Introduction

After almost a decade of total market dominance, Intel has spent the past few years on the defensive. AMD's Ryzen processors continue to show improvement year over year, with the most recent Ryzen 5000 series taking the crown of best gaming processor: Intel's last bastion of superiority.

Now, with a booming hardware market, Intel is preparing to make up some lost ground with the new 11th Gen Intel Core Processors. Intel is claiming these new 11th Gen CPUs offer double-digit IPC improvements despite remaining on a 14 nm process. The top-end 8-core Intel Core i9-11900K may not be able to compete against its AMD rival Ryzen 9 5900X in heavily multi-threaded scenarios, but the higher clock speeds and alleged IPC improvements could be enough to take back the gaming crown. Along with the new CPUs, there is a new chipset to match, the Intel Z590. Last year's Z490 chipset motherboards are also compatible with the new 11th Gen Intel Core Processors, but Z590 introduces some key advantages.

First, Z590 offers native PCIe 4.0 support from the CPU, which means the PCIe and M.2 slots powered off the CPU will offer PCIe 4.0 connectivity when an 11th Gen CPU is installed. The PCIe and M.2 slots controlled by the Z590 chipset are still PCI 3.0. While many high-end Z490 motherboards advertised this capability, it was not a standard feature for the platform. In addition to PCIe 4.0 support, Z590 offers USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 from the chipset. The USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 standard offers speeds of up to 20 Gb/s. Finally, Z590 boasts native support for 3200 MHz DDR4 memory. With these upgrades, Intel's Z series platform has feature parity with AMD's B550. On paper, Intel is catching up to AMD, but only testing will tell if these new Z590 motherboards are up to the challenge.



The MSI Enthusiast Gaming, or MEG for short, line of motherboards represents the best of the best MSI has to offer. Last year's Z490 MEG line offered some of the best overclocking available on an Intel platform. Memory overclocking was particularly noteworthy due to such innovations as MSI's tabbed memory trace layout. Those same innovations return on MSI's new Z590 lineup with even more refinement. The MSI MEG Z590 ACE features a massive 19-phase VRM with top of the line 90 A power stages and a robust VRM cooling solution, four M.2 slots, Thunderbolt 4, and a plethora of overclocking features. The MSI MEG Z590 ACE has a premium spec sheet, let's see if there is premium performance to match!

Specifications

Testing for this review was conducted using a 10th Gen Intel Core i9-10900K. Stay tuned for an 11th Gen update when the new processors launch!

Packaging and Contents

The front of the MSI MEG Z590 ACE box features a dark background with a shot of the rear I/O cover in the bottom right. "MEG Z590 ACE" is in the bottom left with the MSI logo and other brand badging along the top.

The back of the box has all the highlights: a top-down shot of the board, several panels detailing prominent features, a shot of the rear I/O, and the specifications list. The box design is well executed and captures the theme of the ACE flawlessly.


The accessories are quite good and include extras like RGB extension cables, thermistors, and even a a pair of keychain screwdrivers and a cleaning brush. Notably absent is any kind of rear I/O shield because the shield is integrated into the board. I also appreciate the inclusion of a USB stick instead of a disk for the drivers, a shift I would like to see more often as disk drives are becoming less and less common.

The full list of accessories includes:

• Manual and support USB
• MEG and cable sticker sheets
• Registration card and reward flyer
• 4x SATA 6 Gb/s cables
• Thermistor cable
• 3x RGB extension cable
• DP to Mini DP cable
• Cleaning brush
• Screwdrivers
• 4x M.2 mounting hardware
• Case badge
• Wi-Fi antenna

Board Layout

The MSI MEG Z590 ACE features a black PCB matched with black heatsinks and yellow-lettered accents. There is a large aluminium backplate that adds rigidity to the board and offers an added element of cooling to the back of the VRM.


The CPU socket is open enough for most air coolers. Unlike most boards, extra covers are all aluminium instead of plastic, adding to the premium feel of the board.


There are four M.2 slots on the MSI MEG Z590 ACE. All four slots feature full-coverage heatsinks. Note that the top M.2 slot is PCIe 4.0 compliant and will only function when an 11th Gen CPU is installed.


The MSI MEG Z590 ACE offers three steel-reinforced PCI Express x16 slots. The top two slots are PCIe 4.0 compliant, while the bottom slot is PCIe 3.0 only. There are also two PCIe x1 slots. The board has a total of six SATA 6 Gb/s ports on the side, angled 90 degrees from the board.


The MSI MEG Z590 ACE has a good I/O offering that includes an optical S/PDIF Out port, Wi-Fi 6, and even Thunderbolt 4.

• BIOS flashback button
• Clear CMOS button
• 2x SMA antenna connectors
• HDMI port
• 2x USB Type-C® Thunderbolt ports
• 2x Mini DisplayPort input
• 2x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A ports
• 4x USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports
• 2x USB 2.0 ports
• RJ-45 port
• Optical S/PDIF Out connector
• 5x Audio jacks

Networking on the MSI MEG Z590 ACE is handled by an Intel I225V 2.5 Gb/s controller. For wireless connectivity, there is an AX210 Wi-Fi 6 module.