The PC world has welcomed AMD's return to HEDT CPUs with Threadripper 7000, which competes against the company's previous Threadripper chips for the best CPUs for workstations. But that welcome might not last very long if TRX50 motherboards are as expensive as a retail listing suggests. Spotted by X (formerly Twitter) PC hardware sleuth @momomo_us, a retail listing for Asus's TRX50-Sage WiFi motherboard shows a price tag of nearly $1,100, which is more in line with workstation pricing than HEDT pricing.
AMD's last HEDT CPU, Threadripper 3000, didn't have cheap motherboards, but even the highest-end models capped out at around $700, with many good models being available for $500. At over $1,000, this TRX50 board is about as expensive as workstation class WRX80E boards for Threadripper Pro 5000 WX-series CPUs while lacking workstation features like octa-channel memory.
On the other hand, it's very possible that this listing won't be representative of TRX50 motherboards as a whole or even Asus's TRX50-Sage WiFi. @momomo_us only provided a screenshot of the listing rather than a link, and it's unclear which retailer made the listing. It's certainly not a well-known store like Amazon, Newegg, or B&H Photo.
The price tag itself is also strange, being exactly $1,087.96. Most motherboards, including those for HEDT and workstations, sell for average prices, like Asus's $999 Pro WS WRX80E-Sage SE. That and the fact that the motherboard isn't in stock could mean the price isn't realistic.
Many retailers list PC components that haven't come out yet, and it's not unusual to see high prices that turn out to be misleading. It would be strange for AMD to launch a $1,500 CPU that would be paired with $1,000 motherboards, so it's possible that this listing doesn't tell us the actual price of upcoming TRX50 motherboards. If true, though, Threadripper 7000 might be lucky to have even a lukewarm reception.
