Power Consumption and Temperatures

The MSI MPG X570S Carbon EK X uses a monoblock that spans across the VRM section and cools it as well. This improves VRM temperatures when overclocking and extends the life of the components and raises efficiency. This monoblock is the main selling point and does a great job in that respect. After reviewing the MSI Z690 Carbon EK X, it would have been a great addition to see MSI include M.2 cooling on the top socket as well.



For temperature measurement, I use a Reed SD-947 4 channel Data Logging Thermometer paired with four Omega Engineering SA1 Self Adhesive Thermocouple probes. One probe directly touches the chipset and two are placed on select power stages. The last probe actively logs the ambient temperature.

For the MSI MPG X570S Carbon EK X, one probe is placed along each bank of power stages. A probe is left out to log the ambient temperature. All temperatures are presented as Delta-T normalized to 20°C, which is the measured temperature minus the ambient temperature plus 20°C. The end result accounts for variation in ambient temperature, including changes over the course of a test, while presenting the data as if the ambient were a steady 20°C for easy presentation. Additionally, there is direct airflow over the VRM for the first five minutes, after which the fan is removed. This gives an idea of what to expect with and without moderate case airflow.

Prime95's Small FFT is used for maximum power consumption over a 30 minute period. For testing, I used a Ryzen 9 3900X set to 4 GHz and locked at 1.35 V, and 1.15 V for the SoC. Temperatures are logged every second, and the two probes are then averaged for a cleaner presentation before subtracting the ambient to calculate the Delta-T. The results are charted below.


The MSI MPG X570S Carbon EK X performs exceptionally well in the VRM torture test. I am confident that this motherboard can be used long-term with a heavy CPU overclock and minimal airflow. The Prime95 test is designed around the worst-case scenario for every situation. The limit here is the CPU overclock as it can only thermally dissipate so much energy in the form of heat for such a small surface area.


Moving onto Cinebench R20, which is also a power-hog, we get to see a more real-world use case plays out. After 30 minutes, temperatures are excellent and stay steady throughout. As expected, the monoblock does its job well.


This final chart gives gamers a peek into the VRM thermals under a generic gaming load. It barely registers, only moving up and down as the room temperature changes.