MEDITATING ON ZEN 5
Discover what the new AMD architecture can do for you and your Linux kernel with Chris Szewczyk.
The AMD Zen 5 CPU architecture will form the backbone of the next generation of Ryzen desktop and laptop processors, and T while we got a general idea of the new tech during Computex earlier in 2024, we’ve now been treated to the full architecture monty.
Before diving into the finer details, it’s worth revisiting the information revealed back at the start of June. At Computex 2024, AMD announced the Zen 5-based Ryzen 9000-series desktop CPUs and Ryzen AI 300 mobile APUs were set to launch during the month of July. As was expected, Dr Lisa Su’s Computex keynote was full of general details for a general audience, with little meat on the bone regarding the architecture itself.
The Ryzen 9000-series is code-named Granite Ridge. And, apart from the architectural improvements, the new models are physically similar to their Zen 4 (AM4) Ryzen 7000-series predecessors.
The CCDs, or Core Complex Dies, are still made up of eight cores, with a shared 32MB of L3 cache. The Ryzen 9 9950X and 9900X come with two CCDs, while the Ryzen 7 9700X and Ryzen 5 9600X only need one. All chips include a separate I/O die, which is the same as that used with Zen 4.
Granite Ridge includes an RDNA2 integrated GPU with two compute units. The CCDs are manufactured with TSMC’s N4 process, while the I/O die is fabbed on TSMCs N6 process.
Strix Point mobile APUs come with monolithic dies, and it’s a large one at that. They’re being branded as the Ryzen AI 300 series. You just know that AI had to be placed in that name, didn’t you? Two models have been announced so far. They are the Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 and Ryzen AI 9 365. These feature 12 cores/24 threads and 10 cores/20 threads respectively. Both chips’ CPU cores are based on the Zen 5 architecture. Both include an XDNA 2 NPU capable of up to 50 TOPS, and RDNA 3.5 integrated graphics.
The Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 features Radeon 890M graphics with 16 CUs, while the Ryzen AI 9 365 features Radeon 880M graphics with 12 CUs. AMD demonstrated laptops with 890M graphics running the very demanding Cyberpunk 2077 at 1080p at above 55fps, albeit with FSR and AFMF activated.