Let's take a look at how the motherboard does.The X399 Professional Gaming has the same VRM as the X399 Taichi and uses the same heat sink design.
It's a fully digital cutting edge PWM and controls eight IR3555 fully integrated power stages rated at 60A each. There is also an EZ Mode, which is for the less experienced users, but it you aren't taken to that GUI by default.The motherboard features eight SATA6Gb/s ports, all connected to the chipset. They are using high-quality parts, implementing solid platform features, but not adding in too many aesthetic features. Onboard RGB lighting is present but is limited around the chipset's heatsink, with headers for additional LED strips. We get a red and black color theme with an easy to use layout, and the UEFI is mostly bug-free.The accessory package includes 4-way SLI bridge, 3-way SLI bridge, SLI HB bridge, four SATA6Gb/s cables, WIFI antenna, IO shield, manuals, and driver DVD.To achieve the above overclock I set the CPU overclocking mode to manual, input CPU frequency of 4000MHz and set VCore to 1.325v. Each memory VRM uses a UPI Semiconductor uP1647P PWM to control and drive two SinoPower SM7341EHKP dual N-Channel MOSFETs.A second CPU input power connector accepts a 4-pin CPU power plug. As of now, the motherboard's performance is solid, and there isn't anything to worry about or get excited over.ASRock might as well have left out the "Gaming" at the end of the motherboard's model name, and just called it the professional, but that's too boring for an X399 motherboard. I also enabled XMP and didn't mess with any memory settings. However, with a price tag of $440, the X399 Professional Gaming also is one of the most expensive Ryzen Threadripper motherboards available. It supports the Sound Blaster Cinema 3 software and ASRock is using Nichicon's golden audio-specific capacitors to drive the physically isolated audio channels. An ASMedia ASM1543 type-C switch and CC logic chip are used for the rear IO panel's type-C port.
Okay, 3. In this review we will be having a look at their currently best AMD X399 motherboard, the Fatal1ty X399 Professional Gaming. That being said, the motherboard offers two RGB LED headers, so you can light up if you like or keep things dark if you so choose.The Realtek ALC1220 is rated for 120dB SNR for the main headphone output.
ASRock is the company with most AMD X399 motherboards and they only have three available. While the PCB uses a much different silk screen design than the Taichi, it still can offer some style if you want it. ExcellentWe get a true 8-phase VRM controlled by an International Rectifier IR35201 working in 8+0 mode. The Fatal1ty X399 Professional Gaming is ASRock's top of the line X399 motherboard, and it takes the quality we saw with the X399 Taichi and adds in more features. However, after having a closer look at the motherboard and its specifications, it feels as if the X399 Professional Gaming is having an identity crisis, which isn't necessary a bad thing. There are only very few motherboards currently available for Ryzen Threadripper processors. On the contrary, the aesthetic design is subtle, yet elegant, focused on simple geometric shapes. It is part of a new class of NICs and performs quite well. The motherboard's aesthetics are surprising for a motherboard in ASRock's "Gaming" series. ASRock's take on the X399 platform is interesting, to say the least. The three headers circled in blue offers up to 1A of current while the two circled in red offer up to 1.5A. Keep in mind, the majority of the heat from the VRM goes into the PCB as it is a giant soldered on copper heat sink. The X399 Professional Gaming has a 10Gbit NBase-T NIC, a COM port, Creative Audio, and a different BIOS skin when compared against the X399 Taichi for $100 more. The heat sinks are pretty big and heavy, and they should do a solid job of controlling VRM temperatures. Fan control is quite good and menu and GUI options as both available. It is not possible for two devices to be installed with shared lanes.The design of the X399 Professional Gaming is not in any way extravagant, as one would expect from a top-tier motherboard that is almost exclusively targeting gamers.
A FlashBack IC provides the USB BIOS recovery feature.The motherboard features two ASMedia ASM1480 that switch x4 PCI-E 3.0 from the CPU to either M2_1 or the U.2 port.The ASRock X399 Professional Gaming has you covered at home or even in a professional setting. Even the nickname of the former well-known former esports player, Johnathan "Fatal1ty" Wendel, appears along with the motherboard's name to help with the marketing of the motherboard. Networking performance could be better.We find the Aquantia AQC107 NBase-T controller which supports 10Gbit, 5, 2.5, 1, and 100Mbit Ethernet.
This level of network connectivity is needless for a gaming motherboard and none of the used chipsets are designed exclusively for gaming, it should be noted. Problems, 2.
We also spotted very high-quality components, such as the Nichicon solid-state capacitors that account for every single capacitor on this motherboard.The ASRock X399 Professional Gaming, as the name suggests, is a motherboard that is being marketed towards advanced gamers.