Does binning imply you will find a golden sample ? nope Your chances are bigger, but that's where it ends...
If you had the access to 200 CPUs ? Wouldn't you do it ? Does that mean you automatically have to be in pro league ? Maybe you just OC CPU on air/water ( SB case )
It will always be unfair Marc. I have access to maybe 250 CPUs, but hardly bench LN2, hardly/never ever any GPUs on LN2...
Am I forced to be in pro league ? I have no issue with it, but I'll be dead last. Maybe it's my destiny to close the ranks lol...
Does anyone, like Kenny stated, being able to buy a 4000 dollar cherry CPU need to be forced to pro league ?
If you receive manufacturer support, bench with latest ES CPU's then it's straight Pro. I receive ES for reviews, but give them CPU's to PJ so he can bench on them as I have no time. Usually they go back to Intel after a few weeks... So in fact all reviewers here at HWBOT should be in Pro league too...
It's a thin line, I don't see shop support (not talking about freebies) in the same way as getting free bench hardware from the manufacturer directly ( with maybe not real retail parts )