering a tasteful RGB lighting scheme and no reported issues during use.

The author concludes by thanking viewers for watching and invites them to share their thoughts on the Z390 launch and the new 9th Gen Intel CPUs in the comments section. However, due to limitations in testing with an Intel 9th Gen CPU, further detailed reviews will have to wait. The author is still happy to have been able to get hands-on time with the board before its official release.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enIntel are launching the z390 chipset to support their newer ninth generation of CPUs and starting off on that coverage I've got the z390 mpg gaming Pro carbon motherboard from MSI here so let's check it out and find out a bit more about the n9th Gen CPUs Inside the Box we of course have the motherboard itself manual and Driver CD and various cables including two s cables three RGB cables and a 2way SLI Bridge all right so I haven't been able to get my hands on any intel 9th gen CPUs yet but I'll be discussing them more towards the end of the video so I'll just be testing this z390 board with my trusty 8700k instead which brings me to the first and perhaps most interesting point of the z390 boards it's possible to use e gen Intel CPUs in z390 motherboards and also the other way so 9th gen CPUs in the older eighth gen motherboards after a bios update they both use the LGA 1151 socket so a nice change from Intel's recent launches anyway back to the motherboard it's an ATX board with a nice clean black and metallic silver color scheme with a couple of spots of carbon fiber pattern there's RGB Lighting on the right hand side and towards the top left which can be controlled through msi's Mystic light sync software and there are 17 different effects available or you can disable it if you prefer I'm not here to tell you how to live your life starting with the io from left to right there's a PS2 Port two USB 2.0 type A ports display port 1.2 and HDMI 1.4 outputs 3 USB 3.1 Gen 2 type A ports and a single type c Port gigabit Ethernet and the audio ports the io Shield comes mounted like this too so no need to stick it into the case first easy installation next to the CPU socket are the four memory slots which run in dual Channel and can support up to 64 gig of memory with support all the way up to ddr4 4400 speeds I suggest referring to the qvl to confirm supported memory as for the pcie slots they're all version 3.0 and from the top down the first is a pcie by 16 slot to the CPU followed by two pcie by one slots via the chipset then a physical pcie by 16 slot although it's wired for eight Lanes to the CPU and then another PCI by one slot via the chipset and then a third PCI by 16 physical slot although wired for four through the chipset the board also gives you support for either 2-way SLI or up to 3-way Crossfire and the first two PCI x 16 slots are reinforced with metal the first m.2 slot is found just above the PCI slots and it takes drives of these sizes there's a second m.2 slot towards the bottom and it's hidden behind this piece of metal which helps to dissipate the heat just make sure you peel the plastic off of the thermal pad before installation both m.2 slots support pcie or solder storage due to limitations of the platform if you use different combinations of m.2 slots or S ports others may become disabled as per this table for example if both m.2 slots have PCI storage installed then SATA ports 5 and six will not be usable along the top of the board there are four and 8 Pin power connectors CPU fan header RGB header and Corsair connector along the right hand side there's six sata 3 connectors two USB 3.1 gen 1 connectors a single USB 3.1 Gen 2 type-c connector the 24 pin power connector and system and pump fan headers along the bottom there's the front panel audio two more RGB headers three more system fan headers two internal USB 2 headers Thunderbolt connector and front panel connectors the fifth system fan header is found just above the top m.2 slot and there's a TPM connector just above the second PCA by 16 slot using the CER ports the support for raid zero 1 5 or 10 and you can use Intel's obtaine with either m.2 slot which basically cases frequently accessed items from a hard drive resulting in Faster overall performance and there's also the option of running the two m.2 slots in raid zero or one to boot into the BIOS simply press the delete key during boot I found it easy to navigate through and make changes basically the same as all of the other MSI motherboards I've used interestingly there's no bios flashback button on this board a nice feature on previous MSI boards I've looked at which allows you to update and flush bios without the system running or even without a CPU installed I suppose that feature may be reserved for amd's ryzen platform where they've actually guaranteed support of it until 2020 whereas who really knows with Intel I'm still pretty surprised that I can use an eighth gen or 9th Gen processor in this board here are the specs of some of the New n9th Gen Intel CPUs namely the I9 9900 K i7 9700 K and i5 600k this is the first time we've had an i7 chip without hyperthreading if you want that you'll be looking at the top end 9900 K and this is also the first time Intel's mainstream lineup has had an 8 core option finally matching amd's ryzen and core count the clock speeds out of the box are just a touch ahead of the eighth gen so I'm Keen to see how they compare interestingly Intel appear to have taken another Leaf out of amd's book and are using a solded AHS So in theory that should help thermal performance of these undoubtedly hot Parts with that in mind though we'll need to see further testing to find out whether or not the older boards designed for the eighth generation are able to provide enough power to8 core chips like the 9700 K or 9900 K I suspect they would probably be best paired with the z390 board especially when overclocking otherwise the z390 chipset isn't too different from z370 with z390 there's now integrated USB 3.1 Gen 2 Wi-Fi and SDXC support pricing of the gaming Pro carbon will change over time so check the links in the description for upto-date prices at the time of recording so a little before the official z390 release MSI have advised that the board should be going for around 339 Australian dollars or $369 Australian do for the AC model with Wi-Fi built in I'm not too sure about us pricing at the moment again look for the links in the description later while I haven't seen official pricing of other boards yet as a again this video was made pre-launch I suspect that the gaming Pro carbon will continue to be a mid to Upper range option they'll be cheaper more budget friendly options and absolute Insanity like the MSI Godlike board in any case the gaming Pro carbon seems like a pretty solid motherboard I liked the color scheme tasteful RGB lighting and I had no issues to report while using it let me know what you guys thought of the board and your take on the z390 launch and n9th gen CPUs down in the comments again sorry I wasn't able to do more more interesting testing with an Intel 9th gen CPU it is what it is and I'm just happy I was able to get aboard in time for the z390 launch thanks for watching and don't forget to subscribe for future Tech videos like this oneIntel are launching the z390 chipset to support their newer ninth generation of CPUs and starting off on that coverage I've got the z390 mpg gaming Pro carbon motherboard from MSI here so let's check it out and find out a bit more about the n9th Gen CPUs Inside the Box we of course have the motherboard itself manual and Driver CD and various cables including two s cables three RGB cables and a 2way SLI Bridge all right so I haven't been able to get my hands on any intel 9th gen CPUs yet but I'll be discussing them more towards the end of the video so I'll just be testing this z390 board with my trusty 8700k instead which brings me to the first and perhaps most interesting point of the z390 boards it's possible to use e gen Intel CPUs in z390 motherboards and also the other way so 9th gen CPUs in the older eighth gen motherboards after a bios update they both use the LGA 1151 socket so a nice change from Intel's recent launches anyway back to the motherboard it's an ATX board with a nice clean black and metallic silver color scheme with a couple of spots of carbon fiber pattern there's RGB Lighting on the right hand side and towards the top left which can be controlled through msi's Mystic light sync software and there are 17 different effects available or you can disable it if you prefer I'm not here to tell you how to live your life starting with the io from left to right there's a PS2 Port two USB 2.0 type A ports display port 1.2 and HDMI 1.4 outputs 3 USB 3.1 Gen 2 type A ports and a single type c Port gigabit Ethernet and the audio ports the io Shield comes mounted like this too so no need to stick it into the case first easy installation next to the CPU socket are the four memory slots which run in dual Channel and can support up to 64 gig of memory with support all the way up to ddr4 4400 speeds I suggest referring to the qvl to confirm supported memory as for the pcie slots they're all version 3.0 and from the top down the first is a pcie by 16 slot to the CPU followed by two pcie by one slots via the chipset then a physical pcie by 16 slot although it's wired for eight Lanes to the CPU and then another PCI by one slot via the chipset and then a third PCI by 16 physical slot although wired for four through the chipset the board also gives you support for either 2-way SLI or up to 3-way Crossfire and the first two PCI x 16 slots are reinforced with metal the first m.2 slot is found just above the PCI slots and it takes drives of these sizes there's a second m.2 slot towards the bottom and it's hidden behind this piece of metal which helps to dissipate the heat just make sure you peel the plastic off of the thermal pad before installation both m.2 slots support pcie or solder storage due to limitations of the platform if you use different combinations of m.2 slots or S ports others may become disabled as per this table for example if both m.2 slots have PCI storage installed then SATA ports 5 and six will not be usable along the top of the board there are four and 8 Pin power connectors CPU fan header RGB header and Corsair connector along the right hand side there's six sata 3 connectors two USB 3.1 gen 1 connectors a single USB 3.1 Gen 2 type-c connector the 24 pin power connector and system and pump fan headers along the bottom there's the front panel audio two more RGB headers three more system fan headers two internal USB 2 headers Thunderbolt connector and front panel connectors the fifth system fan header is found just above the top m.2 slot and there's a TPM connector just above the second PCA by 16 slot using the CER ports the support for raid zero 1 5 or 10 and you can use Intel's obtaine with either m.2 slot which basically cases frequently accessed items from a hard drive resulting in Faster overall performance and there's also the option of running the two m.2 slots in raid zero or one to boot into the BIOS simply press the delete key during boot I found it easy to navigate through and make changes basically the same as all of the other MSI motherboards I've used interestingly there's no bios flashback button on this board a nice feature on previous MSI boards I've looked at which allows you to update and flush bios without the system running or even without a CPU installed I suppose that feature may be reserved for amd's ryzen platform where they've actually guaranteed support of it until 2020 whereas who really knows with Intel I'm still pretty surprised that I can use an eighth gen or 9th Gen processor in this board here are the specs of some of the New n9th Gen Intel CPUs namely the I9 9900 K i7 9700 K and i5 600k this is the first time we've had an i7 chip without hyperthreading if you want that you'll be looking at the top end 9900 K and this is also the first time Intel's mainstream lineup has had an 8 core option finally matching amd's ryzen and core count the clock speeds out of the box are just a touch ahead of the eighth gen so I'm Keen to see how they compare interestingly Intel appear to have taken another Leaf out of amd's book and are using a solded AHS So in theory that should help thermal performance of these undoubtedly hot Parts with that in mind though we'll need to see further testing to find out whether or not the older boards designed for the eighth generation are able to provide enough power to8 core chips like the 9700 K or 9900 K I suspect they would probably be best paired with the z390 board especially when overclocking otherwise the z390 chipset isn't too different from z370 with z390 there's now integrated USB 3.1 Gen 2 Wi-Fi and SDXC support pricing of the gaming Pro carbon will change over time so check the links in the description for upto-date prices at the time of recording so a little before the official z390 release MSI have advised that the board should be going for around 339 Australian dollars or $369 Australian do for the AC model with Wi-Fi built in I'm not too sure about us pricing at the moment again look for the links in the description later while I haven't seen official pricing of other boards yet as a again this video was made pre-launch I suspect that the gaming Pro carbon will continue to be a mid to Upper range option they'll be cheaper more budget friendly options and absolute Insanity like the MSI Godlike board in any case the gaming Pro carbon seems like a pretty solid motherboard I liked the color scheme tasteful RGB lighting and I had no issues to report while using it let me know what you guys thought of the board and your take on the z390 launch and n9th gen CPUs down in the comments again sorry I wasn't able to do more more interesting testing with an Intel 9th gen CPU it is what it is and I'm just happy I was able to get aboard in time for the z390 launch thanks for watching and don't forget to subscribe for future Tech videos like this one\n"