Specifications

• Form factor M-ATX
• Socket LGA 2011-3
• CPU support Intel core i7, Xeon E5, V3, V4
• Chipset Intel X99
• Memory capacity DDR4 up to 64GB via four slots

Extras

• M.2 NGFF wifi card support
• USB ports 2x USB 3.0, 2x USB 2.0
• Expansion slots 1*PCI-E 8X 1*PCI-E 4X
• Storage 2x M.2 NVME, 4x SATA 3.0
• Video ports 1x VGA 1x HDMI
• Integrated network chip yes Gigabit ethernet

Top performance on a motherboard doesn’t have to go beyond the $100 margin, and if you’re willing to sacrifice a few features, you can get that with the Machinist X99 motherboard. Like the MSI B450M, this is an M-ATX setup.

However, unlike the latter, the Machinist X99 comes with just one PCIe X16 port and two other X1 ports. USB ports are also scaled down to two USB 3.0 and two USB 2.0 ports.

The overall theme here is obvious; you still get all the important features and components you’ll need on a motherboard, albeit on a smaller number scale.

This motherboard comes with two M.2 NVME ports, onboard audio, and SATA 3.0 and USB 3.0 – basically all you’ll need if you’re planning to create a decently specced PC build. Build quality is also excellent, with a dual radiator set up to pull off extra heat when you go hard on performance.

The Machinist is an X99 setup, so it only supports Intel processors, specifically the Intel Core i7 and Xeon processors. This won’t fit with an AMD processor.