Threadripper homelab build
Under-$10K workstation-class host built around Ryzen Threadripper 7980X, PCIe 5.0 I/O, ECC DDR5 RDIMMs, 25 GbE, and hot-swap ready storage.
Captured on November 17, 2025 with pricing from Newegg (links below). The configuration focuses on per-core performance, PCIe 5.0 expansion, and modern networking while staying below the $10,000 budget ceiling.
- Estimated hardware subtotal: $9,382.74 (before tax/shipping)
- CPU: 64 Zen 4 cores @ 3.5/5.1 GHz (Threadripper 7980X, 350 W TDP)
- Memory: 128 GB DDR5-5600 ECC RDIMM (quad-channel, up to 1 TB supported for future upgrades)
- Storage: 2 TB PCIe 4.0 NVMe + 2 × 20 TB Exos X20 SATA drives (raw 40 TB)
- Networking/accelerators: Radeon Pro W7500 (8 GB GDDR6) + dual-port 25 GbE NIC (SFP28)
Bill of materials
| Role | Item | SKU | Qty | Unit Price | Extended | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Compute | AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7980X 64c/128t | N82E16819113808 | 1 | $4,782.99 | $4,782.99 | 128 PCIe 5.0 lanes and AVX-512 support in a 350 W SP6 package. |
| Motherboard | ASUS Pro WS TRX50-SAGE WIFI | N82E16813119666 | 1 | $895.99 | $895.99 | SSI-CEB board with 7 × PCIe 5.0 slots, dual 10 GbE, WiFi 7, and ECC RDIMM slots. |
| Memory | Kingston Fury Renegade Pro 128 GB (4 × 32 GB) DDR5-5600 ECC RDIMM | N82E16820242850 | 1 | $1,199.99 | $1,199.99 | EXPO-tuned RDIMMs that keep quad-channel bandwidth high and leave four slots free for growth. |
| Primary NVMe | Samsung 990 PRO 2 TB | N82E16820147861 | 1 | $189.99 | $189.99 | Fast PCIe 4.0 OS/VM datastore; easy drop-in for the board’s M.2 slots. |
| Bulk storage | Seagate Exos X20 20 TB SATA | N82E16822185011 | 2 | $348.99 | $697.98 | Enterprise 7200 RPM drives for ZFS/TrueNAS pools; front bays in the Enthoo Pro 2 keep them swappable. |
| Graphics / compute | AMD Radeon Pro W7500 8 GB | N82E16814105117 | 1 | $415.99 | $415.99 | RDNA 3 workstation GPU with SR-IOV and four mini-DisplayPort 2.1 outputs for VDI or accelerated workloads. |
| Networking | NetXtreme E-Series dual-port 25 GbE SFP28 NIC | 14U-00ZU-00327 | 1 | $199.00 | $199.00 | PCIe 4.0 ×8 adapter with two SFP28 cages (25/10 GbE) for lab fabrics or fast storage backhaul. |
| Power | Seasonic PRIME TX-1600 (ATX 3.0 / PCIe 5.0) | N82E16817151262 | 1 | $559.99 | $559.99 | 80+ Titanium, 12V-2×6 leads, and transient headroom for accelerators. |
| Chassis | Phanteks Enthoo Pro 2 Server Edition | N82E16811854126 | 1 | $261.84 | $261.84 | Tower chassis with SSI-EEB standoff map, 12× 3.5″ bays, and mesh front for airflow. |
| Cooling | Noctua NH-U14S TR5-SP6 | 9SIAZTUK9W6294 | 1 | $178.98 | $178.98 | SP6-specific mounting hardware plus 140 mm fan keeps the 350 W CPU in check while fitting inside the chassis. |
Component gallery
AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7980X
ASUS Pro WS TRX50-SAGE WIFI
Kingston Fury Renegade Pro ECC RDIMMs
Seasonic PRIME TX-1600
Phanteks Enthoo Pro 2 Server Edition
Noctua NH-U14S TR5-SP6
Samsung 990 PRO 2 TB NVMe
Seagate Exos X20 20 TB
AMD Radeon Pro W7500
NetXtreme dual-port 25 GbE NIC
Compatibility checklist
| Check | Details |
|---|---|
| Case ⇆ motherboard | The Enthoo Pro 2 supports SSI-EEB/E-ATX boards and 195 mm CPU cooler clearance. The TRX50-SAGE CEB board aligns with the standoff map, leaving clearance for the front hot-swap cages and GPUs. |
| CPU ⇆ board | TRX50 is the correct socket for Threadripper 7000 (SP6). BIOS support for the 7980X ships out of the box, so no firmware juggling is required. |
| Memory ⇆ board | The ASUS board exposes eight DDR5 RDIMM slots; the Kingston kit populates four slots in quad-channel mode, uses supported 1.1 V RDIMMs, and leaves four slots open for later upgrades up to 1 TB. |
| Cooler ⇆ chassis | Noctua’s NH-U14S TR5-SP6 is 165 mm tall, well within the Enthoo Pro 2’s 195 mm clearance, and its offset mounting bracket clears the tall VRM heatsinks on the TRX50-SAGE. |
| Power ⇆ load | A 1,600 W ATX 3.0 PSU with 12V-2×6 leads handles the 350 W CPU plus GPU, future accelerators, and 25 GbE NIC excursions while staying within the chassis’ PSU bay (up to 255 mm). |
| GPU ⇆ board | The W7500 consumes a single PCIe 4.0 ×8 slot and remains within the 75 W board power spec, so it does not require supplemental connectors and keeps additional slots free. |
| NIC ⇆ board | The dual-port 25 GbE adapter uses PCIe 4.0 ×8 lanes; the TRX50-SAGE exposes multiple open-ended slots, so it can share the secondary 16× slot while still leaving headroom for HBAs or accelerators. |
| Storage ⇆ platform | Two onboard M.2 slots handle the Samsung 990 PRO while the case’s drive cages and the board’s SATA headers feed the dual Exos drives. You can add more HDDs or U.2 devices later via the remaining SATA and PCIe lanes. |
Architecture notes
- Compute density: 64 Zen 4 cores deliver significantly higher single-thread performance than the Ampere Altra build while still offering 128 hardware threads for dense virtualization and CI workloads.
- High-speed I/O: TRX50 brings PCIe 5.0 slots, SlimSAS/Oculink, dual 10 GbE, WiFi 7, and IPMI-lite features, making it easier to bolt on accelerators or NVMe expansion compared with the older µATX Arm platform.
- Network uplift: A dedicated 25 GbE NIC provides a straightforward on-ramp to faster spine/leaf fabrics or NVMe/TCP backhaul, plus the W7500 GPU unlocks ROCm/AI or workstation use cases in the same host.
- Serviceability: The Enthoo Pro 2’s vertical drive cages, side-by-side PSU chamber, and cable channels make it convenient to service disks while keeping acoustics acceptable for an office or closet rack.
- Upgrade runway: RDIMM slots, spare PCIe connectivity, and the 1.6 kW PSU leave enough headroom for future RDIMM kits, more HDDs, or an accelerator such as an MI300 or RTX 6000 Ada without redoing the platform.
Outstanding considerations
- Memory expansion: If your workloads need >128 GB, add a second Kingston kit (for 256 GB total) or swap to 64 GB RDIMMs; TRX50 happily runs four or eight modules.
- Drive layout: The case offers 12 × 3.5″ bays—populate additional Exos drives or a SATA DOM for boot mirrors if you plan on large ZFS pools.
- Optics / cabling: The 25 GbE card ships without optics; budget for SFP28 DACs or SR modules plus appropriate switch ports.
- Thermal tuning: Stock fans work, but consider adding high-static-pressure 140 mm fans to the front mesh if you fill many HDD bays.
- Out-of-band management: ASUS provides an IPMI-like controller; wire it into a management VLAN and update the BMC firmware before racking.
Last updated: November 17, 2025.