MSI X299 TOMAHAWK User manual

1
Unpacking
Unpacking
Thank you for buying the MSI®X299 TOMAHAWK/ X299 TOMAHAWK AC motherboard.
Check to make sure your motherboard box contains the following items. If something
is missing, contact your dealer as soon as possible.
Drivers & Utilities
Disc Motherboard User
Guide
I/O Shield
Motherboard
SATA Cable Labels
* These pictures are for reference only and may vary without notice.
** The packing contents may vary according to the country you purchased.
SATA Cable x2
Antenna x2
(Optional)
SLI HB Bridge M x1
Case Badge

2Safety Information
Safety Information
yThe components included in this package are prone to damage from electrostatic
discharge (ESD). Please adhere to the following instructions to ensure successful
computer assembly.
yEnsure that all components are securely connected. Loose connections may cause
the computer to not recognize a component or fail to start.
yHold the motherboard by the edges to avoid touching sensitive components.
yIt 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.
yStore the motherboard in an electrostatic shielding container or on an anti-static pad
whenever the motherboard is not installed.
yBefore turning on the computer, ensure that there are no loose screws or metal
components on the motherboard or anywhere within the computer case.
yDo not boot the computer before installation is completed. This could cause
permanent damage to the components as well as injury to the user.
yIf you need help during any installation step, please consult a certified computer
technician.
yAlways turn off the power supply and unplug the power cord from the power outlet
before installing or removing any computer component.
yKeep this user guide for future reference.
yKeep this motherboard away from humidity.
yMake sure that your electrical outlet provides the same voltage as is indicated on the
PSU, before connecting the PSU to the electrical outlet.
yPlace the power cord such a way that people can not step on it. Do not place anything
over the power cord.
yAll cautions and warnings on the motherboard should be noted.
yIf 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.
yDo not leave this motherboard in an environment above 60°C (140°F), it may damage
the motherboard.

3
Quick Start
Intel®LGA 2066 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

4Quick Start
Installing a Processor
1
2
3
6
4
5
789
10
11
12
13
https://youtu.be/ecdkLMmkya4

5
Quick Start
Installing DDR4 memory
http://youtu.be/T03aDrJPyQs
1
2
2
3
DIMMC1

6Quick Start
Connecting the Front Panel Header
http://youtu.be/DPELIdVNZUI
1
2 10
9
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
HDD LED
RESET SW
JFP1
HDD LED HDD LED -
HDD LED +
POWER LED -
POWER LED +
POWER LED

7
Quick Start
BAT1
Installing the Motherboard
1
2

8Quick Start
Installing SATA Drives
http://youtu.be/RZsMpqxythc 1
23
4
5

9
Quick Start
Installing a Graphics Card
1
http://youtu.be/mG0GZpr9w_A
2
3
4
5
6

10 Quick Start
Connecting Peripheral Devices
(Optional)

11
Quick Start
Connecting the Power Connectors
http://youtu.be/gkDYyR_83I4
ATX_PWR1 CPU_PWR1

12 Quick Start
Power On
1
4
2
3

13
Contents
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....................................................................................................... 16
Block Diagram .................................................................................................... 22
Rear I/O Panel ..................................................................................................... 23
LAN Port LED Status Table................................................................................... 23
Audio Ports Configuration.................................................................................... 23
Realtek HD Audio Manager .................................................................................. 24
Installing Antennas (Optional).............................................................................. 26
Overview of Components .................................................................................... 27
CPU Socket ........................................................................................................... 29
DIMM Slots............................................................................................................ 30
PCI_E1~6: PCIe Expansion Slots.......................................................................... 33
PCIe slots bandwidth table................................................................................... 33
U2_1: U.2 Connector............................................................................................. 36
M2_1~2: M.2 Slots (Key M) ................................................................................... 37
SATA1~8: SATA 6Gb/s Connectors ....................................................................... 38
CPU_PWR1, ATX_PWR1: Power Connectors ....................................................... 40
VRAID1: Virtual RAID on CPU Connector............................................................. 40
JFP1, JFP2: Front Panel Connectors ................................................................... 41
JUSB3, JUSB4: USB 3.1 Gen1 Connectors........................................................... 41
JUSB5: USB 3.1 Gen2 Type-C Connector............................................................. 42
JUSB1~2: USB 2.0 Connectors............................................................................. 43
JTPM1: TPM Module Connector........................................................................... 43

14 Contents
CPU_FAN1, PUMP_FAN1, SYS_FAN1~4: Fan Connectors................................... 44
JTBT1: Thunderbolt Add-on Card Connector ...................................................... 44
JAUD1: Front Audio Connector ............................................................................ 45
JCI1: Chassis Intrusion Connector....................................................................... 45
BIOS_SW1: Multi-BIOS Switch............................................................................. 46
JBAT1: Clear CMOS (Reset BIOS) Jumper........................................................... 47
POWER1, RESET1: Power Button, Reset Button ................................................. 47
JLED1: RGB LED connector ................................................................................. 48
Onboard LEDs ...................................................................................................... 49
EZ Debug LEDs..................................................................................................... 49
DIMM LEDs ........................................................................................................... 49
XMP LED ............................................................................................................... 49
Fan LEDs............................................................................................................... 50
PCIe x16 slot LEDs................................................................................................ 50
Debug Code LED................................................................................................... 51
Debug Code LED Table ......................................................................................... 51
ACPI States Codes................................................................................................ 53
CPU Temperature ................................................................................................. 53
BIOS Setup ........................................................................................................... 54
Entering BIOS Setup............................................................................................. 54
Resetting BIOS...................................................................................................... 55
Updating BIOS....................................................................................................... 55
EZ Mode ................................................................................................................ 57
Advanced Mode .................................................................................................... 59
SETTINGS.............................................................................................................. 60
Advanced............................................................................................................... 60
Boot....................................................................................................................... 65
Security................................................................................................................. 66
Save & Exit............................................................................................................ 67
OC.......................................................................................................................... 68
M-FLASH .............................................................................................................. 74
OC PROFILE.......................................................................................................... 75
Software Description........................................................................................... 76
Installing Windows®10......................................................................................... 76
Installing Drivers .................................................................................................. 76
Installing Utilities ................................................................................................. 76
APP MANAGER ..................................................................................................... 77
LIVE UPDATE 6...................................................................................................... 78
COMMAND CENTER ............................................................................................. 80

15
Contents
GAMING APP......................................................................................................... 84
X-BOOST ............................................................................................................... 89
MYSTICLIGHT........................................................................................................ 91
MSI SMART TOOL ................................................................................................. 93
RAMDISK............................................................................................................... 95
GAMING LAN MANAGER ...................................................................................... 96
DRAGON EYE ........................................................................................................ 98
Nahimic 2.............................................................................................................. 99
XSplit Gamecaster V2 ......................................................................................... 103
SteelSeries Engine 3 .......................................................................................... 107
Intel®Extreme Tuning Utility.............................................................................. 109
CPU-Z.................................................................................................................. 110
TriDef VR ............................................................................................................. 111
TriDef SmartCam................................................................................................ 114
RAID Configuration............................................................................................ 115
Using Intel®Rapid Storage Technology Option ROM ......................................... 115
Degraded RAID Array ......................................................................................... 118
M.2 PCIe SSD RAID............................................................................................. 120
Intel®Optane™ Memory Configuration ............................................................ 123
System Requirements ....................................................................................... 123
Installing the Intel®Optane™ memory .............................................................. 123
Removing the Intel®Optane™ memory ............................................................. 125
Troubleshooting.................................................................................................. 126
Troubleshooting ................................................................................................ 127

16 Specifications
Specifications
CPU ySupports Intel®Core™ X-Series Processor Family for
LGA2066 Socket
Chipset Intel® X299 Chipset
Memory
y8x DDR4 memory slots, support up to 128GB*
X-series processor support DDR4 4266+(OC)/ 4133(OC)/
4000(OC)/ 3866 (OC)/ 3733(OC)/ 3600(OC)/ 3466(OC)/
3400(OC)/ 3333(OC)/ 3300(OC)/ 3200(OC)/ 3000(OC)/
2800(OC)/ 2666/ 2400/ 2133 MHz*
yQuad channel memory architecture with the CPU that
support 4-channels DDR4**
yDual channel memory architecture with the CPU that
support 2-channels DDR4**
ySupports Intel®Extreme Memory Profile (XMP)
* For the latest information about memory, please visit http://www.msi.com
** Please refer the DIMM Slots section for more details.
Expansion Slots
y4x PCIe 3.0 x16 slots
Support x16/ x4*/ x16/ x8 mode with the 44-lane CPU.
Support x16/ x4*/ x8/ x4 modes with the 28-lane CPU.
Support x8/ x4*/ x8/ x0, x8/ x4*/ x4/ x4 modes with the
16-lane CPU.
y2x PCIe 3.0 x1 slots
* The PCI_E3 lanes are supported by PCH. Please refer to page 33 for PCIe slots
bandwidth table.
Multi-GPU ySupports up to 3-Way AMD®CrossFire™Technology
ySupports up to 3-Way NVIDIA®SLI™Technology
LAN 1x Intel I219-V Gigabit LAN controller
Wirsless LAN &
Bluetooth®
(Optional)
yIntel®Dual Band Wireless-AC 8265 module
The Wireless module is pre-install in the M2_3 (Key-E)
slot.
Supports Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, dual band (2.4GHz,
5GHz) up to 867 Mbps speed.
Supports Dual Mode Bluetooth®2.1, 2.1+EDR, 3.0, 4.0,
BLE, 4.2
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17
Specifications
Continued from previous page
Audio
yRealtek®ALC1220 Codec
y7.1-Channel High Definition Audio
ySupports S/PDIF output
USB
yASMedia®ASM3142 Chipset
1x USB 3.1 Gen2 (SuperSpeed USB 10Gbps) Type-A port
on the back panel
2x USB 3.1 Gen2 (Super Speed USB 10Gbps) Type-C
ports(1 port on the back panel, 1 port available through
the internal USB connector)
yASMedia®ASM1074 Chipset
3x USB 3.1 Gen1 (SuperSpeed USB) Type-A ports on the
back panel
yIntel®X299 Chipset
5x USB 3.1 Gen1 (SuperSpeed USB) ports (1 port on the
back panel, 4 ports available through the internal USB
connectors)
7x USB 2.0 (High-speed USB) ports (3 ports on the
back panel, 4 ports available through the internal USB
connectors)
Storage
Intel®X299 Chipset
y8x SATA 6Gb/s ports*
y2x M.2 slots (Key M)*
Supports up to PCIe 3.0 x4 and SATA 6Gb/s
M2_1 slot supports 2242/ 2260 /2280 storage devices
M2_2 slot supports 2242/ 2260 /2280/ 22110 storage
devices
Intel Optane™ Memory Ready**
y1x U.2 port *
Supports PCIe 3.0 x4 NVMe storage
ySupports Intel®Smart Response Technology
* PCI_E3 slot, M.2 slots, U.2 port and SATA ports share the same bandwidth.
Please refer to page 38 for PCI_E3/ U.2/ M.2/ SATA Combination table .
** Please refer to page 123 for Intel®Optane™ Memory Configuration.
Continued on next page

18 Specifications
Continued from previous page
RAID
Intel®X299 Chipset
ySupports RAID 0, RAID 1, RAID 5 and RAID 10 for SATA
storage devices
ySupports RAID 0 and RAID 1 for M.2 storage devices*
* M.2 PCIe RAID volume can be created with M.2/Optane Genie. Please refer to
page 120 for M.2 PCIe SSD RAID
Internal Connectors
y1x 24-pin ATX main power connector
y1x 8-pin ATX 12V power connector
y8x SATA 6Gb/s connectors
y3x M.2 slots (Key M x2, Key E x1)
y1x U.2 port
y2x USB 2.0 connectors (supports additional 4 USB 2.0
ports)
y2x USB 3.1 Gen1 connectors (supports additional 4 USB 3.1
Gen1 ports)
y1x USB 3.1 Gen2 Type-C port
y1x 4-pin CPU fan connector
y1x 4-pin Water Pump connector
y4x 4-pin system fan connectors
y1x Front panel audio connector
y2x Front panel connectors
y1x TPM module connector
y1x Chassis Intrusion connector
y1x Clear CMOS jumper
y1x Power button
y1x Reset button
y1x Multi-BIOS switch
y1x RGB LED connector
y1x Virtual RAID on CPU connector
y1x Thunderbolt Add-on Card Connector
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19
Specifications
Continued from previous page
Back Panel
Connectors
y1x Clear CMOS button
y1x BIOS Flash back button
y1x PS/2 keyboard/ mouse combo port
y3x USB 2.0 Type-A ports
y4x USB 3.1 Gen1 Type-A ports
y1x LAN (RJ45) port
y1x USB 3.1 Gen2 Type-A port
y1x USB 3.1 Gen2 Type-C port
y1x Optical S/PDIF OUT connector
y5x OFC audio jacks
I/O Controller NUVOTON NCT6795 Controller Chip
Hardware Monitor
yCPU/System temperature detection
yCPU/System fan speed detection
yCPU/System fan speed control
Form Factor yATX Form Factor
y12 in. x 9.6 in. (30.5 cm x 24.4 cm)
BIOS Features
y2x 128 Mb flash
yUEFI AMI BIOS
yACPI 6.0, PnP 1.0a, SM BIOS 3.0
yMulti-language
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20 Specifications
Continued from previous page
Software
yDrivers
yAPP MANAGER
ySUPER CHARGER
yCOMMAND CENTER
yLIVE UPDATE 6
yMSI SMART TOOL
yDRAGON EYE
yGAMING APP
yX-BOOST
yMYSTIC LIGHT
yRAMDISK
yGAMING LAN Manager
yDPC Latency Tuner
yFAST BOOT
yNahimic Audio
yXSplit Gamecaster V2
yTridef VR & Smart Cam
ySteelSeries Engine 3
yWTFast*
yCPU-Z MSI GAMING
yIntel®Extreme Tuning Utility
yGoogle Chrome™,Google Toolbar, Google Drive
yNorton™Internet Security Solution
* This offer is valid for a limited period only, for more information please visit
www.msi.com
MSI Special
Features
yAudio Boost 4
yNahimic 2
yGAMING LAN with Gaming LAN Manager
yTurbo U.2
yTwin Turbo M.2
yPump Fan
ySmart Fan Control
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