Welp, I got the board and it was DOA. No POST. Sent it back for RMA into a blackhole. No updates and no feedback or way to track the RMA process. They said they may have replacement boards available by today but I have only heard crickets so far. Not super happy with SuperMicro at the moment. Previously they said boards would not be available till October. Unfortunately for my I have a kid due in October so not likely to have time to play around and set this up. Such a bummer.
EDIT: The mystery deepens! The board was returned and inspected by the RMA department under a magnifying glass with no damage now the RMA department is telling me that the boards chipset was damaged. however the epyc is a SoC platform so no chipset exists in the traditional sense of north/southbridge so I still have no idea what was actually wrong with the board and my confidence in SM is rapidly declining.
EDIT2: They sent me a picture that is of a blown component that looks to be in the micro mm range and claim it's physical damage, i shared the pic with my reseller who noted blown components (r59, r60, L6) so it looks like the board is defective and SM is trying to pass the buck. Very very not happy about that. Buyer Beware on these boards! Given there is no other physical damage to the board surrounding the component a defect in voltage regulation seems the most likely case but I am very upset that they are not owning up to it!
final edit: I happened to have phots of the board showing the damaged component was intact before I dropped it off. so now I'm mad, they broke it and tried to blame it on me! I understand accidents happen but the pm who very responsive in terms saying I broke the board and sent photos is no longer available and of course only they can authorize giving me a new board. at this point I will only accept a new board I don't want a board they broke! posted a reddit/r/homelab thread with details and pictures proof. I was willing to chalk this up as a mistake but the fact they went silent after I proved it was their error makes me think they are being dishonest. now it's about the principle!