A purported price list of upcoming MSI motherboards has leaked. The boards are from MSI’s Z790 Max line, which competes with the best motherboards on the market. These might be excellent for pairing with upcoming 14th Generation Raptor Lake Refresh processors like the Intel Core i7-14700K. However, the leaked list may prove that MSI isn’t shy about asking premium prices.
Leaker Chi11eddog has shared the MSI Z790 Max series motherboard MSRPs. However, perhaps you aren’t that surprised by these prices. The headlining MSI MEG Z790 Godlike Max at $1,299 is ‘only’ $100 more than the launch price of the flagship MSI MEG Z790 Godlike that it will usurp.
Next down the list is the MSI MEG Z790 Ace Max. At a touted $699, this is significantly costlier than the non-Max model at launch, with a near 15% premium applied. The rest of the range seems to have similarly pitched price increases – between 5% and 15% compared to the non-Max versions.
The price hikes aren’t coming without extra new features, though. As well as being ready for Intel’s 14th Gen Core Raptor Lake Refresh desktop processors fresh from the box, these boards are touted to deliver desirable features such as:
- Wi-Fi 7 and 5G Ethernet
- Advanced power delivery
- ‘Memory Boost’ with up to DDR5-7600 support
- Magnetically attached M.2 Frozr heatsinks
- Bundled USB4 PD100W expansion cards
It shouldn’t be long until we get complete official reveals of Z790 Max products from MSI and others. We understand that the boards will be launched in October alongside the first Intel Raptor Lake Refresh processors (several K-and KF-suffixed parts). Recent rumors suggest you should also be prepared to pay up to 15% more for the RPL refresh chips.
PC enthusiasts and DIYers are getting their pockets double-dipped – no surprise. However, the CPU performance benefits will be relatively meager – perhaps 5%. One exception may be the aforementioned Intel Core i7-14700K, as it is the only chip we know of that will be reconfigured in terms of P-and E-cores in its generational uplift.
