Thursday, October 17th 2019

AMD Ryzen Threadripper 3960X a 24-core Chip the Range Starts With

by
btarunr
 Discuss (34 Comments)
With its 3rd generation Ryzen Threadripper "Castle Peak" HEDT processor family, AMD isn't bothering with 16-core models as the company's mainstream desktop socket AM4 platform already offers those many cores with the upcoming Ryzen 9 3950X. The lineup will begin with the Ryzen Threadripper 3960X, which is the 24-core/48-thread part. The model number "3950X" is already taken up by the 16-core socket AM4 chip. Confirmation of this came from an "Ashes of the Singularity" screenshot that references an "AMD Ryzen Threadripper 3960X 24-core Processor."

AMD's decision to start the lineup at 24 cores is interesting, as it looks to keep up its competitiveness against Intel, which recently launched its 10th generation "Cascade Lake-X" Core i9 HEDT processor series, with all parts priced under $1000, including the range-topping 18-core/36-thread one. It remains to be seen if the Threadripper 3960X can beat it while holding onto a sub-$1,000 price. The previous-generation 24-core 2970WX beat the i9-9980XE in some rendering and simulation tests that scaled with cores and which weren't too heavy on memory bandwidth. With its 3rd generation Threadripper series, AMD is eliminating a key memory bottleneck, giving each core on the chip an equal access to the processor's monolithic quad-channel memory interface.
The 3rd generation Ryzen Threadripper processor is expected to launch alongside the new AMD TRX40 chipset this November. Many reports suggest that the platform will herald a new socket based on the "SP3r3" specification. Older Threadrippers won't work on TRX40 motherboards, and 3rd gen chips won't work on older X399 boards. The TRX40 chipset will extensively implement PCI-Express gen 4.0, offering more x16 slots, M.2 slots, and x1 slots running at gen 4.0 speeds.
Source: TUM_APISAK (Twitter)

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34 Comments on AMD Ryzen Threadripper 3960X a 24-core Chip the Range Starts With

#26
Vayra86
ZoneDymoThe naming scheme is.... well stupid tbh.
3700x 8 core
3800x 8 core but "more overclockable"
3900x 12 cores
39...50?x 16 cores...

should have been 3700x - 3750x - 3800x - 3900x

anywho, screwed themselves? who says they are planning to launch a 12 or 16 core cpu for the new TR platform?
AMD and marketing man. You should know by now. They always find some way to make it worse or ineffective. So far I think Zen's marketing is quite fine, but yes. This makes zero sense. As if they didn't know beforehand what the product stack was gonna look like, and then looked at yields and started thinking.

But then again, Intel has a knack for it too. Its probably, actually far worse if you consider the numbers they use. I mean sure, the i prefix and (KFSYU) suffixes kinda work but the rest? And they top it off by half skipping gens left and right. I mean, 8/9/10th gen... wtf happened. Broadwell... wtf happened.
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#27
Tomgang
So now the question is, what shall replace my old I7 980X/X58?

Do I go for Ryzen 9 3950X/X570, Threadripper 3960X/TX40 or core I9 10980XE/X299. Cause I will be upgrading this November/December and will not wait for lower core count threadripper.

It's just 24 cores or more are overkill for my needs, but the ekstra lanes and quad-channel memory threadripper offers would be nice to have and offers PCIe gen 4. But at a higher price tag for motherboard and cpu.

Ryzen has the cores i need with 16 cores, but only dual channel memory and less lanes. But the cheapest solution.

Intel's offer is only pcie gen 3 and 14 nm, so honestly that doesn't draw me in so much as it is now.

Choises Choises so many choiceso_O. I personally mostly vote for ryzen 9 3950X for my next setup, but It would also be nice to have those ekstra lanes and memory channels. Choices Choises:banghead:
Posted on Reply
#28
KarymidoN
TomgangSo now the question is, what shall replace my old I7 980X/X58?

Do I go for Ryzen 9 3950X/X570, Threadripper 3960X/TX40 or core I9 10980XE/X299. Cause I will be upgrading this November/December and will not wait for lower core count threadripper.

It's just 24 cores or more are overkill for my needs, but the ekstra lanes and quad-channel memory threadripper offers would be nice to have and offers PCIe gen 4. But at a higher price tag for motherboard and cpu.

Ryzen has the cores i need with 16 cores, but only dual channel memory and less lanes. But the cheapest solution.

Intel's offer is only pcie gen 3 and 14 nm, so honestly that doesn't draw me in so much as it is now.

Choises Choises so many choiceso_O. I personally mostly vote for ryzen 9 3950X for my next setup, but It would also be nice to have those ekstra lanes and memory channels. Choices Choises:banghead:
assuming the strugles of intel continue you better off get an AMD TR4, entry level, good motherboard, even the new intel 10XXX series will still be 14nm ++++++ so old tecnology, fewer lanes, etc.
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#29
mashie
So what is the maximum amount of RAM we can expect the 3rd gen Threadrippers to support, 256GB non-ECC?
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#30
phill
TomgangSo now the question is, what shall replace my old I7 980X/X58?

Do I go for Ryzen 9 3950X/X570, Threadripper 3960X/TX40 or core I9 10980XE/X299. Cause I will be upgrading this November/December and will not wait for lower core count threadripper.

It's just 24 cores or more are overkill for my needs, but the ekstra lanes and quad-channel memory threadripper offers would be nice to have and offers PCIe gen 4. But at a higher price tag for motherboard and cpu.

Ryzen has the cores i need with 16 cores, but only dual channel memory and less lanes. But the cheapest solution.

Intel's offer is only pcie gen 3 and 14 nm, so honestly that doesn't draw me in so much as it is now.

Choises Choises so many choiceso_O. I personally mostly vote for ryzen 9 3950X for my next setup, but It would also be nice to have those ekstra lanes and memory channels. Choices Choises:banghead:
My thoughts would be, how much do you want to spend and just go from there :)

Personally I can't wait for the reviews and just to see how good AMD's are compared to the Intel's 'latest'... I think I'm just set on AMD hardware if I'm honest, they have showed so much promise and such a performance increase, I think it would be daft to ignore them... Oh and the price.... :)
Posted on Reply
#31
Tsukiyomi91
if this processor can compete with a price tag going slightly over a grand, Intel's 10th Gen HEDT is gonna get threatened.
Posted on Reply
#32
Kapone33
Ripper3X399 and Threadripper 2 processors might be the replacement for some people's i7 9x0 builds, which have lasted an extremely long time, while still being quick enough for their needs. Personally, I'm going to invest in an X399 build, if I can gather the money, and keep it for as long as possible. My Phenom II X6 has lasted this long, and only now needs replacing, so hoping for similar from a TR2.
If you are going from Phenom to TR4 be prepared to be gobsmacked. Even the 1900X would blow the Phenom chips away. I currently have a 1920X but am waiting for the 2920X to drop in price.
notbI'm starting to wonder if there exist any scenario or situation when you'd stop defending AMD. :D

Ryzen 3000 work on first-gen AM4 motherboards, so there's no reason why TR 3000 wouldn't work on first-gen TR4 motherboards.
AMD is doing the exact same thing that Intel's being so criticized all the time for on this forum.

Seriously, some people here should just practice self-respect. :eek:
There is a reason PCI_E 4.0. Unlike Ryzen that really only has the top M2 slot and the first X16 slot wired to the CPU so that is 20. Of the 64 lanes on TR4 60 are tied to the CPU.
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#33
Ripper3
candle_86There likey isnt much difference except in a very narrow range of software. Your average user wouldn't feel a difference between an 8 core a 64core cpu
True, though the definition of an average user that builds their own HEDT is probably someone that knows what they're looking at, so feeling like the numbers are squished together just won't matter, they'll look at the specs first, before bothering to check the name. My comment was just a personal thing, and you're right, most software is still better suited to lower core counts at higher speeds, thus there's little difference to be felt for most people.
kapone32If you are going from Phenom to TR4 be prepared to be gobsmacked. Even the 1900X would blow the Phenom chips away. I currently have a 1920X but am waiting for the 2920X to drop in price.
In the office, I'm supplied an SFF workstation with i7 and a Quadro card. First workstation had an i7 860, and that was already pretty speedy, but bogged down with lack of RAM and HDDs (granted, Velociraptors, but still not as fast as many SSDs). Current is an i7 6700 with 32GB RAM and a decent enough SSD. About to switch to an i7 8700 with 32GB RAM and 512GB NVMe SSD. Yet my little Phenom still feels fast enough for what I do at home, especially since ditching Windows for day-to-day stuff.
Saying that, I can't wait to fire up a TR2 system.
Posted on Reply
#34
Kapone33
Ripper3True, though the definition of an average user that builds their own HEDT is probably someone that knows what they're looking at, so feeling like the numbers are squished together just won't matter, they'll look at the specs first, before bothering to check the name. My comment was just a personal thing, and you're right, most software is still better suited to lower core counts at higher speeds, thus there's little difference to be felt for most people.


In the office, I'm supplied an SFF workstation with i7 and a Quadro card. First workstation had an i7 860, and that was already pretty speedy, but bogged down with lack of RAM and HDDs (granted, Velociraptors, but still not as fast as many SSDs). Current is an i7 6700 with 32GB RAM and a decent enough SSD. About to switch to an i7 8700 with 32GB RAM and 512GB NVMe SSD. Yet my little Phenom still feels fast enough for what I do at home, especially since ditching Windows for day-to-day stuff.
Saying that, I can't wait to fire up a TR2 system.
If you are on Linux at home you will be even more stoked. If cost is a factor the As Rock X399 Phantom Gaming 6 has an MSRP of $249.99 (US) and you can currently get a 1900X for around $300. TR2 will be even better, I am willing to bet that the 2920X will be under $400 (US) when the 3950X launches and the 2950X should be $500--600.
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