The MSI Z170A SLI PLUS Review: Redefining the Base Line at $130
by Ian Cutress on April 13, 2016 8:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Motherboards
- MSI
- Skylake
- Z170
Board Features
When picking out the feature set for a $120 Z170 motherboard, there isn’t going to be much on the list beyond the standard Intel specifications. There are things that can be done fairly cheaply, such as M.2 support, although M.2 SATA is easier than M.2 PCIe. At this price point, it might also be a cost down measure, skimming a few cents here and there on the codec or network controller, but we don’t get that here.
| MSI Z170A SLI PLUS | |
| Warranty Period | 3 Years |
| Product Page | Link |
| Price | Amazon US |
| Size | ATX |
| CPU Interface | LGA1151 |
| Chipset | Intel Z170 |
| Memory Slots (DDR4) | Four DDR4 Supporting 64GB Dual Channel Up to 3600 MHz |
| Memory Slots (DDR3L) | None |
| Video Outputs | HDMI at 4096x2160 @ 24 Hz DVI-D at 1920x1200 @ 60 Hz VGA at 2048x1280 @ 60 Hz |
| Network Connectivity | Intel I219-V |
| Onboard Audio | Realtek ALC1150 |
| PCIe Slots for Graphics (from CPU) | 2 x PCIe 3.0 (x16, x8/x8) |
| PCIe Slots for Other (from PCH) | 1 x PCIe 3.0 x4 3 x PCIe 3.0 x1 |
| Onboard SATA | Six, RAID 0/1/5/10 |
| Onboard SATA Express | Two, RAID |
| Onboard M.2 | 1x PCIe 3.0 x4, RAID 0/1, NVMe via Turbo U.2 (not included) |
| Onboard U.2 | None |
| USB 3.1 (10 Gbps) | 1 x Type-C ASMedia ASM1142 Controller |
| USB 3.0 (5 Gbps) | 2 x Rear Panel 4 via headers |
| USB 2.0 | 2 x Rear Panel 4 via headers |
| Power Connectors | 1 x 24-pin ATX 1 x 8-pin CPU |
| Fan Headers | 2 x CPU (4-pin) 3 x CHA/SYS (4-pin) |
| IO Panel | 1 x Mouse PS/2 1 x Keyboard PS/2 1 x USB 3.1 Type-C 2 x USB 3.0 2 x USB 2.0 1 x Network RJ-45 (Intel I219-V) HDMI / DVI-D / VGA Audio Jacks |
| Other Features | TPM Header COM Port Header LPT Port Header Clear CMOS Header Front Panel Header Front Audio Header |
There’s a single USB 3.1 Type-C port, which is more than I would expect, along with support for SLI and a full complement of DDR4 slots. There are only four USB Type-A ports on the rear which might be a little lower than I would like, and there’s no power/reset switches and a two-digit debug that I would want as well, but there are PCIe guards (MSI’s ‘Steel Armor’) on the main slots, a Realtek ALC1150 codec enhanced by PCB separation and filter caps, and an Intel I219-V network controller. Perhaps it’s a bit of give and take, but the 10-phase power delivery is also a factor in this.
In The Box
We get the following:
Driver DVD
User Manual
Rear IO Shield
Four SATA Cables
Flexi SLI Bridge
As one might expect in a low-cost box, normally the minimum is added to satisfy most users. I somehow suspected there might only be two SATA cables, but MSI adds in another couple here, giving four in total.
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HollyDOL - Wednesday, April 13, 2016 - link
Price given this board is very impressive piece of hardware...ImSpartacus - Wednesday, April 13, 2016 - link
Yeah, I'm tickled to see gems like this.That was a fun review to read.
jasonelmore - Wednesday, April 13, 2016 - link
Throw in a $20 5 Port USB 3.0 Card and this thing has everything you need.http://smile.amazon.com/dp/B00FCQPVI8
mczak - Wednesday, April 13, 2016 - link
It's missing DisplayPort. Sadly, nearly all cheaper boards miss this. So, if you don't have a need for powerful graphics and are just fine with the IGP, but you still want to hook up one of those quite cheapie 4k monitor, you're out of luck. Really wish they'd ditch those near useless VGA and DVI-D ports in favor of DP (ok the latter isn't useless but all of intel's DVI-D ports are going to be single-link, hence limited to 1920x1200) - or better instead of ditching DVI-D and VGA they should just have one DVI-I port instead for people who really want to hook up that analog monitor there...Manch - Thursday, April 14, 2016 - link
Your use case is very much a niche. 4K monitors are not the norm. Many people still have vga monitors as well. If you're going to drive a 4k display odds are you wont be using igp. I don't really see an issue here.Visual - Thursday, April 14, 2016 - link
To add to that, even if I wanted a 4k monitor, I'd personally not want to use DP for that. A port meant just for computers was a terrible idea from the start and I will never buy anything with it. I'll stick with HDMI and its future versions.And DP has the same limitations as HDMI in regards to 4k@60p - you need newer versions of either to support that.
mczak - Thursday, April 14, 2016 - link
No, you only need DP 1.2 for 4k@60p (with no chroma subsampling). Everybody supports that since like forever. But for the same with HDMI, you need HDMI 2.0, which isn't supported by anything intel ships. All 4k monitors (but, of course, not TVs) support DP 1.2 too (except some very old models). I don't disagree HDMI 2.0 wouldn't be nice, but with Skylake IGP it's just not going to happen.mczak - Thursday, April 14, 2016 - link
To clarify, intel supports DP 1.2 since Haswell.And FWIW there's still quite a lot of 4k monitors you can buy today which actually do not support HDMI 2.0 neither - they _require_ DP for 4k@60p.
(There actually is a way for skylake based systems to do HDMI 2.0 - the Alpine Ridge TB controller can do that. Clearly, not an option for budged oriented boards. Kaby Lake however should support HDMI 2.0.)
mczak - Thursday, April 14, 2016 - link
Well, if you just want a gorgeous looking monitor for web browsing, office work or whatever, the IGP would do just fine with a 4k monitor (fwiw apple ships plenty of exactly such configurations).But sure 4k gaming isn't going to work...
And as for VGA, that's why I suggested a DVI-I port - can still use monitors with VGA port with that (albeit would require an adapter).
Maybe it's a niche (but then things like m2 nvme ssds are a niche too in that price segment), but it could be trivially supported by motherboards with only a tiny cost (no chips or anything required - just the connector).
amrs - Thursday, April 14, 2016 - link
Funny. Last time I was shopping for a motherboard I was cursing. "Do I really have to pay for all those useless video connectors?" Wasn't much choice. One less useless connector now I suppose. I've only used the IGP VGA in my Ivy Bridge board and then only for the initial testing in the garage where my ancient Eizo CRT sits.