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
Gaming Performance
For X570 we are running using Windows 10 64-bit with the 1903 update as per our Ryzen 3000 CPU review.
World of Tanks enCore
Albeit different to most of the other commonly played MMO or massively multiplayer online games, World of Tanks is set in the mid-20th century and allows players to take control of a range of military based armored vehicles. World of Tanks (WoT) is developed and published by Wargaming who are based in Belarus, with the game’s soundtrack being primarily composed by Belarusian composer Sergey Khmelevsky. The game offers multiple entry points including a free-to-play element as well as allowing players to pay a fee to open up more features. One of the most interesting things about this tank based MMO is that it achieved eSports status when it debuted at the World Cyber Games back in 2012.
World of Tanks enCore is a demo application for a new and unreleased graphics engine penned by the Wargaming development team. Over time the new core engine will implemented into the full game upgrading the games visuals with key elements such as improved water, flora, shadows, lighting as well as other objects such as buildings. The World of Tanks enCore demo app not only offers up insight into the impending game engine changes, but allows users to check system performance to see if the new engine run optimally on their system.
Grand Theft Auto V
The highly anticipated iteration of the Grand Theft Auto franchise hit the shelves on April 14th 2015, with both AMD and NVIDIA in tow to help optimize the title. GTA doesn’t provide graphical presets, but opens up the options to users and extends the boundaries by pushing even the hardest systems to the limit using Rockstar’s Advanced Game Engine under DirectX 11. Whether the user is flying high in the mountains with long draw distances or dealing with assorted trash in the city, when cranked up to maximum it creates stunning visuals but hard work for both the CPU and the GPU.
For our test we have scripted a version of the in-game benchmark. The in-game benchmark consists of five scenarios: four short panning shots with varying lighting and weather effects, and a fifth action sequence that lasts around 90 seconds. We use only the final part of the benchmark, which combines a flight scene in a jet followed by an inner city drive-by through several intersections followed by ramming a tanker that explodes, causing other cars to explode as well. This is a mix of distance rendering followed by a detailed near-rendering action sequence, and the title thankfully spits out frame time data.
F1 2018
Aside from keeping up-to-date on the Formula One world, F1 2017 added HDR support, which F1 2018 has maintained; otherwise, we should see any newer versions of Codemasters' EGO engine find its way into F1. Graphically demanding in its own right, F1 2018 keeps a useful racing-type graphics workload in our benchmarks.
Aside from keeping up-to-date on the Formula One world, F1 2017 added HDR support, which F1 2018 has maintained. We use the in-game benchmark, set to run on the Montreal track in the wet, driving as Lewis Hamilton from last place on the grid. Data is taken over a one-lap race.
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Targon - Thursday, July 18, 2019 - link
If you are looking to install a $500 CPU into a sub-$200 motherboard, you have a set of misplaced priorities. A low-end B350 motherboard may not have the VRMs to support the 105W processors, so you have to expect issues there. Also, many motherboard companies have been slacking when it comes to releasing AGESA 1.0.0.3ab based BIOS updates for older motherboards(Asus really needs to get its act together).29a - Thursday, July 18, 2019 - link
I wouldn't worry about stability or performance putting a 3700x in my $74 motherboard. You just need to make sure the CPU has been qualified by the vendor first and have a good quality power supply.Death666Angel - Friday, July 19, 2019 - link
"you have a set of misplaced priorities" Or maybe you don't do your research properly? Why should I spend money on features I don't use? A lot of sub $100 motherboards support the new 12 core and the VRMs are fine. Some will even support the 16 core and depending on air flow the VRM will still be fine. If you know what you are doing, there is no need to overspend on the motherboard "just to be safe".Some people also have different need than you. I have an mATX case and want to keep it (ITX is too restrictive and ATX is too large for my tastes). The most expensive mATX motherboards with an X370 or B450 (only one X470 board from AsRack for workstations) is the ASUS TUF 450M-Pro (sub $100) and that is probably worse than the Mortar line from MSI unless you need a very specific feature. I could go ITX but then lose 2 DIMM slots, M.2 support is more limited, VRM support suprisingly is pretty decent. But I also lose the possibility of using an extra x4 or x1 slot for future upgrades (more USB lanes, LAN card, SATA ports). I've had instances where the onboard LAN or a couple USB ports died. It's handy to have some expansion capabilities if you have the room. If I don't need the internal power, reset buttons, why pay for them? If I don't need guaranteed 4600+ MHz, why pay for it? If I don't need ALC1220, why pay for it? If I don't need more than 8 USB ports on the IO panel or more than 1 LAN port, why pay for it? Often times you get more features, but not necessarily better or more useful features when you step up in pricing. The blanket statement I quoted is really kind of ignorant.
jabber - Thursday, July 18, 2019 - link
Shhhh remember these sites have to justify their existence by pushing the concept of market churn even though most cases of tech were long since satisfied and we are largely just reheating leftovers for the past 10 years. These reviews really do cater to a ever dwindling number of tech users.satai - Thursday, July 18, 2019 - link
ECC support?Targon - Thursday, July 18, 2019 - link
There's been ECC support on motherboards since the first generation Ryzen showed up.satai - Friday, July 19, 2019 - link
Not every mobo has it official / was tested.Death666Angel - Friday, July 19, 2019 - link
The time it took to write those comments, you could have visited the website and look at the manual and provide a service to everyone.Here:
"Supports non-ECC UDIMM memory
Supports ECC UDIMM memory (non-ECC mode)
Supports un-buffered memory"
Jansen - Friday, July 19, 2019 - link
So that would be a no LOLDug - Thursday, July 18, 2019 - link
Please test the components of the motherboard, it's a motherboard review. Everyone can stick a cpu on the board and run tests. But we want to see if there are any issues or performance issues with the USB, network, sound, etc.