MSI X299 Gaming Pro Carbon AC Preview

Introduction

The X99 setup might be the type of one that we all dream about before we check our bank balances and buy something more realistic, but its importance as a marker cannot be overstated.

What is the peak of the Intel range right now, will be the thing we’re buying in a year or so, as well as affecting the entire market such is the overwhelming influence of Intel and whatever they are currently putting on show. So no, most of us aren’t going to be immediately affected by the release of the Intel X299 chipset, but we’re all interested. We’re all excited. It’s a glimpse into the future, only one that doesn’t require the use of a time machine and the paradoxes that implies.

First up in the OC3D office is the MSI X299 Gaming Pro Carbon AC. One of those lengthy titles that actually makes sense once you break it down. We’ll call it the Carbon though. So far we’ve seen a few Carbon motherboards and they’ve all been full of nice touches, but as MSI have refined certain elements across their entire range we think this is the first time they’ve coagulated into a whole ideology.

Technical Specifications

The Kabylake and Skylake processors get an upgrade to the X version, both of which are supported by the X299. It’s almost as if Intel understand most of us can’t stretch to a i7-6950X and so they’ve allowed both processors to be run on the same motherboard, that way next year instead of upgrading your whole system you can just bung a monster of a CPU in there are enjoy the benefits without needing a wholesale rebuild. As you would expect from a more recent take on a previous generation the X299 is very much an X99 but bigger, better, faster, more. More PCI Express lanes to take advantage of the plethora of M.2 drives flooding the market. More USB 3.1 ports to expand our bandwidth capabilities to new levels, and a refined DDR4 trace that brings better memory bandwidth to the party too. Let’s get a close look at the Carbon before we run through a few slides of the new features.