ASUS ROG Strix Z790-I Gaming WiFi Intel® Z790 LGA 1700 Mini-ITX motherboard, 10 + 1 power stages, DDR5, two M.2 slots, PCIe® 5.0, WiFi 6E, Thunderbolt™ 4, and USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 Type-C®

Product Information

The MSI Z790 TOMAHAWK does cut some corners, however. It features a reinforced PCIe Gen 5x 16 slot (which is fantastic), but the M.2 slots are only rated for PCIe 4.0. While the M.2 slots aren’t the latest and greatest, you do get four of them, along with seven SATA ports. The board also misses out on 10GbE LAN but makes up for it by giving you onboard Wi-Fi 6E (it’s baked-in, so you don’t have to buy a Wi-Fi card separately), which is nice to have. And while there’s no Thunderbolt or USB 4.0 action, there are a handful of USB 3.2 Gen 2 (and a Type-C USB 3.2 Gen 2×2) ports for your connectivity needs. The MSI MAG Z790 Tomahawk WiFi is a midrange Z790 motherboard that punches above its weight class. It's loaded with high-end features, like support for the latest PCIe 5.0 graphics cards and DDR5 RAM, allowing you to build a powerful PC that can match the performance of flagship Z790 motherboards at a much more reasonable price. If you want a well-rounded motherboard that doesn’t break the bank, the Gigabyte Z790 AORUS ELITE AX makes a ton of sense for your latest 13th-Gen Intel CPU. It features 4x DIMM DDR5 slots rated for a maximum capacity of 128GB and speeds of 7600MT/s. There’s one PCIe 5.0 x16 slot for the GPU, 2x M.2 slots running at PCIe 4.0 speeds, six SATA 6 Gb/s ports, plenty of USB ports and headers (up to USB 3.2 Gen 2×2), 2.5GbE LAN, Wi-Fi 6E, and Bluetooth 5.3. The board features 2x PCIe 5.0 x16 slots and 1x Hyper M.2 slot that supports PCIe Gen 5 SSDs; something most other Z790 motherboards don’t offer. You also get DDR5 support, Wi-Fi 6E, two Thunderbolt 4 ports (support up to 40Gbps bi-directional data transfer), and more than enough I/O internally and on the rear.

winner(s) will receive TUF GAMING Z790-PRO WIFI + TUF Gaming LC II 360 ARGB + ASUS TUF Gaming GeForce RTX™ 4060 Ti 8GB GDDR6 OC Edition For the money, this is an exceptionally well-rounded motherboard. It offers a decent set of features and a clean industrial aesthetic that will go well with any build. Also, it comes with a DDR4 option, if that’s something you’d like. DDR5 support is here, and you’re able to use some mighty fast kits, surpassing even what AMD currently offers on AM5. You’ll be limited to only 64GB of RAM and two separate slots, however. This is due to the board’s diminutive size. We figure that’s more than fine for a gaming build, and technically two RAM slots often offer more stability and performance compared to four.Robust Power Solution: 10 + 1 power solution rated for 105A per stage with ProCool II power connectors, high-quality alloy chokes, and durable capacitors to support multi-core processors Expansion slots: Expansion slots allow additional hardware components to be installed on the motherboard, such as graphics cards, sound cards, and network cards. Expansion slots are typically located on the bottom or right edge of the motherboard. The ASUS TUF Gaming Z790-Plus Wi-Fi D4 is one of the best Z790 motherboards with DDR4 support. It covers all the basics well, with a capable power delivery setup, PCIe 5.0 for graphics cards, and four high-speed M.2 slots. It supports Wi-Fi 6 and 2.5Gb Ethernet, which are both fast enough for gaming and streaming. In addition, eight USB ports, including a 20Gbps USB-C port, provide enough connectivity options for your desk and gaming accessories.

Also, it will look great in your build! The board features a rough industrial aesthetic with slight yellow accents that give it a truly TUF look. You want PCIe 5.0 x4 support: Although PCIe 5.0 x16 modes and a PCIe 5.0 M.2 slot come alongside the motherboard, I think PCIe 5.0 M.2 x4 support would have been appreciated instead of PCIe 4.0 x4. What Makes It The Best High-End Z790 Motherboard?Features and Connectivity:I found the storage selection of the MSI MPG Z790 Carbon Wi-Fi to be quite impressive; the motherboard comes with 5x M.2 slots and 6x SATA 6G, with one of the five M.2 slots being PCIe 5.0. The impressive theme follows as we move towards USB ports, as in total, you get 10x rear and 7x front USB ports, with 3x Type-C ports. Buy It If: MSI MPG Z790 Carbon WiFi