MSI Z390-A PRO Review – Complete Buyer’s Guide In 2022

Table of Contents

MSI Z390-A PRO Review

The biggest difference between the MSI Z390-A PRO and the rest of MSI’s Z390 family is that this board isn’t specifically aimed towards gaming maniacs.

The aesthetics are simple with a coffee-themed PCB which features silver patterning along with it; particularly around the edges of the board and around the silver and black heatsinks.

MSI Z390-A PRO Review In 2022- Complete Buyer’s Guide

MSI Z390-A PRO Review In 2021- Complete Buyer’s Guide

Core boost, 8+4 pin
Built for reliable operation
Operating system –
Intel turbo USB 3.1

The main selling point of t0he MSI Z39-A PRO is in its value with a good variety of controllers including an Intel I219V Gigabit Ethernet controller and a Realtek ALC892 HD audio codec handling the onboard audio.

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Features

On the board are two standard PCIe 3.0 slots with the top MSI Steel Slot coated slot running at x16 and the second full-length slot operating at x4.
The board also comes with a variety of PCIe 3.0 x1 ports as the Z390-A PRO has four in total.
The storage options are just the standard ones with this being the only Z390 MSI board to feature only one PCIe/SATA M.2 slot; this is complemented by a total of six SATA ports with support for RAID 0. 1. 5 and 10 arrays.
Speaking of memory, the board boasts four RAM slots with support for DDR4–4400 with a maximum capacity of up to 64 GB. Let’s talk about the rear panel now.
The MSI Z390-A PRO features a USB 3.1 Gen2 Type-A and Type-C port and four USB 2.0 ports; up to two USB 3.0 and four USB 2.0 ports can be made available through the use of internal headers.
A whopping six 3.5 mm audio jacks are powered by a Realtek ALC892 HD audio codec and a single LAN port run by an Intel I219V Gigabit networking chip.

The Z390-A PRO is the only MSI board to feature a D-Sub video output which seemingly replaces the HDMI.
You also get a DisplayPort and DVI-D output port.

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Pros

Audio Boost
Extended Heatsink Design
MSI extended PWM and enhanced circuit design ensures even high-end processors to run at full speed
Intel LAN
Premium network solution from Intel for professional and multimedia use.
Delivers a secure, stable, and fast network connection
Multi-GPU
Steel armor PCI-E slots
support for 2-Way AMD Crossfire

Cons

Relatively expensive for chipsets entry-level model

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Final Verdict:

The MSI Z390-A PRO is the cheapest Z390 motherboard from MSI at launch with a suggested retail price of around $120-140.
That might be viewed as expensive for the chipset’s entry-level model.
The board utilizes a decent set of controllers which further elevates the price and it in turn means users might need to increase their budgets a bit to make the jump to MSI’s Z390 platform; especially keeping in mind the equivalent models when the Z370 chipset first came about.