Inside The Aegis X
Once again we must remind everyone that MSI sent this barebones filled with additional components that it wanted to see displayed in our photos. Rather than show a buildup, we’ll show a tear-down as we remove the graphics, drives, RAM, and CPU that aren’t included in the Aegis X-001BUS base model.
Because the right side-panel is secured with a screw under the top panel, removing the top panel is the first step in building (or disassembling) the Aegis X. A single 2.5” tray is found here. Two empty 3.5” drive trays are located under the (included) Hitachi/LG model GUD0N 8x DVD burner.
Two screws hold a clamping bracket to secure a graphics card. Removing these allows the user’s graphics card to slide out of the Aegis X PCIe 3.0 x16 riser card.
Removing two screws atop and two screws aback the riser bracket gives builders easy access to the closed-loop liquid cooler (CLLC), a DDR4 SO-DIMM slot, and a PCIe 3.0 x4 M.2 slot. Both the DRAM and M.2 slots are empty in the stock configuration.
The other DDR4-SODIMM and M.2 slots are found on the back of the Aegis X motherboard. MSI delivered this system as they would like their buyers to build it, with dual-channel memory and dual M.2 cards in RAID 0.
Other than a couple front-panel features, the 92mm liquid CPU cooler is the closest thing MSI’s Aegis X has to a proprietary part. It’s interchangeable with the $85 Asetek 545LC, if you know where to find one.
Though we haven’t found a documented form factor, several manufacturers label their 100mm x 40.5mm power supplies 1U, with various lengths ranging from 190mm to 250mm. At 220mm long, the Fortron Source model FSP600-40UGSBE included by MSI is 80 PLUS Silver rated to 600W. Open-market replacements up to 500W are readily found at that length, and the base of the Aegis X has a little extra space at the front for those who’d like to try cramming in a longer unit. On the other hand, the included 600W part appears a little overkill. We can’t think of an easy way to cram more than 500W of components into a system this small.
