Sunday, November 10th 2024
AMD "Zen 6" to Retain Socket AM5 for Desktops, 2026-27 Product Launches
The desktop version of AMD's next-generation "Zen 6" microarchitecture will retain Socket AM5, Kepler_L2, a reliable source with hardware leaks, revealed. What's more interesting is the rumor that the current "Zen 5" will remain AMD's mainstay for the entirety of 2025, and possibly even most of 2026, at least for the desktop platform. AMD will be banking heavily on the recently announced Ryzen 7 9800X3D, and its high core-count siblings, the Ryzen 9 9950X3D and possible 9900X3D, to see the company through for 2025 against Intel. The 9800X3D posted significantly higher gaming performance than Intel, and the 9950X3D is expected to be at least faster than the 7950X3D at gaming, which means its gaming performance, coupled with multithreaded application performance from its 16-core/32-thread count should be the face of AMD's desktop processor lineup for at least the next year.
It wouldn't be off-character for AMD to launch "Zen 6" on AM5, and not refresh the platform. The company had launched three microarchitectures (Zen thru Zen 3) on Socket AM4. With "Zen 6," AMD has the opportunity to not just increase IPC, but also core-counts per CCD, cache sizes, a new foundry node such as 3 nm, and probably even introduce features such as hybrid architecture and an NPU to the desktop platform, which means it could at least update the current 6 nm client I/O die (cIOD) while retaining AM5. A new cIOD could give AMD the much-needed opportunity to update the DDR5 memory controllers to support higher memory frequencies. The Kepler_L2 leak predicts a "late-2026 or early-2027" launch for desktop "Zen 6" processors. In the meantime, Intel is expected to ramp "Arrow Lake-S" on Socket LGA1851, and debut the "Panther Lake" microarchitecture on LGA1851 in 2025-26.
Source:
VideoCardz
It wouldn't be off-character for AMD to launch "Zen 6" on AM5, and not refresh the platform. The company had launched three microarchitectures (Zen thru Zen 3) on Socket AM4. With "Zen 6," AMD has the opportunity to not just increase IPC, but also core-counts per CCD, cache sizes, a new foundry node such as 3 nm, and probably even introduce features such as hybrid architecture and an NPU to the desktop platform, which means it could at least update the current 6 nm client I/O die (cIOD) while retaining AM5. A new cIOD could give AMD the much-needed opportunity to update the DDR5 memory controllers to support higher memory frequencies. The Kepler_L2 leak predicts a "late-2026 or early-2027" launch for desktop "Zen 6" processors. In the meantime, Intel is expected to ramp "Arrow Lake-S" on Socket LGA1851, and debut the "Panther Lake" microarchitecture on LGA1851 in 2025-26.
100 Comments on AMD "Zen 6" to Retain Socket AM5 for Desktops, 2026-27 Product Launches
www.techpowerup.com/review/amd-ryzen-5-8500g
I'd presume AM5 gonna remain the most advanced socket for AMD until 2027 (Since Zen4 was launched sometime back in 2022, and 5year promise from AMD seems very likely)
I consider the 9800X3D already a 2025 processor. At the point many customers will be able to buy it around the end of year 2024. Money at the end of the year should be well spend for a computer and not for something else.
I do expect a 16 core X3d 9000 Series processor.
Hopefully the next chipset releases aren't degraded to PCIe 2.0 or something.
I will monitor 9800X3D price and only grab one if it gets cheap enough. I don't really need the performance, but now I still can sell my 7800X3D for a decent amount of money, which will be less when there is a 11800X3D.
Despite 7800X3D and 9800X3D being much faster in games, you would get much more bang for the bucks with just upgrading the CPU instead of changing the mainboard, too.
There are so many small mainboards without any or fewer expansion slots.
USB 4 will also move away certain expansion cards from the mainboard. (consider that also with thunderbolt)
People can still buy X670 / E mainboards with more PCIE lanes and less USB 4
AMD could think about gluing three Input/Output chips on the mainboard instead of two in the form of e.g. X670. The drawback is the interconnection bandwidth between the chips but you could basically have more expansion cards.
- make a proper IOD, add native support for CUDIMMS and higher clocks, decrease DDR5 latencies, significantly improve memory controller bandwidth;
- upgrade CPU <> chipset interconnection to PCIe Gen 5 x4;
- make USB 4.0 support chipset-bound, don't hang it onto CPU lanes and stop crippling CPU-bound PCIe lanes;
- add at least 2 more cores per CCD while retaining similar CCD TDP to 8 cores per CCD;
- bring back PCIe ports, since they are versatile, specify for motherboard makers to have more than just two expansion slots (1x PCIe 5.0 x16 + 2x PCIe 4.0 x4 + 1x PCIe 4.0 x 4 is ideal);
- lower native SATA ports, 2 are enough, I'd even prefer motherboards with no SATA support at all (PCIe ports can be converted into SATA ports with adaptor).
EDIT:
- make sure the mainstream mobos for Zen 6 are cheaper!
Other points you've listed would be welcome but aren't really related to socket change. AMD could make each of them better or worse with either AM5 or AM6.
Also, bifurcation on CPU-bound lanes. I was expecting to see more flexibility in Zen 5 ... then they announced that the IOD would be reused. Two-lane PCIe slots and M.2 sockets would be usable for many purposes if running at Gen 5 speeds, or even at Gen 4 speeds.
AM6 will be what AM5 was hyped to be.