Hardware

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

Hassan Mujtaba • Feb 26, 2025 at 09:00 AM EST

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Product Info

MSI MPG X870E EDGE TI WIFI, MSI MAG X870E TOMAHAWK WIFI, MSI MAG X870 Tomahawk

2024

Type

Motherboards

Price

$329 / $299 / $299

MSI MAG X870 Tomahawk WIFI - Unboxing & Close Up Inspection

The MSI MAG X870 Tomahawk WiFi motherboard comes in a standard cardboard package. The front features a picture of the motherboard & this is a MAG product that refers to MSI Arsenal Gaming. The packaging also lists down a few features such as 40G USB ports, 5G LAN, WIFI7, and support for PCIe 5.0 (GPU/NVMe), DDR5 & Overclocking.

The backside of the package lists the specifications and special features of the motherboard such as the 14 Duet Rail power system, the EZ M.2 Shield Frozr II SSD heatsinks, EZ PCIe release, Lightning Gen5 slots, Quadruple M.2 connectors, USB 40G, WIFI7 with Bluetooth 5.4 and 5G LAN.

Inside the package is another box that contains the accessories and is located right below the box holder for the board itself. You get a Quick Installation Guide, a Cable Sticker sheet, a Shot Out Flyer, a USB Drive, an EZ Wi-Fi Antenna, an M.2 Plate Screw, 3x EZ M.2 Clip 2, an EZ M.2 Clip II Remover, 1 to 3 EZ Conn-Cable (V2), two SATA Cables, and an EZ Front Panel cable.

With all the accessories done, it's time to put that box aside and take the motherboard out of its package.

The MSI MAG X870 Tomahawk WIFI motherboard is a standard ATX offering that measures 243.84 x 304.8 mm. The motherboard carries the standard Tomahawk and MAG series theme with an all-black color scheme and a few green logos.

The MAG Tomahawk series is regarded as one of the best value options for those who are looking for high-end features. These boards may not be the most flashy ones around but they come with a great set of features and specs along with strong support for the latest AMD Ryzen CPUs on the market.

The board uses the LGA 1718 socket to support AMD Ryzen "AM5" processors. The socket works with Ryzen 7000, Ryzen 8000G, and Ryzen 9000 CPUs and will also support future generations of AM5 Ryzen chips that are supported by the platform.

Next to the socket are four DDR5 DIMM slots that can support up to 256 GB of dual-channel memory.

These slots are rated to support XMP profiles up to 8400 MT/s (OC Plus). Each slot is labeled, making it easier to install DIMMs in the proper orientation. DDR5 memory comes with a different latch position so forcing a DDR4 module into a DDR5 slot will cause permanent damage. Each slot is also combined with a reinforced design to make sure signal integrity remains good while keeping the slots durable for long-term usage. The full QVL list can be found here.

Furthermore, MSI also lists support for CUDIMM memory but only in Clock Driver bypass mode which is essentially going to run the CUDIMM as a standard UDIMM. Manual overclocking will be available on CUDIMM modules after a restart but certain CPUs may fail to boot with this type of memory installed and MSI is working towards a new BIOS to improve compatibility for CUDIMM & CPUs.

The MSI MAG X870 Tomahawk WIFI motherboard features a 14+2+1 (VCore/ VccGT/VccAUX) phase Duet Rail power delivery that is controlled by the MPS2421 "MP2857" PWM and utilizes MPS2429 80A Power Stages.

The VRMs and power delivery solution are scattered around the AM5 socket. The board uses an 8-layer NPG-170D server-grade PCB with 2oz Thickened copper.

The VRMs receive ample cooling from the Frozr Thermal solution. These include an extended heat sink, M.2 Shield Frozr, and Enlarged PCH heatsinks.

The CPU is supplied power through an 8+8 pin power connector configuration. This will feed the CPU with up to 300 Watts of power. The AMD Ryzen 9000 CPUs are very power-hungry with the maximum target power going above 220W for the flagship Ryzen 9 9950X CPU.

Coming to the Frozr heatsink solution, we first have the extended heatsink which makes use of two aluminum blocks with a series of fins that are stacked on top of each other.

Underneath the VRM heatsink are 7W/mK Thermal pads which transfer heat from the VRMs to the heatsink.

Expansion slots include three PCI Express x16 (1 x Gen 5.0 x16/8 / 1x Gen 5.0 x4 / 1x Gen 4.0x4) and four M.2 slots. The first and second Gen5 slots share bandwidth with the second M.2 slot so keep that in mind when installing a Gen5 SSD into the slot.

PCI_E1 Gen PCIe 5.0 supports up to x16 (From CPU)
PCI_E2 Gen PCIe 3.0 supports up to x1 (From Chipset)
PCI_E3 Gen PCIe 4.0 supports up to x4 (From Chipset)

The motherboard utilizes a full metallic slot and the MSI also features its EZ PCIE release mechanism which provides for a seamless removal of graphics cards. Just push the EZ release button and you can remove the graphics card with ease.

The motherboard also has a vast array of M.2 slots, all of which are featured under dedicated M.2 Frozr heatsinks.

All of the heatsinks are easy to remove thanks to the EZ M.2 mechanism. You have to push the metal bracket inwards and the whole panel will pop out. It's also fairly easy to install back as the latches have magnetic locks that secure the panel in place.

The primary M.2 Shield Frozr heatsink is the bigger one and provides better cooling to a Gen5 M.2 SSD. This has the same latching mechanism as the M.2 SSDs and comes with a Tomahawk logo at the front. Following is the full list of M.2 ports and their details on the MSI MAG X870 Tomahawk WIFI motherboard:

M.2_1 Source (From CPU) supports up to PCIe 5.0 x4, supports 22110/2280 devices
M.2_2 Source (From CPU) supports up to PCIe 5.0 x4, supports 2280/2260 devices
M.2_3 Source (From Chipset) supports up to PCIe 4.0 x4, supports 2280/2260 devices
M.2_4 Source (From Chipset) supports up to PCIe 4.0 x4, supports 2280/2260 devices

The X870E PCH is housed beneath a large heatsink with the MAG logo etched over it.

The motherboard has no RGB LEDs on its own but comes with 3 ARGB and 1 RGB LED connector for users to personalize their PCs using the MSI Mystic RGB software.

Storage options include four SATA III ports rated to operate at 6 GB/s. These can support 4 different storage devices at once. For the front IO, you get 4 USB 2.0 ports and a single USB Type-C 20Gbps port.

MSI uses a 7.1 CH HD audio design with the latest Realtek ALC4080 CODEC.

There is a large selection of connectors on the motherboard and one of the highlights is the 8-pin power connector for PCIe Gen5 ports which should provide additional power when running multi-GPU solutions for AI purposes. This PEG connector can offer up to 150W of power through the PCIe slots and can also increase the maximum excursion rating by 2.5x.

Other than that, you get an EZ DEBUG LED, an EZ Digi-DEBUG LED with temperature monitoring, and a range of fan/RGB headers.

The full list of connectors on the motherboard is listed as follows.

1x Power Connector(ATX_PWR)
2x Power Connector(CPU_PWR)
1x Power Connector(PCIE_PWR 8pin)
1x CPU Fan
1x Combo Fan (Pump_Sys Fan)
6x System Fan
1x EZ Conn-header (JAF_2)
2x Front Panel (JFP)
1x Chassis Intrusion (JCI)
1x Front Audio (JAUD)
3x Addressable V2 RGB LED connector (JARGB_V2)
1x RGB LED connector(JRGB)
1x TPM pin header(Support TPM 2.0)
4x USB 2.0 ports
4x USB 5Gbps Type A ports
1x USB 20Gbps Type C ports

MSI is using the latest WIFI 7 Module to power wireless connectivity and Bluetooth 5.4. In terms of Ethernet, there is a single LAN port powered by the 5GbE RTL8126-CG controller.