The MEG X570 ACE is an attractive, refined motherboard. The VRM is the most sophisticated and overbuilt I have seen so far, and the integrated rear I/O shield is an excellent touch that adds to the elegance of the board. The M.2 heatsinks mount with just a single screw even is captive so it won't get lost; all in all, this design is extremely well thought out.

As for performance, memory stability was absolutely excellent. While my experience with memory overclocking on the new Ryzen 5 3600X has been overwhelmingly positive in general, the MEG X570 ACE has set a whole new bar. I was able to boot and pass several loops of MemTest64 at 4466 MHz with my T-Force Extreme 3866 MHz kit. When it came to overclocking the CPU, the ACE hit the same wall as every other board with my Ryzen 5 3600X sample at around 4.4 GHz all-core for a manual overclock at 1.45 V.

Performance out of the box was pretty good, a step up from my last-generation Ryzen 5 2600X in almost every test. Thermal performance on the MEG X570 ACE was excellent, the best I have seen for X570 so far. Frankly, the 100 W maximum power draw of my 3600X just isn't enough to challenge the VRM on the MEG X570 ACE. The greatest advantage the MEG X570 ACE has is the heatpipe connection between the VRM and chipset heatsinks. Combined with an overbuilt VRM design and an easily tuned chipset fan curve, the Ace is a top choice for buyers worried about fan noise.

The MEG X570 ACE isn't perfect. Only having four SATA ports is the most obvious flaw. While this is likely fine for most users, it lacks flexibility. There is some software bloat, like MSI Gaming OSD, an app that won't even open if you are not using an MSI monitor. Finally, there is the price. At US$370, the MEG X570 ACE is the most expensive board in this price bracket, though not by much. While the motherboards from all four major vendors have very similar features, I believe MSI has done an excellent job of setting themselves apart regardless of price.

If you are in the market for a high-end mainstream X570 motherboard and fan noise is a concern, the MEG X570 ACE is the board you are looking for.