MSI Z77IA-E53 LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Mini ITX Intel Motherboard with UEFI BIOS

Pros: Z77 chipset on a Mini ITX board.
OC Genie.
Pretty.

Cons: None.

Other Thoughts: OC Genie pushed my 3570K to 4.2 GHz

Pros: Everything you need in one sweet little package.

mSATA slot for onboard SSD is the cats meow. Bluetooth and Wifi built in. Wifi works without antenna if you are close to hotspot.

MSI default OC is rock stable and it automatically picked up the correct XMP settings

Cons: Driver installation was funky. Couldn't get wireless to work off the included CD. Bluetooth didn't work until the 4th "install all" off the CD.

Updated drivers off of the download page which is always good idea anyway, just frustrating to not be able to get function out of the box.

Small box for small mobo meant really small manual, lacking some detail.

Nothing worth loss of a star, Nothing a competent computer builder shouldn't be able to figure out.

Other Thoughts: Had an Alienware M17X gen 4 for Gaming on the Road and at friends houses, but playing on that little 17" screen just isn't doing it for me anymore. Spoiled with 2560X1440 so I built a small box to bring on the roadin a SUGO duffle bag item N82E16811999041 and a cheap 2560X1440 to tag along.

i5 3570k @ 4.2
Cooler Master Elite 120
Antec Kuhler 620
Plextor M5M PX-256M5M mSATA SSD
16GB Crucial Ballistix Tactical CAS8 1.35V 1600
Thermaltake 675W semi-modular
EVGA 690 GTX
LG Blu-Ray
SUGO duffle N82E16811999041

My original plans were to go with the stock heatsink but when I had the case apart I realized I could bolt a 120MM based radiator right thru the existing front fan mount and use the existing fan. An 1/8" drill bit and 5 minutes later, I had the 7 rivets for the HDD cage drilled out and the cage removed. Removed the existing bolts for the front case fan and used the antec Kuhler fan bolts right thru the existing fan holes to bolt the radiator to the fan.

I then decided on the mSATA SSD after testing and research showed no performance loss from choosing this interface. The alternative is to go with a slim ODD bay where you can use a laptop ODD and 2 SSD slots.

Went with default MSI overclock and it's been rock solid at 100% load for 9 days with 64 degree temps running F@H

3DMARK 11 score of X6037 which is pretty solid.

Amazingly quiet with CPU and GPU at 100% load, but it is a heater. Not ideal for a 100% load 24/7 build, but it is capable and can handle it.

Pros: It's a nice board so far, lots of features.

Cons: I recieved the motherboard packaged in the shipping box as just the motherboard with NOTHING else included. Isn't this thing supposed to come with antenna that go on the motherboard for the wifi? I've never bought a motherboard that has came in this sort of fashion, aka "OEM" type packaging. curious if the wifi works without an antenna attached.

Manufacturer Response:

Dear Valued Customer,

We apologize for the issues that you are having with this product.

There should be an antenna included with the product. Please give us a call to obtain a replacement antenna at 626.271.1004 during regular business hours from M to F, 9am to 6pm Pacific Time.
Or you can email us at usreview@msi.com, thank you.

Best Regards,
MSI Review Team | usreview@msi.com

Pros: It has lots of features, was very easy to set up, and I loved the cables to plug the front panel connections into before plugging into the motherboard. Makes for a quick easy setup.

Cons: Mine is also plagued with a boot loop, where it will power on, and off without actually booting. If I pull the power from the box, let it sit, the BIOS resets and then it will start up. Still need to check to see if I have a battery on it that needs replacing, but this shouldn't be the case right out of the box.

I have a suspicion I will need to RMA this unit. I will update after that experience if it warrents it.

Manufacturer Response:

Dear Valued Customer,

We apologize for the issues that you are having with this product.
Please kindly contact us with your system configuration so we can try to troubleshoot the issue for you.
Additionally, please inspect the socket pins and make sure there are no bent pins. You can also try updating the BIOS to the latest version from below URL.
http://www.msi.com/product/mb/Z77IA-E53.html#/?div=BIOS

If you have any questions, feel free to get in touch with our tech support team directly at 626.271.1004 for assistance during regular business hours from M to F, 9am to 6pm Pacific Time.
Or you can email us at usreview@msi.com, thank you.

Best Regards,
MSI Review Team | usreview@msi.com

Pros: Excellent User manual with no unnecessary garbage. MSI BIOS is easy to use. Put this in a purple fanned Lian Li 08B (and USB 3.0 onboard header works perfect with this case) with 16G Ballistix Sport, 1 Samsung 840 Pro 128, i5 3570k, Akasa - All In One 2 control panel, Asus ext CD/DVD burner & a Corsair 430 Modular, M-Audio AV40 speakers & an Asus Xonar sound card. Wrapped all wires in purple loom. Used Rosewill Red Bladed CPU cooler ($9.99 & runs at idle lol) Awesome little build. Sound cards are very worthwhile with good speakers, what sound!

Cons: Only 1 USB 2.0 & 1 3.0 onboard expansion port. I cannot use my 5-1 card reader on my AKASA All In One 2 WITH A USB 2.0 LEAD.. I know there is some sort of SATA adapter surely!

Other Thoughts: Newegg rocks like they did a decade ago.

Pros: feature rich, wifi works well/comes with 2 dif antenna, plenty of i/o, Mini-PCIe / m-SATA slot, Quality VRM heatsink,

Cons: came with boot-looping issue/did not start easily(which a bios update would not fix).. usb3 socket was missing(pins were there tho) completely died after 1 month of light usage, MSI phone tech was incompetent, he asked me how many watts my PSU was running. To which i answered "450". He then told me "that was too small, our board like more power" and went on to suggesting a 600watt PSU...(btw i did try my 1000w nzxt psu while troubleshooting, so i allready knew this was bull) If anyone is wondering i did tell him i was only running an i3 3220 and an HD 7750 with 1 ssd. (450 watts was ALREADY overkill!!!)

only other cons would be the placement of the 8pin cpu power and the flimsy feel to the wifi jack....not huge dealbreakers tho imho...

Other Thoughts: I will write another review once the refubished board comes in...If it comes w/no startup issues i will upgrade that review to a 5egg to make an overall average of 4 for my review, conversely if this cannot be resolved i will re-review at a 1egg for an average of 2...

Manufacturer Response:

Dear Valued Customer,

We apologize for the issues that you are having with this product and hopefully the replacement will work as it's supposed.

Please kindly visit the URL below to set up a RMA with the following information.
http://service.msicomputer.com/msi_user/rma_form_new.aspx

1. Full name (first, and last)
2. Telephone #
3. Physical address
4. Email address
5. Serial number (located on the box, or underneath the motherboard, eg 601-xxxx-xxxBxxxxxxxxxx)
6. Symptoms you are having onto the Special Remark section (as detailed as possible)

Once your information and warranty coverage are verified then we can proceed with this RMA for you.
Our turn-around time is typically two weeks and our system will notify you automatically at every stage of your RMA process.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding the product, received the unit back from RMA but are still having issues, please do not hesitate to contact us directly at usreview@msi.com and we will be more than happy to assist you, thank you.

Best Regards,
MSI Review Team | usreview@msi.com

Pros: I haven't gotten this mobo, but it looks AWESOME, judging by the reviews and the specs.

Cons: none

Other Thoughts: I am wondering if I should get this mobo. Can it support a dedicated graphics card besides the onboard one?

Pros: Easy to install
Easy to configure
Excellent connection features
Great overclocking
Great included software

Cons: Can't think of any

Other Thoughts: I've had this board up and running for a couple of weeks, and there are no problems whatsoever. I used the built-in overclocking feature, and it bumped my i5-3570K from 3.4 up to 4.2 with no issues, no significant heat, and the stock cooler. Beautiful!

Pros: high quality, has bluetooth and wireless. Easy setup in UEFI. Runs as advertised. You will fall in love with this board.

Cons: CPU location does not leave you with much choice for cooler options if you wish to use the PCIe slot for anything.

Other Thoughts: I got this board because the last ITX "performance" board did not live up to what was advertised. This board will OC awesome and will wake from S3 even with 16 GB of RAM on a 64 Bit OS. The bluetooth and wireless USB dongles are just snapped on the tops, and if you are very careful, you can remove them if you don't want those options. I have been building PCs for 15 years now, and even though MSI is not well known in some areas, they have always made great and reliable products. If you want a problem free ITX board, this is it.

Pros: This is my first mini itx build so i was worried about receiving a DOA or malfunctioning component, specially the mobo, but luckily everything worked like a charm!. The layout of the board is very nice and easy to work,also it looks and feels of great quality, the colors are nice too, the bios is simple, elegant and easy to manage and overclocking have never been so easy with the oc genie II msi app. In other words, this is an awesome board and i really recommend it!!

Cons: Nothing really, just the wifi antenna feels kind of clunky and cheap apart of that it works fine

Other Thoughts: Coming from an asus mobo, i have to admit that they aint the only best choice on this area, MSI has surprised me with this and their great quality, so if you are interesting in this mobo dont hesitate and buy it! you wont regret it!