MSI MAG B760M MORTAR WIFI II Motherboard Review

Intel recently announced a refresh of its Intel Core series CPU lineup under the Intel Core 14th gen series. Following the announcement, motherboard partners also announced new and improved versions of their B760 and Z790 chipset motherboards. These new motherboards not only ensure compatibility and optimal performance with the newly launched 14th-gen CPUs but also bring new features to the table. One of the refreshed motherboards that we’re taking a look at is the MSI MAG B760M Mortar WiFi II.

MSI MAG B760M MORTAR WIFI II – A Closer Look

MSI pretty much re-used the same packaging design with the B760M Mortar WiFi II with only the “II” moniker and “Next Gen CPU Ready” sticker differentiating it from the previous gen model. Moving to the back you can see the highlighted features of the motherboard.

Contents of the MSI B760M Mortar WiFi II are as follows:

• Sticker Pack
• Quick Start Guide
• EU Regulatory Notice
• 1x SATA 6Gb/s cables
• 3x EZ M.2 Clip
• 1x WiFi Antenna
• 1x Front Panel Connector

The MSI MAG B760M Mortar WiFi II sports the same design as the first iteration following the armored tank slash military theme of the MAG motherboard series series. It’s extremely difficult to tell the difference between the two versions unless you know the spec difference to look out for – ie the extra M.2 ports. The model name is conveniently labeled right near the first DIMM slot, and the label on the chipset heatsink is updated to “Mortar II.”

The MSI MAG B760M Mortar WiFi II uses a 12+1+1 Duet Rail Power System with 75A SPS cooled by 7W/mK thermal pads, extra choke thermal pads, and an extended VRM heatsink. Its the same VRM configuration found on the first iteration.

Despite being a B760 chipset motherboard, the MSI MAG B760M Mortar WiFi II supports two 8-pin power connectors enabling more than enough power delivery for an overclocked Intel Core i9 14900K CPU even though the board doesn’t support overclocking as overclocking is exclusive to the Z790 chipset.

Memory support on the Mortar WiFi II has improved from DDR5-7200MHz on the Mortar WiFi to DDR5-7800MHz on the Mortar WiFi II.

The same set of back panel ports can be found on the MAG B760M Mortar WiFi II – four USB 2.0 Type-A ports, one HDMI 2.1 port, one DisplayPort 1.4 port, 2.5G LAN port, and three USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A ports, one USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 Type-C port, HD Audio connectors, and a WiFi/Bluetooth connector.

MSI added one extra M.2 slot on the Mortar WiFi II for a total of three M.2 slots. Additionally, MSI also added another M.2 Shield Frozr heatsink making two out of three M.2 slots have a dedicated heatsink.

As most motherboard brands now have a tool-less SSD installation solution, it’s rare to see them present in lower-tier motherboards not to mention have them available in every M.2 slot in the motherboard. Props to MSI for including its EZ M.2 clips on the MSI MAG Mortar WiFi II.

The extra M.2 heatsink sports a similar design and length as the top heatsink. The second heatsink can be placed in either two slots giving the users the flexibility. That said, we’d recommend filling up the third M.2 slot first instead of the 2nd slot for better accessibility and thermals as the second M.2 slot

Benchmark Setup and Test Methodology

Gadget Pilipinas’ testing philosophy is to provide detail-oriented results as accurately as possible so that our readers can replicate our tests given that these conditions are met. Different benchmarking apps and sequences are used depending on the tested component or device.

We use CapFrameX 1.7.1 as our primary FPS capture and analysis tool for all our gaming benchmarks. The latest build version of Windows 11 Pro and WHQL-certified drivers are used for our benchmarks. Readings such as temperatures and power draws are recorded using HWINFO64, and other relevant software for cross-checking.

MSI MAG B760M MORTAR WIFI II Benchmarks

3DMark Firestrike, Timespy, and CPU Profile

3DMark is the go-to benchmark for gamers because of the ability to share and compare results online.

SuperPI 32M

SuperPI is a single-threaded benchmark application that lets the CPU calculate Pi(π) to the nth digit. In this benchmark, we selected the Pi calculation to 32M, the highest available for the app. 

CINEBENCH R23 & 2024

Maxon’s Cinebench benchmark is one of the most iconic benchmark applications used by reviewers and enthusiasts. The latest Cinebench R23 uses the latest rendering architectures, including Intel’s Embree ray tracing technology and other advanced features from AMD and Intel that allow users to render the same scene on the same hard. 

PROCYON

Procyon benchmark suite is developed by the UL, the same team behind 3DMark and PCMark benchmarks. The UL Procycon video editing benchmark uses Adobe Premiere in a typical video editing workflow. The benchmark starts by importing two video project files with various edits, adjustments, and effects – the second project uses several GPU-accelerated effects. Each project is exported in 1080p with H.264 encoding and again in 4K with HEVC H.265. The reported score is based on the time taken to export all four videos. 

wPrime 1024M

wPrime is a benchmark tool similar to SuperPI, but the former takes on finding prime numbers using Newton’s Method. The benchmark is set to calculate 1024 million prime numbers, and the performance is measured according to calculation time. 

V-RAY

V-Ray Benchmark is a stand-alone version of V-Ray developed by Chaos Group. It is designed to test the CPU and GPU by rendering sample scenes at a fixed amount of time. V-Ray is a plug-in mostly utilized by 3D computer graphics software applications mainly for industrial design, product design, architecture, film, and video game production. V-Ray is not limited to 64-threads as it supports multi and mega-threading. 

BLENDER

Blender is a widely used, free, open-source 3D creation suite. It supports the whole 3D pipeline process from modeling, rigging, animation, simulation, rendering, and even motion tracking. Blender has become a standard for CPU benchmarks with the BMW27 and Classroom Scene most used. This prompted the company to release Blender Open Data Benchmark in 2018, a benchmark-specific version allowing users to run a preset benchmark and share the results online like 3DMark.

GeekBench 6.2.1

Geekbench is a multi-platform benchmark used to gauge CPU performance and compare them across Windows, Mac, and Mobile. Geekbench 6 is the latest version and doesn’t rely on memory more than the previous Geekbench 4, making it a great tool to measure both single-core and multi-core CPU performance.

AIDA64 EXTREME MEMORY BENCHMARK

AIDA64 is a very popular and powerful monitoring tool, as well as a benchmarking application. AIDA64 is commonly used to stress test CPUs, especially testing if an overclock is stable. We used AIDA64’s Memory Benchmark to measure the data transfer bandwidth of the system memory.

PCMark10

From the same developers of the popular game benchmarking tool 3DMark, PCMark 10 is a benchmarking app for measuring a whole PC’s performance. It covers a wide variety of tests to reflect common tasks performed in a modern workplace. We selected PCMark 10’s extended benchmark and reported both the overall score and Digital Content Creation Score. 

CORONA RENDERER

Corona Renderer is an unbiased photorealistic render available for Autodesk 3Ds Max, Maxon Cinema 4D, and as a stand-alone application. Its popularity, similar to Blender, led Chaos Group to develop a benchmark version of the app which runs using Corona Renderer 1.3. Workstation systems, especially CPUs, can utilize Corona Benchmark as up to 72 threads can be used in the benchmark, making it very suitable for CPUs with various price segments. 

PassMark 10.2

Passmark 10 provides a comprehensive suite of tests that evaluate various aspects of a system’s performance, including CPU, GPU, memory, and disk performance. Its automated testing process makes it accessible and efficient for reviewers to conduct benchmarks and analyze the performance of different systems.

BapCo CROSSMARK

Crossmark is one of the few native cross-platform benchmark tools available for Windows, Android, Linux ChromeOS, iOS, and macOS. It measures overall system performance and system responsiveness using models of real-world applications making it a great comparison point across multiple platforms.

GOOGLE OCTANE 2.0

Google Octane 2.0 is a benchmark that measures a Javascript engine’s performance by running multiple tests representing different use cases of JavaScript applications. While Google Octane is retired and no longer maintained, it is still a good representation of today’s dynamic, interactive web applications. Our Google Octane 2.0 is run on Microsoft’s latest Chromium-based Edge browser. 

MSI MAG B760M MORTAR WIFI II – Temperatures

Temperatures of the Intel Core i9 14900K are what you would expect with the CPU having a peak temp of 100°C. VRM temps albeit not seen in the screenshot, were well under 60°C making the 12+1+1 VRM configuration more than enough to handle even Intel’s latest flagship.

Performance Summary and Conclusion

Echoing the concerns of the enthusiast community that the refreshed motherboards are just a way for brands to cash-grab under the guise of officially supporting the new CPUs. Well, that isn’t the case of the MSI MAG B760M Mortar WiFi II. Its feature improvements most especially the EZ M.2 Clip, additional M.2 slot, and better DDR5 memory support bring quality-of-life improvements for the user. Sure, there isn’t any redesign of the motherboard to make it look newer or next-gen but that just means the R&D cost is allotted to the things that matter – better stability and connectivity. Its titanium design makes it blend with almost any PC build themes for better personalization.

For the Price of Php 11,590, the MSI MAG B760 Mortar WiFi II is a very compelling mid-range motherboard, especially for those looking for extensive storage capabilities and connectivity which is arguably a scarce resource for non-Z chipset motherboards and the m-ATX form factor.

Grant Soriano

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Grant is a Financial Management graduate from UST. His passion for gadgets and tech crossed him over in the industry where he could apply his knowledge as an enthusiast and in-depth analytic skills as a Finance Major. His passion allows him to earn at the same time help Gadget Pilipinas' readers in making smart, value-based decisions and purchases with his reviews and guides.