Best TR4 Motherboards

The Asus X399 ROG Zenith Extreme Alpha is an updated version of a highly respected board, and it was made to handle the higher end of AMD’s Threadripper CPUs. It will be of no surprise to our readers that this “ROG” branded motherboard comes with the same level of quality we see across the range.

While the predecessor of this board could handle overclocking on the 2nd-gen Threadrippers, it was only just about. This Zenith Extreme Alpha features successful VRM cooling, that will handle any overclocking you throw at it, regardless of which CPU you buy. The fans that cool the power phases are relatively quiet when under operation, but the heatsink above is so good they rarely need to power up. You can, of course, disable the fans if you wanted to, but there isn’t really any need as the automatic cooling sensors do an excellent job.

A lot of the other features aren’t too dissimilar to the previous model, with the ROG design following suit. The build quality, as you would expect, is superb, and it comes with plenty of connectivity options. We see high bandwidth features that include 10G networking, for those that have networks capable of handling it. Being an Asus ROG board, it is unsurprising to see some RGB illuminations, and you also get an onboard OLED, plus power and reset buttons.

Overall the Asus X399 Zenith Extreme Alpha is a superb TR4 motherboard and is very easy to recommend. This motherboard is, of course, aimed at the higher end of the scale and would be considered overkill for those looking to get 1st gen Threadrippers. If you are aiming for the top with your build, then this board with its upgraded power phases and support for 3600MHz RAM is well worth a look.

The Aorus Xtreme comes into the equation with a significant VRM upgrade on the previous Aorus 7. Stability now comes in the form of a 10+3 IR3578 Digital Power PWM Design, along with many more included features. Just like the X399 boards above, we see quad-channel DIMMs that support OC speeds up to 3600MHz, a couple of M.2 slots, and multiple GPU support.

The M.2 and VRM heatsinks do a stellar job of cooling, as Gigabyte has been generous in the cooling department with an excessive amount of heat pipes. Aside from looking fantastic, the board also includes an Aquantia 10Gb controller too. The cooling power is matched in performance, with the board running smoothly even after an overclock. We see the ALC12200-VB audio codec, which is powered by the ESS Sabre Hifi Audio Dac. This codec improves audio and brings a high signal-to-noise ratio.

Overall, there is little to complain about with this board, the RGB and design are up there with the best. While there are a few BIOS tweaks required to get this efficiently overclocked, it is still a reliable piece of hardware and enters calculations.

ASRock brings something wonderful into the TR4 mix; the mATX option! This is the perfect TR4 motherboard for those looking to build a compact Threadripper based system. Despite the size of this motherboard, it can handle even the toughest of tasks with a relatively small price to go with it.

It is important to mention the design from ASRock with this board; it’s excellent. Many thought they were taking risks going for a TR4 board of this form factor, but wow, they actually nailed it. Of course, a board of this size brings some compromises, for starters, there are halve as many DIMM slots on this than compared to the full-sized mobos on this list, with the max capacity of system memory being 64GB. You also obviously get less GPU support on a board of this size, with it supporting Quad SLI/ CrossFireX.

The X399M Taichi features a similar level in performance to the Fatal1ty board thanks to a slight power advantage. Overall though, it performs as well as its bigger brothers, and while sacrificing connectivity, it offers yet another option for builders.

For those looking to get into the HEDT scene at a lower cost, this TR4 motherboard could be the answer. It gives you premium performance in a compact package, and it won’t let you down.

The Gigabyte Designare EX enters the list as an excellent choice for both the home user and serious workstations. This motherboard is fast and features a well-considered layout with reliable components. Many wouldn’t consider this for the extreme end of overclocking, but it’s a versatile board and has some useful features.

The board is full of USB ports (eight USB 3.1), which include Type-A and Type-C. We see two NICs on this TR4 motherboard, along with wireless AC. The board features all your bells and whistles, such as power/ reset controls and a CMOS button. The Designare EX supports both ECC and non-ECC RAM, but you’ll be wanting to use the fastest RAM compatible possible to get the most from your Threadripper processor.

This X399 motherboard can support up to eight SATA drives and can house three M.2 drives too. When you weigh up the flexibility of this product and how reliable it is, the Gigabyte X399 Designare EX really competes.

If you are buying yourself a Threadripper CPU, it is highly unlikely you are just going to be gaming on your new PC. While this TR4 motherboard has ‘gaming’ in its name, it isn’t really well suited for that purpose, and it’s powers are closely aligned to the server/ workstation department. Despite having a slightly annoying BIOS, ASRock has been producing motherboards with an unbelievable price to performance over recent years and offer serious amounts of features too.

One of the motherboard’s best features is its access to high bandwidth network solutions without the need for using up a PCIe slot or an additional drive. This makes the board an attractive option for any enthusiasts or businesses that require high bandwidth network connectivity.

This motherboard shares many features with the “Taichi” version, with some saying they are pretty much identical once you remove the design. The main difference between the two is the addition of the Aquantia 10GB network controller. There is some serious connectivity with this X399 board, as you may expect. You get 10 USB ports out the back, eight of which are USB 3.0, one Type-A, and a single Type-C USB 10Gb/s.

Taking a closer look into this board, the only gaming aspects we could see were the sharp angles, dark colors, and dotted LED lightings. The sleek I/O shield and heatsinks do a lot for the motherboard’s aesthetics, but the board is ultimately similar looking to the Taichi.

As long as you ignore the ‘Gaming’ issue (which is a minor issue at that), you quickly see this board has some excellent potential. While gamers don’t need the 10GB controllers, it’s a luxury some enthusiasts out there will enjoy. The board can be overclocked and performs extremely well in the right hands, making this a solid TR4 board overall.