Asus Prime X299 Edition 30
A stunningly premium motherboard with a price to match.
The Prime X299 Edition 30 is premium in every way..
When I first took the Asus Prime X299 Edition 30 out of the box, I fell in love. It’s one of the most attractive motherboard designs (and packages) I’ve ever seen. Though admittedly looks are not at the top of the list when evaluating a high end motherboard, it just oozes appeal with its subtle modern finish and the way the gorgeous OLED panel looks when the system is powered up. It screams ‘I am premium’ and if the looks don’t do that, then the price tag will. At $1,149 the Edition 30 is one of the most expensive consumer motherboards on the market. Is it worth the price?
The Asus Prime X299 Edition
30 comes with pretty much every connectivity and expansion feature that a 2019 era motherboard could want. Rather than rattle off endless specs, we’ll concentrate on a few of the key differentiating features the board has. There’s a 2-inch OLED screen in the centre of the board that can display information such as clock speeds, temperatures, voltages or even custom animated GIFs. It looks gorgeous. You get a fan extension card which adds a further six adjustable headers as well as three addressable RGB headers.
The Edition 30 comes with an external USB ‘Smart Control Console’. It has an
OLED display with similar functionality to the one mounted on the board itself. It’s also an IR webcam that supports face recognition, gesture control and even has Alexa and Cortana voice recognition support. It will be interesting to see if this kind of control functionality catches on in the wider market.
As with most of the other X299 refresh boards, the Edition 30 has a truly high end power delivery system that Asus claims is capable of delivering 544W of power. The heatsink assembly includes an embedded fan that switches on only when the VRM goes over 60c. It’s nice to see a genuine finned heatsink design that prioritises functionality as well as aesthetics.
The Edition 30 really demonstrates the power of a CPU like the i9-9980XE. While AMD’s Threadripper processors rule the roost with regards to outright multi-threading performance, the 9980XE’s single threaded prowess makes it a balanced all-rounder, though that may well change when we see 3rd generation Threadripper can do. Competition aside, a board like the Prime Edition 30 brings out the best of Intel’s HEDT lineup.
The Prime X299 Edition 30 is premium in every way. There is simply no better X299 motherboard on the market, but at this end of the market, you have to pay to play. When it comes down to it, $1,149 is a LOT to pay for a motherboard. At least here you’re paying for a level of refinement that cannot be beaten. Is it overkill? Probably, but If you’re a professional or an enthusiast with deep pockets, and can make use of the strengths of the platform and need a lot of multi-threaded power, then the Prime X299 Edition 30 is one of the finest motherboards on the market, but boy does it come at a cost.
• Best of everything
• All the connectivity
• Killer performance
• HOLY HECK THE PRICE