The AMD TRX40 Motherboard Overview: 12 New Motherboards Analyzed
by Gavin Bonshor on November 28, 2019 9:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Motherboards
- AMD
- MSI
- Gigabyte
- ASRock
- Asus
- TRX40
- Threadripper 3000
- Castle Peak
ASRock TRX40 Taichi
With ASRock announcing just two new models for the launch of the AMD Ryzen Threadripper 3970X and 3960X launch, it is no surprise to see one of its most predominant series hit the TRX40 chipset. The ASRock TRX40 Taichi takes its usual unique approach to aesthetics with its cogwheel inspired branding, and even adds integrated RGBs to further adds to its appeal. The most notable features include support for DDR4-4666 memory, a 16-phase power delivery for the CPU, and a Realtek 2.5 GbE controller.
The ATX sized ASRock TRX40 Taichi continues the unique lineage of models with a recognisable aesthetic with cogwheels implemented into the design, as well as integrated RGB LEDs into the chipset heatsink and the right-hand side of the board. Underneath the large aluminium heatsink is a 16-phase power delivery with 16 ISL99390 90 A power stages and is controlled by an ISL69247 controller running at 8+0. There are three full-length PCIe 4.0 x16 slots, with a single PCIe 4.0 x1 slot in the middle, which are surrounded by a black Taichi designed armor shielding around the PCIe slot area. For storage, there are two PCIe 4.0 x4 M.2 slots onboard with heatsinks integrated into the armor, and a total of eight SATA ports which support RAID 0, 1, and 10 arrays. Two of the SATA ports are straight angled and are located right next to the two-digit LED debug, power button, and reset switch.
Users looking to expand on the two PCIe 4.0 x4 M.2 slots will appreciate the Hyper Quad M.2 card in the accessories bundle which allows users to install a further four PCIe 4.0 x4 M.2 slots into one of the full-length PCIe 4.0 x16 slots. The ASRock TRX40 also has eight memory slots which support up to DDR4-4666 and 256 GB of memory. As with all launch day TRX40 models, the chipset heatsink has a cooling fan which is open and not covered by a grill, while there are five 4-pin headers with one for a CPU fan, one for a water pump, and three for chassis fans.
On the rear panel is two USB 3.1 G2 Type-A, four USB 3.1 G1 Type-A, and one USB 3.2 G2 Type-C 20 Gbps port, with a BIOS flashback button and PS/2 combo port. The five 3.5 mm audio jacks and S/PDIF are handled by a Realtek ALC1220 and ALC4050H audio codec combination, while the two Ethernet ports are powered by a Realtek RTL8125-AG 2.5 GbE and Intel I211-AT Gigabit controller. The board also includes an Intel AX200 Wi-Fi 6 wireless interface which also adds BT 5.0 connectivity.
The ASRock TRX40 Taichi is the premier board for enthusiasts in its line-up with each of the four full-length PCIe 4.0 slots supporting x16 across the board, which allows for a powerful gaming system, solid workstation, or for other tasks such as content creation. The ASRock TRX40 Taichi has an MSRP of $499 which represents good value for money based on the features and leaves the door open for an even more premium flagship further down the line.
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plonk420 - Friday, November 29, 2019 - link
looks like the two ASRock and at least two, if not three of the three MSI use LOTES sockets. i expect FOXCONN to be the same trash that freaked me the f out trying to screw down the CPU cover on my X399 Designare EX (see HardOCP's Kyle having the same difficulty tightening his down, but mine seemed even worse).omasoud - Friday, November 29, 2019 - link
Although ASRock TRX40 Creator is classified as ATX, the last PCI slot probably cannot take a double-width card (even though the manual on page 41 talks about installing 4 SLI double-width GPUs). ATX size specification says 7 PCI slots; but 4x2=8. Am I right?Llawehtdliub - Saturday, November 30, 2019 - link
Good review, thank you.solomonshv - Saturday, November 30, 2019 - link
do you guys think that the MSI TRX40 Pro would be a good candidate for a 3960X with some light overclocking? i've had multiple really bad experiences with gigafail, and if you check gigbayte x399 reviews on newegg, amazon and other places, other people did too. so gigabyte is a hard pass for me.dwade123 - Sunday, December 1, 2019 - link
Prices are going up and up with AMD, much more than anything Intel had ever priced. Zenith II is $850 and TR flagship model is expected to be at least $4000. AMD "wins again" but will AMD fans win yet?Qasar - Sunday, December 1, 2019 - link
dwade123, and look what intel did to the prices before they released zen. how much were you paying for QUAD core cpus, where the performance increase over the previous gen was 10% or less. intel cant complete with amd in multi thread performance, the ONLY way intel has any performance advantage over amd, is due to clock speed, thats all..imagine where intel cpu's would be if there was NO Zen....
scineram - Wednesday, December 4, 2019 - link
Yes.Korguz - Wednesday, December 4, 2019 - link
dwade123 " Prices are going up and up with AMD, much more than anything Intel had ever priced " you sure about that ?? intels top end i9 chips were VERY expensive here, most of their i7 line was also expensive... but yet.. HOW was intel able to drop the prices like they HAD to do with the 10xxx series over the 9xxx series ??? people now complain that amd is priced to high, where were all of these people when intel was priced just as high, if not higher ??? it seems.. its ok for intel to do something.. but when amd does it.. all of a sudden its wrong and its a crime?? come on...intel cant compete with amd in almost everything now, the ONLY thing intel has left, is single thread performance, and even that, isnt by that much, and its ONLY cause of clock speed.. its about time amd was able to charge what they are for some of their chips, because the performance is there.. when intel catches up, intel will probably charge the same.. dwade123, you better be complaining about intels prices then as well....prophet001 - Monday, December 2, 2019 - link
Why the heck would you use the same physical socket keying.Korguz - Monday, December 2, 2019 - link
the socket is the same.. but the pins i think are different