The MSI MEG X570 Ace Motherboard Review: Ace in the Hole at $369
by Gavin Bonshor on July 18, 2019 11:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Motherboards
- AMD
- MSI
- AM4
- Zen 2
- Ryzen 3000
- X570
- MEG
- X570 Ace
- 3700X
- Ryzen 3700X
System Performance
Not all motherboards are created equal. On the face of it, they should all perform the same and differ only in the functionality they provide - however, this is not the case. The obvious pointers are power consumption, but also the ability for the manufacturer to optimize USB speed, audio quality (based on audio codec), POST time and latency. This can come down to the manufacturing process and prowess, so these are tested.
For X570 we are running using Windows 10 64-bit with the 1903 update as per our Ryzen 3000 CPU review.
Power Consumption
Power consumption was tested on the system while in a single ASUS GTX 980 GPU configuration with a wall meter connected to the Thermaltake 1200W power supply. This power supply has ~75% efficiency > 50W, and 90%+ efficiency at 250W, suitable for both idle and multi-GPU loading. This method of power reading allows us to compare the power management of the UEFI and the board to supply components with power under load, and includes typical PSU losses due to efficiency. These are the real world values that consumers may expect from a typical system (minus the monitor) using this motherboard.
While this method for power measurement may not be ideal, and you feel these numbers are not representative due to the high wattage power supply being used (we use the same PSU to remain consistent over a series of reviews, and the fact that some boards on our test bed get tested with three or four high powered GPUs), the important point to take away is the relationship between the numbers. These boards are all under the same conditions, and thus the differences between them should be easy to spot.
The power consumption when compared with X470 and B450 motherboards, we need to be aware of the difference in the TDP of the chipsets; 11 W for the X570 against the 4.8 W of the X470 and B450. Despite this, the MSI MEG X570 Ace actually performed better than the GIGABYTE X470 Gaming 7 model in both idle, and long idle power states. When placed under full load, the X570 Ace as expected ploughed ahead in terms of power consumption with a total of 147 W in our Prime95 blend test.
Non-UEFI POST Time
Different motherboards have different POST sequences before an operating system is initialized. A lot of this is dependent on the board itself, and POST boot time is determined by the controllers on board (and the sequence of how those extras are organized). As part of our testing, we look at the POST Boot Time using a stopwatch. This is the time from pressing the ON button on the computer to when Windows starts loading. (We discount Windows loading as it is highly variable given Windows specific features.)
In our POST time test, the MSI MEG X570 Ace took noticeably longer to boot into Windows 10 by a good 10 seconds which is slightly disappointing. Even disabling networking and audio controllers, we only managed to shave just under 2 seconds off the POST time compared with default settings applied.
DPC Latency
Deferred Procedure Call latency is a way in which Windows handles interrupt servicing. In order to wait for a processor to acknowledge the request, the system will queue all interrupt requests by priority. Critical interrupts will be handled as soon as possible, whereas lesser priority requests such as audio will be further down the line. If the audio device requires data, it will have to wait until the request is processed before the buffer is filled.
If the device drivers of higher priority components in a system are poorly implemented, this can cause delays in request scheduling and process time. This can lead to an empty audio buffer and characteristic audible pauses, pops and clicks. The DPC latency checker measures how much time is taken processing DPCs from driver invocation. The lower the value will result in better audio transfer at smaller buffer sizes. Results are measured in microseconds.
We test DPC at default settings, out of the box, and the MSI MEG X570 Ace performs marginally better than the GIGABYTE X470 Gaming 7, while ASRock models do generally tend to do a little better in this test.
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Peter2k - Thursday, July 18, 2019 - link
FirstOne could connect the board with the front USB ports of the case
It's rare to find a case that has no frontal USB
If you're attaching some new usb thingy more permanently to the back, you could turn the case a little or something
Second
Its clear comes button is next to the wifi cable
The layout should make it clear you're not next to USB at all
Third
Those buttons are not sticking out of the I/O cover, and an USB plug is too wide to accidentally be pushed into them
Lastly, I'm not aware of any complaints from users about such buttons
It's not a new or unique feature at all
Peter2k - Thursday, July 18, 2019 - link
BtwYou could also save your current settings and even if you do wipe them by accident, you can load them again
DanNeely - Thursday, July 18, 2019 - link
Anything semi-permanently attached gets plugged in the rear to keep the cabling mess out of the way. Front ports are for thumb drives and the like.If the system's awkwardly placed such that I can't see it, I'm probably looking for ports by touch and the buttons are finger sized. A year after the last time I've seen the back I have no idea how the ports are arranged, and am generally starting from the top and working my way down, top ports are easier to access from above so I normally fill the bottom ones first and leave the top USB open for later. The cable plug isn't going back until I've found the right location. Starting by scraping a plug around until you find something big enough for it to fit into is a good way to end up with a USB plug stuck in the second ethernet socket by accident.
Mr Perfect - Thursday, July 18, 2019 - link
No, it's not just you. My mobotherboard has a rear panel BIOS reset and I've only pressed it twice in five years. Both times where accidental.I probably shouldn't admit to that...
FreckledTrout - Thursday, July 18, 2019 - link
Yeah. I always wished they would put some type of flip cover on these so you don't mess up and hit them by accident.12345 - Friday, July 19, 2019 - link
Just save a profile to local storage.peevee - Friday, July 19, 2019 - link
Way too expensive. For comparison, for that price you can buy a basic laptop with a motherboard and WiFi, but also:1) CPU with iGPU
2) Memory
3) Display
4) Battery
5) Disk
6) Case
7) Charger
Oh the times when I could buy a microATX MB for $50 and spend money on what actually matters...
HighTech4US - Sunday, July 21, 2019 - link
Agree way too expensive.I just purchased a ASRock B450M PRO4 Micro ATX AMD Motherboard for only $74.99 from NewEgg and an AMD Ryzen 5 3600 for $199.99 and Team T-Force Vulcan 8GB (2 x 4GB) 3200 (PC4 25600) for $39.99. Total $314.97
So I got an entire CPU/Motherboard/Memory for less than this motherboard alone.
regsEx - Thursday, August 1, 2019 - link
Agreed. The red price is $280, yet only if had 10 GbE controller and 20 Gbps USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 controllers. If no, the $250.Daveteauk - Thursday, April 9, 2020 - link
Dan Neely - Yes, you are the only person who thinks that - it's a great help and addition to an IO plate - REALLY helpful. If you're too clumsy, or lazy to pull your case, then you shouldn't be playing around with PCs!