ASRock TRX40 Taichi

[Black Haru]

The first TRX40 board to reach my test bench, and also the first motherboard to boast 90 A power stages from Intersil (16 of them!), the ASRock TRX40 Taichi promises serious overclocking potential for the new Ryzen Threadripper processors without resorting to an E-ATX form factor.

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[Totally]

"Great RGB LED implementation "

I fully disagree as the software that drives the lights is abysmal.

 

[Cheeseball]

Looks like the BIOS for this TRX40 board has way more tweaking options compared to their B450M Steel Legend and X570M Pro 4 (which I returned both in favor of the standard ATX ASUS TUF Gaming WiFi). Probably more options because this is part of the higher end Taichi/Phantom models?

 

[Countryside]

Another quality product form ASrock and i like their bios its clean and on point.

 

[VulkanBros]

I fully disagree as the software that drives the lights is abysmal.

It´s controlled via the BIOS - not software

 

[Totally]

It´s controlled via the BIOS - not software

It's both with the software doing the heavy lifting and the bios just stores the setting and lets the user make simple changes. I know because I owned their x570 board before going with something else.

 

[VulkanBros]

It's both with the software doing the heavy lifting and the bios just stores the setting and lets the user make simple changes. I know because I owned their x570 board before going with something else.

You are right and I am wrong!

 

[damric]

Always funny when people get surprised that Intel optimized timings (X.M.P.) does not work on AMD platform.

 

[EarthDog]

It's funny because, XMP has worked frequently on the several X570 (and other AMD) based boards I've reviewed. Hell, even the GSkill sticks for AMD have XMP profiles on them, no? DOCP is just Asus' name for XMP on AMD platforms? The sticks I used are some Corsair Vengeance with XMP. It worked on all but ONE board (which then had a BIOS updated and they functioned).

Also, good to see AMD Ryzen motherboard reviews using RAM that is at, or in this case, faster than the max base spec of the platform!! Thanks Haru!

 

[kapone32]

I am really interested in TRX40 but I cannot think of a use case that would make me jump from X399 to TRX40 especially the huge gap in costs. Not the motherboards but the CPUs.

 

[ReHWolution]

Looks like the BIOS for this TRX40 board has way more tweaking options compared to their B450M Steel Legend and X570M Pro 4 (which I returned both in favor of the standard ATX ASUS TUF Gaming WiFi). Probably more options because this is part of the higher end Taichi/Phantom models?

Yes sir. Extreme4, Steel Legend, Creator, Phantom Gaming X and Taichi all have much more detailed options in their UEFI. Of course the three top models (PG X, Taichi, Creator, ignoring the Aqua that is basically identical to the Creator except for the PCB shape) have even more options than Ext4 and SL. With this being an HEDT motherboard, there's a lot of menus for virtualization, IOMMU, bifurcation and so on.

"Great RGB LED implementation "

I fully disagree as the software that drives the lights is abysmal.

It's not like other brands implementation are better, or worse, for that matter.

I am really interested in TRX40 but I cannot think of a use case that would make me jump from X399 to TRX40 especially the huge gap in costs. Not the motherboards but the CPUs.

What's your PC main purpose?

 

[kapone32]

What's your PC main purpose?
[/QUOTE]

I use my PC for Gaming, video editing and access databases.

 

[ReHWolution]

It's funny because, XMP has worked frequently on the several X570 (and other AMD) based boards I've reviewed. Hell, even the GSkill sticks for AMD have XMP profiles on them, no? DOCP is just Asus' name for XMP on AMD platforms? The sticks I used are some Corsair Vengeance with XMP. It worked on all but ONE board (which then had a BIOS updated and they functioned).

Also, good to see AMD Ryzen motherboard reviews using RAM that is at, or in this case, faster than the max base spec of the platform!! Thanks Haru!

TridentZ Neo memory kits are optimized for AMD. It doesn't matter if they use XMP or AMP (that never really was a thing except a few kits from Patriot and AMD itself), it's all a matter of subtiming table. Also, with a beta BIOS everything worked, so it was probably just a matter of platform immaturity.

What's your PC main purpose?

I use my PC for Gaming, video editing and access databases.
[/QUOTE]
Is it your job or those are hobbies?

 

[EarthDog]

TridentZ Neo memory kits are optimized for AMD. It doesn't matter if they use XMP or AMP (that never really was a thing except a few kits from Patriot and AMD itself), it's all a matter of subtiming table. Also, with a beta BIOS everything worked, so it was probably just a matter of platform immaturity.

Correct. Just stating, anecdotally, that at least two sets of "XMP" sticks worked just fine across over a dozen X570 boards tested. This is clearly not The Gospel, but, just pointing out that it is really just a name (XMP/DOCP/AMP in bios). Stick to the board's QVL list and out of the minutia and most users will be OK, regardless if it says "XMP" as XMP does "work" on AMD platforms (contrary to what the one poster listed).

 

[kapone32]

I use my PC for Gaming, video editing and access databases.

Is it your job or those are hobbies?
[/QUOTE]

Access database for work and everything else is hobby. I got into X399 when the prices dropped to make it semi affordable but the main reason is I missed all of the PCI_E goodness on 990FX and was whelmed by X370/470/570 in terms of PCI_E goodness.

 

[R0H1T]

You're better off upgrading to a 2950x, assuming you still have the 1920x & the board, given the steal prices it retails for these days.

 

[kapone32]

You're better off upgrading to a 2950x, assuming you still have the 1920x & the board, given the steal prices it retails for these days.

I know exactly what you mean. I was actually thinking about the 2920X. There is currently one for $489 Canadian available right now.

 

[Deleted member 158293]

Nice board, with odd compromises. Curious what their intended audience is for it.

 

[damric]

Correct. Just stating, anecdotally, that at least two sets of "XMP" sticks worked just fine across over a dozen X570 boards tested. This is clearly not The Gospel, but, just pointing out that it is really just a name (XMP/DOCP/AMP in bios). Stick to the board's QVL list and out of the minutia and most users will be OK, regardless if it says "XMP" as XMP does "work" on AMD platforms (contrary to what the one poster listed).

The QVL is tested in AUTO, not X.M.P. Ask G.Skill Tech, or go read his posts on the G.Skill forums.

 

[EarthDog]

The QVL is tested in AUTO, not X.M.P. Ask G.Skill Tech, or go read his posts on the G.Skill forums.

News to me... seems incredibly pointless to test on 'auto' which yields JEDEC speeds typically A LOT lower than the rated speeds on the sticks. Hey... this is a race car, but please test drive in a school zone so you know it works... WTF?!!! lol

Since you know where that info is found, please be a chap and link it, eh? I'm not going to go search for that not knowing where the hell to find it.. "Aint got no time fo dat".

Again, XMP profiles can (and in my experience, mostly do) "work" on AMD boards... likely not all, but they sure as heck can.

 

[kapone32]

News to me... seems incredibly pointless to test on 'auto' which yields JEDEC speeds typically A LOT lower than the rated speeds on the sticks. Hey... this is a race car, but please test drive in a school zone so you know it works... WTF?!!! lol

Since you know where that info is found, please be a chap and link it, eh? I'm not going to go search for that not knowing where the hell to find it.. "Aint got no time fo dat".

Again, XMP profiles can (and in my experience, mostly do) "work" on AMD boards... likely not all, but they sure as heck can.

Totally agree with you I have some Gskill RIpjaws 4 3000MHZ and on the box they state "made for Z370". I have used them on B450, X470 and X399 from Asus, As rock, MSI & Gigabyte with absolutely no issues and the XMP profile got applied 3000 MHZ 15-16-15-36.

 

[damric]

Let me go dig it up. But exactly, if it posts at JEDEC speeds, it meets motherboard qvl, AMD qvl, and RAM qvl to keep them out of trouble. The slow kits like 2666/17, 3000/15, 3200/16, and such are obviously less problematic than the good bins like 3200/14, ect.

Now as far as X.M.P. working on some kits, that has to do with some slightly looser secondary and tertiary timings, especially tRFC that are programmed for "AMD compatibility" and you will see these on stuff like FLAREX. If you see someone posting about "can't get it to work", tell them to start with 3200 on auto (later AM4 BIOS have this profile), and start tuning from there with the 1USMUS guide.

Personally I'm so far out of spec, running a Ryzen 1 with Hynix RAM at 3466CL14 1.45v.

 

[EarthDog]

Let me go dig it up. But exactly, if it posts at JEDEC speeds, it meets motherboard qvl, AMD qvl, and RAM qvl to keep them out of trouble. The slow kits like 2666/17, 3000/15, 3200/16, and such are obviously less problematic than the good bins like 3200/14, ect.

Just a note, I am talking about the motherboard partners and their QVL list... not the memory QVL list (please read my prior post where I specifically said "board's list".

I think it best to go by the motherboard QVL list, especially if what you are saying is actually true.

To that end, I've reached out to a couple of my contacts at both board partners and memory and will report back. We may both be right (though again I explicitly noted board QVL).

 

[damric]

Hope this sheds some light on how a qvl actually works.

XMP (Extreme Memory Profile) by Intel is a preprogrammed profile that you can enable in BIOS to set the correct memory settings in one easy step. XMP is exclusive to Intel platforms only.

G.SKILL's Qualified Motherboard List is the result of our compatibility tests. This list is not comprehensive because new motherboards are constantly released.
Each motherboard manufacturer's QVL is limited to the G.SKILL memory kit they own and are able to test. This QVL list also will not be comprehensive, because G.SKILL is constantly releasing memory kits.

FAQ - DRAM Memory - G.SKILL International Enterprise Co., Ltd.

Frequently asked questions about G.SKILL DRAM Memory.

www.gskill.com

Forum help manager saying that motherboard qvls can mean 1 stick tested at auto or possibly who knows what settings:

Information on Motherboard QVL lists - G.SKILL TECH FORUM

Any general hardware or software discussion is welcome

www.gskill.us

Example of MSI cop-out:

For example, the mainboard * MPG Z390M GAMING EDGE AC with 4 DDR4 slots for up to 128GB, and support DDR4 4400(OC)/4300(OC)/4266(OC)/ 4200(OC)/4133(OC)/4000(OC)/3866(OC)/3733(OC)/3600(OC)/3466(OC)/3400(OC)/3333(OC)/3300(OC)/3200(OC)/ 3000(OC) / 2800(OC)/ 2666/ 2400/ 2133 MHz;

Supports dual channel mode;
Supports non-ecc, un-buffered memory;
Supports Intel® Extreme Memory Profile (XMP)

Noted: In the case that the memory is not overclocked, it can support the maximum pulse at 2666MHz, and the maximum pulse at 4400MHz in the case of overclocked. Whether it can be achieved or not will be affected by the compatibility and constitution of memory. It is suggested to choose the memory in the [memory support report]

MSI USA

Welcome to the MSI USA website. MSI designs and creates Mainboard, AIO, Graphics card, Notebook, Netbook, Tablet PC, Consumer electronics, Communication, Barebone, Server, industrial computing, Multimedia, Clean Machine and Car Infotainment.

us.msi.com

AMD only supporting JEDEC speeds:

https://www.amd.com/en/products/specifications/processors/7746,7696,2571,2586,2601,2611,3376,9221,2481,11776,1736,1896,2466,176,146,116

Notice Ryzen 3000 series says 3200MT/s, but that's JEDEC timings guaranteed only. Of course you can go faster, if you know how to do it. Obviously a reviewer should test at both JEDEC and OC settings. X.M.P. work...great. If not, don't nitpick that on AMD platform.

Example of a 3200MT/s JEDEC module, lol

Crucial 8GB DDR4 3200 (PC4 25600) Desktop Memory Model CT8G4DFS832A - Newegg.com

Buy Crucial 8GB DDR4 3200 (PC4 25600) Desktop Memory Model CT8G4DFS832A with fast shipping and top-rated customer service. Once you know, you Newegg!

www.newegg.com

 

[EarthDog]

Hope this sheds some light on how a qvl actually works.........

Thanks for the links, they are much appreciated.

First, check my post above... I've reached out to confirm the process as well.

Second, the only relevant portion (knew the rest... ) was this (please note the terms in bold):

did you realize it was probably ‘TESTED’ at the mobos default boot freq/speed (See notes on CPU-Z Maximum Bandwidth above under CPU-Z), using the info from the SPD, that it wasn’t tested at the actual speed/freq of the DRAM itself. Some are actually putting it on their list that they test using the MOBO’s default boot speed.

This is a GSkill person speculating about a mobo vendor's process. "probably" and "some" isn't as confident as your post.

The QVL is tested in AUTO....

......and that was from nearly 8 years ago.

So, anyhoo, I will report back as I get the responses.