MSI MPG Z390 Gaming Pro Carbon AC, a missed opportunity!

MSI just released its Z390 flagship motherboard, the MPG Z390 Gaming Pro Carbon AC, and as such it comes with a lot of expectations.
This motherboard is packed with goodies, and a surprisingly well featured memory support and upgraded sound codec.
Sadly, it also comes with some real misses. A very efficient VRM prone to over-heating, no 3.1 USBs on our back IO, and a pricing which gives lots of room for the competition.
An excellent gamer’s board with somewhat of a missed delivery.

[@intoxicateddaze2864]

This channel deserves to be much larger...

[@deadjuice1880]

I just got this board, and seeing that io built in plate gave me a huge relief, I love that.

[@brayandsouza6349]

Man your channel is really UNDERRATED! BTW love from INDIA!!!

[@hackingmaster2159]

Man you maked me so much easier ti understand.thanks alot . U deserve much more.

[@rrosshhagen0838]

Can this support ryzen 7 2700x

[@DriLL3iT]

Great review. I was shocked to see that you didn't have at least 1 mill subs after seeing the quality of this vid.

[@Laurentschoice]

at least i got you ;) share the channel. always help !

[@DriLL3iT]

@@Laurentschoice will do!

[@theblessedkabir8706]

You are the only Channel that have a good dedicated Review over Motherboards and easy to understand From Entire KZbin.

[@ItsGameTox]

Nice video! Top quality as always!!!

[@anik_21]

Love your channel man...found it 2 days ago, and your feedback is just amazing. Which Z390 would you suggest with a built in wifi? (Preferably cheaper option without compromising on the motherboard)

[@itoobiased]

the Aorus pro has an annoying audio static issue with microphone recording, which intensifies when gaming. I would suggest everyone dodge that board until they fix it(doubt it). I guess that's the extend to this kind of review, can't look at everything. But recording sound quality is very important for gaming/streaming.

[@andidarmali439]

good job ! You did a great review !

[@RealEyalPerry]

You're a pro! Love your channel! Would you go with this or with the MEG ACE for non extreme OC? Can this handle a stable 5Ghz with a 9700k? When you say in the description: "A very efficient VRM prone to over-heating", what do you mean? Maybe I missed it in the video?

[@Laurentschoice]

Thanks Eyal It can handle a 5ghz 9700k. When I tested the board with a 9 9900k OC the VRM thermothrotled quite a bit. Hope this helps

[@RealEyalPerry]

Thanks for taking the time to reply! May you take your well deserved seat at the LTT level soon!

[@NaStyChAnGo]

Even though it comes with the AC, can you still use an Ethernet cable instead of the WiFi on the motherboard?

[@artemthegr8]

It comes with some antenna thingy it really changes my internet from 30 ping to 0 ping trust!

[@alexmorgan5760]

@@artemthegr8 only with wiif?

[@EmaKaze127]

What does it mean when it shone above J1 (white light)? Of course, I mean at the top right. Not to be confused with RAM.

[@ExteremeDog]

i got a sound blaster z card.. do you think the msi on board sound is gonna need the sound card or would it be good enough

[@steelwrath]

That's the exactly video I was looking for.... I was between those two but you cut it straight to the point... Just ordered aorus pro for 30 euro less also a better motherboard for the price 👌

[@martincipev6556]

I wonder what to buy for my I9-9900k. The price for Aorus Pro, this MSI and Strix- F is the same in my country. Strix -E is more expensive. I had bad experience with Gigabyte, so i wonder between Strix-F and this MSI. What is your advice? Thank you.

[@techti8792]

What's the difference with pro carbon and gaming edge?. Cant decide. My 3rd choice is z390 auros pro. For 8700k. What's best?

[@icmi5974]

Is it good with i9-9900k ? I'd like to avoid coil whining and buzzing at headphones. I've got that problem on Gigabyte z390 gaming x

[@pamariens2039]

Love your channel. What would you choose: msi carbon ac or gigabyte aorus pro?

[@MSJChem]

Great review - thanks.

[@agentstreamgaming4537]

Great review. I appreciate the pros and cons. Just subbed.

[@ashu9890]

Hi I tried to build to install my system but as soon as I power it it just blinks and didn't turn on please help

[@mike_zilla8604]

What's the difference between the Gigabyte Auorus pro,ultra, and master besides the price??? Great vid, still sticking with Gigabyte master though.

[@Laurentschoice]

Watch the review... it does talk about the AORUS pro as well. :)

[@walkerboh39]

Thank you, very nice review !

[@abdelmoniemelsheikh3632]

Underrated channel you deserve more subscribers keep it up ... which motherboard will you choose between this one in the video and the aorus z390 pro wifi ?

[@Laurentschoice]

Aorus Pro wifi... not doubt ! Thanks for the nice comment :)

[@pastafazool5951]

After replacing my 8700k ihs with a copper one and destroying my memory controller in the process I picked this up and the 9900k and love it, coming from a maximus x no less

[@Hecor._.]

I was worried I bought a bad motherboard lol. Thanks for the clarification!!

[@pattar0621]

Can the motherboard support a 8cm long m.2 samsung 500gb or not? And if yes should I buy something extra??? Moreover i would like to ask you when the price of the i5-9600k will go down because of the new 10th processors? @Laurent‘s Choice

[@Laurentschoice]

Yes, it can support two 8 cm m.2 ssds. And yes, 9th gen prices should already be going down.

[@PS1HAGRID13]

I love these reveiws

[@TaanielMartinusPaalMr]

Great review, thanks a ton! :)

[@rockstorm4381]

A note about the usb IO... The MSI has a better setup if you prefer the USB ports on the front rather than the back. The MSI board has five USB3.1 Gen2 connections with one of those going to the front as Type-C and four USB3.1 Gen1 also going to the front. The Gigabyte has only three USB3.1 Gen2 on the rear with no Gen2 connections to the front, only a Gen1 type-c and two Gen1 Type-A for the front. I care about having more usb ports up front rather than the rear, especially if it is a Gen2 Type-C. That being said, all other points are valid. And why didn't MSI add a second heat sink for the first M2 slot?

[@Laurentschoice]

Indeed :) well spotted :)

[@alextran17]

Do you have to plug in the 4pin cpu connector or can you only just use the 8 pin cpu connector by itself

[@brandonmeyer670]

So are you saying that I can’t have a all in one pump(kraken) on my cpu and another one on my gpu?

[@alawadi911]

This one or asus rog strix z390-e ?

[@Laurentschoice]

Absolutely yea !

[@alawadi911]

@@LaurentschoiceYou didn't Choice which one is better ;p ?

[@sawsanali724]

Great review :)

[@Wuldier]

great Video, awesome presenter, i subbed. my Question is.. im looking at getting an i7-9700k and the MSI Z390 MPG Gaming Pro Carbon... but it doesnt have the AC at the end of name, whats the difference?

[@marknelson4765]

King Drazhar ac has WiFi other one dosn’t

[@NaStyChAnGo]

I found the AC version cheaper than the regular one. So I went with that one, even though I'm going to be using an Ethernet cable.

[@caim9986]

Helle there again mate, im planing on buying this motherboard and I will also change from an aio to a classic air cooler. Im afraid that a notctua d15 140mm won't be compatible cause it might cover the RAM. Can you or maybe someone else in the comment section give me a hand, if there is enough space or not?

[@Laurentschoice]

Using Corsair Fury Ram will allow room both for Noctua and the Ram.

[@mustafas9011]

This board or the hero xi maximus or the z370 maximus apex or ASUs z370 A ii

[@caim9986]

Its this mobo good for a rtx 2070 and i7-9700k with overclock (cpu only)? Or should i get something better or expensive?

[@Laurentschoice]

It's more than enough :)

[@caim9986]

@@Laurentschoice Oh thanks mate, cause I heard some people saying that this mobo is a mid range one and for high-end pc it would not perform so well.

[@chex313]

It looks like it has 3- 3.1 Usbs' on back? What am I missing? The red ones...

[@Laurentschoice]

Ur right. But with the ever changing names of the USB standard, at time of filming, 5gb/s plugs (blue) were officially called 3.1 1st gen. The 10gb/s (red).where 3.1 2nd gen. With X570 boards, USB names changed again to 3.2 and 3.2 2nd gen. But u are correct. It used to be 3.0 and 3.1. Marketing gone wrong anybody?

[@ggala7mer273]

is it stable for overclocking i5 9600K to 5GHZ ?

[@exility510]

Hey Laurent is the PCIe slot the 2nd and 1st PCIe slot can they hold 2080ti because it is heavey or can it not pls answer

[@Laurentschoice]

Yes they can :)

[@exility510]

@@Laurentschoice thank you sensei means teacher

[@exility510]

@@Laurentschoice one more question an the pro carbon ac handle i9 9900k at 5 ghz and 32 gb ram at 3200mhz and a name ssd at 1080p and 1440p at ultra settings pls answer teacher

[@Bbp6959]

Is this hdmi 2.0?

[@fternicien]

Between this and the z390-h asus?

[@brayandsouza6349]

Hey bro will you tell me what should I go for either Maximum xi hero(WiFi) or z390-e For I9 9900k 3200mhz 16gb rams MSI gaming x trio 2080ti

[@Laurentschoice]

Maximus xi Hero:) better OC , better troubleshooting features... better board all together:)

[@brayandsouza6349]

Thnx man I also need suggestion for Ml360R or kraken x62

[@Laurentschoice]

kraken ... not doubt !@!!@!!!!

[@pastafazool5951]

@@brayandsouza6349 go full custom ek!

[@godgod7294]

Should of just bought a noctua dh-15s. 89$ same performance as any water cooler if not better.

[@cgctorrag]

So many peoples opinions are based on the limited personal experience they have with the brands. I've had two unfortunate experiences with gigabyte boards and none with msi over my last 4 builds. So I guess you all know which one I'm buying for my next one. As for asus I think they run up the price in the entry level and mid tier range for a comparable product in most cases.

[@TTV_SilentSteps]

Does a i7 7700k Fits there it also has lga 1151 Sockel

[@kenthao1121]

I believe this mobo only supports 8th and 9th gen Intel processors

[@christcoal3680]

Does it have Bluetooth and Wi-Fi integratated?

[@Laurentschoice]

Yes :) both

[@hamstergaming6533]

Auros Pro is More expensive in my Country than MSI! So I buy this board..:D

[@delpij1987]

Salut LauLau. Subscribed!

[@evilgamerxd2784]

How do i use the built in WiFi

[@Laurentschoice]

Install the drivers :) and itll show on ur network settings

[@Emeksin]

Extreme4 vs pro carbon?

[@Laurentschoice]

Pro Carbon :)

[@mikevanholland5210]

love it

[@youtubehd1176]

Is this wifi motherboard or not ??

[@aRk0_aus]

Not worth 250$, but great review!

[@morrisenslin2194]

I got this board with 9700k nice stable 5,1 Ghz oc with AIO cooler.

[@Laurentschoice]

Watch the PCB junction points. Temperatures there are extremely high and make sure to to have some air flow going through the back of the board. With these kind of temps, solder points will start failing within 12 months of sustained usage. Hope this helps.

[@filetsteak5677]

imagine building on your cpu an aio wrong

[@luckxing682]

The MEG Z390 GODLIKE is the flagship...

[@lpmod3368]

When you do too much branding... usually you are targeting a very specific buyer profile... usually those people who don’t... ha ...i don’t wanna sound rude but. I mean you know I don’t like MSI motherboard. I do like their graphics cards. But clearly not the same quality. I’m on many, many social group where people are looking for help regarding issues with their PCs. MSI boards... comes out on those groups way too often. Usually is just stability but I have seen many weird stuff which stop happening with a motherboard swap. For exemple I’ll take a rumor, not a real exemple but it’s the thing that comes to my head right know. It has to do with the launch of the new Ryzen 3000 series which will run on AM4 socket. This particular socket is already being used by all the Ryzen currently available (threadripper aside). So according to the rumor, guess what am4 mother won’t support some high end Ryzen 3000 cpu ? Yeah it’s msi cause boards can’t provide enough power (from what I understood). However, I have to admit that sometime they have very good ideas, a Corsair link header... it really surprised me ! Anyway, I think I’m too old to change my mind on this brand but come on ! The FROZR !? Why does this thing even have a name ! Msi does great GPU, I’ll stay with Aorus and Asus motherboard ;)

[@Laurentschoice]

Glad we agree :))))))

[@lpmod3368]

Laurent's Choice the frozr carbon gamer pro ultra speed will anihilate your game loading time !

[@niclaspedersen1919]

Both the b450 and the x470 boards from msi can easily deliver enough power for the 6 cores and 8 cores, some of the boards can even deliver to the 12 core and 16 core as msi has some of the best vrms in the amd market no doubt

[@phantom6799]

Auros may be better, If it doesn't show up DOA like mine.

[@Laurentschoice]

Oh man.... I hate it when that happens !

[@mikekaze7175]

what's DOA? sorry I'm new to pc.

[@Laurentschoice]

Dead On Arrival

[@Mitchell999]

All down to lottery

[@rebirth_mishap]

128 gb of ram?

[@Laurentschoice]

yep :)

[@greyraven9164]

Z390 flag ship ? that would be Godlike dude not the gaming carbon lol.... but as you said yes this board cant handle 9900kf @5ghz for me at least. its thermal the vrm i guess and its vdrooping.

[@aaronbutterfield4002]

Ok fine, you were on team blue but now your team red right?!?!

[@Laurentschoice]

I got no team so far... Really depends of the product. Incredibly excited about the 10th gen Intel CPU!

[@lpmod3368]

Ok, another msi... let’s see

[@Laurentschoice]

This one is somewhat different

[@lpmod3368]

Laurent's Choice ok so I wrote a quite long comment on why I don’t like this board ( I liked the video tho) I’m afraid it can be boring for people but I’m curious about msi bios. See how it looks and work, never seen it but that (to me) almost as important as the design of the board itself. A good bios can make me buy an ugly motherboard.

[@christcoal3680]

Tu parles français?

[@Laurentschoice]

Un peux mon neveux