MSI MEG Z790 ACE motherboard unboxing test

MSI's sub-flagship model of the Z790 chipset, the MSI MEG Z790 ACE motherboard, offers plenty of expandability in an E-ATX form factor, bringing users 192GB of DDR5, PCIe 5.0 x16 graphics slots, five M.2 SSDs, Dual 2.5G LANs, Wi-Fi 6E/BT 5.3, Dual USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 Type-C, 60W PD fast charging for Type-C, 2x Thunderbolt 4 at the rear, and more. Gen 2×2 Type-C, Front Type-C 60W PD fast charging, Rear 2x Thunderbolt 4, etc. 24+1+2 SPS 105A power supply for Intel 12th/13th Core i9 processors, sufficient power performance and overclocking space.

∆ Basic product features on the back of the box.

The motherboard VRM blocks, Z790 PCH chipset and all M.2 SSD expansion mounts are equipped with large-area heat sinks to provide sufficient heat dissipation for the chips with a certain amount of heat generation. The back of the motherboard is made of aluminum alloy to provide additional physical strength, and at the same time help Mosfet to cool down by using thermal pads, the MEG Z790 ACE uses 7W/mK thermal pads for Mosfet and choke thermal pads to ensure all cores run at high performance and stability. MEG Z790 ACE uses 7W/mK thermal pads for Mosfet and choke pads to ensure all cores run at high performance and stability.

∆ E-ATX version with large area cooling armor.

The back of the ∆ is reinforced with an aluminum alloy backplate, which enhances the physical strength of the PCB and helps Mosfet to dissipate heat.

∆ 24+1+2 105A supply.

∆ The Dragon Spirit RGB effect on the heatsink.

∆ LGA 1700 processor installation bits.

∆ ATX_12V Dual 8-Pin processor power supply slots above the memory slots.

For the 2 DIMMs dual-channel memory sets that are often purchased when ordering, the original manufacturer recommends that they be installed in slots A2 and B2 (the second and fourth slots counting from the left) as a priority, so that by installing the two memories in these two locations, the memories can operate at a higher frequency more easily. There is a decorative piece next to the memory slots, but the actual purpose is only for decoration, and there aren't any expansion slots underneath.

∆Single-clip DDR5 UDIMM memory slot, four slots for a total of up to 192GB of capacity expansion, supports memory XMP/iEXPO one-click overclocking certification.

The two JARGB V2 are in fact regular 5V 3-Pin ARGB slots, the header can support up to 240 individually addressable RGB LED strips or devices, with a maximum power rating of 3A (5V). Connecting the ARGB Gen1 and ARGB Gen2 LED devices to the same slot header may cause problems, and therefore it is not recommended to daisy-chain the ARGB Gen1 and ARGB Gen2 LED devices together. ARGB Gen1 and ARGB Gen2 LED devices in series is not recommended.

∆ CPU_FAN1, DeBug LED, two JARGB_V2 (ARGB 5v-3Pin).

The MEG Z790 ACE offers two front USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 Type-C expansion, and in addition to 20Gbps data transfer bandwidth, the JUSB6 on the right side also supports 60W USB PD fast charging, but if you want to use USB PD fast charging to charge the device, you have to connect to the PCIe power supply slot (PD_PWR1) next to it.

∆ EZ DeBug, PUMP_FAN, SYS_FAN, Motherboard 24-Pin Power Supply Slot.

The ∆ DeBug LED and EZ DeBug quickly identify the source of the error.

∆Two USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 Type-C expansion slots. When connected to the center PCIe power supply, the right Type-C slot supports 60W USB PD fast charging.

∆ Two USB 3.2 Gen1 slots (supports four front USB 3.2 Gen1 mounting ports), six SATA III 6Gb/s.