AMD's 3rd Gen Ryzen Threadripper processors are here along with the next-gen sTRX4 socket-based TRX40 motherboard lineup. With the launch of the new motherboards, AMD's top AIBs which include ASUS, AORUS, ASRock, and MSI have released their respective TRX40 motherboard lines which deliver an amazing set of features and powerful power delivery systems to support up to 64 core and 128 thread Threadripper CPUs.
AMD TRX40 Motherboard Roundup Ft. ASUS, AORUS, ASRock & MSI - The Next-Gen, Industry Leading HEDT Platform
The TRX40 series motherboards come in various price categories, offering a different set of features, unique design schemes and a range of powerful accessories that accompany AMD Threadripper CPUs. In this roundup, we will be looking at all of the major TRX40 motherboards which have been introduced by motherboard manufactures.
ASUS TRX40 Motherboard Lineup - ROG ZENITH II EXTREME Leads The Pack!
ASUS's lineup includes three motherboards, the flagship ROG ZENITH Extreme II, the ROG STRIX TRX40-E, and the PRIME TRX40-PRO. The ROG series is more aimed towards enthusiasts while the PRIME series is for those who want best in class stability at their disposal.
ASUS ROG ZENITH II EXTREME Motherboard
ASUS's top motherboard for Ryzen Threadripper 3000 series is the mighty ASUS ROG ZENITH II EXTREME. The motherboard carries one of the most powerful VRM design and feature set of all TRX40 motherboards releasing today. Sticking true to the ROG design aesthetics, the motherboard carries the massive sTRX4 socket which is powered by a 16 phase TDA21472 power stages, each of which is rated to handle 70 Amps. The motherboard additionally features microfine alloy chokes, 10K Japanese capacitors and three power connectors for the CPU alone (8+8+6 Pin). There are a total of eight DDR4 DIMM slots on the motherboard which can support up to 4600 MHz OC+ pin speeds with maximum capacity support of up to 256 GB (ECC/non-ECC).
The motherboard has four PCIe Gen 4 x16 slots and a total of five Gen 4 M.2 slots. Two of the M.2 slots are located between the PCIe slots and are covered by the front cover of the motherboard which includes extra heatsink based cooling. There's also a DIMM.2 slot that comes with the ASUS DIMM.2 module, offering two extra M.2 slots. Then there's a fifth M.2 slot located on the back of the motherboard. For storage, we are looking at 8 SATA III ports and a range of USB 3.2 Gen 2 & USB 3.1 Gen 2 front panel headers.
The whole VRM is covered by a massive heatsink which has two active cooling fans installed within it. There's a heat pipe that leads to a secondary heatsink hidden beneath the I/O cover. The I/O cover comes with a 1.77" Color OLED panel which replaces the DEBUG LED and displays other vital motherboard information too such as CPU frequency, voltage, temperatures. There are power and reset switches located on the motherboard along with tons of fans and RGB connectors. The TRX40 PCH heatsink is also covered by a solid metal heatsink with active cooling making it the 3rd fan installed on this motherboard.
There's a silver reflective plate featured on the PCH heatsink which features the iconic ROG eye logo. Other features of this motherboard include the Aquantia 10G Ethernet, Intel Gigabit Ethernet LAN, Wi-Fi 6 and SUPREMEFX audio system.
ASUS ROG STRIX TRX40-E Motherboard
Talking about the ROG STRIX TRX40-E Gaming motherboard, ASUS is offering a sexy gaming styled motherboard with fantastic looks and lots of RGB to accompany it. The motherboard utilizes 16 Power stages and dual 8 pin connectors to power the CPU socket. The motherboard comes with a super large VRM heatsink with an active heatsink fan that is designed to offer the best stability to the power delivery system under heavy loads. There are eight DDR4 DIMM slots that support up to 256 GB capacities with speeds of up to 4400 MHz (OC+).
Expansion on the motherboard includes three PCIe 4.0 x16 slots, a single PCIe 4.0 x1 slot, and triple M.2 Gen 4 slots. Two of the M.2 slots are hidden beneath the massive M.2 heatsink which receives air from the active cooling on the PCH heatsink. The PCH itself is extra consolidated by a SOC VRM heatsink which would help reduce the temperatures of the TRX40 chipset. Storage on the motherboard includes 8 SATA III ports and a range of USB Gen 3.2 and USB 3.1 connectors spread across the motherboard.
ASUS PRIME TRX40-PRO Motherboard
The ASUS PRIME TRX40-PRO is one insane motherboard on its own, featuring 16 Power stages and dual 8 pin connectors to power the CPU socket. The motherboard comes with a super large VRM heatsink which is designed to offer the best stability to the power delivery system under heavy loads. There are eight DDR4 DIMM slots that support up to 256 GB capacities with speeds of up to 3200 MHz (4600 MHz OC+).
Expansion on the motherboard includes three PCIe 4.0 x16 slots, a single PCIe 4.0 x1 slot, and triple M.2 Gen 4 slots. Two of the M.2 slots are hidden beneath the massive M.2 heatsink which receives air from the active cooling on the PCH heatsink. The PCH itself is extra consolidated by a SOC VRM heatsink which would help reduce the temperatures of the TRX40 chipset. Storage on the motherboard includes 8 SATA III ports and a range of USB Gen 3.2 and USB 3.1 connectors spread across the motherboard.
AORUS TRX40 Motherboard Lineup - The AORUS XTREME Is Extremely Powerful!
Gigabyte and AORUS are preparing a total of four motherboards which include the extremely powerful TRX40 AORUS XTREME, the TRX40 AORUS Master, the TRX40 AORUS PRO WIFI and the Gigabyte TRX40 Designare. All of these motherboards are superbly design and offered insane features on the Ryzen Threadripper 3000 series line of processors:
TRX40 AORUS XTREME Motherboard
The TRX40 AORUS XTREME would be the flagship motherboard and one that really aims for the ultra-enthusiast segment from Gigabyte. It would be fitted with an outstanding 16 phase power layout which will be powered by dual 8-pin CPU connectors along with an absolute stellar variety of high-end components on the PCB, making it a beast of an overclocker for 3rd Gen Threadripper processors.
Moving on, we have eight DDR4 DIMM slots that will be able to support 32 GB modules for a total capacity of up to 256 GB at speeds of up to 4666 MHz. I can spot a large heatsink array featured on the top of the VRMs area along with a proper aluminum stacked-fin heatsink near the I/O slots and a regular heatsink with plastic cover on the right side of the motherboard. The heatsink cover on the right has a heat pipe running through it. The same Heatpipe runs through all four heatsinks and ends up in the main PCH heatsink which comes with active cooling.
For expansion, there are four PCIe 4.0 x16 slots and triple M.2 slots (Gen 4.0) with full cover heatsinks. A total of either 8 or 10 SATA 3 ports are available along with USB 3.1 front panel headers. A debug LED can be spotted on the motherboard and an extensive Gigabyte RGB Fusion 2.0 LED system can be seen running across the sides and on the PCH heatsink.
The motherboard even comes with an extra 6-pin connector to pump juice to the expansion slots when running several add-in cards. There also seems to be an Aquantia 10G chip hidden beneath a small heatsink under the DDR4 slots to the left. This is definitely one high-end design that would easily end up being priced around $1000 US.
TRX40 AORUS XTREME Motherboard Features:
Supports 3rd Gen AMD Ryzen Threadripper Processors
Quad Channel ECC/ Non-ECC Unbuffered DDR4, 8 DIMMs
16+3 Phases Infineon Digital VRM Solution with 70A Power Stage
Thermal Reactive Armor Design with Fins-Array Heatsink, 8mm Mega-Heatpipe, and NanoCarbon Baseplate
Intel X550-AT2 Dual 10GbE BASE-T LAN with cFosSpeed
4 Ultra-Fast NVMe PCIe 4.0 x4 M.2 with Thermal Guards
Onboard Intel WiFi 6 802.11ax 2T2R & BT 5 with 2X AORUS Antenna
130dB SNR AMP-UP Audio with High-End ESS SABRE 9218 DAC, ALC1220-VB, and WIMA Audio Capacitors
Exclusive AORUS Gen4 AIC Adaptor for Extra 4 NVMe PCIe 4.0/3.0 x4 M.2
USB TurboCharger for Mobile Device Fast Charge Support
RGB FUSION with Multi-Zone Addressable LED Light Show Design, Support Addressable LED & RGB LED Strips
Smart Fan 5 features Multiple Temperature Sensors, Hybrid Fan Headers with FAN STOP and Noise Detection
Front & Rear USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-C Header
Q-Flash Plus Update BIOS Without Installing CPU, Memory and Graphics Card
TRX40 AORUS MASTER Motherboard
TRX40 AORUS MASTER Motherboard Features:
Supports 3rd Gen AMD Ryzen Threadripper Processors
Quad Channel ECC/ Non-ECC Unbuffered DDR4, 8 DIMMs
16+3 Phases Infineon Digital VRM Solution with 70A Power Stage
Advanced Thermal Design with Fins-Array Heatsink, Heatpipe with Extended Heatsink and NanoCarbon Baseplate
AQUANTIA 5GbE LAN and Intel GbE LAN with cFosSpeed
3 Ultra-Fast NVMe PCIe 4.0 x4 M.2 with Thermal Guards
Onboard Intel WiFi 6 802.11ax 2T2R & BT 5
130dB SNR AMP-UP Audio with High-End ESS SABRE 9218 DAC, ALC1220-VB, and WIMA Audio Capacitors
USB TurboCharger for Mobile Device Fast Charge Support
RGB FUSION 2.0 with Multi-Zone Addressable LED Light Show Design, Support Addressable LED & RGB LED Strips
Smart Fan 5 Features Multiple Temperature Sensors, Hybrid Fan Headers with FAN STOP and Noise Detection
Front & Rear USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C Header
Q-Flash Plus Update BIOS Without Installing CPU, Memory and Graphics Card
TRX40 AORUS PRO WIFI Motherboard
TRX40 AORUS PRO WIFI Motherboard Features:
Supports 3rd Gen AMD Ryzen Threadripper Processors
Quad Channel ECC/ Non-ECC Unbuffered DDR4, 8 DIMMs
12+2 Phases Infineon Digital VRM Solution with 70A Power Stage
Advanced Thermal Design with Fins-Array Heatsink
Intel GbE LAN with cFosSpeed Internet Accelerator
3 Ultra-Fast NVMe PCIe 4.0 x4 M.2 with Thermal Guards
Onboard Intel WiFi 6 802.11ax 2T2R & BT 5
120dB SNR AMP-UP Audio with ALC1220-VB and WIMA Audio Capacitors
RGB FUSION 2.0 with Multi-Zone Addressable LED Light Show Design, Support Addressable LED & RGB LED Strips
Smart Fan 5 Features Multiple Temperature Sensors, Hybrid Fan Headers with FAN STOP
Front & Rear USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C Header
Q-Flash Plus Update BIOS Without Installing CPU, Memory and Graphics Card
ASRock TRX40 Motherboard Lineup - TAICHI With 16 Power Phases Rocks The Boat!
The ASRock TRX40 motherboard lineup includes two motherboards, the TRX40 Creator and the TRX40 Taichi. Both motherboards have been said to be very competitive in terms of features and pricing compared to other AIB's TRX40 products. The TRX40 Taichi is the flagship of the two boards with a focus primarily towards enthusiasts while the TRX40 Creator is more focused on the workstation and prosumer audience who want the best-in-class pro-grade features.
ASRock TRX40 Taichi Motherboard
The ASRock TRX40 Taichi features the latest Taichi design that we saw on the X570 Taichi. The board comes in a black and silver color scheme with gear logos and aesthetics spread across various heatsinks and I/O cover. Just as you can expect, the ASRock TRX40 Taichi rocks a very premium design and has an abundance of features packed on it. The motherboard has a 16 phase (Intersil Digital) PWM which is rounded by the top of the line components such as premium 90A Dr. MOS power chokes, premium memory alloy chokes, Nichicon 12K black capacitors, and a matte back 8-layer PCB with 2oz copper design.
The CPU socket is powered by dual 8-pin connectors and the whole VRM area is cooled off by one large XXL aluminum alloy heatsink that is accompanied by dual cooling fans. This along with the added Heatpipe transfer heat from the VRM area to the heatsink near the I/O which absorbs most of the heat. There are eight DDR4 DIMM slots that can support up to 256 GB of capacity with speeds of up to 4666 MHz (OC+).
The motherboard also comes with three PCIe 4.0 x16 slots (x16, x16, x16 electrical) and a single PCIe 4.0 x1 slot. The three full-length x16 slots are reinforced by steel shielding. There are two Hyper M.2 slots and 8 SATA III ports for storage devices included on the motherboard. Other than that, all M.2 slots can be seen hidden beneath the front motherboard cover. Additional ports include a USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C front-panel connector, power on/off switches, a reset switch, DEBUG LED and a couple of USB 3.0 front panel headers.
The interesting thing about this board is that it comes with the Hyper Quad M.2 AIC which allows for four additional M.2 devices to be added on an external card which comes with its own active cooling. There's also active cooling on the PCH heatsink which also includes the fancy gear design seen on the new Taichi boards. The I/O on the motherboard includes the following:
- 2 x Antenna Ports (on I/O Panel Shield)
- 1 x PS/2 Mouse/Keyboard Port
- 1 x Optical SPDIF Out Port
- 2 x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-A Ports (10 Gb/s) (Supports ESD Protection)
- 1 x USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type C Port (20 Gb/s) (Supports ESD Protection)
- 4 x USB 3.2 Gen1 Ports (Supports ESD Protection)
- 2 x RJ-45 LAN Ports with LED (Realtek 2.5G LAN / Intel Gigabit LAN / WiFi 6)
- 1 x BIOS Flashback Button
- HD Audio Jacks: Rear Speaker
ASRock TRX40 Creator Motherboard
Moving on to the TRX40 Creator, we are looking at a more optimized TRX40 product which comes with an 8 phase Intersil Digital PWM and all the high-end components found on the TRX40 Taichi. The motherboard rocks a neat silver and black color scheme with massive heatsinks over the VRM which include an active cooling fan. The CPU socket is powered by a pair of 8 pin connectors and we can spot 8 DDR4 DIMM slots which again support up to 256 GB capacities with speeds of up to 4666 MHz (OC+).
The motherboard has four PCIe 4.0 x16 slots (PCIE1/PCIE2/PCIE3/PCIE4: single at x16 (PCIE1); dual at x16 (PCIE1) / x16 (PCIE3); triple at x16 (PCIE1) / x16 (PCIE3) / x8 (PCIE4); quad at x16 (PCIE1) / x8 (PCIE2) / x16 (PCIE3) / x8 (PCIE4)). There are also triple Hyper M.2 slots which are covered by the ASRock M.2 Armor heatsinks like the Taichi. The PCH comes with active cooling and exhaust vents featured on the PCH heatsink too. There are 8 SATA III ports and right beneath them is a 6-pin power connector to provide extra power to the PCIe connectors when multiple devices are being run.
Since the Creator is a more professional audience-focused product, it comes with 10G AQUANTIA ethernet and a range of other features such as:
- 2 x Antenna Ports
- 1 x PS/2 Mouse/Keyboard Port
- 1 x Optical SPDIF Out Port
- 2 x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-A Ports (10 Gb/s) (Supports ESD Protection)
- 1 x USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type-C Port (20 Gb/s) (Supports ESD Protection)
- 4 x USB 3.2 Gen1 Ports (Supports ESD Protection)
- 2 x RJ-45 LAN Ports with LED (Aquantia AQC107 10G + Dragon RTL8125AG 2.5G LAN)
- 1 x Clear CMOS Button
- 1 x BIOS Flashback Button
- HD Audio Jacks: Rear Speaker / Central / Line in / Front Speaker / Microphone (ALC4050H+ALC1220)
MSI TRX40 Motherboard Lineup - Creator For All Including Enthusiasts!
MSI will be adding three motherboards to their TRX40 launch lineup. These include two TRX40 PRO series motherboards, one with and one without WiFi and then their high-end TRX40 Creator board.
MSI TRX40 Creator Motherboard
The MSI TRX40 Creator is a stunning motherboard, featuring an all-black color scheme with brushed aluminum textures on its several heatsinks. The motherboard comes with a 16 Phase (CPU), 3 Phase (SOC) Digital PWM VRMs which are powered by dual 8-pin connectors. The board features 8 DDR4 DIMM slots, all of which feature metal-shielding and support up to 256 GB of VRAM with speeds of up to 4666 MHz (OC+).
The motherboard has a very extensive heatsink layout, the aluminum fin heatsink featured on the VRMs has two extended heat pipes running through it, one extends towards the PCH heatsink and the other extends towards the I/O cover heatsink. The PCH is cooled off by a single active fan which is part of the Frozr heatsink and comes with Zero Frozr technology so that the fan doesn't spin in idle load scenarios.
In terms of expansion, the MSI TRX40 Creator features four PCIe 4.0 x16 slots, including three M.2 slots which are covered by M.2 Shield Frozr heatsinks. The layout of the M.2 slots is reminiscent of MSI's X399 Creation motherboard which was one of the most feature-rich X399 motherboards of its time. Storage on the motherboard includes 6 SATA III ports, two USB 3.1 front panel headers, a USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C front panel header, DEBUG, Power and Reset switches. The Audio Boost 4 on the motherboard is powered by the ALC1220 controller and the motherboard also comes with the Aquantial AQC107 10G LAN plus Intel I1211AT Gigabit LAN.
There's also support for Wi-Fi 6 (AX200) and the motherboard has a lot of USB ports on the back for rich connectivity. Talking about more features, the motherboard is also bundled with the M.2 XPANDER-AERO Gen4 AIC which lets you add four M.2 devices that are cooled by their own active cooling solution which is on par with an MSI Aero series discrete graphics solution.
MSI TRX40 PRO 10G and MSI TRX40 PRO WIFI Motherboards
The MSI TRX40 PRO 10G and MSI TRX40 PRO WIFI are designed for two different audiences. For starters, the motherboard primarily shares the same feature set with a nice matte-black design which is similar to the X570 Unify and great aesthetics but the difference lies in their connectivity options. Both motherboards come with a 12+3 phase Digital VRM design that is powered by dual 8 pin connectors. The motherboard supports up to 256 GB of DDR4 memory with speeds of up to 4666 MHz (OC+). The VRM heatsink has an extended Heatpipe leading to the I/O heatsink.
In terms of expansion, the motherboards feature four PCIe 4.0 x16 slots, dual (PCIe Gen 4) M.2 slots that are covered by solid aluminum heatsinks and a single PCIe 4.0 x1 slot. There are 8 SATA III ports along with a single USB 3.1 and USB 3.2 Gen 2 front-panel header. DEBUG LED, Power and Reset switches can also be spotted on the motherboard.
The main difference is that the 10G model would come with a 10G LAN card while the WiFi model would come with Wi-Fi 6 AX solution. Both motherboards come with their own Xpander M.2 cards which can support two M.2 devices but you would have to check which motherboard suits your preferences more, the WiFi one or the 10G one.
AMD TRX40 Motherboard Roundup Ft. ASUS, AORUS, ASRock & MSI - The Next-Gen, Industry Leading HEDT Platform
The TRX40 series motherboards come in various price categories, offering a different set of features, unique design schemes and a range of powerful accessories that accompany AMD Threadripper CPUs. In this roundup, we will be looking at all of the major TRX40 motherboards which have been introduced by motherboard manufactures.
ASUS TRX40 Motherboard Lineup - ROG ZENITH II EXTREME Leads The Pack!
ASUS's lineup includes three motherboards, the flagship ROG ZENITH Extreme II, the ROG STRIX TRX40-E, and the PRIME TRX40-PRO. The ROG series is more aimed towards enthusiasts while the PRIME series is for those who want best in class stability at their disposal.
ASUS ROG ZENITH II EXTREME Motherboard
ASUS's top motherboard for Ryzen Threadripper 3000 series is the mighty ASUS ROG ZENITH II EXTREME. The motherboard carries one of the most powerful VRM design and feature set of all TRX40 motherboards releasing today. Sticking true to the ROG design aesthetics, the motherboard carries the massive sTRX4 socket which is powered by a 16 phase TDA21472 power stages, each of which is rated to handle 70 Amps. The motherboard additionally features microfine alloy chokes, 10K Japanese capacitors and three power connectors for the CPU alone (8+8+6 Pin). There are a total of eight DDR4 DIMM slots on the motherboard which can support up to 4600 MHz OC+ pin speeds with maximum capacity support of up to 256 GB (ECC/non-ECC).
The motherboard has four PCIe Gen 4 x16 slots and a total of five Gen 4 M.2 slots. Two of the M.2 slots are located between the PCIe slots and are covered by the front cover of the motherboard which includes extra heatsink based cooling. There's also a DIMM.2 slot that comes with the ASUS DIMM.2 module, offering two extra M.2 slots. Then there's a fifth M.2 slot located on the back of the motherboard. For storage, we are looking at 8 SATA III ports and a range of USB 3.2 Gen 2 & USB 3.1 Gen 2 front panel headers.
The whole VRM is covered by a massive heatsink which has two active cooling fans installed within it. There's a heat pipe that leads to a secondary heatsink hidden beneath the I/O cover. The I/O cover comes with a 1.77" Color OLED panel which replaces the DEBUG LED and displays other vital motherboard information too such as CPU frequency, voltage, temperatures. There are power and reset switches located on the motherboard along with tons of fans and RGB connectors. The TRX40 PCH heatsink is also covered by a solid metal heatsink with active cooling making it the 3rd fan installed on this motherboard.
There's a silver reflective plate featured on the PCH heatsink which features the iconic ROG eye logo. Other features of this motherboard include the Aquantia 10G Ethernet, Intel Gigabit Ethernet LAN, Wi-Fi 6 and SUPREMEFX audio system.
ASUS ROG STRIX TRX40-E Motherboard
Talking about the ROG STRIX TRX40-E Gaming motherboard, ASUS is offering a sexy gaming styled motherboard with fantastic looks and lots of RGB to accompany it. The motherboard utilizes 16 Power stages and dual 8 pin connectors to power the CPU socket. The motherboard comes with a super large VRM heatsink with an active heatsink fan that is designed to offer the best stability to the power delivery system under heavy loads. There are eight DDR4 DIMM slots that support up to 256 GB capacities with speeds of up to 4400 MHz (OC+).
Expansion on the motherboard includes three PCIe 4.0 x16 slots, a single PCIe 4.0 x1 slot, and triple M.2 Gen 4 slots. Two of the M.2 slots are hidden beneath the massive M.2 heatsink which receives air from the active cooling on the PCH heatsink. The PCH itself is extra consolidated by a SOC VRM heatsink which would help reduce the temperatures of the TRX40 chipset. Storage on the motherboard includes 8 SATA III ports and a range of USB Gen 3.2 and USB 3.1 connectors spread across the motherboard.
ASUS PRIME TRX40-PRO Motherboard
The ASUS PRIME TRX40-PRO is one insane motherboard on its own, featuring 16 Power stages and dual 8 pin connectors to power the CPU socket. The motherboard comes with a super large VRM heatsink which is designed to offer the best stability to the power delivery system under heavy loads. There are eight DDR4 DIMM slots that support up to 256 GB capacities with speeds of up to 3200 MHz (4600 MHz OC+).
Expansion on the motherboard includes three PCIe 4.0 x16 slots, a single PCIe 4.0 x1 slot, and triple M.2 Gen 4 slots. Two of the M.2 slots are hidden beneath the massive M.2 heatsink which receives air from the active cooling on the PCH heatsink. The PCH itself is extra consolidated by a SOC VRM heatsink which would help reduce the temperatures of the TRX40 chipset. Storage on the motherboard includes 8 SATA III ports and a range of USB Gen 3.2 and USB 3.1 connectors spread across the motherboard.
AORUS TRX40 Motherboard Lineup - The AORUS XTREME Is Extremely Powerful!
Gigabyte and AORUS are preparing a total of four motherboards which include the extremely powerful TRX40 AORUS XTREME, the TRX40 AORUS Master, the TRX40 AORUS PRO WIFI and the Gigabyte TRX40 Designare. All of these motherboards are superbly design and offered insane features on the Ryzen Threadripper 3000 series line of processors:
TRX40 AORUS XTREME Motherboard
The TRX40 AORUS XTREME would be the flagship motherboard and one that really aims for the ultra-enthusiast segment from Gigabyte. It would be fitted with an outstanding 16 phase power layout which will be powered by dual 8-pin CPU connectors along with an absolute stellar variety of high-end components on the PCB, making it a beast of an overclocker for 3rd Gen Threadripper processors.
Moving on, we have eight DDR4 DIMM slots that will be able to support 32 GB modules for a total capacity of up to 256 GB at speeds of up to 4666 MHz. I can spot a large heatsink array featured on the top of the VRMs area along with a proper aluminum stacked-fin heatsink near the I/O slots and a regular heatsink with plastic cover on the right side of the motherboard. The heatsink cover on the right has a heat pipe running through it. The same Heatpipe runs through all four heatsinks and ends up in the main PCH heatsink which comes with active cooling.
For expansion, there are four PCIe 4.0 x16 slots and triple M.2 slots (Gen 4.0) with full cover heatsinks. A total of either 8 or 10 SATA 3 ports are available along with USB 3.1 front panel headers. A debug LED can be spotted on the motherboard and an extensive Gigabyte RGB Fusion 2.0 LED system can be seen running across the sides and on the PCH heatsink.
The motherboard even comes with an extra 6-pin connector to pump juice to the expansion slots when running several add-in cards. There also seems to be an Aquantia 10G chip hidden beneath a small heatsink under the DDR4 slots to the left. This is definitely one high-end design that would easily end up being priced around $1000 US.
TRX40 AORUS XTREME Motherboard Features:
Supports 3rd Gen AMD Ryzen Threadripper Processors
Quad Channel ECC/ Non-ECC Unbuffered DDR4, 8 DIMMs
16+3 Phases Infineon Digital VRM Solution with 70A Power Stage
Thermal Reactive Armor Design with Fins-Array Heatsink, 8mm Mega-Heatpipe, and NanoCarbon Baseplate
Intel X550-AT2 Dual 10GbE BASE-T LAN with cFosSpeed
4 Ultra-Fast NVMe PCIe 4.0 x4 M.2 with Thermal Guards
Onboard Intel WiFi 6 802.11ax 2T2R & BT 5 with 2X AORUS Antenna
130dB SNR AMP-UP Audio with High-End ESS SABRE 9218 DAC, ALC1220-VB, and WIMA Audio Capacitors
Exclusive AORUS Gen4 AIC Adaptor for Extra 4 NVMe PCIe 4.0/3.0 x4 M.2
USB TurboCharger for Mobile Device Fast Charge Support
RGB FUSION with Multi-Zone Addressable LED Light Show Design, Support Addressable LED & RGB LED Strips
Smart Fan 5 features Multiple Temperature Sensors, Hybrid Fan Headers with FAN STOP and Noise Detection
Front & Rear USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-C Header
Q-Flash Plus Update BIOS Without Installing CPU, Memory and Graphics Card
TRX40 AORUS MASTER Motherboard
TRX40 AORUS MASTER Motherboard Features:
Supports 3rd Gen AMD Ryzen Threadripper Processors
Quad Channel ECC/ Non-ECC Unbuffered DDR4, 8 DIMMs
16+3 Phases Infineon Digital VRM Solution with 70A Power Stage
Advanced Thermal Design with Fins-Array Heatsink, Heatpipe with Extended Heatsink and NanoCarbon Baseplate
AQUANTIA 5GbE LAN and Intel GbE LAN with cFosSpeed
3 Ultra-Fast NVMe PCIe 4.0 x4 M.2 with Thermal Guards
Onboard Intel WiFi 6 802.11ax 2T2R & BT 5
130dB SNR AMP-UP Audio with High-End ESS SABRE 9218 DAC, ALC1220-VB, and WIMA Audio Capacitors
USB TurboCharger for Mobile Device Fast Charge Support
RGB FUSION 2.0 with Multi-Zone Addressable LED Light Show Design, Support Addressable LED & RGB LED Strips
Smart Fan 5 Features Multiple Temperature Sensors, Hybrid Fan Headers with FAN STOP and Noise Detection
Front & Rear USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C Header
Q-Flash Plus Update BIOS Without Installing CPU, Memory and Graphics Card
TRX40 AORUS PRO WIFI Motherboard
TRX40 AORUS PRO WIFI Motherboard Features:
Supports 3rd Gen AMD Ryzen Threadripper Processors
Quad Channel ECC/ Non-ECC Unbuffered DDR4, 8 DIMMs
12+2 Phases Infineon Digital VRM Solution with 70A Power Stage
Advanced Thermal Design with Fins-Array Heatsink
Intel GbE LAN with cFosSpeed Internet Accelerator
3 Ultra-Fast NVMe PCIe 4.0 x4 M.2 with Thermal Guards
Onboard Intel WiFi 6 802.11ax 2T2R & BT 5
120dB SNR AMP-UP Audio with ALC1220-VB and WIMA Audio Capacitors
RGB FUSION 2.0 with Multi-Zone Addressable LED Light Show Design, Support Addressable LED & RGB LED Strips
Smart Fan 5 Features Multiple Temperature Sensors, Hybrid Fan Headers with FAN STOP
Front & Rear USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C Header
Q-Flash Plus Update BIOS Without Installing CPU, Memory and Graphics Card
ASRock TRX40 Motherboard Lineup - TAICHI With 16 Power Phases Rocks The Boat!
The ASRock TRX40 motherboard lineup includes two motherboards, the TRX40 Creator and the TRX40 Taichi. Both motherboards have been said to be very competitive in terms of features and pricing compared to other AIB's TRX40 products. The TRX40 Taichi is the flagship of the two boards with a focus primarily towards enthusiasts while the TRX40 Creator is more focused on the workstation and prosumer audience who want the best-in-class pro-grade features.
ASRock TRX40 Taichi Motherboard
The ASRock TRX40 Taichi features the latest Taichi design that we saw on the X570 Taichi. The board comes in a black and silver color scheme with gear logos and aesthetics spread across various heatsinks and I/O cover. Just as you can expect, the ASRock TRX40 Taichi rocks a very premium design and has an abundance of features packed on it. The motherboard has a 16 phase (Intersil Digital) PWM which is rounded by the top of the line components such as premium 90A Dr. MOS power chokes, premium memory alloy chokes, Nichicon 12K black capacitors, and a matte back 8-layer PCB with 2oz copper design.
The CPU socket is powered by dual 8-pin connectors and the whole VRM area is cooled off by one large XXL aluminum alloy heatsink that is accompanied by dual cooling fans. This along with the added Heatpipe transfer heat from the VRM area to the heatsink near the I/O which absorbs most of the heat. There are eight DDR4 DIMM slots that can support up to 256 GB of capacity with speeds of up to 4666 MHz (OC+).
The motherboard also comes with three PCIe 4.0 x16 slots (x16, x16, x16 electrical) and a single PCIe 4.0 x1 slot. The three full-length x16 slots are reinforced by steel shielding. There are two Hyper M.2 slots and 8 SATA III ports for storage devices included on the motherboard. Other than that, all M.2 slots can be seen hidden beneath the front motherboard cover. Additional ports include a USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C front-panel connector, power on/off switches, a reset switch, DEBUG LED and a couple of USB 3.0 front panel headers.
The interesting thing about this board is that it comes with the Hyper Quad M.2 AIC which allows for four additional M.2 devices to be added on an external card which comes with its own active cooling. There's also active cooling on the PCH heatsink which also includes the fancy gear design seen on the new Taichi boards. The I/O on the motherboard includes the following:
- 2 x Antenna Ports (on I/O Panel Shield)
- 1 x PS/2 Mouse/Keyboard Port
- 1 x Optical SPDIF Out Port
- 2 x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-A Ports (10 Gb/s) (Supports ESD Protection)
- 1 x USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type C Port (20 Gb/s) (Supports ESD Protection)
- 4 x USB 3.2 Gen1 Ports (Supports ESD Protection)
- 2 x RJ-45 LAN Ports with LED (Realtek 2.5G LAN / Intel Gigabit LAN / WiFi 6)
- 1 x BIOS Flashback Button
- HD Audio Jacks: Rear Speaker
ASRock TRX40 Creator Motherboard
Moving on to the TRX40 Creator, we are looking at a more optimized TRX40 product which comes with an 8 phase Intersil Digital PWM and all the high-end components found on the TRX40 Taichi. The motherboard rocks a neat silver and black color scheme with massive heatsinks over the VRM which include an active cooling fan. The CPU socket is powered by a pair of 8 pin connectors and we can spot 8 DDR4 DIMM slots which again support up to 256 GB capacities with speeds of up to 4666 MHz (OC+).
The motherboard has four PCIe 4.0 x16 slots (PCIE1/PCIE2/PCIE3/PCIE4: single at x16 (PCIE1); dual at x16 (PCIE1) / x16 (PCIE3); triple at x16 (PCIE1) / x16 (PCIE3) / x8 (PCIE4); quad at x16 (PCIE1) / x8 (PCIE2) / x16 (PCIE3) / x8 (PCIE4)). There are also triple Hyper M.2 slots which are covered by the ASRock M.2 Armor heatsinks like the Taichi. The PCH comes with active cooling and exhaust vents featured on the PCH heatsink too. There are 8 SATA III ports and right beneath them is a 6-pin power connector to provide extra power to the PCIe connectors when multiple devices are being run.
Since the Creator is a more professional audience-focused product, it comes with 10G AQUANTIA ethernet and a range of other features such as:
- 2 x Antenna Ports
- 1 x PS/2 Mouse/Keyboard Port
- 1 x Optical SPDIF Out Port
- 2 x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-A Ports (10 Gb/s) (Supports ESD Protection)
- 1 x USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type-C Port (20 Gb/s) (Supports ESD Protection)
- 4 x USB 3.2 Gen1 Ports (Supports ESD Protection)
- 2 x RJ-45 LAN Ports with LED (Aquantia AQC107 10G + Dragon RTL8125AG 2.5G LAN)
- 1 x Clear CMOS Button
- 1 x BIOS Flashback Button
- HD Audio Jacks: Rear Speaker / Central / Line in / Front Speaker / Microphone (ALC4050H+ALC1220)
MSI TRX40 Motherboard Lineup - Creator For All Including Enthusiasts!
MSI will be adding three motherboards to their TRX40 launch lineup. These include two TRX40 PRO series motherboards, one with and one without WiFi and then their high-end TRX40 Creator board.
MSI TRX40 Creator Motherboard
The MSI TRX40 Creator is a stunning motherboard, featuring an all-black color scheme with brushed aluminum textures on its several heatsinks. The motherboard comes with a 16 Phase (CPU), 3 Phase (SOC) Digital PWM VRMs which are powered by dual 8-pin connectors. The board features 8 DDR4 DIMM slots, all of which feature metal-shielding and support up to 256 GB of VRAM with speeds of up to 4666 MHz (OC+).
The motherboard has a very extensive heatsink layout, the aluminum fin heatsink featured on the VRMs has two extended heat pipes running through it, one extends towards the PCH heatsink and the other extends towards the I/O cover heatsink. The PCH is cooled off by a single active fan which is part of the Frozr heatsink and comes with Zero Frozr technology so that the fan doesn't spin in idle load scenarios.
In terms of expansion, the MSI TRX40 Creator features four PCIe 4.0 x16 slots, including three M.2 slots which are covered by M.2 Shield Frozr heatsinks. The layout of the M.2 slots is reminiscent of MSI's X399 Creation motherboard which was one of the most feature-rich X399 motherboards of its time. Storage on the motherboard includes 6 SATA III ports, two USB 3.1 front panel headers, a USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C front panel header, DEBUG, Power and Reset switches. The Audio Boost 4 on the motherboard is powered by the ALC1220 controller and the motherboard also comes with the Aquantial AQC107 10G LAN plus Intel I1211AT Gigabit LAN.
There's also support for Wi-Fi 6 (AX200) and the motherboard has a lot of USB ports on the back for rich connectivity. Talking about more features, the motherboard is also bundled with the M.2 XPANDER-AERO Gen4 AIC which lets you add four M.2 devices that are cooled by their own active cooling solution which is on par with an MSI Aero series discrete graphics solution.
MSI TRX40 PRO 10G and MSI TRX40 PRO WIFI Motherboards
The MSI TRX40 PRO 10G and MSI TRX40 PRO WIFI are designed for two different audiences. For starters, the motherboard primarily shares the same feature set with a nice matte-black design which is similar to the X570 Unify and great aesthetics but the difference lies in their connectivity options. Both motherboards come with a 12+3 phase Digital VRM design that is powered by dual 8 pin connectors. The motherboard supports up to 256 GB of DDR4 memory with speeds of up to 4666 MHz (OC+). The VRM heatsink has an extended Heatpipe leading to the I/O heatsink.
In terms of expansion, the motherboards feature four PCIe 4.0 x16 slots, dual (PCIe Gen 4) M.2 slots that are covered by solid aluminum heatsinks and a single PCIe 4.0 x1 slot. There are 8 SATA III ports along with a single USB 3.1 and USB 3.2 Gen 2 front-panel header. DEBUG LED, Power and Reset switches can also be spotted on the motherboard.
The main difference is that the 10G model would come with a 10G LAN card while the WiFi model would come with Wi-Fi 6 AX solution. Both motherboards come with their own Xpander M.2 cards which can support two M.2 devices but you would have to check which motherboard suits your preferences more, the WiFi one or the 10G one.
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