MSIMPG Z690 EDGE WIFI DDR4 Gaming Motherboard, ATX - Supports Intel Core 12th Gen Processors, LGA 1700 - Direct 16 Phase VRM 75A, Memory Boost 5200MHz/OC, 1 x PCIe 5.0 x16, 4 x M.2 Gen4, Wi-Fi 6

This motherboard looking very good. But.... if you try just instal in your PC with new procesor something start be very difficult. Mobo not start with old BIOS. If you think the upgrade BIOS is easy-you are wrong. It is not easy and simply. Include if you try make a upgrade BIOS with flash BIOS on mobo it is not working. MSI has a plenty of problems with BIOS to this Z690 series motherboards. It should be a pice of cake but is't. Why? You must ask MSI. I am not recommend this mobo for build your new PC. Better is buy mobo from other companies. Like a Gigabyte, ASUS, Asrock. Not this model. Spent 300 pounds, working all day to instal, make a many tests and no result.

Picked up one of these boards for several reasons:1. Wanted a X90 motherboard for a Intel i9 12900k CPU2. Needed 4 NVME Slots3. Needed as many SATA slots as I could get4. Wanted to use existing RAM as DDR5 not so easy to obtain5. Have used MSI boards before and have found them more stable on certain platforms (looking at you Asus Rampage X99 specifically).The first thing that I noticed was the weight of the board - it has a serious heft to it, mostly from the heat sinks. It really feels solid overall. I liked the NVME retaining clip on the first slot - beats a screw and again, nice heat sink to spread the heat from the boot drive.Also my first board to have an integrated I/O shield - it's not a deal breaker as I've built 100's of PC's but it's nice to just push in and it's done, instead of having to worry about lining it up and finding one of the bits of the shield has bent down over a port. Just make sure you pull the plastic off before fitting it in :)The new flash BIOS is nice - I think my older X299 board needed the CPU installed, but with this, you can download the latest BIOS and update it regardless (I mean, I have the CPU, it's just nice to not rely on it).Installation is straight forward - usual screws for the board in whatever chassis you have. Plenty of headers for fans and LED's, should you like your case lit up like a Christmas Tree - and yes, if you don't, you can turn it all off too.Other things to check off - yes there's a CPU fan and Pump header, which does seem to be the norm for most modern boards but in a better placement than my B550 Strix board. Both aren't perfect placements, but can't have it all.I use a lot of USB ports so there's a decent amount on the rear - all the way up to a 3.2 2x2 port for 20Gbps transfer, plus a couple of USB 2 for mouse/keyboards so you have USB 3 for all those things that actively need them.I can't comment on the onboard sound - I prefer an external Sound Blaster myself and therefore it's ignored but I'm sure it's perfectly fine.Network wise there's a 2.5Gbps Intel network port and there's also an Intel WIFI 6 card for wireless usage - I prefer mine hard wired personally but it's there should I need it or if I move around stuff.Performance wise - I can't comment vs a DDR5 board but I have no qualms about the performance - of course your milage may differ depending on your CPU but if you have the 12900 or 12700, I'm sure you'll find this board solid.One last note that I picked up on elsewhere - if you want air cooling, this board is fine, unlike the Asus Strix boards, which apparently have issues due to their heat sinks on the VRM's. I know not everyone used air cooolers but if you do, this board is fine apparently.In short - I like MSI boards since my bad experience with another manufacturers products and this is certainly a solid board (physically and in usage!).

So there is a lot worth writing about it when it comes to this monitor, so let me get started.1. Build Quality.Fantastic quality, I cannot fault it, truly I can't. I was coming from a Z490 (Gaming Plus MSI) board and whilst that was more of an entry level -> mid level board, this feels 100% more premium, has more features and just feels like a massive improvement. Granted, you are paying a premium price tag for this motherboard but at the same, you get what you pay for and you don't feel like you've shot yourself in the foot while doing so. I think the only that is missing from my point of view would be a.) a RESET CMOS switch b.) 2 additional USB ports on the back, kind of like how the DDR5 version of this board has and c.) a DEBUG LED on the motherboard itself. Apart from that? Excellent.2. BIOS.There's not much to say about the BIOS to be honest, it hasn't really changed since Z490/Z590, you still have all the options (easily navigatable) right in front of you. It just works, great overclocking functionality, I was able to achieve 4000Mhz on my Crucial Ballistix 3600/CL16 RAM without a hitch, you will not be disappointed.3. Accessories included?There's lots that comes included within this that makes the price tag worth while. A 16GB USB Pen drive that has all the lateste drivers, software and utilities that you could need. You have 2 x NVME easy latch screws, screwdrivers, DVD's, stickers for your CMOS sticker (if that's your thing), 2x SATA cables. The list goes on really, a lot of this didn't have to be included but it was and I'm grateful for it.4. Overall feelings and conclusionOverall I think that this is a fantastic entry by MSI but to be honest, I do feel a little let down by the price, I think for this price, this should be a top end motherboard especially because it's DDR4, but it feels like it's missing a few small features to reach that tier, that bracket if you will. For this price you could have got a Z590 Ace which is an extremely top end board deserving of that premium price point.There is still an awful lot to be desired in regards to this board though, the fantastic features such as the amazing amount of devices that can be connected to this board, the PCI-e 5.0 functionality, the onboard WiFi, the steel reinforcement, the aesthetics. It's all there. I genuinely feel that this is the best DDR4 on the market for the Z690 chipset, hands down. I can definitely recommend this board through and through, you will not be disappointed.

I got this motherboard to pair with my i7 12700KF and it has been easily one of the nicest motherboards I've ever owned. The motherboard looks great (my favourite feature being the RGB MSI Dragon logo on the IO cover), and has plenty of great features. Plenty of USB ports on the back for my use case as well as the nice amount of M.2 slots available, two of which I am using. The 16+1+1 VRMs are easily the nicest feature to have on an overclocked i7 CPU. I highly recommend this motherboard for the features it provides and the aesthetics of it.