Monday, June 4th 2012
MSI Big Bang MPower Motherboard Series Detailed
Late last week, we came across teaser pictures of a certain new Big Bang series motherboard. Our source didn't reveal its name, but mentioned that we were close in guessing its name to be "ZPower", which we admitted we could go wrong with. It turns out that the new line is named "MPower", and includes not just a new socket LGA1155 motherboard, the Z77 MPower, but also a new LGA2011 one, the X79 MPower. The two are beefed-up versions of the Z77A-GD65 and X79A-GD65 (8D), respectively, with stronger CPU VRM, relaxed warranties that are overclocker-friendly, and a new black+yellow color-scheme, which is consistent with that of its Lightning series graphics cards (such as the R7970 Lightning).The Z77 MPower packs a 16-phase CPU VRM, which is stronger than that of the Z77A-GD80. The board draws power from a 6-pin PCIe power connector, apart from the usual 24-pin ATX and 8-pin EPS, which adds electric stability to deal with high-power graphics cards. The VRM is backed by several diagnostic LEDs, and voltage measurement points. The expansion slot arrangement is carried over from the Z77A-GD65, with three PCI-Express 3.0 x16 (x8/x4/x4-capable), and four PCI-Express 2.0 x1. Its connectivity is augmented with 802.11 b/g/n WLAN and Bluetooth. Apart from these, the Z77 MPower is largely identical to the Z77A-GD65.
Next up is the X79 MPower, MSI's latest socket LGA2011 motherboard. The X79 MPower packs a 9+2 phase CPU VRM, which draws power from two 8-pin EPS connectors. In terms of OC-friendly features and options it is largely similar to the Z77 MPower. Barring two additional SATA 6 Gb/s ports, 802.11 b/g/n, and Bluetooth, the X79 MPower is largely identical to the X79A-GD65 (8D). From these, one can deduce that the Z77 MPower will be priced somewhere between the Z77A-GD65 and Z77A-GD80 (which will be priced high due to its expensive Thunderbolt controller), while the X79 MPower will be priced between the X79A-GD65 (8D) and Big Bang XPower II (which is costlier due to a heavier package).
Next up is the X79 MPower, MSI's latest socket LGA2011 motherboard. The X79 MPower packs a 9+2 phase CPU VRM, which draws power from two 8-pin EPS connectors. In terms of OC-friendly features and options it is largely similar to the Z77 MPower. Barring two additional SATA 6 Gb/s ports, 802.11 b/g/n, and Bluetooth, the X79 MPower is largely identical to the X79A-GD65 (8D). From these, one can deduce that the Z77 MPower will be priced somewhere between the Z77A-GD65 and Z77A-GD80 (which will be priced high due to its expensive Thunderbolt controller), while the X79 MPower will be priced between the X79A-GD65 (8D) and Big Bang XPower II (which is costlier due to a heavier package).