I must admit ,I agree, the title should not contain the word budget as a statement if the article only references it by assumption. Then it feels like click bait a little bit. I can follow the logic , but it is not a fact at this point.
"Previous HEDT SLI Plus motherboards have often been the cheapest available, and it would be abnormal if this board was different. "
It'd be nice, but according to other sites MSI hasn't given pricing info.
On the other hand, while less loaded down than other X399 boards it still has enough stuff on it that it's still going to be pricey.
but on the gripping hand any x399 board that actually just wires up all the stuff coming out of the CPU socket itself is going to be really expensive; and the ~4k pin socket itself is enough to make the minimum cost for one of these higher than Intels LGA20xx parts.
Agreed, it's going to cost a bit, but without the need for the PLX switches and such, it is a pretty straightforward process connecting PCIe lanes to assorted ports. It shouldn't be a 'complicated' or difficult to make board overall.
I think it's a subtle way for the IT media to help the industry push/shame us towards spending more. I had a go at a writer for stating "...new $500 budget smartphone!" $500 is not budget. $100-$200 is budget. Also it's easy to say something is cheap or budget when you haven't had to pay for the item yourself.
On other sites it is referred to as a "content creation" product, again with zero indication what qualifies it as such. Same thing here, but its "budget".
Marketing 101, what gamer would want a board "specifically" made for content creators? Can't believe these guys get paid, what's next a board made for office productivity?
That top PCIe slot looks waaaaay too close to the memory. As in, clearance could be a big issue if one would want to populate all the PCI and Memory slots. And with a TR, you would. (Why else buy one?)
It's the same spacing you see with any dimm and a full length PCIe card in the first slot. Assuming that like most modern boards that do so they're using single ended latching dimms sockets there should be no problem at all. If they're using old fashioned double ended latching dimm sockets you'll probably need to pull the GPU to change ram out; but again that's nothing new.
Which is fine if you only need to support at most 3 GPUs. 4 GPUs requires one in the top slot, and while many more recent boards have moved the 1st slot down to make more room it isn't and never has been necessary to do so.
It's ok, as long as you don't install memory after populating the top pcie slot. Not a problem during PC assembly, as you install memory before gpu anyway. You might have to remove the gpu if you are upgrading or replacing ram, but not that much of a big deal.
Of course, you can also opt to not use the top slot, there appear to be at least 2 other that are x16 electrically, so no big whoop unless you need all the slots.
"Pricing was not listed, but we do expect the SLI Plus to come in under the Gaming Pro Carbon. Previous HEDT SLI Plus motherboards have often been the cheapest available, and it would be abnormal if this board was different. We should see these available for purchase soon."
The Gaming Pro version is $350. And I see $250 prices online for the "intel version" of these boards (i.e. the x299 board that MSI labels SLI plus). So, if Joe is correct, we should see street prices around $250. So, not a cheap motherboard. But $100 cheaper than any other Threadripper motherboard that I've seen out there. It's also ATX, instead of E-ATX, like many Threadripper boards.
Summary: Joe is indirectly implying a price around $250 based on the information given.
We’ve updated our terms. By continuing to use the site and/or by logging into your account, you agree to the Site’s updated Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Facebook
Twitter
RSS
24 Comments
Back to Article
shabby - Tuesday, October 10, 2017 - link
I would imagine if the word budget is in the title the price would be somewhere in the post, is it wrong to think that?plopke - Tuesday, October 10, 2017 - link
I must admit ,I agree, the title should not contain the word budget as a statement if the article only references it by assumption. Then it feels like click bait a little bit. I can follow the logic , but it is not a fact at this point."Previous HEDT SLI Plus motherboards have often been the cheapest available, and it would be abnormal if this board was different. "
nathanddrews - Tuesday, October 10, 2017 - link
"Budget" usually means under $100, but I doubt this is the case.bigboxes - Tuesday, October 10, 2017 - link
"Budget" for threadripper.niva - Tuesday, October 10, 2017 - link
Not quite as bad as a "budget" Ferrari :)DanNeely - Tuesday, October 10, 2017 - link
It'd be nice, but according to other sites MSI hasn't given pricing info.On the other hand, while less loaded down than other X399 boards it still has enough stuff on it that it's still going to be pricey.
but on the gripping hand any x399 board that actually just wires up all the stuff coming out of the CPU socket itself is going to be really expensive; and the ~4k pin socket itself is enough to make the minimum cost for one of these higher than Intels LGA20xx parts.
bill.rookard - Sunday, October 15, 2017 - link
Agreed, it's going to cost a bit, but without the need for the PLX switches and such, it is a pretty straightforward process connecting PCIe lanes to assorted ports. It shouldn't be a 'complicated' or difficult to make board overall.krazyfrog - Tuesday, October 10, 2017 - link
Nope. I too expected to see the price to see if it's something noteworthy but no. Not even an estimate. 🙄jabber - Tuesday, October 10, 2017 - link
I think it's a subtle way for the IT media to help the industry push/shame us towards spending more. I had a go at a writer for stating "...new $500 budget smartphone!" $500 is not budget. $100-$200 is budget. Also it's easy to say something is cheap or budget when you haven't had to pay for the item yourself.ddriver - Tuesday, October 10, 2017 - link
On other sites it is referred to as a "content creation" product, again with zero indication what qualifies it as such. Same thing here, but its "budget".Must be some new trend.
shabby - Tuesday, October 10, 2017 - link
Marketing 101, what gamer would want a board "specifically" made for content creators? Can't believe these guys get paid, what's next a board made for office productivity?MrSpadge - Tuesday, October 10, 2017 - link
That would be the same without the LEDs ;)mapesdhs - Wednesday, October 11, 2017 - link
LEDs = the SJWs of the tech world. :)nagi603 - Tuesday, October 10, 2017 - link
That top PCIe slot looks waaaaay too close to the memory. As in, clearance could be a big issue if one would want to populate all the PCI and Memory slots. And with a TR, you would. (Why else buy one?)DanNeely - Tuesday, October 10, 2017 - link
It's the same spacing you see with any dimm and a full length PCIe card in the first slot. Assuming that like most modern boards that do so they're using single ended latching dimms sockets there should be no problem at all. If they're using old fashioned double ended latching dimm sockets you'll probably need to pull the GPU to change ram out; but again that's nothing new.Topweasel - Tuesday, October 10, 2017 - link
Tons of mobo's put a 1x PCIe port there specifically for this reason.DanNeely - Tuesday, October 10, 2017 - link
Which is fine if you only need to support at most 3 GPUs. 4 GPUs requires one in the top slot, and while many more recent boards have moved the 1st slot down to make more room it isn't and never has been necessary to do so.mapesdhs - Wednesday, October 11, 2017 - link
Yup, should be fine with any AIO or better, which is much more likely to be the go-to type of coole for a TR build.I like the look of this build, so tired of all the flashy bells & whistles of recent designs. Anything LED is just wasted cost I don't care about.
shabby - Tuesday, October 10, 2017 - link
It's not as bad as some asus boards that have the cpu socket a few millimeters from the pcie slot.ddriver - Tuesday, October 10, 2017 - link
It's ok, as long as you don't install memory after populating the top pcie slot. Not a problem during PC assembly, as you install memory before gpu anyway. You might have to remove the gpu if you are upgrading or replacing ram, but not that much of a big deal.Of course, you can also opt to not use the top slot, there appear to be at least 2 other that are x16 electrically, so no big whoop unless you need all the slots.
TrackSmart - Tuesday, October 10, 2017 - link
"Pricing was not listed, but we do expect the SLI Plus to come in under the Gaming Pro Carbon. Previous HEDT SLI Plus motherboards have often been the cheapest available, and it would be abnormal if this board was different. We should see these available for purchase soon."The Gaming Pro version is $350. And I see $250 prices online for the "intel version" of these boards (i.e. the x299 board that MSI labels SLI plus). So, if Joe is correct, we should see street prices around $250. So, not a cheap motherboard. But $100 cheaper than any other Threadripper motherboard that I've seen out there. It's also ATX, instead of E-ATX, like many Threadripper boards.
Summary: Joe is indirectly implying a price around $250 based on the information given.
mapesdhs - Wednesday, October 11, 2017 - link
If that indeed is the rationale then it should just be given as such.Lolimaster - Tuesday, October 10, 2017 - link
1900X+$300 mobo is a nice future proof gaming/work machine.wolrah - Thursday, October 12, 2017 - link
Clicking on the image thumbnail links (like https://www.anandtech.com/Gallery/Album/5888#1 for example leads to an error, where clicking on the gallery link (https://www.anandtech.com/Gallery/Album/5888) and then selecting the images works just fine. It's the same URL in both cases, so I'm not sure what's going on there.If I refresh when I'm in the working gallery link it fails.