MSI Z490-A Pro Manual

4.5 (2)

Quick Start

Thank you for purchasing the MSI® Z490-A PRO motherboard. This Quick Start section provides demonstration diagrams about how to install your computer. Some of the installations also provide video demonstrations. Please link to the URL to watch it with the web browser on your phone or tablet. You may have even link to the URL by scanning the QR code.

Preparing Tools and Components

Intel® LGA 1200 CPU

CPU Fan

Chassis

DDR4 Memory

Power Supply Unit

Graphics Card

 

Thermal Paste

SATA Hard Disk Drive

SATA DVD Drive

 

Phillips Screwdriver

A Package of Screws

Quick Start 1

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.

2 Safety Information

MSI Z490-A Pro Manual

Installing a Processor

2

 

1

https://youtu.be/4ce91YC3Oww

 

3

 

7

 

4

5

9

 

6

8

Safety Information 3

Installing DDR4 memory

http://youtu.be/T03aDrJPyQs

 

 

DIMMA1

DIMMA2

DIMMA2

DIMMA2

 

DIMMB2

DIMMB1

 

 

DIMMB2

4 Safety Information

Connecting the Front Panel Header

http://youtu.be/DPELIdVNZUI

 

 

-

 

 

 

LED

 

LED+

POWER

 

POWER

 

LED

 

SW

HDD

 

 

POWER

 

 

SW

 

 

 

RESET

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Power LED

 

Power Switch

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

+ - + -

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

JFP1

2

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

10

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

9

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

+ - - +

 

 

 

Reserved

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

HDD LED

 

 

 

Reset Switch

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

HDD LED

POWER LED

RESETSW

HDDLED

HDD LED - HDD LED +

POWER LED - POWER LED +

Safety Information 5

Installing the Motherboard

1

2

https://youtu.be/wWI6Qt51Wnc

Torque:

3

3 kgf·cm*

*3 kgf·cm = 0.3 N·m = 2.6 lbf·in

6 Safety Information

Connecting the Power Connectors

http://youtu.be/gkDYyR_83I4

ATX_PWR1

CPU_PWR2

CPU_PWR1

Safety Information 7

Installing SATA Drives

http://youtu.be/RZsMpqxythc

1

2

3

 

5

4

8 Safety Information

Installing a Graphics Card

http://youtu.be/mG0GZpr9w_A

1

3

2

5

4

6

Safety Information 9

Connecting Peripheral Devices

10 Safety Information

Power On

1 2

3

4

Safety Information 11

Contents

 

Quick Start..............................................................................................................

1

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

1

Safety Information.................................................................................................

2

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

3

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

4

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

5

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

6

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

7

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

8

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

9

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

10

Power On...............................................................................................................

11

Specifications.......................................................................................................

14

Package contents.................................................................................................

19

Block Diagram .....................................................................................................

20

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

21

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

21

Audio Ports Configuration.....................................................................................

21

Realtek Audio Console..........................................................................................

22

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

24

CPU Socket............................................................................................................

26

DIMM Slots............................................................................................................

27

PCI_E1~5: PCIe Expansion Slots..........................................................................

28

M2_1~2: M.2 Slots (Key M)....................................................................................

29

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

31

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

32

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

32

CPU_PWR1~2, ATX_PWR1: Power Connectors....................................................

33

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

34

JUSB5: USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-C Connector............................................................

34

JUSB3~4: USB 3.2 Gen 1 Connectors...................................................................

35

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

36

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

36

CPU_FAN1, PUMP_FAN1, SYS_FAN1~6: Fan Connectors..................................

37

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

38

JTBT1: Thunderbolt Add-on Card Connector.......................................................

39

JRTD3: Intel RTD3 Connector...............................................................................

39

12 Contents

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

40

JRGB1: RGB LED connector.................................................................................

41

JRAINBOW1~2: Addressable RGB LED connectors.............................................

42

Onboard LEDs.......................................................................................................

43

EZ Debug LED.......................................................................................................

43

LED_SW1: EZ LED Control....................................................................................

43

Installing OS, Drivers & Utilities..........................................................................

44

Installing Windows® 10..........................................................................................

44

Installing Drivers...................................................................................................

44

Installing Utilities..................................................................................................

44

UEFI BIOS.............................................................................................................

45

BIOS Setup............................................................................................................

46

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

46

Resetting BIOS......................................................................................................

47

Updating BIOS.......................................................................................................

47

EZ Mode.................................................................................................................

49

Advanced Mode ....................................................................................................

52

SETTINGS Menu....................................................................................................

53

OC Menu................................................................................................................

55

M-FLASH Menu.....................................................................................................

59

OC PROFILE Menu.................................................................................................

60

HARDWARE MONITOR Menu................................................................................

61

RAID Configuration..............................................................................................

63

Enabling Intel® Rapid Storage Technology...........................................................

63

Creating RAID Volume ..........................................................................................

64

Removing a RAID Volume ....................................................................................

65

Resetting Disks to Non-RAID................................................................................

66

Rebuilding RAID Array..........................................................................................

67

Installing RAID Driver...........................................................................................

68

Installing Intel® Rapid Storage Technology Software..........................................

68

Intel® Optane™ Memory Configuration...............................................................

69

System Requirements ..........................................................................................

69

Installing the Intel® Optane™ memory.................................................................

69

Removing the Intel® Optane™ memory................................................................

71

Troubleshooting ..................................................................................................

72

Contents 13

Specifications

 

 

 

Supports 10th Gen Intel® Core™ and Pentium® Gold /

CPU

Celeron® processors for LGA 1200 socket*

* Please go to intel.com for compatibility information.

 

* Onboard graphics output are disabled when using the F SKU processors.

Chipset

Intel® Z490 Chipset

 

∙4x DDR4 memory slots, support up to 128GB*

 

∙Supports 1R 2133/2666/2933 MHz*

 

▪1DPC 1R Max speed up to 4800+ MHz

 

▪1DPC 2R Max speed up to 4266+ MHz

Memory

▪2DPC 1R Max speed up to 4400+ MHz

▪2DPC 2R Max speed up to 4000+ MHz

 

∙Supports Dual-Channel mode

 

∙Supports non-ECC, un-buffered memory

 

∙Supports Intel® Extreme Memory Profile (XMP)

 

*Please refer www.msi.com for more information on compatible memory

Expansion Slot

∙1x PCIe 3.0 x16 slot (from CPU)

∙1x PCIe 3.0 x16 slot (from PCH supports x4 mode)

 

∙3x PCIe x1 slots (from PCH)

 

∙1x HDMI port, supports a maximum resolution of

Onboard Graphics

4096x2160 @ 30Hz

∙1x DisplayPort port supports a maximum resolution of

 

4096 x 2304 @ 60Hz

Multi-GPU

Supports 2-Way AMD® CrossFire™ Technology

 

Intel® Z490 Chipset

 

∙6x SATA 6Gb/s ports*

 

∙2x M.2 slots (Key M)

 

▪M2_1 supports up to PCIe 3.0 x4 and SATA 6Gb/s, 2242/

 

2260/ 2280/ 22110 storage devices*

Storage

▪M2_2 supports up to PCIe 3.0 x4 and SATA 6Gb/s, 2242/

2260/ 2280 storage devices**

 

▪Intel® Optane™ Memory Ready***

 

▪Supports Intel® Smart Response Technology for Intel

 

Core™ processors

 

* SATA2 will be unavailable when installing M.2 SATA SSD in the M2_1 slot.

 

** SATA5 & SATA6 will be unavailable when installing M.2 SATA/PCIe SSD in the

 

M2_2 slot.

 

*** Before using Intel® Optane™ memory modules, please ensure that you have

 

updated the drivers and BIOS to the latest version from MSI website.

 

Continued on next page

14 Specifications

 

Continued from previous page

 

Intel® Z490 Chipset

RAID

∙Supports RAID 0, RAID 1, RAID 5 and RAID 10 for SATA

storage devices

 

∙Supports RAID 0 and RAID 1 for M.2 PCIe storage devices

LAN

1x Realtek® RTL8125B-CG 2.5G LAN Controller

 

∙Intel® Z490 Chipset

 

▪2x USB 3.2 Gen 2 10Gbps ports (1 Type-A port and 1

 

Type-C port on the back panel)

USB

▪7x USB 3.2 Gen 1 5Gbps ports (2 Type-A ports on the

back panel, 4 ports through the internal USB connectors,

 

1 Type-C internal connector)

 

▪6x USB 2.0 ports (2 Type-A ports on the back panel, 4

 

ports through the internal USB 2.0 connectors)

Audio

Realtek® ALC892 Codec

∙7.1-Channel High Definition Audio

 

∙1x PS/2 keyboard/ mouse combo port

 

∙2x USB 2.0 ports

 

∙1x HDMI port

Back Panel

∙1x DisplayPort port

∙1x USB 3.2 Gen 2 10Gbps Type-A port

Connectors

 

∙1x USB 3.2 Gen 2 10Gbps Type-C port

 

∙1x LAN(RJ45) port

 

∙2x USB 3.2 Gen 1 5Gbps Type-A ports

 

∙6x audio jacks

 

Continued on next page

Specifications 15

BIOS Features
Form Factor
LED Features
I/O Controller

Continued from previous page

∙1x 24-pin ATX main power connector ∙1x 8-pin ATX 12V power connector ∙1x 4-pin ATX 12V power connector ∙6x SATA 6Gb/s connectors

∙1x USB 3.2 Gen 1 5Gbps Type-C port

∙2x USB 3.2 Gen 1 5Gbps connectors (support additional 4 USB 3.2 Gen 1 5Gbps ports)

∙2x USB 2.0 connectors (support additional 4 USB 2.0 ports) ∙1x 4-pin CPU fan connector

∙1x 4-pin water pump connector Internal Connectors ∙6x 4-pin system fan connectors ∙1x front panel audio connector

∙2x system panel connectors

∙1x Chassis Intrusion connector ∙1x Clear CMOS jumper

∙1x 4-pin RGB LED connector

∙2x 3-pin RAINBOW LED connectors ∙1x serial port connector

∙1x TPM module connector ∙1x TBT connector*

*Thunderbolt card need support RTD3

∙1x EZ LED Control switch ∙4x EZ Debug LED

NUVOTON NCT6687 Controller Chip ∙CPU/System temperature detection

Hardware Monitor ∙CPU/System fan speed detection ∙CPU/System fan speed control ∙ATX Form Factor

∙12 in. x 9.6 in. (30.5 cm x 24.4 cm) ∙1x 256 Mb flash

∙UEFI AMI BIOS

∙ACPI 6.2, SM BIOS 3.2 ∙Multi-language

Continued on next page

16 Specifications

 

Continued from previous page

 

∙Drivers

 

 

∙DRAGON CENTER

 

Software

∙Intel Extreme Tuning Utility

 

∙CPU-Z MSI GAMING

 

 

∙Google Chrome™, Google Toolbar, Google Drive

 

∙Norton™ Internet Security Solution

 

∙LAN Manager

 

 

∙Mystic Light

 

 

∙User Scenario

 

 

∙Monitor(Hardware

 

Dragon Center

Monitor)

 

∙True Color

 

Features

∙Live Update

Please refer to http://download.msi.

 

 

∙DPC Latency tuner

com/manual/mb/DRAGONCENTER2.

 

∙Speed Up

pdf for more details.

 

∙Smart Tool

 

 

∙Super Charger

 

 

∙Audio

 

 

▪Audio Boost

 

 

∙Network

 

 

▪2.5G LAN

 

Special Features

▪LAN Manager

 

∙Cooling

 

 

▪Extended Heatsink Design

 

▪M.2 Shield Frozr

 

 

▪Pump Fan

 

 

▪Smart Fan Control

 

 

Continued on next page

 

Specifications 17

Continued from previous page

∙LED

▪Mystic Light Extension(RGB)

▪Mystic Light Extension (RAINBOW)

▪Mystic Light Sync

▪EZ LED Control

▪EZ DEBUG LED ∙Performance

▪Multi GPU-CrossFire Technology

▪DDR4 Boost

▪Core Boost

Special Features ▪Creator Genie

▪USB 3.2 Gen 2 10G ▪USB with type A+C ▪Front USB type-C ▪Dual CPU Power

∙Protection

▪PCI-E Steel Armor

▪PCI-E Steel Slot

∙Experience ▪DRAGON CENTER ▪Click BIOS 5

18 Specifications

Package contents

Please check the contents of your motherboard package. It should contain:

 

 

 

 

 

Motherboard

Z490-A PRO

 

 

Documentation

Case stand-off notification

1

 

Quick installation guide

1

 

Application

Driver DVD

1

 

Cables

SATA 6G cables (2 cables/pack)

1

 

Accessories

Case badge

1

 

Product registration card

1

 

 

 

M.2 screws (3 pcs./pack)

1

 

If

 

 

 

Important

any of the above items are damaged or missing, please contact your retailer.

Package contents 19

Block Diagram

2 Channel DDR4 Memory

Processor

PCI Express Bus

DMI 3.0

1x SATA 6Gb/s

Switch

 

3x PCIe x1 slots

 

 

1x M.2

 

 

 

2x SATA 6Gb/s

Switch

PCH

Realtek LAN RTL8125B

 

 

1x M.2

 

 

 

3x SATA 6Gb/s

 

 

 

2x USB 3.2 Gen 2

 

 

7x USB 3.2 Gen 1

 

 

 

6x USB 2.0

 

 

 

 

 

NUVOTON

Realtek

 

 

6687

ALC892

Rear Audio Jacks

20 Block Diagram

Rear I/O Panel

PS/2 Combo port

 

Audio Ports

 

USB 3.2 Gen 2

2.5Gbps LAN

 

 

 

10Gbps Type A

 

 

USB 3.2 Gen 2

 

10Gbps Type C

USB 2.0 Type-A

DisplayPort

USB 3.2 Gen 1

5Gbps Type A

LAN Port LED Status Table

Link/ Activity LED

Status

Description

Off

No link

Yellow

Linked

Blinking

Data activity

Speed LED

Status

Description

Off

10 Mbps connection

Green

100 Mbps / 1 Gbps connection

Orange

2.5 Gbps connection

Audio Ports Configuration

 

 

 

 

Audio Ports

 

Channel

 

2

4

6

8

 

Line-In

 

 

 

 

Line-Out/ Front Speaker Out ●

Rear Speaker Out

 

Center/ Subwoofer Out

 

 

Side Speaker Out

 

 

 

Mic In

(●: connected, Blank: empty)

Rear I/O Panel 21

Realtek Audio Console

After Realtek Audio Console is installed. You can use it to change sound settings to get better sound experience.

Application Enhancement

Device

Selection

Main Volume

 

 

 

 

 

 

Connector Settings

Jack

 

Status

 

∙∙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.

∙∙Jack Status - depicts all render and capture devices currently connected with your computer.

∙∙Connector Settings - configures the connection settings.

Auto popup dialog

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

Each jack corresponds to its default setting as shown on the next page.

Important

The pictures above for reference only and may vary from the product you purchased.

22 Rear I/O Panel

Audio jacks to headphone and microphone diagram

Audio jacks to stereo speakers diagram

AUDIO INPUT

Audio jacks to 7.1-channel speakers diagram

AUDIO INPUT

Front

Center/

 

Subwoofer

Rear

Side

Rear I/O Panel 23

Loading...
+ 53 hidden pages