Supermicro AS-5014A-TT AMD Ryzen Threadripper Pro Workstation Review

The Supermicro AS-5014A-TT is a giant AMD Ryzen Threadripper Pro workstation. Not only does the system support a liquid-cooled Threadripper Pro CPU, but it also has expansion options that will simply outpace mainstream workstations. This is a system I’ve seen many times on STH, but now it’s time for its official review. Let’s get to it.

Supermicro AS-5014A-TT AMD Ryzen Threadripper Pro Workstation hardware overview

We will do a normal external overview, and then an overview of the internal devices. Before we get to that, we actually have this system compared to a direct competitor, the Lenovo ThinkStation P620, in a video that you can find here:

While we’ll focus our review on what’s in the system, if you need context on how complete the workstation is compared to others on the market, this video should give you an idea.

Supermicro AS-5014A-TT external hardware overview

The tower system is certainly a design step up from the Supermicro beige or black boxes of the past. There are now some stylish brands out there. We don’t usually discuss aesthetics with Supermicro servers, but this workstation is probably destined to sit next to a desk.

On the side, we get a headphone and microphone jack. Then there are five USB ports. 2 USB 2.0 Type A ports for mouse and keyboard. Then there are three USB 3 ports, two Type A and one Type C.

The top of the structure in the photo above looks like a flat plate. Behind it is not an impressive piece of technology. Instead, it is a handle to help move the large system around.

The remainder of the upper part of the chassis is the radiator grille for the CPU liquid cooler.

Below the ports are two drive bays. These are the SATA slots intended for OS drives, SneakerNet transfers, or for use in uploading footage from video recorders such as the Atomos line that records RAW footage to SATA SSDs.

Behind that front panel, we get 2 unoccupied 5.25 expansion slots in our system.

Below that, we’ve got two chassis fans to help with the expansion card’s airflow. One will also see a filter on the door of the Temple.

On the back of the unit we get the upper area of ​​the radiator, and then the main components on the back of the system. Includes a large San Ace fan.

On the back, we get serial and VGA ports. Then there is a 1Gb management port for IPMI/Redfish. Then we get a USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type-C port for high-speed tasks. The other 7 USB ports are 2x 3.2 Gen1 and 4x Gen2.

LAN is provided by Marvell-Aquantia AQC113C so we get 10Gbase-T capabilities. The sound is a 7.1 resolution and it has an S/PDIF optical output as well.

In the case of the rear expansion slot, we have a chassis with eight I/O slots on the back of the system. We’ll show how they are wired internally in an internal overview.

In the lower part, we get a power supply of up to 2 kW. From 115-200V it is a 1.5kW unit and below 115V it is 1.2kW.

This is a massive system, so let’s get inside to see what’s inside.