AMD launches Zen+ 12nm Ryzen and X470 motherboards

[moonbogg]

We already know you're going to declare how awfully bad you want a Ryzen and a crazy all-AMD system for love and irony, pre-order one, see one bad point of one sketchy review, furiously cancel your pre-order then lovingly run back home to your Intel. So, there's no more mystery here.

Just because I totally did that doesn't mean I'd ever do that again. This is like going to Vegas and embarrassing one's self while drunk. Yeah it happened, but It will be different next time, right? Right!?

 

[Topweasel]

Hmm, any negative reason for being an ex-Focus ST owner? That's the car I'm looking at for my next one...assuming the model is still around when my current one dies in, hopefully, 10-15 more years.

Weather related mostly. Manual a little bit more. I had a relatively short drive to work so for the most part driving it wasn't really a chore, I loved driving it. But I was moving farther away and was going to be dealing with some heavy traffic as I had already done this route in the past in a manual. But then last winter I ran into getting plowed in and winter tires wouldn't have saved it, it was too low, and FWD only and that would be fine if I was living as close as I did. I could always call up a co-worker to drive by and grab me. That isn't possible now. I also needed more room to help with the move. It was also a lease so I was going to be turning it in, in august anyways. For a state that typically gets a decent amount of snow, it's not the worst, or even bad car to drive during the winter but it isn't a great car to be the only car for the winter. So I was always going to be a little more practical anyways. But I went super practical, no fun to drive this time. The goal being i'll keep it after I pay it off and I can get a fun car, probably a future gen ST then.

 

[Mockingbird]

Review: AMD Ryzen 7 2700X (X470)
BY IVÁN MARTÍNEZ
04/13/2018
CPUS & APUS


After analyzing just a week ago the new AMD Ryzen 7 2700X on an X370 platform , today we have the possibility to test it on a high-end X470 motherboard , although we can not reveal which one. Therefore, we have done the performance tests again and added the tests on games, solving in a stroke the problem that we found in our previous review.

Let's see first its complete technical specifications :

AMD Ryzen 7 2700X
Socket AM4
Fabrication process 12 nm
Cores / Threads 8 cores / 16 threads
Base Frequency 3.70 GHz
Turbo Frequency 4.35 GHz
Cache L3 2 × 8 MB
Compatible Memory DDR4-2933 Dual-Channel
PCIe lines 16 lines
TDP
Before starting the review, we want to thank AMD for not sending us their products and therefore not forcing us to sign their NDA , so we can offer you before anyone, for the second time, this review.

Index of contents [Ocultar]

• 1 Packaging and Accessories
• 2 AMD Ryzen 7 2700X
• 3 Testing Equipment
• 4 Synthetic Tests
• 5 Games
• 6 Temperature, Overclocking and Consumption
• 7 Conclusion

Packaging and Accessories




The AMD Ryzen 7 2700X comes in a box similar to the previous generation design, showing the processor from the side and protecting it perfectly inside, as well as the heatsink.





In addition to the warranty card and a sticker of Ryzen 7, this model comes with the AMD Wraith Prism , a model that acquires RGB LED lighting configurable from a USB header or from plates compatible with RGB strips , so we can customize your lighting to taste.









AMD Ryzen 7 2700X


As we anticipated, the AMD Ryzen 7 2700X offers 8 cores , which in turn offer 16 threads that start from a base frequency of 3.7 GHz to reach 4.35 GHz in Turbo mode thanks to the XFR 2 automatic overclocking technologies and Precision Boost Overdrive . It offers a total of 2 × 8 MB of L3 cache , as well as 8 x 512 KB of L2 cache and 8 x 32 KB + 8 x 64 KB of L1 cache, so it offers a cache distribution identical to that of the Ryzen 7 1700X .



As we can see in CPU-Z , the set of instructions supported has MMX (+), SSE, SSE2, SSE3, SSSE3, SSE4.1, SSE4.2, SSE4A, x86-64, AMD-V, AES, AVX, AVX2, FMA3 and SHA, also the same as in the first generation of Ryzen .



Obviously it is a processor for the AM4 socket and therefore makes use of the " Pin Grip Array " connection system, where the pins are in the processor and not in the motherboard, highlighting the use of a total of 1,331 contacts.

Test Equipment


To analyze the performance of the AMD Ryzen 7 2700X processor we have assembled the following test equipment:

• ECI X470 motherboard with RGB's
• Memories G.Skill FlareX DDR4 @ 3200 MHz
• MSI GeForce GTX 1070 Gaming Z
• Liquid cooling Corsair H80i GT
• Be Quiet Font! Dark Power Pro 11 1200W
• Adata SU900 256GB SSD
• SSD Corsair LX 512 GB
• Operating System Windows 10 64 bits

For reasons of NDA, we can not show the used motherboard, so for now you will have to settle for what is a high-end model X470 .

 

[Mockingbird]

Synthetic Tests
Next, we show you the results of the performance tests performed on this and other processors in calculation benchmarks (wPrime), rendering (Cinebench), coding (x264), memories (Aida64) or focused on games (3D Mark).










Games
Unlike the problems we had with the X370 platform, this time we were able to check the result in games without any type of contingency.

 

[Mockingbird]

Temperature, Overclocking and Consumption
Under an ambient temperature of 20ºC, the AMD Ryzen 7 2700X offers temperatures of around 40ºC at rest and 65ºC in its stress test, a high value compared to the best results obtained with the reference heatsink under the X370 platform, so that we will have to wait to have Ryzen Master software to check it again, because it is not logical that they have increased with a liquid cooling.

On the consumption , to say that it has improved notably being around 210W for the complete equipment in the stress test of Aida64 (without discs or GPU). It is similar to that offered by the Intel i7 processors, improving the Ryzen 7 1700X by 40W .



As we see in the previous captures, we have managed to reach 4.29 GHz , although they are not stable and we will have to "settle" with 4.19 GHz , which is not bad for all the cores, although using a voltage of 1.456v .

With this, we have managed to go from 1,778 points in Cinebench 15 to 1,893 points , an improvement of 6.5% , and from 16,371 to 16,478 in 3DMark Fire Strike , an improvement of 0.6% .

conclusion


As we already anticipated in the review of the X370 platform, the AMD Ryzen 7 2700X is a good review of the Ryzen 7 1700X with which AMD surprised us last year, improving it in all aspects.

On the one hand, we have higher frequencies , which even increase significantly with the new XFR 2 mode. This supposes an improvement around 10% in the different benchmarks that we have passed in front of its predecessor, something similar to what Intel offers in each new generation (up to the 8th). But it is that according to the results of the tests of OC, this technology exprime practically to the maximum the nuclei , taking them to frequencies very similar to their maxims, everything of transparent and automatic form .

But the big difference with the results obtained on the previous generation is found in games, where the performance offered by this AMD Ryzen 7 2700X is very similar to the alternatives Intel i7 8-wire , but the 12-wire and the future 16 threads surely surpass it.

From today, we can pre-buy the new generation of AMD Ryzen processors in the main stores of the sector, being able to acquire this AMD Ryzen 7 2700X for 325 euros in stores such as PcComponentes or Amazon . Taking into account that we can buy the Intel Core i7-8700K for 315 euros , it is not an easy choice between both, and more if we only give preference to games.

Main advantages
+ Good performance / price ratio for professional environments
+ Excellent multi-core performance (8 cores / 16 threads)
+ Notable performance improvement in games compared to the previous generation
+ Lower consumption than the 1700X with higher frequencies
+ Compatible with previous generation base plates
Negative aspects
- Price somewhat high, difficult choice versus the Intel i7
- Low overclocking capacity, the processor is squeezed a lot
Other Aspects
* Compatible with previous generation base plates, although somewhat green when launched
Therefore, from El Chapuzas Informático we awarded the Gold Award to this processor for its good improvement over the previous generation, although it still has much to prove, especially in games.





Read more: https://elchapuzasinformatico.com/2018/04/review-amd-ryzen-7-2700x-x470/

 

[Mockingbird]

So the motherboard is under NDA, but the processor is not?

That's weird!

 

[moonbogg]

Well thanks for that. Looks pretty good actually, but that voltage is terrible to get 4.2ghz. Jesus. They won't be selling many of these to gamers with the 8700K around. Not a chance in hell.

 

[Excessi0n]

Only if people are purchasing Titan XPp's. If they aren't buying the absolute best Video card, even if they are purchasing a 1080Ti, Every single dollar spent on a CPU to get a faster "gaming" CPU is a dollar not going to the video card and therefore a waste.

Yeah, no. Not everybody plays console ports designed to run on mediocre low-clocked AMD laptop cores from several years ago.

 

[eek2121]

Well thanks for that. Looks pretty good actually, but that voltage is terrible to get 4.2ghz. Jesus. They won't be selling many of these to gamers with the 8700K around. Not a chance in hell.

I would say take any early leaks/reviews with a grain of salt. Until April 19th we won't know what to expect. Even Steve from GamersNexus, who has had chips via a back channel for over a month said that each bios update changed things. These chips have the ability to boost on all cores to 4.3Ghz, and it took my Threadripper a lot of voltage to get to that speed. Even if it were 4.3 @ 1.4, the cooler that comes with the chip can handle it.

 

[Justinbaileyman]

Hey thanks guys/gals for the thoughts and replies on my motherboard situation. I think what I am gonna do for now is just hold off til next week and keep my fingers crossed that they stay in stock and snag the Taichi Ultimate. That is really the motherboard I was wanting in the first place. So really no reason to go and buy something I didn't want. Either that or maybe some other motherboards not on the list will show up.
By the way I ended up preordering the 2700x over the non "X" mainly due to that really neat heatsink.
Hope it cools as good as it looks!!

 

[eek2121]

Meanwhile, waiting on the 2950x...

 

[B-Riz]

Well thanks for that. Looks pretty good actually, but that voltage is terrible to get 4.2ghz. Jesus. They won't be selling many of these to gamers with the 8700K around. Not a chance in hell.

If I was going Intel, I would wait until the Z390 and new procs drop, the 8700K is 7700K with 2 extra cores....

Besides, unless you gots a 1080ti and want max frames, Ryzen still does very well in games.

 

[Topweasel]

Yeah, no. Not everybody plays console ports designed to run on mediocre low-clocked AMD laptop cores from several years ago.

Well accept most do I mean to an almost scary amount. But no that wasn't my point or what I was getting at and the exceptions to what I am getting at would run worse on the best "gaming" cpu. The main point was that graphical fidelity at playable levels is the priority on 90+% of gamers out there. You might need a certain amount of information for a CPU to process related to the game that isn't about frame calls, but generally that's just up to a point that isn't really impacted by choice of CPU that much. Most people getting the best card have one of two goals a card that will last for the length they plan on keeping the system (~4-5 years) or two to plug it into their system and play what ever game at whatever rez their monitor is at, at the highest settings, without any noticeable lag while playing. There is little difference in any current CPU choice today in that demand. When it does change, as it's happening even now, it's not going to be the highest clocked CPU's that are going to be great for that.

 

[Elfear]

NM

 

[moonbogg]

If I was going Intel, I would wait until the Z390 and new procs drop, the 8700K is 7700K with 2 extra cores....

Besides, unless you gots a 1080ti and want max frames, Ryzen still does very well in games.

Yeah it does. Especially the benches from this 2700X looked good in games. That's not the point though. People looking for a gaming CPU won't buy the inferior product, even if its plenty fast. Its a tough market like that.

 

[B-Riz]

Yeah it does. Especially the benches from this 2700X looked good in games. That's not the point though. People looking for a gaming CPU won't buy the inferior product, even if its plenty fast. Its a tough market like that.

Ehhh, I *mostly* play games, but have paid the Intel tax for the past 12+ years. The 4790k will be the last Intel chip for a while. I don't think it is inferior if the 0.1% mins are within a few % of Intel. Outliers aside, Intel wins mostly because of clock, secondly on the low memory latency, and these are not deal breakers for the lower price of Ryzen.

 

[krumme]

Yeah it does. Especially the benches from this 2700X looked good in games. That's not the point though. People looking for a gaming CPU won't buy the inferior product, even if its plenty fast. Its a tough market like that.

Its looking surpricingly good in games. There is evidently some massive latency improvement besides the new turbo mode.

There is situations where the 7700k edge out the 8700k but we would nearly all go for the 8700k. The same reasons will and should apply to the 2700x vs 8700k.
We can't have different standards for evaluating here.

I remain highly sceptical that these scores are representative. But if they are i would personally tilt towards the 2700x even for gaming only. I think there is a pretty good chance this 2700x will edge out the 8700k in the next gen of bf in mp 64 mode for the all important 0.1 and 1% scores.

Anyway its small differences so good to see amd fixed their gaming petformance.
Intel 9700k incomming

 

[CatMerc]

Why on earth would you do that, unless you absolutely need slightly higher ST performance?

In gaming the 2700X would be quite a bit nicer thanks to the lower latency caches and RAM. From profiling a bunch of games I still haven't found a single one that isn't DRAM bound to a high degree. The lower latency RAM would help on that end, and of course lower latency caches help hide RAM latency.

 

[B-Riz]

Full pages are up on boards. Was thinking this one or an AsRock. Whichever is cheaper that has at least ALC1220 sound and Intel LAN.

BIOS updates on the first day, lol.

https://www.gigabyte.com/Motherboard/X470-AORUS-ULTRA-GAMING-rev-10#support-dl

 

[JDG1980]

This bit from Newegg's ASRock Taichi Ultimate X470 description is a concern:

• Supports AMD AM4 Socket Ryzen Series CPUs (Summit Ridge, Raven Ridge and Pinnacle Ridge)

• AMD Ryzen series CPUs (Pinnacle Ridge) support DDR4 3466+(OC)/ 3200(OC)/ 2933/ 2667/ 2400/ 2133*

• AMD Ryzen series CPUs (Summit Ridge) support DDR4 3466+(OC)/ 3200(OC)/ 2933(OC)/ 2667/ 2400/ 2133*

• AMD Ryzen series CPUs (Raven Ridge) support DDR4 3466+(OC)/ 3200(OC)/ 2933(OC)/ 2667/ 2400/ 2133*

• * For Ryzen Series CPUs (Raven Ridge), ECC is only supported with PRO CPUs.

It seems to be saying that ECC will only be supported on Ryzen PRO CPUs, not the standard desktop CPUs. This wasn't the case on the X370 boards released by ASRock; it was confirmed by several different people that ECC worked fine on those boards on standard Ryzens. Was this some kind of new restriction put in place by AMD? And where on earth can I get a Ryzen PRO CPU? I've been searching ever since they were announced and have never found a site selling the PRO CPUs themselves, just useless prebuilt systems.

 

[CatMerc]

AMD entered the market very very very free in terms of what you can do. Now that they're stabilized they can start doing things like segmentation and upselling to a higher degree. Before I get ravaged by fanboys, that doesn't mean they won't be a great value or anything like that, just that it's less of a free for all now. Things like locking ECC to PRO chips is a very sound business decision, and doesn't really hurt enthusiasts to any great degree.

 

[JDG1980]

AMD entered the market very very very free in terms of what you can do. Now that they're stabilized they can start doing things like segmentation and upselling to a higher degree. Before I get ravaged by fanboys, that doesn't mean they won't be a great value or anything like that, just that it's less of a free for all now. Things like locking ECC to PRO chips is a very sound business decision, and doesn't really hurt enthusiasts to any great degree.

I'd be fine with that if I could actually figure out where to buy the damn things! Intel does this segmentation, but at least you can actually find a Xeon on Newegg. If AMD wants to do this segmentation then I need to be able to buy a Ryzen PRO, which don't seem to be anywhere.

 

[ashetos]

It seems to be saying that ECC will only be supported on Ryzen PRO CPUs, not the standard desktop CPUs.

What they're saying the way I read it from their site is that:
1. Pinnacle Ridge supports ECC & non-ECC
2. Summit Ridge supports ECC & non-ECC
3. Raven Ridge supports ECC only for PRO CPUs and non-ECC for the rest

They are saying that the APUs don't support ECC, but the PRO APUs will support ECC when they're out. I don't know the reason but it may very well be a technical one. APUs are more complicated than CPUs.

 

[CatMerc]

I'd be fine with that if I could actually figure out where to buy the damn things! Intel does this segmentation, but at least you can actually find a Xeon on Newegg. If AMD wants to do this segmentation then I need to be able to buy a Ryzen PRO, which don't seem to be anywhere.

Agreed, would be great to see PRO CPU's in retail.

 

[JDG1980]

What they're saying the way I read it from their site is that:
1. Pinnacle Ridge supports ECC & non-ECC
2. Summit Ridge supports ECC & non-ECC
3. Raven Ridge supports ECC only for PRO CPUs and non-ECC for the rest

They are saying that the APUs don't support ECC, but the PRO APUs will support ECC when they're out. I don't know the reason but it may very well be a technical one. APUs are more complicated than CPUs.

That's a possible interpretation, but the asterisk appears on the Pinnacle Ridge and Summit Ridge lines as well. If the ECC disclaimer only applies to Raven Ridge, this is confusing.

I guess we'll have to wait for tests to be run to find out whether or not ECC is supported on ASRock X470 boards with Pinnacle Ridge.