X570 gaming plus

Frequently Asked Questions

Below, you will find the most frequently asked questions about the MSI MPG X570 Gaming Plus.

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The MPG X570 Gaming Plus is one of MSI’s entry-level motherboards based on the AMD X570 chipset (the other one being the nearly identical X570-A Pro). An entry-level designation is somewhat misleading, however, as the X570 is a high-end platform in itself. Like all boards based on this chipset and launched in 2019, the Gaming Plus introduces the PCI Express (PCIe) 4.0 interface on the consumer market. PCIe 4.0 doubles theoretical transfer rates over PCIe 3.0, leading to improved performance for (primarily) SSDs that can utilize the added bandwidth. 

MSI MPG X570 Gaming Plus: Key Features

As a rule, motherboards based on the X570 chipset are actively cooled using a fan mounted directly on the PCB, and the MPG X570 Gaming Plus is no exception. The VRM components are also cooled by heatsinks. Due to the board’s entry-level positioning, MSI does not disclose what type of VRM is used but it seems to offer 8 CPU phases. It should nevertheless be capable of housing any Ryzen 3000-series CPU, but may not overclock as easily as more expensive options like the MEG ACE or Aorus Ultra. It comes with 8-pin and 4-pin 12V ATX connectors. 

As with all X570 motherboards launched in 2019, the PCIe 4.0 interface is a key feature since it’s only available to consumers via this platform initially. The MSI MPG X570 Gaming Plus is equipped with one PCIe 4.0-compatible M.2 slot for similarly capable SSDs, plus one PCIe 3.0 M.2 slot. One MSI-branding Lightning Gen 4 M.2 heatsink is included. Other hard drives and SSDs can be connected via the board’s six SATA ports. It also has two full-length, x16-sized PCIe 4.0 slots for graphics cards, plus three x1 PCIe 4 slots. Multi-GPU setups using AMD cards is possible (CrossfireX), but Nvidia SLI is not supported. 

Another feature it shares with all X570-based boards at launch is the RAM arrangement: the MPG Gaming Plus has four DDR4 memory slots (dual channel) and will hold up to 128 GB of RAM in total (four 32 GB modules). These will run in up to 4400 MHz in OC mode. 

Being one of the more affordable motherboards with this chipset, there’s only a bare minimum of LEDs and no onboard RGB. MSI’s Mystic Light, which consists of a red LED, can however be complemented with RGB fans or strips via a header on the Gaming Plus. 

MSI MPG X570 Gaming Plus Vs. X570-A PRO

When comparing the specs and layouts of the Gaming Plus and X570-A Pro it’s obvious that the two are mostly identical. There are some design differences and the MPG Gaming Plus comes with larger heatsinks over the power delivery parts. The MPG board also comes with an included M.2 heatsink, which the X570-A lacks. 

Pros: -Lots of SATA ports -Supports Ryzen 3000 series out of the box -Well laid out

Cons: -MSI customer service is useless - 2 of the 6 SATA ports run from a buggy ASMedia ASM1061 controller, idiotically put as the FIRST 2 SATA ports

Overall Review: I bought this and planned on using it as a dual boot Linux/Windows box. (Linux for 90%+ and Windows for when I have no choice.) I basically had it sitting on the ground for months because I had a devil of a time getting Linux to boot. MSI's response when I asked them for help: "All MSI motherboards support windows. Unfortunately we don’t support Linux technically, and the board has not been tested with Linux before so we have no idea." Which is fine, but say that up front in your marketing material. Anyways, I figured it was an early BIOS problem. 3 BIOS updates later and I found the answer buried deep in a technical forum. The ASMedia ASM1061 SATA controller doesn't like optical drives. Not being a technical expert, I can't say whether the problem is the chip or the Linux driver. BUUUUT it appears the be the chip based on what I've read, and the fact that the Linux driver hasn't been fixed for a chip that it about a decade old also indicates that the problem lies with the chip, not the driver. The worst part is that MSI made the ASM1061 SATA ports SATA1+2. I mean, come on guys. Using a buggy chip isn't really the best idea, but make them the LAST 2 ports (5+6) and maybe make them a different color also. Moving the optical drive from SATA 2 to another SATA port (i.e. one NOT using the ASM1061) fixed the problem and the system seems to be running great. All this is why I took 1 egg off. It's a simple problem to fix, but it shouldn't have been an issue to begin with. I'm using a Ryzen 5 3600 and slightly overclocked RAM. The only other odd thing I experienced involved the video. I have an Nvidia card and use 2 monitors: primary on DVI and secondary on HDMI. In CSM mode the DVI port was my primary. In UEFI mode the DVI port was not even recognized and the HDMI port was primary. Linux recognized the second monitor, but the picture was horrible. Installing the proprietary Nvidia drivers fixed that. Windows didn't even recognize the second monitor until the drivers were installed. Very weird. Good thing I had the second monitor or I wouldn't have been able to install Windows or get to the BIOS. This could have been an Nvidia issue, though so I didn't ding this motherboard for it.

A mere six months have passed since MSI told us that there would be no cheap X570 motherboards. But at just $160, MSI’s MPG X570 Gaming Plus certainly seems cheap. Or perhaps six months of higher prices have changed our perspective? We do remember a time when the cheapest boards to use an enthusiast-class chipset were priced around $120.

Regardless of how we define cheapness, this board still gets you a voltage regulator with eight 46A MOSFETs for the CPU core on a board that undercuts the other “value-priced models” we’ve tested by a wide margin. That voltage regulator should be adequate to run the full range of Ryzen 3000processors at stock settings. Since our test CPU is a middle model, we’ll push it a bit with overclocking.

Specifications

The MPG X570 Gaming Plus has very little going for it outside of the adequate-capacity voltage regulator, though it does a fair job with the basics. We still get PCIe 4.0 to all the board's slots, and the audio codec is the same ALC1220 we would expect to find on $200+ models. And that audio codec still feeds five rear-panel audio jacks and a front-panel HD Audio header, because there wouldn’t be much value to crippling it with cheaper connectors.

Zooming in, we also find a tiny button for flashing the firmware which, lacking the ASIC that allows certain pricier boards to update firmware without certain hardware, seems only a little out of place on a model this inexpensive.  We also see a PS/2 port for legacy keyboards and mice, two USB 2.0 ports that we’ll assume are for contemporary keyboards and mice, four USB3 Gen 1 ports (5Gbps), Type A and Type-C Gen 2 ports (10Gbps), Gigabit Ethernet via a low-cost Realtek controller, and a digital optical audio output.

With four of the CPU’s PCIe 4.0 lanes going to an M.2 slot and four more to the X570 PCH as AMD intended, all sixteen remaining lanes go to the top PCIe slot in fixed fashion. You won’t be running SLI on this board, but you might be tempted to use the second x16-length slot to feed a second card in a CrossFire array, though that would be in x4 mode through the chipset.

The three x1 slots are even more limited: Not only do they compete with everything else on the chipset for bandwidth, but the top x1 slot gets disabled whenever a card is detected in the second x1 slot.  And that automatic selection explains why we see only one PCIe pathway diverting switch on the entire board, behind the first PCIe x1 slot.

Users have told us (via Newegg reviews) that SATA ports 1 and 2 are to be avoided, as these are the two that are fed by the board’s PCIe 2.0 x1-to-SATA adapter. Ouch. While that part is listed in both the web specs and user manual, neither of those official sources would even tell us that much.

Builders hoping to use the money saved here to splurge on a case might want to hold back a little, as the MPG X570 Gaming Plus has no Gen2 front-panel USB header. On the other hand, those retaining an old high-end case might appreciate that this board has two USB3 Gen1 front-panel headers.

The MPG X570 Gaming Plus’s bottom edge is lined with headers for front-panel audio, one (of two) RGB cables, TPM, four (of six) PWM fan headers, serial COM port, two dual-port USB 2.0, one (of two) dual-port USB 3.0, and an Intel-spec front-panel LED/button group. Above those are a factory (reserved) header, chassis intrusion, PC speaker/buzzer, and one (of two) ARGB headers. The other RGB and ARGB headers are located near the board’s upper-front corner.

Capable of supporting either PCIe/NVMe or SATA interfaced drives, the second M.2 header is to the left of the PCH fan.

The MPS X570 Gaming Plus includes a printed manual in the box, along with a snap-in I/O shield, driver/application disc, two SATA cables, a case badge, an M.2 heat spreader, quick installation guide, and several other pieces of documentation.

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