"Of course, finding a use for that many lanes might be challenging, but it's certainly nice to have them available."
Heh,no challenge at all: solo pro setups, multi GPU rendering, extra NVMe SSDs for workflow, digvid cards, etc.
"... but we shied away from that because we want to test this processor in the future. "
IMO this perfectly reflects how users will regard these expensive chips, ie. too costly to risk pushing that much at all. At least for those who want to use them for productive work.
"... Be sure to bring a custom loop if you plan to overclock."
Aka significant hidden extra cost. GN did a great video on this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gwqYh6c3Xco
Btw, for CPUs of this class, why the focus so much on gaming? IMO such reviews should present productivity, rendering, transcoding and scientific bench data first.
Ian.