Packaging and Contents

The front of the MEG Z390 GODLIKE box doesn't fool around with any abstract art, and why would it with a board this pretty? A glamour shot of the board dominates the right side, with the MEG Z390 GODLIKE name on the left. MSI's logo sits in the top left with Intel logos in the top right. The "Mystic Light" logo is on the bottom left, and everything is overlaid on to a dark background with golden light emanating from behind the board.

Opening the flap on the front of the box shows off a shield-shaped window that provides a peek at the board itself with the tagline "one board to rule them all" above it and "MSI Gaming" below. On the inside of the flap are six panels detailing various standout features, some unique, of the MEG Z390 GODLIKE, such as is common on the back of most product boxes.


There is a good reason MSI chose to use the front flap for some feature highlights. The back of the MEG Z390 GODLIKE box is also filled with features, starring another shot of the board from the top and side surrounded by text boxes referencing standout features. Below all this are three more boxes showcasing the redesigned WiFi antenna, M.2 expansion card, and Streaming Boost card. These, especially the latter two, really put the MEG Z390 GODLIKE on a step above the rest of the competition. Along the bottom of the box is a specification list on the left and a rear I/O diagram on the right.

The box design for the MEG Z390 GODLIKE is excellent and follows the pattern I've become accustomed to, along with a nice extra bit of flare.


Opening the outer box reveals two more boxes, one for the board and another for the accessories. I've seen this layout before, and it works well in protecting the board and still having it displayed. The clear plastic lid on the board's box has a shield-shaped indentation to match the cutout for the outer box, but is otherwise unmarked.


The accessories box has no fancy clear lid, but houses a staggering number of items. On top of the typical assortment of SATA cables (nicely sleeved in black and red), manual, support DVD, and SLI bridge, there is a whole host of add-on cables, including RGB LED adapter cables for several major RGB gaming brands, a 6.3 MM jack adapter, and more. These all come in a nice little storage bag with the MSI logo.

The real stars of the very populated MEG Z390 GODLIKE accessory roster are the M.2 expansion card and Streaming Boost card.


The MSI M.2 Xpander-Z is a PCI expansion card that offers two additional M.2 slots just in case the three already on the MEG Z390 GODLIKE aren't enough. The two slots include an M.2 shield, which also adds some thermal dissipation.


The MSI Streaming Boost is a video encoder card and comes in its own little box, which has specs and compatibility on the back and a little instruction diagram on the inside. The card takes an HDMI input and encodes it for one of several supported streaming programs. Streaming Boost can be used to easily stream mobile or console games, or can be placed in another PC so that you can dedicate every bit of the MEG Z390 GODLIKE to whatever game dares to challenge it while still putting out a quality stream.

The full list of accessories includes:

• Manual and support DVD
• Warranty card and quick install manual
• 1x MSI poster
• 1x Sheet of MSI cable label stickers
• 1x MSI badge
• 6x SATA 6 Gb/s sleeved cables
• 1x WiFi antenna
• 1x SLI HB bridge L
• 1x 6.3 MM audio adapter
• 1x RGB LED extension cable
• 1x Corsair RGB LED extension cable
• 1x Rainbow RGB LED extension cable
• 1x Corsair to Rainbow RGB extension cable
• 1x Thermistor cable
• 1x M.2 Xpander-Z
• 1x Streaming Boost