AMD to launch 40/45nm GPUs in early 2009, RV870 is one of them

[Sylvanas]

Source

AMD has one or two plans for next year, not that we would call them surprises, but they do have some shock value. AMD is first of all going to shrink things with the RV740 core. If you hadn't already figured it out, 40 means 40nm. This GPU is slated for Q1 2009. Somewhere around there, AMD will be giving the the final touches to its next "high-end" GPU RV870, using the same node. So far, the only thing we know about it is based on a lose rumor that says it will have 2000 shader processors. Considering the mere size of ATI's shaders, it's not unfeasible, but it's still too early too say anything really.

Full steam ahead.

 

[Cookie Monster]

A chip at 55nm node with 2000 ALUs? that would result in a monolithic chip that would be really power hungry. Id say the next RV870 will probably be on 40nm seeing as there is no 45nm in TSMC.

 

[Sylvanas]

Originally posted by: Cookie Monster
A chip at 55nm node with 2000 ALUs? that would result in a monolithic chip that would be really power hungry. Id say the next RV870 will probably be on 40nm seeing as there is no 45nm in TSMC.

The article noted that the 'High end' RV870 will be on the same node as the 40nm RV740- so thats a 2000SP 40nm chip.

 

[Cookie Monster]

Ah my bad. Now that makes much more sense.

 

[BFG10K]

2000 shaders on a 40 nm chip will be awesome. That should at least double the performance of a 4870 and we only have to wait until Q1 2009 to get it. :thumbsup:

 

[taltamir]

that was quick...

 

[OmegaShadow]

will be waiting for nvidia's "can of whoopass" response to this.

i'm not a fan of either amd or nvidia, but i like seeing competition.

 

[Kuzi]

If they can release RV870 this fast at 40nm, then it's probably the same architecture used in current RV770 GPUs, which is already very good anyway. So I'm not complaining

But the 2000 SPs number seems too high, you know that would mean the chip would have around +2 billion transistors.

 

[BFG10K]

It seems the 2000 SPs actually refers to the X2 variant.

 

[schneiderguy]

Originally posted by: Kuzi

But the 2000 SPs number seems too high, you know that would mean the chip would have around +2 billion transistors.

Not necessarily, remember that ATI added 24 TMU and 480 SP going from r600>rv770 and only added a couple hundred million transistors, so this chip would probably be in the neighborhood of 1.5billion transistors.

 

[Kuzi]

Originally posted by: BFG10K
It seems the 2000 SPs actually refers to the X2 variant.

Ah if that is the case, it would still be very good. Lets say the RV870 would have 1000 SPs, meaning a 25% increase, plus an increase in TMUs, ROPs and GDDR5 speed. At 40nm such a chip would be very small, with higher clocks than 750Mhz (maybe 1GHz). So a single RV870 can be smaller, cooler, cheaper, and about 30-50% faster than the RV770.

IMO, this is the better way to go, than say an expensive, hot, low frequency, and low yield 2000 SP monster.

 

[bunnyfubbles]

Think things might still be a bit muddled up...R800 is supposed to be the codename for the dual GPU version much like R700 is to RV770...so unless they changed it to R870 with the single being RV870 (or perhaps something else)...

Heck, they more than doubled the SPs and then some without moving from the 55nm process, with moving to a 40nm process I really wouldn't be surprised if the new GPU has 2000 SPs each...

 

[mauri]

Sounds good for ATI. I just wish I would have heard this before I got my 4870 a week ago, I might have tried to hold on with my 3870 for another 6 months if these news are true. Altough the games I play run much smoother now with 4870, but I still can't stop feeling little buyers remorse now after this news. But then again new stuff is always around the corner.

 

[Bateluer]

Sounds great for their graphics department, now they just need to kick their CPU engineers in the tail.

 

[Genx87]

Originally posted by: BFG10K
It seems the 2000 SPs actually refers to the X2 variant.

Well that makes more sense. I had to scratch my head when I read 2000SP when the 4870 is only 800. The performance would be very good for a single GPU. But it would be expensive as hell to manufacture. AMD in the position they are in are better off being light on their feet with manufacturing costs.

 

[Ares202]

The die size on the RV770 is no larger than that of the G92 despite having nearly 1/3 more transistors which is interesting

What will happen to ATI if AMD goes bankrupt? Because i cant see them lasting beyond 2010-2011 if things dont get better

 

[tuteja1986]

Can AMD even surive the storm till 2009 :! if they don't plug the money leaking hole... that gpu may never come out.

Well they always say go out on a high note : )

Originally posted by: Ares202
The die size on the RV770 is no larger than that of the G92 despite having nearly 1/3 more transistors which is interesting

What will happen to ATI if AMD goes bankrupt? Because i cant see them lasting beyond 2010-2011 if things dont get better

I don't seem em lasting even till 2009 , all financial analyst are predicting either buyout or a bankruptcy by Q4 2008. IBM and Samsung are the major looker. They know AMD worth more than its current price so its looks like a sweet deal to IBM especially.

 

[tuteja1986]

doube post

 

[hooflung]

Originally posted by: Ares202
The die size on the RV770 is no larger than that of the G92 despite having nearly 1/3 more transistors which is interesting

What will happen to ATI if AMD goes bankrupt? Because i cant see them lasting beyond 2010-2011 if things dont get better

AMD engineers aren't sitting around a desk eating bologna sammiches while you doom and gloom. Obviously they are fixing the problems with K10 to make it more profitable as well as adapting it to the 45nm process. Nehelem is still a year away from consumers and has what 3 different socket plans. Adopting early will be ludicrous. Phenom's at 3.0ghz OC'ed are nice performers. They just need that stock and they will be doing ok.

 

[Luminair]

> They know AMD worth more than its current price so its looks like a sweet deal to IBM especially.

IBM needs AMD like God needs a starship.

 

[Viditor]

Originally posted by: tuteja1986

I don't seem em lasting even till 2009 , all financial analyst are predicting either buyout or a bankruptcy by Q4 2008. IBM and Samsung are the major looker. They know AMD worth more than its current price so its looks like a sweet deal to IBM especially.

Not a single analyst is predicting that...and they would be laughed at if they did.

 

[Rhino2]

Originally posted by: Cookie Monster
A chip at 55nm node with 2000 ALUs? that would result in a monolithic chip that would be really power hungry. Id say the next RV870 will probably be on 40nm seeing as there is no 45nm in TSMC.

At the TSMC Website:

300mm Wafer

TSMC currently operates two 300-mm GigaFabs (Fabs 12 and Fab 14). The combined capacity of the two GigaFabs reached 271,000 wafers by the end of 2006. Production within these two facilities supports 0.13-micron, 90nm, 65nm and 45nm process technologies. Part of the capacity is reserved for research and development work and currently supports 32nm and beyond technology development.

 

[SlowSpyder]

I don't see why people think that 2000SP's wouldn't be possible on a single GPU. The RV670 had 320, it was more then doubled to 800 (2.5x actually) for the RV770 all on the same manufacturing process. With a process shrink to 40nm, I don't see why they wouldn't be able to make the exact same 2.5x stream processor improvment (2.5x 800 = 2000) as they did with the examples above.

 

[Acanthus]

Intel is up to 10 stream processors, fear it.

Sounds like all good news on the graphics front, i wonder if Nv is doing something alone the same line with their 40nm shrink. (both companies have access to the same process technology as they both get their stuff fabbed by TSMC.

 

[taltamir]

Originally posted by: Viditor

Originally posted by: tuteja1986

I don't seem em lasting even till 2009 , all financial analyst are predicting either buyout or a bankruptcy by Q4 2008. IBM and Samsung are the major looker. They know AMD worth more than its current price so its looks like a sweet deal to IBM especially.

Not a single analyst is predicting that...and they would be laughed at if they did.

yea, considering how IBM ran away from producing chips, why would they return?