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We’ve taken a close look at MSI’s back-connect motherboards before from a build-specific angle , but the X870E Tomahawk MAX Wi-Fi PZ (the “PZ” in the name stands for Project Zero) is the first board from the lineup to land on our review testbed. MSI’s PZ line relocates most connectors to the back of the board for cleaner cable management and a more aesthetically pleasing front view of the PC. Along with MSI PZ chassis (required, in four options) and PZ video cards, they offer a unified design that aims to minimize the unsightly cables in non-back-connect PCs.
The X870E Tomahawk MAX Wifi PZ ( $319.99 ) is a well-rounded solution in the mid-range PC space. In addition to its back-mount features, you get ample storage options, fast networking, 40 Gbps USB 4, robust power delivery, EZ DIY functionality, and the new(ish) Click BIOS X. As far as looks go, the PZ/back connect element really cleans up the appearance and does a great job of hiding a vast majority of wires, especially when using PZ graphics cards. The white/silver theme looks great, especially in the available MSI PZ chassis.
For under $320, MSI’s board comes with four M.2 sockets (two PCIe 5.0), 5 GbE and Wi-Fi 7 networking, plenty of USB ports (including two 40 Gbps USB4 ports) on the rear IO, and three full-length PCIe slots for a graphics card and expansion. MSI’s EZ DIY features, such as the M.2 Shield Frozr II and EZ M.2 Clip II, make installing your M.2 drive effortless, eliminating the need for fiddling with tiny screws. It also includes the EZ PCIE Release, a simple physical button release mechanism that helps remove any PCIe card with a single tap. The Tomahawk MAX Wifi PZ has all the specifications you’d expect around the $300 mark, and is an improvement, if only by looks, over the non-MAX X870E Tomahawk Wi-Fi we covered in mid-2025.
Performance on this board was average, with some instances being faster and others slower. As we usually see, the results aren’t significantly different in most tests, so if something is slower or faster than average, chances are you won’t be able to notice unless you’re actually looking at benchmarking results. Whether you’re gaming or working, this board won’t hold you back.Below, we’ll examine the board's details and determine whether it deserves a spot on our Best Motherboards list. But, before we get to the test results, discuss the details, and showcase the board in a PZ ecosystem, we have included the specifications from MSI below.
Specifications of the MSI X870E Tomahawk MAX Wifi PZ
Swipe to scroll horizontally Socket AM5 (LGA 1718) Chipset X870E Form Factor ATX Voltage Regulator 17 Phase (14x 80A SPS MOSFETs for Vcore)w Video Ports (1) HDMI (v2.1)
(2) USB Type-C DisplayPort USB Ports (2) USB 4 (40 Gbps) Type-C
(1) USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10 Gbps) Type-C (2) USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10 Gbps)
(3) USB 3.2 Gen 1 (5 Gbps)
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