The Z690 (MSI) board you're referring to is likely the MSI Z690 AORUS PRO 2 GPU M.2 slot board.
The Z690 (MSI) board you're referring to is likely the MSI Z690 AORUS PRO 2 GPU M.2 slot board.
I was evaluating MSI Pro Z690-A versus Asus Prime Z690-P. Although the Asus model is more affordable, I was leaning toward the MSI version. My main concern was whether to opt for the Wi-Fi variant. The MSI Z690 Tomahawk Wi-Fi was on sale for $40 more, which made me think about upgrading for better VRM performance. I plan to use a 12700K processor. Recently, the Tomahawk price increased again. The MSI Z690 Edge Wi-Fi costs $70 more than the Pro-A model. I felt the $40 premium was worth it for the Tomahawk, but I doubt I’ll upgrade soon. With the improved VRM on the new board, I expect less airflow demand—so quieter operation. I know the MSI Pro Z690-A offers solid VRM, but others say it still needs strong cooling. The Tomahawk might be more manageable, though I’m not sure if it will run smoothly at stock speeds. I’ve seen several Z690 boards reviewed by Hardware Unboxed, and they seem to be mid-range Gigabyte models with higher temperatures. For the 12700K, the Tomahawk should still work fine on stock i7, but I’d need to confirm cooling needs. What advice would you give?
I recently installed the MSI Z690 EDGE in my new setup and it performed exceptionally well! While I don’t have direct experience with the other two boards, I’ve had MSI models in two builds and an ASUS ROG STRIX. I really prefer MSI products. Plus, the Z690 EDGE includes 12V and 5V RGB headers – that was a big plus for me. The other two might also have those features, but the EDGE offered more flexibility overall, which was a huge advantage. And the RGB dragon was awesome!
It's clearly the top choice among the three, though it costs $70 more (at least for me). That's why I emphasized it—if I had to pay extra, the additional $40 for the Tomahawk wasn't too harsh. For some reason, the Tomahawk recently rose in price while the Edge dropped, making the Edge cheaper right now. Odd. I didn’t expect motherboard prices to jump so much, but higher-end boards sometimes drop less than I thought. Still, since I plan to use a 12700K later, I’d prefer the Tomahawk or Edge if possible. I’ll keep an eye on the Tomahawk and see if it falls again.