Question 1

Is this the only Threadripper motherboard that supports wireless vr? Im trying to decide on this or the MSI board. The MSI has quad channel ram and this doesnt but it has wireless vr support. I cant decide. Anyone help?

Accepted Answer

All x399 motherboards I have seen (including this one) support quad channel RAM, so that statement is not correct. As far as wireless VR support, I believe this is more marketing than anything as I dont believe there is currently any wireless standard. The wireless NIC that comes with the Zenith Extreme is certainly capable of higher speeds however since it supports the AD standard.

Question 2

is this board with the trouble? i been reading all the bad reviews. have always got Asus mother board but there is a lot of issue with this one.

Accepted Answer

If you are asking about the cpu try issue it is really hit or miss with them. Just takes a little extra pressure to get it closed. I have not had any issues with this board. Just have to make sure you have the latest BIOS for ram issues. Really the only issue I have with the board is the tiny screws that hold the heat sink covering the m.2 slot.  They are cheap aluminum screws and some one decided to put lock tight on them. went through 3 boards because they kept stripping out. The other issue with that is they require an electronics screwdriver. I have the IFix it kit so that wasnt an issue for me, but a regular philips head  will destroy these because they need a flat tip not pointed. Honestly for the price of the board Asus should supply on with it, but that would lower there profit by 35 cents. But other than that i have had no issues with it like I said make sure you have latest BIOS and you should be good. If i did have one complaint is is the aura software and that the leds on the board stay on even when pc is off.

Question 3

How to reduce the noise coming from a tiny fan under the I/O shield ?

Accepted Answer

Mine doesn't make any audible noise. I can't hear it over the fans in my case (theses are barely audible around 26db). I would make sure you have the corect drivers, and also the correct software, where you might have the ability turn it off. If you don't have theses I can send an email with all the apropate links.

Question 4

Is this motherboard compatible with F4-3600C17D-32GTZR?

Accepted Answer

in the bios there is a setting for 3600, but it is not listed on the ram's qvl. that being said neither is the 3200 which i have and works fine with threadripper as long as you update the bios.

Question 5

I have tried look up U.2 and I can't find any info. Just what is U.2? Is it faster than a M.2 NVME drive?

Accepted Answer

its no faster than M.2 the difference is the form factor.  M.2 is the smallish gum stick size packages.  U.2 is more the size of the traditional 2.5" SSD drives, meaning there is more room for chips and capacity.  They are more for enterprise setups.  The connector on the drive side looks more like a SAS than M.2  Google for M.2 vs U.2

Question 6

Am I missing something or why does this board have at least a $100 price premium over any other X399 board?

Accepted Answer

It's because this board literally comes with EVERYTHING. RGBs, M.2 slots up the wazoo as well as an EXTRA riser card where you can add even MORE M.2's, should you be running an M.2 server or something, a 10Gbit ethernet card, built in Wireless AD with antennas, reinforced PCIe slots, U.2, 16 fan headers (exaggerating only slightly). In addition to the all the goodies I've already listed it also has active cooling for the VRMs and chokes up by the I/O and CPU slot.

On top of that the Threadripper LGA slot is more expensive due to how large it is. However, if you aren't interested in many of these extras like the riser M.2 expansion card, or the 10Gbit NIC, supposedly Asus will be releasing another x399 board which will be their x399 STRIX model, and should come in at a price inbetween the Zenith Extreme and the Asus Prime x399. Rumors had it at $400 or so, which might be the best deal in the end if you can wait.

Question 7

I purchased cosair ram CMR32GX4M2C3333CI6 X2 it will only run 2 sticks anyone have any suggestions how to get it to run all four?

Accepted Answer

It would appear this item is not listed on the manufacturer QVL and is not guaranteed to run at full capacity.

Question 8

Will ASUS X399 motherboards support the new AMD Threadripper 2nd Gen Ryzen CPU like the “2900WX, 2950X etc.”?

Accepted Answer

Yes, but it will need a BIOS update that ASUS hasn’t released yet. Hopefully it will be released soon. Also, ASUS is making a cooling kit for it to allow for better overclocking. It will be available separately.

Question 9

Does it support optane?

Accepted Answer

Optane is a proprietary Intel technology. AMD boards will not currently support it.

Question 10

I see that this board has two 8-pin power sockets.  Does it require power to both sockets to power it, or is the second 8-pin there for power redundancy only?  I would like to use my existing PSU for this new build but my PSU only has one 8-pin power connector.

Accepted Answer

It requires both 8 pin connections to power on. Board will fault with a red status LED for CPU power with only one plug connected.

Brand	ASUS
Series	ROG
Model	ZENITH EXTREME

CPU Socket Type	sTR4
CPU Type	Ryzen Threadripper 1st Gen / Ryzen Threadripper 2nd Gen

Number of Memory Slots	8x288pin (DDR4)
Memory Standard	DDR4 3600(O.C.)/ 3200(O.C.)/ 2800(O.C.)/ 2666/ 2400/ 2133 * Refer to www.asus.com for the Memory QVL (Qualified Vendors Lists). * Hyper DIMM support is subject to the physical characteristics of individual CPUs.
Maximum Memory Supported	128GB
Channel Supported	Quad Channel

PCI Express 3.0 x16	4 x PCIe 3.0 x16 (x16, x16/x16, x16/x8/x16, x16/x8/x16/x8) * * The PCIE_x8/x4_4 slot shares bandwidth with U.2. In 4-Way configuration, if the PCIE_x8/x4_4 is used in x8 mode, U.2 port will be disabled.
PCI Express x4	1 x PCIe 2.0 x4
PCI Express x1	1 x PCIe 2.0 x1

Serial ATA (SATA)	6 x SATA 6Gb/s
M.2	2 x M.2 Socket 3, with M Key design, type 2242/2260/2280/22110 storage devices support (Supports both SATA & PCIE SSD)* 1 x M.2 Socket 3, with M key, type 2242/2260/2280 storage devices support (both SATA & PCIE mode) 1 x U.2 port** * ROG DIMM.2 Card supports 2 x M.2 SSDs. ** U.2 Shares bandwidth with the PCIE_x8/x4_4 slot.
SATA RAID	0/1/10

ASUS ROG ZENITH EXTREME sTR4 AMD X399 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.1 Extended ATX AMD Motherboard

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Audio Chipset	ROG SupremeFX High Definition Audio CODEC S1220
Audio Channels	8 Channels

LAN Chipset	Intel i211AT
Second LAN Chipset	ROG AREION 10G Ethernet Card
Max LAN Speed	10Gbps + 1Gbps
Wireless LAN	Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac + WiGig 802.11 ad * Supports MU-MIMO Supports dual band frequency 2.4/5 GHz + 60 GHz Up to 4600 Mbps transfer speed * Wi-Fi 802.11 ad (WiGig) is only available in certified countries.
Bluetooth	Bluetooth 4.1

Back I/O Ports	1 x LAN (RJ45) / 1 x USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type-A / 1 x USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type-C / 5 x Audio Jacks / 8 x USB 3.1 Gen 1 Type-A
RJ45	1 x RJ45
USB 3.1	8 x USB 3.1 Gen1 ports [blue] 1 x USB 3.1 Gen2 port (1 x Type-A [red])
USB Type-C	1 x USB 3.1 Gen2 port (1 x Type-C [black])
S/PDIF Out	1 x Optical
Audio Ports	5 x LED-illuminated audio jacks

Onboard USB	2 x USB 3.1 Gen 1 connector(s) support(s) additional 4 USB 3.1 Gen 1 port(s) 1 x USB 2.0 connector(s) support(s) additional 2 USB 2.0 port(s) 1 x USB 3.1 Gen 2 front panel connector
Other Connectors	1 x Aura Addressable Strip Header(s) 1 x ReTry jumper 1 x Safe Boot jumper 2 x Aura RGB Strip Headers 1 x CPU Fan connector(s) 1 x CPU OPT Fan connector(s) 2 x Chassis Fan connector(s) 1 x H_AMP fan connector 1 x W_PUMP+ connector 1 x Front panel audio connector(s) (AAFP) 1 x System panel(s) (Q-Connector) 1 x 5-pin EXT_FAN (Extension Fan) connector 1 x Slow Mode switch(es) 2 x Thermal sensor connector(s) 1 x LN2 Mode header(s) 1 x EZ Plug connector(s) (4-pin Molex power connector) 1 x Reset button(s) 1 x LN2 Mode switch(es) 1 x LN2 Mode jumper(s) 1 x Safe Boot button 1 x ReTry button 1 x Slow Mode jumper(s) 1 x System panel connector 1 x PCIe x16 lane switch 2 x T_Sensor Connector 1 x W_IN header 1 x W_OUT header 1 x W_FLOW header 1 x Start button 1 x PCIe x16 Lane Switch 1 x 9-pin Monoblock sensor

Form Factor	Extended ATX
LED Lighting	RGB
Dimensions (W x L)	12.0" x 10.9"
Power Pin	2 x 8-pin EATX 8V Power connector 1 x 24-pin EATX Power connector(s)

Item#: N82E16813119003