MSI MEG Z790 Ace Motherboard Review: Fully Loaded, Overpriced
MSI’s MEG Z790 Ace is an E-ATX sized board with a dark black finish and gold trim to create a high-end aesthetic that looks great inside most chassis. Not, but neither are most of its direct competitors.
Not only does this board look good, it has two 40 Gbps ports, flagship-class audio, five M.2 sockets (one PCIe 5.0 x4), dual 2.5 GbE and Wi-Fi 6E, one One of the most robust VRMs out there. There are also flexible USB Type-C display options, a 40 Gbps port for rear IO, massive storage capabilities, and more. The only thing missing is a 10 GbE port. Otherwise, it has all the features of flagship motherboards that cost more.
In terms of performance, the MEG Ace performed well across our suite of tests, running slightly above average overall. Gaming performance and his 3DMark test showed it to be a high performance gaming board that outperformed other his Z790 boards tested so far.Below we dig into the board details and see if the price knocks it out of our spot best motherboard list. Before we get into the details, here are the detailed specifications from the MSI website.
Specifications: MSI MEG Z790 Ace
socket | LGA1700 |
chipset | Z790 |
form factor | E-ATX |
voltage regulator | 27 phases (24x 105A SPS MOSFETs for Vcore) |
video port | (1) DisplayPort (via USB Type-C) |
(2) TB4 (Mini DP In/Out) pass-through | |
USB port | (2) Thunderbolt 4 (40Gbps) Type-C |
(1) USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10Gbps) Type-C | |
(7) USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10Gbps) Type-C | |
network jack | (2) 2.5GbE |
audio jack | (5) Analog + SPDIF |
Other Ports/Jacks | ✗ |
PCIe x16 | (1) v5.0 (x16) |
(1) v5.0 (x8) | |
(1) v4.0 (x4) | |
PCIe x8 | ✗ |
PCIe x4 | ✗ |
PCIe x 1 | ✗ |
Crossfire/SLI | AMD Multi-GPU Support |
DIMM slots | (4) DDR4 7800+(OC), 192GB capacity |
1DPC 1R Max Speed 7800+ MHz | |
1DPC 2R Max Speed 6600+ MHz | |
2DPC 1R Max Speed 6400+ MHz | |
2DPC 2R Max Speed 5600+ MHz | |
M.2 socket | (1) PCIe 5.0 x4 (128Gbps) / PCIe (up to 80mm) |
(1) PCIe 4.0 x4 (64Gbps) / PCIe (up to 110mm) | |
(1) PCIe 4.0 x4 (64Gbps) / PCIe (up to 80mm) | |
(1) PCIe 4.0 x4 (64Gbps) / PCIe + SATA (up to 80mm) | |
(1) PCIe 4.0 x4 (64Gbps) / PCIe + SATA (up to 110mm) | |
Supports RAID0/1/5 | |
SATA port | (6) SATA3 6Gbps (supports RAID 0/1/5/10) |
USB header | (2) USB v3.2 Gen 2×2, Type-C (0Gbps) |
(2) USB v3.2 Gen 1 (5Gbps) | |
(2) USB v2.0 (480Mbps) | |
fan/pump header | (8) 4-pin (CPU, pump, system fan) |
RGB header | (3) aRGB (3 pin) |
(1) RGB (4 pin) | |
diagnostic panel | (1) Dr. Debug |
(1) EZ debug LED | |
Internal button/switch | Power and reset button, BIOS and LED on/off switch |
SATA controller | ASMedia ASM1061 |
ethernet controller | (2) Intel (2.5GbE) |
Wi-Fi/Bluetooth | Intel Wi-Fi 6E AX211 (2×2 ax, MU-MIMO, 2.4/5/6 GHz, 160 MHz, BT 5.3) |
USB controller | Genesis Logic GLG3590 |
HD audio codec | Realtek ALC4082 (ESS ES9280AQ DAC) |
DDL/DTS | ✗ / ✗ |
guarantee | 3 years |
What’s in the MSI MEG Z790 Ace box
MSI includes some accessories in the box to get you started. Get guides, notices, stickers, SATA cables, thermistors, EZ M.2 clips, and more. Below is a complete list of included accessories.
- Quick install guide
- (4) SATA data cables
- EZ M.2 Clip, M.2 Screw/Standoff
- EZ front panel cable
- (2) Thermistor cable
- 1-2 RGB LED Y Cable
- Rainbow RGB LED Extension Cable
- (2) DP to Mini DP cable
- Wi-Fi antenna
- USB driver stick
- cable sticker
MSI Z790 Ace design
The Z790 Ace features a dark black exterior with gold highlights on an 8-layer PCB. Dividing the black are the RGB lights MSI Dragon on the RGB, his MEG branding on the upper VRM heatsink, and other small embellishments on the M.2 heatsink and chipset. Along with the MSI Dragon, Ace nomenclature and chipset sports RGB LED design elements, the board underneath has a nice glow inside the chassis. It doesn’t dominate the interior of the chassis with its RGB glitter, but it’s still a good looking motherboard with a premium feel.
Looking at the top half of the board, we first encounter the VRM heatsink. With the Z790 Ace, MSI uses a stacked fin array design to increase surface area and cooling capacity. A heatpipe connects the three VRM heatsinks and shares the load between them. These heatsinks are a good choice to get as much power as this board can put out using the water cooling option. As we will see later, it does a great job keeping his nearly 300W out of the processor.
Uniquely located to the right of these and the socket area are two 8-pin EPS connectors (one required) for powering the processor. If you’re using AIO or water cooling, connect both of these as they can consume over 300W of power if the sockets are unchecked.
Beneath the EPS connector are four non-hardened DRAM slots with a single-sided locking mechanism on the bottom near the graphics card slots. MSI lists support for up to DDR5 7800+(OC) with 1 DPC (DIMM per channel). This is a similar upper limit compared to other boards. I threw in the TeamGroup DDR5-7200 kit and it worked without any tweaking.
Along the right edge are various features, from fans and RGB headers to voltage reading points. Starting with the fan headers, there are a total of 8 fans on the board, which should be enough to cool the chassis. The 4-pin fan header supports both PWM and DC controlled devices. The CPU fan and pump fan output up to 3A/36W, and the system fan header outputs 2A/24W. If eight headers aren’t enough, one header gives him the power to piggyback two fans at ease. But as always, check how much power your fans use to avoid overloading your headers.
There are also two 3-pin ARGB headers in this area and two 4-pin RGB headers on the bottom. RGB control is managed by MSI Control Center software and Mystic Light application. There are many canned LED patterns and functions within the application.
Underneath the RGB header is an EZ debug LED and a two-letter debug LED to help troubleshoot POST issues. It consists of four LEDs that light up during the POST process and stay lit if the system hangs due to the specific issue that corresponds to the light. A more sophisticated two-letter LED display code, on the other hand, provides more detailed information. Combined, they are a great tool for troubleshooting non-functioning systems. Also note that by default, a two-character LED displays the CPU temperature once the POST process is complete.
Moving down the right side we find two more 4-pin fan headers, a 24-pin ATX connector to power the board, two front panel USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 (20 Gbps) ports, and a 6-pin PCIe connector. The latter is required for the 60W PD fast charge feature, otherwise limited to 30W.
Moving on to the VRM, power is supplied to the Renesas RAA229131 PWM controller from the 8-pin EPS connector. For Vcore, power goes to 24x 105A Renesas RAA22010540 SPS MOSFETs.2,520 amps available is one of the highest we’ve seen and easily handles the flagship Intel Core i9-13900K In stock and overclocked. No worries about overpowering the MEG Ace.
Hidden under some shrouds is the Realtek ALC4082 audio chip on the bottom half of the board. In addition to flagship codecs, MSI also uses the ESS Saber ES9280AQ DAC/HPA combo for flagship-class audio solutions. The Realtek Audio Control Panel is a Windows tool for adjusting audio.
In the middle of the board are three reinforced full-length PCIe slots. The top two slots feed lanes from a CPU that can run up to PCIe 5.0 x16 (the primary graphics slot is on top) and the second slot can run up to PCIe 5.0 x4. The storage does have some lane sharing, which we’ll get to as soon as we get to the storage.The last PCIe slot feeds lanes from the chipset and runs at PCIe 4.0 x4 speeds To do. MSI lists AMD multi-GPU support for those who want to continue using Crossfire.
In and around the PCIe slot are five M.2 sockets. Only one slot supports PCIe 5.0 x4 (128 Gbps) speeds, and surprisingly it’s not the top socket with the larger heatsink. Instead, the lower left (M2_4) socket is faster. The rest support PCIe 4.0 x4 speeds and some support up to 110mm modules. Some sockets offer M.2 SATA support, but this is becoming less common. On the lane sharing front, the M2_4 slot (the only PCIe 5.0 socket) will be disabled when PCIE_E2 (middle slot) is populated. In addition, SATA7 is not available when installing an M.2 SATA SSD in the M2_5 socket. Be aware of sharing issues if you’re trying to enter many of these storage options.
Several headers are exposed at the bottom of the board. You’ll find the usual stuff like extra USB ports, an RGB header, and a power/reset button. Below is the complete list from left to right.
- front panel audio
- 4-pin ARGB header
- (5) System fan header
- water flow header
- temperature sensor header
- LEDs and BIOS switches
- (2) USB 2.0 headers
- power button and reset button
- MIS dashboard header
- system panel header
- 4-pin ARGB header
With pre-installed rear IO, the Z790 Ace features a black background with gold labels on all ports. There are 10 USB ports in total, 8 10 Gbps ports (red and Type-C) and 2 40 Gbps Type-C ports. Video outputs consist of a Type-C port and a Mini-DisplayPort input for the Thunderbolt port. On the far left are three buttons: Clear CMOS Button, Flash BIOS, and Smart Button. Dual 2.5 GbE ports sit above the USB ports, with Wi-Fi 6E antenna connections on the right, next to the 5-plug analog and SPDIF audio stacks.
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