MSI MAG X870E Edge TI WIFI, X870E Tomahawk WIFI & X870 Tomahawk Motherboards Review – Great Designs For New Ryzen Builders

Conclusion - Perfect AM5 Boards For New Ryzen Builders

The MSI 800-series lineup is full of some great options for AMD Ryzen PC builders. We tested the X870E Carbon WIFI a few months ago and today, we looked at three more options in the MPG & MAG lineups, all of which feature very similar specs and prices.

All three motherboards performed well with AMD's top Ryzen 9 9950X CPU so you can expect great compatibility with the current X3D options such as the 9800X3D but are also ready with support for upcoming Ryzen 9 9950X3D/9900X3D CPUs with the latest BIOS which is already available. The trio also supported fast DDR5-7600 memory without any hiccups and you can get up to 256 GB support with quad-DIMMs though you would have to keep in mind that 4 DIMMs will run at lower speeds & that's a limitation of the AM5 platform and the CPUs, not necessarily these motherboards.

In terms of IO, all motherboards have a huge array of USB ports, 21 on each to be precise. While the MAG Tomahawk has more selection of USB 5Gbps ports, the EDGE TI WIFI has more 10 Gbps ports.

MSI MPG X870E EDGE TI WIFI USB Options:

• 4x USB 2.0 (Rear)
• 4x USB 2.0 (Front)
• 4x USB 5Gbps Type A (Front)
• 5x USB 10Gbps Type A (Rear)
• 1x USB 10Gbps Type C (Rear)
• 1x USB 20Gbps Type C (Front)
• 2x USB 40Gbps Type C (Rear)

MSI MAG X870E/X870 Tomahawk WIFI USB Options:

• 4x USB 2.0 (Rear)
• 4x USB 2.0 (Front)
• 3x USB 5Gbps Type A (Rear)
• 4x USB 5Gbps Type A (Front)
• 2x USB 10Gbps Type A (Rear)
• 1x USB 10Gbps Type C (Rear)
• 1x USB 20Gbps Type C (Front)
• 2x USB 40Gbps Type C (Rear)

Besides that, all three motherboards are outfitted with 5GbE LAN ports, WIFI7/BT5.4 wireless connectivity, and four M.2 slots, all of which come with dedicated heatsinks. Due to its limited chipset specs, the X870 Tomahawk does lose out a bit on the M.2 side as more x4 lanes will be shifting to x2 speeds when PCIe express slots are being used. But the good thing is MSI doesn't cut out on the EZ side of things with several EZ M.2 and EZ PCIe slots on the boards making it easier for users to install or remove devices with ease. The motherboards also come with Debug LEDs and a DEBUG Postcode for handy diagnosis. You get Clear CMOS and BIOS Flashback buttons on the back side of each motherboard too.

If you are still relying on an HDD for that extra storage boost, then you get four SATA III slots on each motherboard. There are also four RGB/ARGB headers and a wide array of CPU fan headers. Design-wise, the Tomahawk series keeps things simplistic but the matte black colors will go great with a majority of PCs while the EDGE TI WIFI goes with a white color scheme and has a premium feel, perfect for those building white setups. The heatsinks do a pretty decent job in keeping things check under 60C and you can get a decent amount of overclock out of the CPU using this VRM setup.

Pricing-wise, the MSI MAG X870E Tomahawk WIFI, and its X870 sibling are both priced at $299 US which makes the X870E option more worthwhile with its impressive set of features and loads of USB connectivity, it is one perfect motherboard for mainstream users who want to utilize AMD's X3D CPUs for their gaming setups while the $329 US is a reasonable premium for the white EDGE TI WIFI which looks so much better and retains all the specs and features while adding a bit more. MSI's mainstream MAG lineup and MPG series are a great option for Ryzen 9000 builders and you will be fully satisfied with these quality motherboards.