In response to Intel’s upcoming Raptor Lake-S Refresh, MSI has prepared a wave of 700 series chipset product updates. In addition to high-end and flagship products, Wi-Fi 7 wireless network modules will be introduced. Now there are reports that MSI also plans to join in. USB4 expansion card.
Figure quoted from chi11eddog.
A whistleblower from the Twitter account chi11eddog recently revealed with pictures and texts that the Intel Z790 Refresh motherboard prepared by MSI, such as the Z790 Carbon Max WiFi, will come with a USB4 expansion card. The model number of this expansion card is MS-4489. In fact, it has been unveiled as early as Computex 2023. It uses ASMedia’s first-generation USB4 host controller ASM4242.
Figure quoted from chi11eddog.
The design of MS-4489 may not be universal, because there is a set of signal pins numbered JU4_1 on the circuit board, which must be connected to its corresponding supported motherboard. The motherboard-side socket seems to be named JTBT_U4_1. From the perspective of pin design, MSI should use the old Thunderbolt control signal pin definition, and then identify and separate TB and USB4 expansion cards at the UEFI BIOS layer.
The signal pin at the relative position of Z790 Carbon WiFi is called JTBT1.
MSI has not denied the possibility of chi11eddog’s revelation. We can look forward to the arrival of the Z790 Carbon Max WiFi, which will allow ASMedia’s USB4 solution to be tested and experienced as USB4 compatible with Intel Thunderbolt 4.
