Msi x99a xpower gaming titanium review

More than a year ago we tested the MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium and it has been one of the motherboards that has left the most impression on us to date… Now MSI launches its counterpart but for the enthusiastic platform: MSI X99A Xpower Gaming Titanium for the new processors Intel Broadwell-E.

It is a top-of-the-range motherboard with the possibility of installing 128 GB of DDR4 memory, 4 Way SLI, gigabit connection with high-end Intel chip and a design that we classify as brutal. Want to know more about her? Don't miss our review!

We thank MSI Spain for trusting the product for its analysis:

MSI X99A XPower Gaming Titanium technical characteristics

MSI X99A XPower Gaming Titanium Unboxing and Design

The MSI X99A XPower Gaming Titanium It is presented in a large box where on its cover we see an image of the product and in large letters the model. While in the rear area we have all the most important technical characteristics of the product.

The box divides its contents into two zones. A first compartment for the motherboard and the second for accessories.

Once we open the box we find the following bundle:

• MSI X99A XPower Gaming Titanium motherboard.Instruction manual and quick guide. Software CD. SLI bridge and CrossFireX. 8 SATA cable kits. Cables to verify voltage. Extenders for control panel and USB. Rear hood.

As we can see, the MSI X99A XPower Gaming Titanium has an E-ATX format with dimensions of 30.5 cm x 27.2 cm for the LGA 2011-3 socket. The board has a totally out of the ordinary design, its attractive silver design along with its black pearl white PCB makes us fall in love, we recognize it and we will recognize it several times during the review .

Rear view of the motherboard, for the most curious.

The MSI X99A XPower Gaming Titanium has excellent cooling in both the power phases and the X99 chipset. It has a total of 12 digital phases with Military Class V technology.

Among the improved components we find the Choke Titanium that has 40% more durability and 30% more efficient than in previous generations. Also the use of Japanese capacitors that offer greater resistance. Among their protections

The chipset cooling takes care of a large heatsink that maintains extraordinary temperatures. Also highlight the 8 + 4 pin auxiliary power connection.

Once we removed the heatsinks we found in greater detail the excellent power phases and the small X99 chipset. Remember that this board does not incorporate any PLX chip to offer better latencies in multiGPU configurations.

The board incorporates a total of 8 256 GB compatible DDR4 RAM memory sockets with frequencies from 2400 MHz to 3466 MHz in Quad Channel and is compatible with the XMP 2.0 profile.

The MSI X99A XPower Gaming Titanium It presents a distribution between its PCI Express connections quite interesting for a MultiGPU system. In it we find 6 PCI Express 3.0 connections and a PCI Express x1 connection. This allows us to install a maximum of 4 graphics cards in SLI (Nvidia) or CrossFireX (AMD) with the following configuration:

• One graphics card: x16 / x0 / x0 / x0 / x0 Two graphics cards: x16 / x0 / x0 / x16 / x0 (CPU of 40 LANES) or x16 / x0 / x0 / x8 / x0 (CPU of 28 LANES). Three cards graphics cards: x16 / x0 / x0 / x16 / x8 (CPU of 40 LANES) or x8 / x8 / x0 / x8 / x0 (CPU of 28 LANES). Four graphics cards: x8 / x8 / x0 / x16 / x8 (CPU of 40 LANES) or x8 / x8 / x0 / x8 / x4 (28 LANES CPU).

Both PCI Express connectors and DIMM memory slots are equipped with a metal shield. What is it for? It simply improves the transfer and supports greater weight of components (especially in high-end graphics cards).

Among the PCI express connections we find two M.2 connectors to install any SSD with type 2242/2260/2280/22110 format with the benefits of the 32 GB / s bandwidth.

In storage we find ten 6 GB / s SATA III connections with RAID 0.1, 5 and 10 support and two SATA Express connections for high speed disks. We also find two U.2 connections that allow you to connect PCIe 3.0 x4 NVM Express storage.

The integrated sound card is enhanced with Audio Boost 3 technology. What improvements does it offer us? Better sound quality through the use of premium quality audio components with 8 channels. What will make us enjoy a more crystalline sound and with a high impedance headphone amplifier

In this image we see the control panel, two heads for USB 2.0 connections and the connector for a second front USB 3.0.

WE RECOMMEND YOU MSI Z370 KRAIT Gaming can be seen in images

Finally we detail the rear connections:

• PS / 2.Clear CMOS connector. 9 USB 3.0 connections. USB 3.1 Type C and Type A.1 connector. Gigabit LAN network card. Sound card connections.

Test bench and tests

TESTING BENCH
Processor:	Intel Core i7-6900K
Base plate:	MSI X99A XPower Gaming Titanium
Memory:	4 × 8 = 32GB DDR4 @ 3200 MHZ G.Skill Trident Z.
Heatsink	Corsair H100i V2.
HDD	Samsung 850 EVO 500 GB.
Graphic card	Nvidia GTX 980 Ti 6GB.
Power supply	EVGA SuperNOVA 750 G2

To check the stability of the i7-6900K processor at 4500 MHZ and the motherboard we have stressed with Prime 95 Custom and air cooling.

The graph we have used is a GTX 1070, without further delay, let's see the results obtained in our tests with a 1920 × 1080 monitor.

We look at your UEFI BIOS

In this second generation of X99 motherboards, which are compatible with Intel Broadwell-E processors as standard, it incorporates a much more renewed BIOS, much more stable and with a multitude of options. Good job MSI!

Final words and conclusion about MSI X99A XPower Gaming Titanium

MSI has done a great job with its new flagship on motherboards: MSI X99A XPower Gaming Titanium. Undoubtedly it is one of the best motherboards on the market both for its design, components, great possibilities for expansion and overclocking.

In our tests we have achieved that the i7 6900K processor reaches a speed of 4500 MHz with frequency and fixed voltage. We are really impressed because it has been so easy for us using basic liquid cooling. In our games tests it has worked as we expected and has given a lot of stability to the system.

It is currently in online stores for a price of 425 euros and with permanent stock. Without a doubt, a motherboard to keep in mind for an Enthusiast PC.

ADVANTAGE	DISADVANTAGES
+ INCREDIBLE DESIGN.	- SOMETHING HIGH PRICE.
+ QUALITY OF MILITARY CLASS V COMPONENTS.
+ GREAT POSSIBILITIES OF OVERCLOCK.
+ MORE STABLE BIOS.
+ IDEAL FOR 4 WAY SLI OR CROSSFIREX.

The Professional Review team awards you the platinum medal:

MSI X99A XPower Gaming Titanium

COMPONENTS

REFRIGERATION

BIOS

ADDITIONAL FEATURES

PRICE

9.2 / 10

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