MSI MAG Z790 Tomahawk MAX WiFi Motherboard Review

Estimated reading time: 18 minutes

Introduction

We thought we were done with the Raptor Lake a.k.a Intel 13th Gen processors but that just wasn’t the case. With the arrival of Intel’s Raptor Lake Refresh processors, motherboard manufacturers have rushed to shell out their updated LGA 1700 Z790 motherboards. The LGA 1700 platform was introduced in October 2021 with Intel’s Alder Lake processors using the Z690 platform. The same platform was carried over for the 13th Gen processors which was meant to be the last LGA 1700 platform, but such wasn’t the case. Intel bought new life to Raptor Lake; motherboard manufacturers used this opportunity to refresh their stack of products.

MSI unveiled its own stack of updated Z790 motherboards. Today we will look at the MSI MAG z790 Tomahawk MAX WiFi Motherboard, refreshed from the “non-MAX” motherboard for Intel 13th Gen CPUs. This is the bottom most model of MSI’s updated line-up.

Testing Methodology

With 10+ years of motherboard reviewing experience, one thing we have realised it that raw benchmarks do not do justice to what a motherboard is all about. As is, comparing the benchmark numbers of a basic motherboard versus a top-end motherboard of the same platform yields at a maximum variation of 5% ONLY. A that 5% is exceptional, the norm delta being 1 – 2%. So, we think to ourselves, what is the point of running all the benchmarks when it only tells a small part of the story.

We went back to the drawing board and thought about what makes a motherboard a good motherboard. How are people (not benchmarkers) really using a motherboard? To really understand a motherboard, one needs to look beyond the benchmarks. One thing is clear, motherboard is usually meant to stay, unlike hard drives, graphic cards, RAM sticks and coolers. People tend to upgrade these components in higher frequency than they would upgrade their motherboards.

So, in order to judge a motherboard, its long term usability and ability to absorb upgrades become of utmost importance. With that, a motherboard’s ability to take abuse, i.e., lots of swapping of components, is important too. This is what we call durability. A motherboard might perform 1% faster than another, but if it has flimsy PCI slot latches which lose its mechanism with just a few switches is of no good.

Other factors that tell the story of a motherboard are the IO panel connectors, the expandability of front panel connectors, the quality of connectors, capacitors, layout, power management, ease-of-use, ease-of-upgrades, ease-of-configuration, BIOS etc. These are more real-life aspects that decided whether a motherboard is good or not.

On iLLGaming, we will talk about the above-mentioned aspects and judge a motherboard accordingly. If you’re looking for raw benchmarks, there are gazillions of websites you can consult. We will refrain from posting benchmark numbers unless they are significantly different (more than 3%) from other motherboards in the same chipset family.

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The MSI Z790 Tomahawk MAX WiFi

The MSI Z790 Tomahawk MAX Wi-Fi is a mid-range offering from the company sitting above the budget-oriented PRO series and below the enthusiast range MPG series. It features Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4, a sophisticated 16+1+1 capacitor power interface for the processor, Gen 5 NVMe support, a plethora of high-speed ports and other features carried over from the non MAX model that it replaces.

In the Box

Unboxing the motherboard, we find the following accessories included:

• 2x M.2 replaceable clips
• 2x SATA III cables
• 1x front panel header extension cable
• Non-adjustable magnetic Wi-Fi 7 antennae
• MSI USB Pen Drive with drivers and utilities
• Quick Installation Guide

The contents of the box aren’t overwhelming, but we would have liked an adjustable Wi-Fi antenna.

Visual Inspection

A detailed visual inspection of a motherboard can tell you a lot about it offers. On first sight, the MSI Z790 Tomahawk MAX WiFi seems and feels like a well put-together board, with no cheesy RGB nor unnecessary super-angular heatsinks. It is a pretty neat layout, albeit a little different from what other manufacturers offer. We are fans of the all-black PCB which looks neat sitting in a glass cabinet.

The motherboard is laden with black heatsinks across its surface, all carrying green highlights and other green coloured branding and marking. The green adds a nice “digital” touch to the look of the motherboard. The motherboard does not come with any embedded RGB lights. Now while we appreciate this move by MSI, this will leave some RGB-suckers disappointed. On the contrary, there are an ample number of RGB headers located on the board.

The IO shield on the MSI Z790 Tomahawk MAX WIFI is integrated with the motherboard itself. That means, no longer IO alignment issues. We’re happy to see this premium feature included in the Tomahawk.

A Whole Lotta Heatsinks

All heatsinks in the MAG Z790 Tomahawk MAX WIFI are passively cooled. There are four M.2 slots on the board, and MSI has included heatsinks for all four. The third and fourth share a common heatsink, where we would have liked a separate one. Why, may you ask? That is because if you’re using one NVMe with an attached heatsink and one without in Slot No. 3 and 4, the SSD in Slot 4 without the heatsink wont be able to fit the included heatsink due to obstruction from the SSD in Slot 3.

A positive aspect about the M.2 heatsinks is their weight; they are hefty for their size, signifying good quality. The heatsink for the first M.2 slot doesn’t require a tool for removal/insertion. It works with a simple push mechanism, which is nifty!

“EZ Latch” Isn’t Perfect

All four M.2 slot feature tool-free mechanism to slot in a drive, but we’re kind of disappointed at the quality of the “EZ latch”. Two out of four slots had faulty mechanisms where we just couldn’t secure our drives in a proper fashion. MSI has provided replacement clips but they should have been of a sturdier quality in the first place. Seems like the board couldn’t withstand couple of M.2 ejections and insertions.

Storage

The first M.2 Slot (M2_1) supports PCIe 5.0, and is connected directly to the CPU. The 2nd and 3rd M.2 slots support PCIe 4.0. The forth M.2 slot is also Gen 4 but can support both NVMe and SATA SSDs. One thing to note is that the M2_1 slot shares PCIe lanes with the PCIe x16 slot for the graphics card. That means that if you install a drive in M2_1, the PCIe x16 slot will operate as x8, with half of its original bandwidth. This is mainly due to the limitations of the Z790 chipset. This means, if you want to use your graphics card with its full potential, do not connect anything to M2_1 slot!

MSI has included eight SATA III ports. Six of them are in a right-angle configuration, the remaining two are located at the bottom edge in straight-angled configuration. Z790 supports up 6 SATA slots max, the support for the other two comes with a separate ASMedia ASM1061 controller that is soldered onto the board. Eight SATA ports along with 4 PCIe ports, is that even normal? There’s reason why MSI has provided an external controller for more SATA ports, let us explain.

The ports labelled SATA_1 and SATA_2 share lanes with M2_3 slot. That means that if you connect a drive to the M2_3 slot, the SATA_1 and SATA_2 slots will be disable. This is why the extra controller for the two extra SATA slots.

VRM and Memory

The MSI MAG Z790 Tomahawk MAX WIFI comes with a 16+1+1 power phase design with 90A power stages for delivering power. This setup can easily power the i9 CPUs from both 13th and 14th Gen. The power capacitors are neatly covered with large heatsinks. MSI has a good history and reputation when it comes to power specs, especially with its Tomahawk motherboard, and the MAG Z790 Tomahawk MAX WIFI is no different. This can even power a liquid nitrogen cooled CPU.

Just like all Z790 boards, the MAG Z790 Tomahawk MAX WIFI supports DDR5 memory, but the clock speeds have now gone up to 7800 MHz. We would have loved to test the motherboard with 7800Mhz RAM but the fastest we had was 6000Mhz. This platform can support a maximum memory of upto 192GB RAM. All four slots have dual-tabbed design and support Intel XMP 3.0.

The MAG Z790 Tomahawk MAX WIFI is a modern board that offers a USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type C Front Panel Header, if your cabinet supports it. You also get two USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type A front panel headers located in the bottom area. Each header supports two USB ports, totalling to four USB A port support.

PCIe x16 and x4 slots

There is one PCIe 5.0 x16 slot for a graphics card. The slot is reinforced with “Steel Armour” to reinforce the force use with heavy graphics cards like the GeForce RTX 4080 and the 4090. At least for the time of our reviewing the board (around 2 weeks), we witnessed no sagging, a common occurrence with heavy GPUs.

The next PCIe slot we were happy to see was the PCIe 3.0 x1 slot. Many motherboard manufacturers have started ignoring this slot in their mid-range offerings. This slot is used for other expansion cards like sound card, PCIe SSD etc. This slow is a good distance below the PCIe x16 slot, so if you have a thick GPU, you can still fit in your small PCIe x1 card and give it back panel access. At the bottom is the last PCIe 4.0 x 16 slot that runs in x4 mode.

Premium Audio Codec

The MAG Z790 Tomahawk MAX WIFI comes with Realtek ALC4080 Audio Codec. This is a premium audio codec that features high-grade Japanese capacitors for noise reduction, signal processing and advanced sampling. The audio quality was nothing short of spectacular for a motherboard of this price. It could even give our dedicated sound card the ASUS Xonar DX a run for its money. We’re always happy to see a good audio codec on a motherboard, it really transforms the content consumption and gaming experience. Many users with basic audio codecs don’t even realise what they’re missing out until they get a motherboard like the MAG Z790 Tomahawk MAX WIFI with a proper premium codec.

WIFI Connectivity

One of the features MSI seems to be counting high on with the MAG Z790 Tomahawk MAX WIFI motherboard is WIFI 7. The WIFI 7 module is a Qualcomm QCNCM865 module located below the VRM heatsinks. This module also enables Bluletooth 5.4 connectivity. WIFI 7 uses all of the 2.4Ghz, 5Ghz and 6Ghz bands, and supports speeds of up to 46Gbps. WIFI 7 as a technology is going to be a game changer for wireless connectivity, being about 4.8x faster than Wi-Fi 6.

The included antennae by MSI could have been better though. We have seen motherboards that cost half the price of the MAG Z790 Tomahawk MAX WIFI but offer better antennae than the MSI. The antennae’s that MSI has provided is light, almost too light, and is non-adjustable. The non-adjustable part really starts to hurt when you realise that the antennae’s has only one side that is magnetic.

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Leaving the antennae issue aside, we can across another problem with the WIFI unit. This might be an isolated incident specific to our review unit, we are not sure, but many other users have faced this with MSI Z790 boards too. Here goes. Everything was working just fine with the WIFI, then one fine day we switch on the computer to find out the WIFI adapter was not being detected. The Bluetooth was, not the WIFI. If failed to show up even in Device Manager.

We tried the generic steps, reinstall drivers, reinstall Windows, do a power flush etc. etc., nothing worked. Internet was being supplied to our test PC by tethering with a mobile phone. Then we did what every PC builder would do next, remove all components and wires and reconnect everything. This seemed to solve our problem. We realised that there is some issue with the M2_1 slot that clashes with the WIFI module. The moment we removed the M2_1 drive, WIFI worked. When we slotted in an NVMe drive in the M2_1 slot, the WIFI stopped working again. As mentioned above, the M2_1 slot has lanes directly to the CPU, and so does the WIFI module, Maybe there is some sort of clash that is causing the WIFI to malfunction.

Fan and RGB Headers

The MSI MAG Z790 Tomahawk MAX WIFI comes with ample fan headers, namely 1x CPU_FAN, 1x PUMP_FAN and 6x SYS_FAN. Rest assured you can fill your full-tower cabinet with fans and still be left with a handful of free free headers. The story carries over to the RGB headers. You get 3 aRGB headers and 1x 12V RGB header. Two of these headers are located right next to the CPU_FAN header, so you can conveniently connect you RGB AIO without having to route your cables.

USB4 Expansion Card

An interesting addition to the MAG Z790 Tomahawk MAX WIFI motherboard is the USB4 Add-on card header. This is meant for a dedicated USB4 PCIe expansion card sold sold separately by MSI. This expansion card comes with two USB4 40GB/s Type-C ports that support 100W and 27W charging, along with two DisplayPort connectors. Interesting indeed!

EZ Debug LEDs for troubleshooting boot behaviour related to RAM/GPU/CPU/SSD and Safe Boot header for resetting the BIOS are standard in this motherboard.

Rear I/O Panel

At the rear I/O panel of the MAG Z790 Tomahawk MAX WIFI, we have an almost luxurious selection of ports, featuring the latest technologies in the latest platforms. Here goes:

• 4x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A (5 Gbps)
• 4x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A (10 Gbps)
• 2x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C (20 Gbps)
• 1x DisplayPort 1.4 (upto 8K resolution at 60Hz refresh rate)
• 1x HDMI 2.1 (upto 4K resolution at 60Hz refresh rate)
• 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet port
• WIFI antennae connectors
• Audio jack connectors (with Front/Rear/Center/Sub/SPDIF/Line-in and Optical)
• Clear CMOS button
• Flash BIOS button

The Flash BIOS button can be used to update the BIOS without having to install the CPU.

BIOS/UEFI

MSI has always been known for its good BIOS, and the MAG Z790 Tomahawk MAX WIFI is no different. The BIOS is much, much intuitive than what the competition offers. Flashing the BIOS is easy process that can even be done by browsing the BIOS files in your hard drive directly from the BIOS. XMP profiles are easily visible and accessible. The MSI BIOS does a good job in hiding advanced (read: risky) settings. However, if you know what you are, all settings reveal themself provided you dig deeper. The BIOS also does a good job in optimising for various overclocking settings.

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Conclusion

The MSI MAG Z790 Tomahawk MAX WIFI motherboard is in principal a solid motherboard that offers features that will do for most users if not all. On the plus side, the motherboard offers tons of expandability whether it is storage, add-on cards, fans, RGB lights, or anything else. Add to that a sleuth of ports in the back and tons of options for multiple front panel ports. Its power delivery interface is flagship grade and can handle the 13th and 14th Gen i9 and i7 processors with ease. Throw in some overclocking and you’re still in pretty good hands with MSI. The icing on the cake is an exceptional audio codec that will elevate your media consumption quality levels.

On the flip, the motherboard is marred by a couple of quirks. While these might not be major, they might be a make or break for somebody. Flimsy EZ latches for NVMe drives, shared lanes for SSDs, questionable Wi-Fi controller and an absolutely underwhelming Wi-Fi antenna.

We recommend the MSI MAG Z790 Tomahawk MAX WIFI motherboard to anyone looking to build a mid-range or high-end desktop that will last them a bunch of years – gamers and productivity user alike. The entire motherboard (barring the NVMe latches) can handle the abuse of constantly swapping parts, and has high quality capacitors that can handle random anomalies with ease.

The MAG Z790 Tomahawk MAX WIFI currently retails at around INR 34,000/-. This price bracket is filled with tons of options. We reckon going for this motherboard if the quality of power is important to you. If you’re seeking other features within this price bracket, the competitors have options that might tickle your fantasy. We would had a winner in our hand if it wasn’t for the slight niggles, but it just wasn’t meant to be.

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This motherboard was provided to us by MSI on returnable basis. No transaction in monetary terms nor barter terms were initiated by iLLGaming or MSI. We thank our hardware sponsors Intel, MSI, Cooler Master, Nvidia and Kingston for sponsoring the components of our test bench.