MSI Z87 MPower Motherboard Review

As overclockers we often demand more from our hardware and want something that is specially built to help us reach insane levels regardless of what hardware we are planning to run.  Causal overclockers and hardware enthusiasts will often look to the mainstream for a suitable alternative but sometimes need more than what is available there.  The MSI Z87 MPower is an entry level overclocking motherboard that is designed to provide hardware enthusiasts with the overclocking control they need while also giving them added features they want.  

Benchtop options like voltage test points, onboard buttons for power and reset and a sizeable PWM are great features for the overclocker but features like onboard Sound Blaster quality audio combined with Killer Networks e2200 Ethernet ensure that when you are done overclocking you can enjoy low latency gaming and high quality studio sound.
 
Motherboard layout is quite good and follows, what appears to be, a typical design layout for dual GPU video card support.  Overal the design will support up to three graphics cards but is clearly optimized for dual card operation.  You will find a mSATA connection between the primary video card slots which can come in handy for SSD caching or benchmark sessions.

We were rather disappointed in the UEFI implementation.  The main menus are clearly marked but once you enter one the sub menus they lack titles indicating where you are and some of the options lack adequate descriptions.  Neither of these are all that important when you consider that most of the sub menus are for advanced users.
 
Overclocking the Z87 MPower was as easy as you would imagine but with some work we eventually got a solid 4.5Ghz out of our 4770K Haswell using straight multiplier adjustments.  The real challenge was with BCLK controls which are available in the UEFI and via onboard buttons however, any setting other than AUTO would cause the system to fail at POST.  Frankly given that failure we didn't even bother trying the onboard controls.  OC Genie worked extremely well and would give us a performance boost up to 4Ghz which was about 300Mhz more than with the basic turbo.

Despite the challenges with overclocking the Z87 MPower is a solid motherboard that acts more like a gaming motherboard than an overclocker.  This is reinforced by the onboard Killer Networks e2200 controller and separated Sound Blaster Cinema w/ Audio Boost.  Both of which are not needed in a pure overclocking situation but go a long way to bridge the markets.  As an overclocker the board is equipped with the right features including a 16-phase DigitALL PWM, large heatsinks and benchtop controls but given the extremely raw UEFI implementation and lack of BCLK controls just make it seem like this board was in the wrong category.

Dual Card SLI Support
Killer Nic e2200
Sound Blaster Cinema
Onboard Video
16-Phase DigitALL PWM
Gold Plated Audio Sockets
Separated Audio Electronics

Lack of BCLK adjustments
Getting lost in the UEFI menus