Introduction

It is once again time to talk about a new chipset from AMD. This particular release, the B450 chipset, is no surprise. After the refresh of the X370 in the way of the X470 earlier this year, it was only a matter of time before the B300 series got the same treatment. The differences between the the old B300 series and new B400 series are pretty minor. However, the board we are looking at today is anything but minor. The MSI B450 GAMING PRO CARBON AC from MSI brings a lot more to the table than you might expect from a refreshed midrange board, and it is my pleasure to use it in this review as introduction to the chipset.

The MSI B450 GAMING PRO CARBON AC is a fully sized ATX board featuring everything we have come to expect from mainstream performance motherboards. The board features two M.2 slots, the first of which is covered by a thermal solution to increase drive performance and longevity. An impressive array of heatsinks cover the VRM and chipset to negate the risk of thermal throttling no matter the work load or climate. Add in a fully fleshed out audio solution, MSI Mystic Light, and Mystic Light Sync for expandable RGB support, and an especially beefy VRM design, and the MSI B450 GAMING PRO CARBON AC could be a true gaming powerhouse.

The MSI B450 GAMING PRO CARBON AC is actually fighting a battle on two fronts. On one hand, as a midrange chipset board, it is competing with boards like the ASRock AB350M Pro4 I took a look at earlier this year, affordable boards that still offer good performance. On the other hand, the MSI B450 GAMING PRO CARBON AC is offering the premium features you would expect from mainstream X470 boards. MSI has put themselves on a tightrope balancing features with affordability. By the end of this review, we will see whether they made it.

Specifications

Packaging and Contents

The front of the MSI B450 GAMING PRO CARBON AC's box is a graphic of a dark heatsink with RGB lighting peaking out and the "MSI B450 GAMING PRO CARBON AC" name superimposed on top. The MSI logo sits in the top left, while logos for key features are in the top right. The bottom right shows the relevant chipset information, and the bottom left shows more features.
The back of the MSI B450 GAMING PRO CARBON AC box is a dark and colorful take on what has become the standard layout: a picture of the board with prominent features highlighted dominates the top left, while more features are detailed out to the right. Along the bottom left is a detailed specification list, and the bottom right has the ever-important graphic showing the rear I/O offering.

The MSI B450 GAMING PRO CARBON AC box follows the standard model, but does it in excellent form. The thematically dark tone matches the board's personality very well, and the graphics are flawlessly printed. Not much more can be said, and that in itself is high praise. The MSI B450 GAMING PRO CARBON AC box gets a 10/10; would read again.


Opening the box reveals the board in an antistatic bag with the "true gaming" logo front and center. The box is quite compact, and while it doesn't reach a display case's level of presentation, it is attractive and functional.


MSI has been generous with the accessories it includes for the MSI B450 GAMING PRO CARBON AC. Just two SATA cables, but with two speedy M.2 slots, are as expected. Unusual extras include labeling stickers, an RGB extension cable, and a lovely MSI badge. The full list of accessories consists of the following:

• Manual and support DVD
• 1x Rear I/O cover
• 2x SATA 6 Gb/s cables
• 1x Registration card and product booklet
• 2x WiFi antenna
• Mystic Light extension
• Cable labels
• MSI badge

Board Layout

Pulling the MSI B450 GAMING PRO CARBON AC out of the bag reveals a handsomely dark board with black carbon-textured heatsinks and a black PCB with white lines tracing it in the bottom-left corner. The board is uniformly black, and the heatsinks are much larger than expected on a B450 board. Overall, the layout lends the MSI B450 GAMING PRO CARBON AC a sleek, aggressive look. The back of the MSI B450 GAMING PRO CARBON AC is also a uniform black broken only by the backplate for the CPU cooler and a few warnings against misplaced standoffs. The MSI B450 GAMING PRO CARBON AC is a really good-looking board. The aesthetic is above and beyond what I would expect from a midrange motherboard both in design and execution. The extended heatsink even serves as a partial rear I/O shield.


The area around the socket is not as open as on some boards, especially in comparison to midrange boards with smaller heatsinks. This is a worthy trade-off for the vast cooling benefits of the MSI B450 GAMING PRO CARBON AC, but if you want to pair it with a large air cooler, check your clearance before you buy. Most users won't run into any issues, however.


The first M.2 slot sits right under the socket and features an M.2 shield thermal solution. The M.2 shield isn't as beefy as some of the M.2 heatsinks I have seen in the past, but should offer good cooling over a naked NVME drive.


The MSI B450 GAMING PRO CARBON AC features two PCI express x16 slots (in x16/x0 or x8/x8), of which one is PCI Express 3.0 and the other PCI Express 2.0., and three PCI Express 2.0 x1 slots. The PCI Express 3.0 x16 slot is metal reinforced for extra durability. There are two M.2 slots; the first is below the socket and the other sits just below the second PCI Express x16 slot. The MSI B450 GAMING PRO CARBON AC features no less than six SATA ports, all of which are angled 90 degrees to the board.


The LAN on the PRO CARBON AC is powered by an Intel I211AT Gigabit LAN Controller. The rear I/O on the MSI B450 GAMING PRO CARBON AC is mostly as expected and consists of the following:

• 1x BIOS Flashback+ button
• 1x PS/2 keyboard/mouse combo port
• 2x USB 2.0 Type-A (black)
• 1x DisplayPort
• 1x HDMI
• 1x LAN (RJ45) port
• 1x USB 3.1 Gen1 Type-C
• 2x USB 3.1 Gen1 Type-A (blue)
• 1x WiFi antenna connectors
• 5x Audio jack
• 1x Optical S/PDIF OUT connector