MSI MAG X870 Tomahawk WiFi review

Despite being announced at the same time as AMD's Ryzen 9000-series desktop processors, motherboards sporting AMD's new 800-series chipset have taken a good while to arrive. But they're here now and the first one to arrive in the PC Gamer hardware tower is the MSI MAG X870 Tomahawk Wi-Fi.

Ostensibly, it's a very similar motherboard to MSI's X670E Tomahawk but there are a whole host of improvements, though not because of the new X870 chipset. Think of that as being a 'do-over' of the X670/X670E, rather than bringing any sweeping changes to the fore.

AMD's Ryzen processors have built-in controllers for USB ports and PCIe lanes, so all the chipset does is basically offer more connections. X870E motherboards sport two expansion chips, just like the current X670E models, whereas X870 ones, such as this MSI board, just have one. But, when one looks at all of the ports available, that's going to be more than enough for most PC gamers.

The rear IO panel of the MAG X870 Tomahawk is jam-packed with USB ports, including two 40 Gbps USB4 Type-C, which also double as Thunderbolt 4 sockets. There's another Type-C in there, though only rated to 10 Gbps, but then you've got three more of that speed in Type-A form, plus another three at 5 Gbps and four USB 2.0 sockets. And that doesn't include all the headers on the motherboard for front-mounted USB ports. 

Socket: AMD AM5
Chipset: AMD X870
CPU compatibility: AMD Ryzen 7000/8000/9000 desktop
Form factor: ATX
Memory support: DDR5-4800 to DDR5-8400+(OC), up to 256 GB
Storage: 4x M.2, 4x SATA
USB (rear): 2x USB4 Type-C 40 Gbps, 1x USB 3.1 Type-C 10 Gbps, 1x USB 3.1 Type-A 10 Gbps, 3x USB 3.0 Type-A 5 Gbps, 4x USB 2.0 Type-A
Display: 1x HDMI 2.1, 2x USB/Thunderbolt 4
Networking: Intel 2.5G LAN, Wi-Fi 7
Audio: Realtek ALC4080
Price: $299.99 / £279.98 / AU$548.19

Normally, that level of USB-ness is the preserve of top-end, mega-bucks boards so you may be wondering how MSI has managed it on a $300 offering. The answer lies in the fact that