Buzz
During a recent presentation somewhere in China (presumably aimed at domestic distributors/retailers), a leaked photo revealed details about the launch date of Ryzen 7000 as well as the AM5 socket motherboards. According to the leak, the next-generation AMD Ryzen processors will hit the shelves on September 15th. If this holds true, users will welcome the Zen 4 CPUs just over a month before the arrival of the Radeon 7000 Series GPUs, similar to the release pattern of Ryzen 5000 Series (Zen 3) and Radeon 6000 Series (RDNA2) before.The Zen 4 architecture is expected to boost the IPC performance of the Ryzen 7000 Series by approximately 8 - 10% compared to the previous generation. The new CPU design will still utilize chiplet technology, featuring 2 Zen 4 CCDs (Core Complex Dies) manufactured on TSMC's 5 nm process node, combined with a 6 nm I/O die. The flagship variant - Ryzen 9 7950X - will continue to offer 16 cores with 32 processing threads, with higher boost frequencies, potentially reaching up to 5.85 GHz.
Single-threaded application performance on Ryzen 7000 is also expected to see a 15% improvement over the Zen 3 architecture, alongside impressive operational capabilities. At the recent Computex 2022 event, AMD showcased a sample Ryzen 7000 processor running at stock speeds (without overclocking), maintaining speeds around 5.5 GHz across all cores, cooled by a standard 240 mm AIO cooler. If these specifications hold true, Zen 4 is indeed something that users are eagerly anticipating.Integrated within the Ryzen 7000 Series are RDNA2 graphics cores, delivering image signals through HDMI 2.1 FRL (Fixed Rate Link) and DisplayPort 1.4 on the latest AM5 motherboards. Additionally, the processors will feature an expanded instruction set to accelerate AI and multimedia tasks (AVX-512).
Physically, the AMD Ryzen 7000 Series measures 45 x 45 mm, presenting a perfect square shape with the same thickness as current Ryzen models in the market. This allows users to reuse existing coolers without any issues. However, the IHS design appears notably thick and intricately contoured due to the arrangement of ultra-small capacitors atop the chip package. AMD has sealed these gaps to prevent thermal paste spillage during cooler installation. Earlier this month, a test sample of Ryzen 7000 was delidded, revealing AMD's direct die-to-IHS soldering approach for optimal heat conduction.The new CPUs on the AM5 socket platform will feature 6 different TDP levels, with the highest at 170 W, recommended to be cooled by a 280 mm water cooler or larger. Following that is a 120 W option recommended for high-performance air cooling. Additionally, lower TDP levels ranging from 45 W to 105 W can be efficiently cooled using the default processor cooler.
The upcoming motherboards supporting the new platform will feature X670E (Extreme segment), X670 (Enthusiast segment), and B650 (Mainstream segment) chipsets, with AM5 socket compatibility for Ryzen 7000 Series processors using LGA1718. The shift from PGA to LGA packaging renders previous Ryzen CPUs incompatible with the new platform, but it addresses issues such as bent pins or inadvertently pulling out the CPU that AMD users often encounter.The AMD AM5 platform supports the latest features and technologies, including DDR5-5200 memory (JEDEC), up to 24 lanes of PCIe Gen 5, additional NVMe 4.0 lanes, as well as USB 3.2 with rumors of default support for USB 4.0. The new EXPO feature (Extended Profiles for Overclocking) allows for enhanced RAM overclocking capabilities, similar to Intel XMP (eXtreme Memory Profile). Additionally, SmartAccess Storage supports Microsoft DirectStorage and GPU-accelerated decompression to boost data transfer speeds within the system, bypassing bottleneck issues and accelerating game loading.
Motherboards using the X670E chipset will be equipped with the latest and highest-end technologies currently available, including DDR5 and PCIe Gen 5 for both graphics cards and storage. On the other hand, X670 chipset motherboards, slightly lower in hierarchy, will have PCIe Gen 5 support depending on manufacturers' decisions (support for GPU, storage, or both). Users may opt to experience the latest GPU speeds on PCIe Gen 5 but stick with PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSDs instead of investing in PCIe 5.0. In this case, X670 would be a sensible choice. Both X670E and X670 chipsets feature a dual chiplet design, whereas B650 is a single chiplet design. The B650 product line only supports PCIe Gen 5.0 for storage needs, replacing the previous B550 chipset.
