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MSI MPG Z490 Carbon EK X Review
Audio Quality »Finished Looks
Installing the block is a straightforward affair. Simply cut the thermal pads to size with a pair of scissors, apply the provided thermal paste to your installed CPU and then mount the block with the provided hardware. Be sure to use the provided plastic washers for all screws to prevent damage to the board.
The MSI MPG Z490 Carbon EK X really starts to shine once the RGB LEDs come into play. The large monoblock is the perfect platform for a robust RGB LED implementation.
Test System
| Test System | |
|---|---|
| Processor: | Intel Core i9-10900K 5.3 GHz (Max Boost Clock), 20 MB Cache |
| Memory: | 2x 8 GB DDR4 3600 MHz G.SKILL Trident Z Neo F4-3600C16Q-32GTZN |
| Cooling: | Custom loop: Swiftech Apogee SKF LT block, Bitspower SC6 pump, 360 mm radiator |
| BIOS Version: | 1.2 |
| Graphics Card: | EVGA RTX 2080 FTW3 Ultra |
| Harddisk: | 1x Crucial M4 128 GB SATA 6 Gb/s SSD (OS) 1x Crucial BX200 256 GB SATA 6 Gb/s SSD (Data) 1x Samsung 950 PRO M.2 (NVMe) |
| Power Supply: | Seasonic Titanium 1000 W |
| Case: | Primochill Praxis Wetbench |
| Software: | Windows 10 Pro 64-bit, NVIDIA GeForce 430.86 WHQL |
G.SKILL generously provided their excellent Trident Z Neo kit. Along with the new hardware, I will be implementing a new testing standard. Moving forward, I will be testing new platforms with XMP enabled.
Aug 23rd, 2024 16:59 EDT
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