MSI B850 MPOWER:
Let’s start with a trip down memory lane. Older users may remember the arrival of the very first MPOWER motherboard based on the Z77 chipset. This series was aimed at overclocking and featured a yellow and black PCB and heatsink. In the end, MSI put an end to this series with the MSI MPOWER Z270 Gaming Titanium, which ensured the transition by coming in black and gray. So, after many years, MSI seems determined to revive this series, as no less than three new models have been announced since last year, although we’ll have to keep a close eye on their arrival in Europe.
This B850 MPOWER bundle :
A quick look at the MSI B850 MPOWER bundle to see if it comes with any special accessories. Considering that this board is priced at $220, we don’t expect to benefit from a substantial bundle. And yet, we are going to enjoy an “EZ DashBoard”. This is a piece of PCB with several functionalities: a Debug Code LED, a Clear CMOS button, a Reset button and a motherboard power button.
This will connect to the motherboard via a special cable included in the box. You’ll need to connect the cable to the EZ DashBoard and to the motherboard at the JDASH1, JFP1 and JBAT1 connectors. Once identified on your PCB, it’s easy to connect.
Apart from that, our B850 MPOWER box includes: a quick installation guide, a SATA 6 Gb/s cable, an EZ Dashboard cable, a Wi-Fi antenna set, a pack of EZ M.2 clips (1 set/pack), a pack of M.2 screws and spacers (1 set/pack) and a set of cable stickers.
Architecture:
A quick word about the box. It doesn’t really follow the color code of the MPOWER series, nor that of the motherboard. The front panel features gray, orange and slightly yellow colors. We would have expected the main colors to be yellow and black. The bottom right-hand zone states compatibility with AMD Ryzen AM5 and the motherboard chipset, namely the B850.
The MSI B850 MPOWER is built around AMD’s B850 chipset. This motherboard retains the socket of the previous generation, i.e. AM5. AMD continues to use this socket, and has announced that it will remain compatible until at least 2027. Farewell to the AM4 PGA (Pin Grid Array) socket in which you used to mount your processor, and make way for the LGA (Land Grid Array) socket. The change has been made since the AMD Ryzen 7000 processors, due to the greater number of pins on the Ryzen 7000 (1718). The format of our MSI B850 MPOWER is 243.84 x 243.84 mm, corresponding to the micro-ATX (mATX) format.
AMD, with socket AM5, retains a backplate already present on socket AM4. The 4 external holes that hold the retention system to secure your cooling system are still present. The center-to-center distance between these 4 holes is identical to that of socket AM4, so you’ll still be able to use your cooling system.
AMD goes one step further and adds 4 additional holes to hold the AM5 socket in place, as well as the backplate. As a result, the backplate no longer needs to be removed, as was the case with the previous generation. The locking mechanism features a reinforcement frame, a force frame and a latch. Once your Ryzen 7000/9000 has been positioned correctly, simply close the latch to hold it in place.
The different heat sinks :
The dominant colors on the PCB are black and yellow, so MSI is going back to basics with this color code. If you still have any doubts about its overclocking vocation, just take a look at the various inscriptions on the different heatsinks: ” Overclocking “, ” Frequency “, ” MHz “, ” Voltage “, etc. Let’s start with the heatsinks, of which there are three. First, the two heatsinks on the top of the motherboard, which surround the socket and cover the power supply stage. These two heatsinks are independent, and are not connected by a heat pipe.
The third one covers the chipset and is low enough to easily accommodate graphics cards. As you’ll have gathered, there’s no RGB backlighting on this B850 MPOWER, and we’d like to say, “so much the better!
Four M.2 SSD slots and PCIe 5.0 support:
The front panel features three slots for your storage devices. Access is easy: a simple press of the finger removes the heatsink. There are two PCIe 5.0 x4-compatible slots and two PCIe 4.0 slots, as a fourth port is located at the rear of the PCB. No screws here, just unclip the heat sinks to insert your SSD.
There are two PCIe ports, the first wired in PCIe 5.0 x16 (x16 or x8/x8) and the second in PCIe 4.0 x16. MSI has provided an additional handle on the notch for removing your motherboard, to make it easier to press.
Support for DDR5 and higher frequencies :
While DDR5 support has been assured since the arrival of AM5 motherboards, it’s now getting better: thanks to the new BIOS, MSI has announced support for memory kits up to 8400 MT/s (OC) and for a total of 128 GB. We’ll have a chance to evaluate this in our overclocking tests.
We had already seen the arrival of “EXPO” technology on the previous generation. This is an alternative to the XMP profile on INTEL models. As a reminder, this profile allows you, via the BIOS, to automatically activate the characteristics of your memory kit: frequency, timings and voltage.
