MSI Z170A PC MATE User Manual

Unpacking

Thank you for buying the MSI® Z170A PC MATE motherboard. Check to make sure your motherboard box contains the following items. If something is missing, contact your dealer as soon as possible.

SATA Cable x2

Drivers & Utilities

Disc

Motherboard User

Guide

I/O Shield

Motherboard

Safety Information

● The components included in this package are prone to damage from electrostatic

discharge (ESD). Please adhere to the following instructions to ensure successful computer assembly.

● Ensure that all components are securely connected. Loose connections may cause

the computer to not recognize a component or fail to start.

● Hold the motherboard by the edges to avoid touching sensitive components.

● It is recommended to wear an electrostatic discharge (ESD) wrist strap when

handling the motherboard to prevent electrostatic damage. If an ESD wrist strap is not available, discharge yourself of static electricity by touching another metal object before handling the motherboard.

● Store the motherboard in an electrostatic shielding container or on an anti-static pad

whenever the motherboard is not installed.

● Before turning on the computer, ensure that there are no loose screws or metal

components on the motherboard or anywhere within the computer case.

● Do not boot the computer before installation is completed. This could cause

permanent damage to the components as well as injury to the user.

● If you need help during any installation step, please consult a certified computer

technician.

● Always turn off the power supply and unplug the power cord from the power outlet

before installing or removing any computer component.

● Keep this user guide for future reference.

● Keep this motherboard away from humidity.

● Make sure that your electrical outlet provides the same voltage as is indicated on

the PSU, before connecting the PSU to the electrical outlet.

● Place the power cord such a way that people can not step on it. Do not place

anything over the power cord.

● All cautions and warnings on the motherboard should be noted.

● If any of the following situations arises, get the motherboard checked by service

personnel:

▶ Liquid has penetrated into the computer. ▶ The motherboard has been exposed to moisture. ▶ The motherboard does not work well or you can not get it work according to user

guide.

▶ The motherboard has been dropped and damaged. ▶ The motherboard has obvious sign of breakage.

● Do not leave this motherboard in an environment above 60°C (140°F), it may

damage the motherboard.

Quick Start

Intel® LGA 1151 CPU

DDR4 Memory

Graphics Card

SATA Hard Disk Drive

SATA DVD Drive

A Package of Screws

Phillips Screwdriver

Chassis

Power Supply Unit

CPU Fan Thermal Paste

Quick Start

Preparing Tools and Components

Quick Start

http://youtu.be/bf5La099urI

Installing a Processor

Quick Start

Installing DDR4 memory

http://youtu.be/T03aDrJPyQs

Quick Start

Connecting the Front Panel Header

http://youtu.be/DPELIdVNZUI

2 10

JFP1

1 HDD LED + 2 Power LED +

3 HDD LED - 4 Power LED -

5 Reset Switch 6 Power Switch

7 Reset Switch 8 Power Switch

9 Reserved 10 No Pin

RESET SW

POWER SW

POWER LED+

POWER LED-

HDD LED

RESET SW

JFP1

HDD LED

HDD LED HDD LED +

POWER LED POWER LED +

POWER LED

Quick Start

Installing the Motherboard

Quick Start

Installing SATA Drives

http://youtu.be/RZsMpqxythc

Quick Start

Installing a Graphics Card

http://youtu.be/mG0GZpr9w_A

Quick Start

Connecting Peripheral Devices

Quick Start

Connecting the Power Connectors

JPWR1

JPWR2

http://youtu.be/gkDYyR_83I4

Quick Start

Power On

Contents

Unpacking ................................................................................................................1

Safety Information ...................................................................................................2

Quick Start................................................................................................................3

Preparing Tools and Components ....................................................................... 3

Installing a Processor .......................................................................................... 4

Installing DDR4 memory ...................................................................................... 5

Connecting the Front Panel Header .................................................................... 6

Installing the Motherboard ................................................................................... 7

Installing SATA Drives ......................................................................................... 8

Installing a Graphics Card ................................................................................... 9

Connecting Peripheral Devices ......................................................................... 10

Connecting the Power Connectors .................................................................... 11

Power On ........................................................................................................... 12

Specifications ........................................................................................................15

Block Diagram ......................................................................................................19

Rear I/O Panel ........................................................................................................20

LAN Port LED Status Table ............................................................................... 20

Realtek HD Audio Manager ............................................................................... 20

Overview of Components ....................................................................................22

CPU Socket ....................................................................................................... 24

DIMM Slots ........................................................................................................ 25

PCI_E1~5, PCI1~2: PCIe/ PCI Expansion Slots ............................................... 26

SATA1~6: SATA 6Gb/s Connectors .................................................................. 27

SE1_21: SATAe Connector ............................................................................... 27

M2_1: M.2 Slot ................................................................................................... 28

JFP1, JFP2: Front Panel Connectors ................................................................ 29

JPWR1~2: Power Connectors ........................................................................... 30

JUSB3: USB 3.1 Gen1 Connector ..................................................................... 31

JUSB1~2: USB 2.0 Connectors......................................................................... 31

JAUD1: Front Audio Connector ......................................................................... 32

JTPM1: TPM Module Connector ....................................................................... 32

JCOM1: Serial Port Connector .......................................................................... 32

CPUFAN1~2,SYSFAN1~3: Fan Connectors ..................................................... 33

JLPT1: Parallel Port Connector ......................................................................... 34

JBAT1: Clear CMOS (Reset BIOS) Jumper ...................................................... 34

JCI1: Chassis Intrusion Connector .................................................................... 35

Contents

EZ Debug LED: Debug LED indicators ............................................................ 35

BIOS Setup .............................................................................................................36

Entering BIOS Setup ......................................................................................... 36

Resetting BIOS .................................................................................................. 37

Updating BIOS ................................................................................................... 37

EZ Mode ............................................................................................................ 38

Advanced Mode ................................................................................................ 40

SETTINGS ......................................................................................................... 41

Advanced ........................................................................................................... 41

Boot ................................................................................................................... 47

Security .............................................................................................................. 48

Save & Exit ........................................................................................................ 49

OC ..................................................................................................................... 50

M-FLASH ........................................................................................................... 56

OC PROFILE ..................................................................................................... 57

HARDWARE MONITOR .................................................................................... 58

Software Description ............................................................................................59

Installing Windows® 7/ 8.1/ 10 ........................................................................... 59

Installing Drivers ................................................................................................ 59

Installing Utilities ................................................................................................ 59

COMMAND CENTER ........................................................................................ 60

LIVE UPDATE 6 ................................................................................................ 64

M-CLOUD .......................................................................................................... 66

RAMDISK .......................................................................................................... 69

NETWORK GENIE ............................................................................................ 70

Intel

Extreme Tuning Utility .............................................................................. 72

RAID Configuration ...............................................................................................73

Using Intel® Rapid Storage Technology Option ROM ....................................... 73

Degraded RAID Array ........................................................................................ 76

Troubleshooting ...................................................................................................78

Regulatory Notices ...............................................................................................79

Speci󰄈cations

Specifications

CPU

Supports 6th Gen Intel® Core™ i3/i5/i7 processors, and Intel® Pentium® and Celeron® processors for Socket LGA1151

Chipset Intel

Z170 Express Chipset

Memory

● 4x DDR4 memory slots, support up to 64GB ▶ Supports DDR4 3200(OC)/ 3000(OC)/ 2800(OC)/

2600(OC)/ 2400/ 2133 MHz

● Dual channel memory architecture

● Supports ECC, un-buffered memory

● Supports Intel

Extreme Memory Profile (XMP)

Expansion Slots

● 2x PCIe 3.0 x16 slots (support x16, x16/ x4 modes)

● 3x PCIe 3.0 x1 slots

● 2x PCI slots

Onboard Graphics

● 1x HDMI

™

ports, support a maximum resolution of

4096x2160@24Hz

● 1x DVI-D port, support a maximum resolution of

1920x1200@60Hz

● 1x VGA port, support a maximum resolution of

1920x1200@60Hz

Multi-GPU

● Supports 2-Way AMD

CrossFire™ Technology

Storage

Intel

Z170 Express Chipset

● 6x SATA 6Gb/s ports* (2 ports reserved for SATA Express

port)

● 1x M.2 slot* ▶ Supports PCIe 3.0 x4 and SATA 6Gb/s standards,

4.2cm/ 6cm/ 8cm length M.2 SSD cards

▶ Supports PCIe 3.0 x4 NVMe Mini-SAS SSD with Turbo

U.2 Host Card**

● 1x SATAe port (PCIe 3.0 x2)***

● Support RAID 0, RAID1, RAID 5 and RAID 10 for SATA

storage devices.

● Supports Intel

Smart Response Technology for Intel

Core™ processors.

* SATA1~2 ports will be unavailable when installing the M.2 SATA interface

module in M.2 slot. SATA3~4 ports will be unavailable when installing the M.2 PCIe interface module in M.2 slot.

** The Turbo U.2 Host Card is not included, please purchase separately. *** SATAe port is backward compatible with SATA.

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Speci󰄈cations

Continued from previous page

USB

● ASMedia

ASM1142 Chipset

▶ 2x USB 3.1 Gen2 (SuperSpeed USB 10Gbps) ports on

the back panel

● Intel

Z170 Express Chipset

▶ 6x USB 3.1 Gen1 (SuperSpeed USB) ports (4 ports on

the back panel, 2 ports available through the internal USB 3.1 Gen1 connector)

▶ 4x USB 2.0 (High-speed USB) ports available through

the internal USB 2.0 connectors)

Audio

● Realtek

ALC887 Codec

● 7.1-Channel High Definition Audio

LAN

1x Realtek

RTL8111H Gigabit LAN controller

Back Panel Connectors

● 1x PS/2 mouse port

● 1x PS/2 keyboard port

● 1x VGA port

● 1x DVI-D port

● 1x HDMI

™

port

● 1x LAN (RJ45) port

● 4x USB 3.1 Gen1 ports

● 2x USB 3.1 Gen2 ports

● 3x audio jacks

Continued on next page

Speci󰄈cations

Continued from previous page

Internal Connectors

● 1x 24-pin ATX main power connector

● 1x 8-pin ATX 12V power connector

● 6x SATA 6Gb/s connectors

● 1x SATAe connector (is compatible with SATA1~2)

● 2x USB 2.0 connectors (support additional 4 USB 2.0

ports)

● 1x USB 3.1 Gen1 connector (supports additional 2 USB

3.1 Gen1 ports)

● 2x 4-pin CPU fan connectors

● 3x 4-pin system fan connectors

● 1x Front panel audio connector

● 2x Front panel connectors

● 1x TPM module connector

● 1x Chassis Intrusion connector

● 1x Serial port connector

● 1x Parallel port connector

● 1x Clear CMOS jumper

I/O Controller NUVOTON NCT6793 Controller Chip

Hardware Monitor

● CPU/System temperature detection

● CPU/System fan speed detection

● CPU/System fan speed control

Form Factor

● ATX Form Factor

● 12 in. x 8.9 in. (30.4 cm x 22.5 cm)

BIOS Features

● 1x 128 Mb flash

● UEFI AMI BIOS

● ACPI 5.0, PnP 1.0a, SM BIOS 2.8

● Multi-language

Continued on next page

Speci󰄈cations

Continued from previous page

Software

● Drivers

● COMMAND CENTER

● LIVE UPDATE 6

● FAST BOOT

● SUPER CHARGER

● M-CLOUD

● RAMDISK

● NETWORK GENIE

● Intel

Extreme Tuning Utility

● Norton™ Internet Security Solution

● Google Chrome™ ,Google Toolbar, Google Drive

MSI Exclusive Features

● CLICK BIOS 5 ▶ EZ Mode & Advanced Mode Switching ▶ Board Explorer ▶ Hardware Monitor

● COMMAND CENTER ▶ System Monitor ▶ Smart Fan Control

● RAMDISK

● LIVE UPDATE 6

● M-CLOUD

Specification Highlights

● DDR4 Boost Support ▶ Dual-Channel DDR4 Memory Support ▶ Isolated DDR4 Circuit Design ▶ DDR4 XMP Ready

● PCI Express 3.0 Support ▶ 2-Way AMD CrossFire

Support

● USB 3.1 Gen2 Ready ▶ USB 3.1 Gen2 (10 Gb/s) Type-A Ready

● SATA Express Support

● EZ Debug LED

Block Diagram

LPC Bus

2 x USB 3.1 Gen2

(10 Gbps)

Dual Channel DDR4 Memory

6 x USB 3.1 Gen1

(5 Gbps)

4 x SATA 6Gb/s

4 x USB 2.0

PCI Express Bus

P/S2 Mouse / Keyboard

Audio Jacks

DMI 3.0

Z170

CPU

NV6793

Super I/O

Realtek

ALC887

ASMEDIA ASM1142

PCI Express Bus

HDMI VGA DVI-D

PCIe x1

PCIe x4

1 x SATA Express

(2 x SATA 6Gb/s)

1 x M.2

PCI Bus

PCI x2

Rear I/O Panel

Realtek HD Audio Manager

After installing the Realtek HD Audio driver, the Realtek HD Audio Manager icon will appear in the system tray. Double click on this icon to launch.

Jack Status

Device Selection

Connector Strings

Profiles

Main Volume

Application Enhancement

Advanced Settings

Rear I/O Panel

PS/2 Mouse

LAN

USB 3.1 Gen2

USB 3.1 Gen1

PS/2 Keyboard

VGA Port

DVI-D Port

Line-in

Line-out

Mic-in

Link/ Activity LED

Status Description

Off No link

Yellow Linked

Blinking Data activity

Speed LED

Status Description

Off 10 Mbps connection

Green 100 Mbps connection

Orange 1 Gbps connection

LAN Port LED Status Table

Rear I/O Panel

● Device Selection - allows you to select a audio output source to change the related

options. The check sign indicates the devices as default.

● Application Enhancement - the array of options will provide you a complete

guidance of anticipated sound effect for both output and input device.

● Main Volume - controls the volume or balance the right/left side of the speakers

that you plugged in front or rear panel by adjust the bar.

● Profiles - toggles between profiles.

● Advanced Settings - provides the mechanism to deal with 2 independent audio

streams.

● Jack Status - depicts all render and capture devices currently connected with your

computer.

● Connector Settings - configures the connection settings.

Audio 7.1-channel Configuration

To configure 7.1-channel audio, you have to connect front audio I/O module to JAUD1 connector and follow the steps below.

1. Click on the Advanced Settings icon to open the dialog below.

2. Select Mute the rear output device, when a front headphone plugged in.

3. Plug your speakers to audio jacks on rear and front I/O panel. When you plug into

a device at an audio jack, a dialogue window will pop up asking you which device is current connected.

Overview of Components

CPUFAN1

PCI_E1

PCI_E2

PCI_E3

PCI_E4

PCI_E5

PCI1

PCI2

CPU SocketJPWR2

M2_1

DIMM1

SYSFAN1

DIMM2

DIMM3

DIMM4

JFP1

JFP2

JUSB1

JUSB2

JTPM1

JLTP1

JCOM1

SYSFAN2

JAUD1

CPUFAN2

JPWR1

JUSB3

SATA3_4

SE1_21

SYSFAN3

SATA5

SATA6

JBAT1

JCI1

EZ Debug LED

Overview of Components

Component Contents

Port Name Port Type Page

CPUFAN1~2,SYSFAN1~3 Fan Connectors 33

CPU Socket LGA1151 CPU Socket 24

DIMM1~4 DIMM Slots 25

EZ Debug LED Debug LED indicators 35

JAUD1 Front Audio Connector 32

JBAT1 Clear CMOS (Reset BIOS) Jumper 34

JCI1 Chassis Intrusion Connector 35

JCOM1 Serial Port Connector 32

JFP1, JFP2 Front Panel Connectors 29

JLPT1 Parallel Port Connector 34

JPWR1~2 Power Connectors 30

JTPM1 TPM Module Connector 32

JUSB1~2 USB 2.0 Connectors 31

JUSB3 USB 3.1 Gen1 Connector 31

M2_1 M.2 Slot 28

PCI_E1~5, PCI1~2 PCIe/ PCI Expansion Slots 26

SATA1~6 SATA 6Gb/s Connectors 27

SE1_21 SATAe Connector 27

Overview of Components

CPU Socket

Introduction to the LGA 1151 CPU

The surface of the LGA 1151 CPU has two notches and a golden triangle to assist in correctly lining up the CPU for motherboard placement. The golden triangle is the Pin 1 indicator.

Important

●

Always unplug the power cord from the power outlet before installing or removing the CPU.

●

Please retain the CPU protective cap after installing the processor. MSI will deal with Return Merchandise Authorization (RMA) requests if only the motherboard comes with the protective cap on the CPU socket.

●

When installing a CPU, always remember to install a CPU heatsink. A CPU heatsink is necessary to prevent overheating and maintain system stability.

●

Confirm that the CPU heatsink has formed a tight seal with the CPU before booting your system.

●

Overheating can seriously damage the CPU and motherboard. Always make sure the cooling fans work properly to protect the CPU from overheating. Be sure to apply an even layer of thermal paste (or thermal tape) between the CPU and the heatsink to enhance heat dissipation.

●

Whenever the CPU is not installed, always protect the CPU socket pins by covering the socket with the plastic cap.

●

If you purchased a separate CPU and heatsink/ cooler, Please refer to the documentation in the heatsink/ cooler package for more details about installation.

●

This motherboard is designed to support overclocking. Before attempting to overclock, please make sure that all other system components can tolerate overclocking. Any attempt to operate beyond product specifications is not recommended. MSI® does not guarantee the damages or risks caused by inadequate operation beyond product specifications.

Overview of Components

DIMM Slots

DIMM1 DIMM3

Channel A Channel B

DIMM2 DIMM4

Memory module installation recommendation

DIMM4 DIMM4

DIMM3

DIMM2 DIMM2 DIMM2

DIMM1

Important

●

Always insert memory modules in the DIMM2 slot first.

●

Due to chipset resource usage, the available capacity of memory will be a little less than the amount of installed.

●

Based on Intel CPU specification, the Memory DIMM voltage below 1.35V is suggested to protect the CPU.

●

Please note that the maximum capacity of addressable memory is 4GB or less for 32-bit Windows OS due to the memory address limitation. Therefore, we recommended that you to install 64-bit Windows OS if you want to install more than 4GB memory on the motherboard.

●

Some memory may operate at a lower frequency than the marked value when overclocking due to the memory frequency operates dependent on its Serial Presence Detect (SPD).

●

It is recommended to use a more efficient memory cooling system for full DIMMs installation or overclocking.

●

The stability and compatibility of installed memory module depend on installed CPU and devices when overclocking.

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MSI Z170A PC MATE User Manual

Specifications and Main Features

Frequently Asked Questions

User Manual