AMD's Ryzen CPUs (Ryzen/TR/Epyc) & Vega/Polaris/Navi GPUs

Dell goes on Epyc server journey with AMD
Rackmount server competition for PowerEdge 14G Xeon SP rackers
By Chris Mellor 6 Feb 2018 at 15:49
https://www.theregister.co.uk/2018/02/06/dell_goes_on_epyc_server_journey_with_amd/

"Dell is producing one- and two-socket rackmount servers using AMD Epyc processors alongside its Xeon SP server family.

The Epyc processor is said to be faster than equivalent Xeons.

There are three PowerEdge AMD-powered servers: the R6415, R7415, and R7425. These accompany the PowerEdge 14G R640 and R740 Xeon SP servers in the Round Rock company's server portfolio, and they inherit general PowerEdge management and feature goodness.

As context, the Xeon-powered R640 is a 1U, two-socket system while the R740 is a 2U, two-socket one.

R6415
The R6415 (tech specs PDF here) is pitched as an edge computing server and is a 1U system supporting one AMD Naples socket SP3 compatible processor with up to 32 cores. It has 8 x 2.5-inch SAS or SATA drives, or 4 x 3.5-inch ones, or 10 x 2.5-inch NVMe (SSD) drives. These latter drives are not hot-swappable, as is true with the R7415 and R7425 servers.

According to the reference guide, it can have up to 1TB of DRAM with a single processor. A slide we have seen says it can have 2TB:

We have asked Dell which number is the correct one.

R7415
The R7415 (tech specs PDF here) is a mid-range single-socket server. It's a 2U system supporting one AMD Naples socket SP3 compatible processor. The box can hold 8 x 3.5-inch, 12 x 3.5-inch, 12 x 3.5-inch + 2 x 3.5-inch (rear), or 24 x 2.5-inch SAS, SATA, or NVMe drives (up to 12 SAS/SATA/NVMe + 12 NVMe drives.)

Memory tops out at 1TB again (as per tech specs) or 2TB (slide deck), and Dell has been asked for clarification.


Dell R7425 schematic. Click to enlarge.

R7425
This system is pitched at high-performance computing workloads. It's a 2U, 2-socket R7425 (ref PDF guide here) can have a pair of Epyc CPUs, up to 32 x SAS, SATA, or nearline SAS hard drives or SSDs, and up to 24 NVMe flash drives. This is the big box of the three, with a maximum of 4TB of memory.

Performance
Dell quotes AMD numbers comparing Epyc to Xeon Skylake systems at equivalent cost points:

The numbers show Epyc processor systems delivering better price-performance than Skylake ones.

HPE on Epyc trail too
Dell competitor HPE produced a Gen 10 DL385 server using 1 or 2 Epyc CPUs in November last year. That meant 32 or 64 cores and a maximum 4TB of memory.

At the time HPE said an Epyc dual-CPU 7601-based DL385 system scored 257 on SPECrate2017_fp_base (throughput) and 1980 on the SPECfp_rate2006, both higher than any other two-socket system score then published by SPEC.

A Xeon DL380 with dual Xeon Gold 6152 22-core CPUs scored 197 on the SPECrate2017_fp_base in comparison.

Presumably the Dell Epycs will do likewise compared to the equivalent Xeon ones.

Prices: The R6415 starts at $2,179.00, the R7415 at at $2,349.00, and the R7425 at at $3,819.00. Systems are available and shipping worldwide."

 

I was reading through to catch up but had to address this directly. The leaked bench shows 15% while only having 200MHz increase. That means the extra performance came from other changes. Period. Stop being so ignorant when you have been corrected already!

 

I was going off the technical spec sheets provided for the manuf. process.
And I also mentioned that the 'leaks' we got are just that... leaks that could be engineering samples running on smaller bump ups.
Did AMD confirm only 200 MhZ increase for the final product?
Did AMD also say anything about an IPC increase for refreshes or other changes? Other changes like what specifically? Better implementation of Infinity Fabric, bigger caches, what?
What kind of changes did AMD actually put into the refresh?
And is that SiSandra benchmark even the real deal?

I'm being ignorant for asking questions because the information doesn't exactly mesh well?
We got 1 leak... nothing that's been substantiated by AMD thus far (correct me if I'm wrong though), and which could be an indication of an engineering sample (or it might not).

 

I detailed it damn near a month ago. They did tweaks to lower memory latency, which can indirectly boost IPC, but I don't consider that an IPC boost, per se. They also worked on memory speed and capacity, but don't know the effect. I said on January 19th "AMD said they made changes to SenseMI, to the IMC and memory latency, die shrink, power efficiency, and clockspeed and overclocking. We have seen 15% on early silicon, which 6% is only attributed to the speed bump, with the other 9% to all other changes to the CPU, which would include IPC." This was responding to your post responding to my showing the sisoft performance. So, unless we are discussing another leak I do not know about, the statement stands and you need to listen when others speak.

So, just looking at raw data, that 200MHz gave 15% and more is due to tweaks than the speed boost, which part is the throttle mechanism changes to hit higher for longer if using less than full MHz on all cores, some is the memory tweaks which are indirect IPC improvements, and the die shrink, clock speed, and OC is process changes. Power efficiency comes from both process used/die shrink and from the senseMI changes.

So we do not need to know whether engineering sample or not, because if it is an ES, then the ffinal will likely be better. Also, 200 seems right for an "official" clock change, especially without being an X series. Look at Intel, on their CPUs for official clocks, they have small increases like that on official speeds also. It means nothing on OC, like I told you two and a half weeks ago. As to IPC, you said there were likely none. It is too early to say, but if no changes occurred, you couldn't get 15% increase over the prior gen on a 200MHz boost in speed which is only a 6% increase in speed. It is mathematically impossible.

Now, whether the bench is real is up for debate. We'll find out. But don't wait 2.5 weeks then try saying the same stuff that was already addressed. Makes you look like a troll (not saying you are, saying it is unbecoming behavior).

 

I might have missed your reply before... or simply forgotten about it.
6% clock bump aside, could AMD have realistically done enough changes to Ryzen refresh to get extra 9% without touching the clocks beyond a minor bump?
Though they mentioned that Ryzen 1 was their 'worst case scenario'.
And, you do realize you are basing those numbers on a sandra bechmark that may or may not be real in the first place and makes it as speculative as anything else (given that we received 0 formal confirmation from AMD).

Do we have any official information from AMD itself on Ryzen+ new stock and boost clocks though?

 

Now this is the conversation I can engage in! So, memory latency on Ryzen versus the mainstream chips still using ring bus was easily 2.5x what Intel's was if you had to jump CCX. Compared to the mesh on Skylake-X, the latency was negligible, literally like 25%. So, to fix the ram latency, we could see a good boost (based on 3200MHz ram). Now, that could account for a couple percent (look at the speed boost going from 2400 to 3200 on the platform, which was not just ram speed, but also faster IF and lowering latency by 25 percent).

So, that is part of the answer, but not all of it, unless they really did a number on lowering that latency. Now, it is on a new process, which requires some tweaks. Those tweaks could account for another couple percent, unless they really tried to improve the IPC. So, assuming they didn't, we would only get incidental boosts in IPC, which is possible. Added with the latency, that could account to a 5-7% boost without it being unreasonable. How they got 9%, I don't know.

But, remember, this could be a higher boost only at certain workloads, so the 15% only applying to the type of workloads shown in this sisoft leak, which isn't showing even the full plethora of benches available on sisoft. So, it could be a high watermark, so to speak. Or someone could have found a way to spoof it. Or any number of things.

Either way, there isn't enough here to fully speculate, yet.

I haven't seen official anything yet, but we are two months from launch now. So they are finalizing some things and MBs should be getting finalized soon or in the process.

Sent from my SM-G900P using Tapatalk

 

You have to remember that they are basing on stock speeds. This means that improvements to the turbo boost could be the major part of the difference. If this is the case then the turbo boost will mean little to nothing for those overclocking. Also if this is the case then just a 200 MHz boost to base will not be enough for me.

On the other note for those that do not overclock the overall boost to bring the CPU's closer to performance of stock Intel offerings is very welcome.

 

If it's 200mhz for base and boost for instance, my 1700x/2700x would be 3.6ghz, and 4ghz. I would want a bit more than 200mhz on the overclock to be interested. More like 500 to 600 over the boost clock for me to get excited. If the 2700x or 2800x can hit 4.5ish than I will throw down for one.

Sent from my SM-G935T using Tapatalk

 

AMD Ryzen 3 2200G - Ryzen 5 2400G APU Preview


AMD Ryzen 3 2200G and Ryzen 5 2400G APU Preview (3 pages)
Stock Cooler and Xbox One Comparison
Published: 8th February 2018 | Source: AMD | Price: | Author: Mark Campbell
https://overclock3d.net/reviews/cpu_mainboard/amd_ryzen_3_2200g_and_ryzen_5_2400g_apu_preview/1

"AMD's Ryzen 3 2200G and Ryzen 5 2400G fills me with a lot of excitement, as while they are part of the "low-end" of AMD's Ryzen CPU lineup they offer a compelling option for basic gaming and deliver a boatload of interesting design changes.

What excites me most is the 2400G, as its CPU and GPU component both offer what we would describe as specification advantages over the Xbox One S, making the chip look like a great option for budget gaming given its literal console-grade specifications.

The products boost in clock speeds, and use of Precision Boost 2 also showcases a clear advantage over AMD's older Zen processors, giving us a glimpse of exactly what to expect from AMD's upcoming Zen+ series of processors. AMD's boost in supported memory clock speeds is an incredibly encouraging thing to see, especially if the company plans to expand on this further with Zen+, which will be based on a newer 12nm production process from Globalfoundries.

Sadly, we cannot get into more in-depth detail regarding the performance of this product, as that will have to wait for the official release of these CPUs on February 12th."

Spoiler: Comments

Giggyolly
I thought these APUs were too good to be true TBH, but I can see there are now some drawbacks with the new quad core design.
That being said, they seem minimal, and look to offer some really great low-end value parts.
I occasionally do office PCs for friends and family, and these could replace the i3s I'd usually opt for!

AlienALX
Expectation. People have very high ones, then you find yourself let down all of the time. The trick is to have none, and see the product for what it is. IE - a cheap, dirty little APU that can actually game. Meaning you can have a tiny rig that doesn't bust your bank account and run games on low settings.

This idea was enormously popular with the original AMD APUs. Even though the on die GPU was crap (6670 or something) it enabled people to just stick one in and game without the added expense of a GPU.

And yes, the GPU area on this should piddle on Intel's best tbh.

Over the coming months I fancy building a Sega AM3 only box. Running Supermodel. This would be absolutely ideal for me

RobM
Speaking from experience as having gamed AAA titles on an APU, ie my last setup was an A10 and I was able to play with reasonable setting @ 1080p without any real problems except when things got really busy on screen such as late game HOI or Arma3 but for the most things were pretty fine.
This new generation I bet will be far superior and akin to an ryzen 3 with a 750ti or better

AMD RAVEN RIDGE Ryzen 5 And Ryzen 3 With Vega Graphics UNBOXING

AMD Raven Ridge Unboxing, R5 2400G & R3 2200G Ready for Benchmarking!

AMD Raven Ridge UNBOXING Reviewer's Kit

AMD Raven Ridge Ryzen + Vega Unboxing the presskit

AMD Ryzen APU with Radeon Vega unboxing and install

The AMD Ryzen 5 2400G with Radeon RX Vega 11 Graphics Up Close!

World's First Ryzen APU Unboxing!

 

Probably the 7th AMD Ryzen APU Unboxing on YouTube

 

AMD Motherboards Ryzen 2000 APU Ready
https://www.asus.com/microsite/mb/AMD-Ryzen-2000-APU-ready/

ASUS Announces Support for AMD Ryzen Desktop Processors with Radeon Vega
By btarunr Friday, February 9th 2018 02:00
https://www.techpowerup.com/241386/...amd-ryzen-desktop-processors-with-radeon-vega

"ASUS today announced that its complete lineup of AM4-socket-based motherboards now offer support for the first Zen architecture-based AMD Ryzen desktop processors with Radeon Vega graphics Accelerated Processing Units (APUs), via a BIOS update that's available immediately. These all-new AMD Ryzen 2000 Series APUs combine up to four Zen-based CPU cores with integrated Radeon Vega graphics. When used in combination with ASUS AMD AM4 Series motherboards, AMD Ryzen 2000 Series APUs offer great-value performance and deliver best-in-class gaming and graphics experiences.

Existing owners of ASUS AM4-socket motherboards can update their systems quickly and easily with the intuitive ASUS USB BIOS Flashback or ASUS EZ Flash 3 tools. In addition, an updated graphics driver - available from the ASUS support website - pushes the integrated AMD Radeon graphics to new performance heights for best-ever visual and gaming experiences with AMD Ryzen 2000 Series APUs.

Quick-and-easy BIOS update delivers instant compatibility with AMD Ryzen 2000 Series APUs
Updating an ASUS AM4-socket-based motherboard for compatibility with the latest AMD Ryzen 2000 Series APUs takes just moments, via one of two simple methods.

With the ASUS-exclusive USB BIOS Flashback feature built in to many ASUS motherboards, users only need to download the latest UEFI BIOS to a USB flash drive, connect the motherboard's power supply, insert a FAT32-formatted USB drive, and then press the motherboard's USB BIOS Flashback or Reset button. No AM4 processor or memory modules need to be in place, and the update will complete in a few moments.

Alternatively, users may update via the EZ Flash 3 utility that's integrated with the ASUS UEFI BIOS. This tool allows the update to be applied via an inserted USB drive or downloaded directly from the internet.

Users are also advised to update to the newest Radeon Vega drivers (V23.20.817.0 or later) to enjoy the best-possible graphics performance. These drivers are available for download from the ASUS microsite, at this page.

This ASUS BIOS update is available immediately worldwide. Please contact your local ASUS representative for further information."

 

http://www.exploreabout.com/blog/20...ews-and-features-everything-you-need-to-know/

https://www.extremetech.com/computi...2nm-2nd-generation-zen-7nm-vega-2018-roadmaps

 

Amazon delivered a Ryzen 5 2400 too early...

AMD Ryzen 5 2400G Raven Ridge APU Review | Benchmarks | Power Consumption

Published on Feb 11, 2018
Thanks to Amazon we received AMD's new Raven Ridge APU early. While this is pre official driver release, the Ryzen 5 2400G is proving to be a possible console killer.

Ryzen 5 2400G Live Testing!

Streamed live on Feb 10, 2018
TLDW: https://youtu.be/g7NmvmO-CNU

Spoiler: Index...

Cinebench R15 multi core - 9:40
Cinebench R15 single core- 16:10
OC 4GHz - 2:31:45
Cinebench R15 multi core (OC)- 2:32:45
CPU Z - 2:52:36
Cinebench R15 multi core (highest) - 2:54:44
Back to stock
Cinebench R15 single core - 2:56:58
Mining test - 3:05:50
Mining test - 3:19:25
3D mark fire strike (CPU only) - 3:23:40
3D Mark time Spy (CPU only) - 3:26:25
Graphics working reaction - 3:46:10
3D mark fire strike - 3:57:08
GPU allocated memory boost - 4:17:15
3D mark time Spy - 4:20:08
Superposition - 4:25:00
GTA V - 4:42:27
GTA V - 4:53:40
Rise of Tomb raider - 5:05:35
Overwatch - 5:19:41
Overwatch - 5:32:00
Superposition - 5:46:00
PUBG - 6:10:49
CSGO - 6:46:20
Rocket league - 6:54:04
Dark souls 3 - 7:26:45
Destiny 2 - 7:52:38
Diablo - 8:07:35
UserBenchmark - 8:15:35
Killing floor 2 - 8:32:28
Killing floor 2 - 8:39:00
Doom - 8:48:45
Final fantasy XV - 8:56:00
Super position - 9:03:40
Rise of Tomb raider - 9:08:00
3D Mark Time Spy - 9:13:54
Cinebench R15 OpenGL - 9:22:40
Dirt Rally - 9:34:35
PUBG - 9:45:45
GTA V - 10:07:33
CSGO - 10:13:03

Gaming with 2400 / 2200 Vega vs Intel 8th Gen iGPU comparisons:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/thr...99-xeon-vs-epyc.805695/page-210#post-10679885

 

Ryzen 5 2400G & Ryzen 3 2200G Review, More Benchmarks Than You Can Handle!

AMD Ryzen APU with Radeon Vega graphics benchmarks & review

AMD Ryzen 3 & 5 APU Review 2200G 2400G Full Review

https://overclock3d.net/reviews/cpu...idge_ryzen_3_2200g_and_ryzen_5_2400g_review/1
https://overclock3d.net/reviews/cpu_mainboard/gigabyte_ab350n_gaming_ryzen_itx_motherboard_review/1
Ryzen CPU with VEGA Graphics ONBOARD!

AMD Ryzen + Vega APUs Arrive! 2200G + 2400G Benchmarks

AMD Ryzen 3 2200G / Ryzen 5 2400G Review - The RAVEN has landed!

RYZEN 2400G & 2200G Vs. GT 1030 Vs. RX 550 - Budget SHOWDOWN (Review)

Our Ryzen APU Tests didn't go so well...

 

AMD Ryzen "Raven Ridge" Comes with a Limited PCIe Interface-Techpowerup.com

AMD today launched its first desktop Ryzen "Raven Ridge" APUs that combine quad-core "Zen" CPUs with "Vega" based integrated graphics solutions. One of its key specifications that caught our eye is its PCI-Express interface. Apparently, these chips feature just 8 PCI-Express gen 3.0 lanes for discrete graphics, besides 4 lanes dedicated as the chipset-bus, and 4 other lanes driving a 32 Gbps M.2 NVMe slot. What this means for the end-users, is that any discrete graphics cards plugged into the PCI-Express 3.0 x16 slot will run at half the bandwidth - PCI-Express 3.0 x8.

AMD responded to our story in advance with this statement:
"The target market for Raven Ridge, PC builders or DIYers who value the presence of SoC graphics, will select B350 or A320 motherboards, which do not feature the ability to split PCIe lanes. X370 buyers are typically buying the high end Ryzen, such as Ryzen 5 6-core and Ryzen 7 8-core, to go with that class and price motherboard. For the majority of the market, upgrading from the class leading processor graphics inside the Ryzen 5 2400G or Ryzen 3 2200G to a single discrete GPU will be more than enough, given then performance on offer today from discrete graphics cards such as Radeon RX VEGA64 and Radeon RX 580."

 

Yeah, there are a lot of unknowns, but it looks mighty impressive when you take into account the current gap or rather abyss in performance. Hopefully it scales well. After all it shows comparable performance at less power consumption, so I really hope that it would directly translate into overclockability

 

What I really do not like is the fact that metal on the IHS has been abandoned.

 

I'm pretty sure that it's only for these budget 1 CCX models.

 

Introducing AMD Ryzen™ Desktop Processors with Radeon™ Vega Graphics: The Next Step in Computing
https://www.amd.com/en/partner/amd-ryzen-with-radeon-vega

"2018 is shaping up to be a great year for AMD. At CES, exciting announcements were made about AMD’s next twelve months, and the first release of the year is here: AMD Ryzen desktop processors with built-in Radeon Vega graphics.

Spoiler: Details...

Combining the power of the advanced AMD Ryzen™ processor with powerful Radeon™ graphics technology, AMD is unleashing a new product that delivers advanced, high performance processing featuring the most powerful graphics you can get on a desktop processor. *1

AMD Ryzen with Radeon Vega Graphics: An Evolution of Ryzen™
The new Ryzen™ processor with Radeon™ graphics improves on recent technologies to deliver increased base and boost frequencies, enhanced memory and cache latencies and faster memory support over the previous generation. There are also on-board advancements such as Precision Boost 2 for an improved multi-core boost.

The first desktop processor with 2 teraFLOPS of combined graphics and CPU power, this latest Ryzen™ processor offers an incredible platform for CPU dependent-tasks as well as enabling responsive, smooth gaming at full HD 1080p, in eSports and beyond.

Ryzen desktop processors with Radeon Vega graphics fit perfectly into existing socket AM4 motherboards, but may require a simple BIOS upgrade.. If you’re buying a new motherboard, simply look for the “AMD Ryzen Desktop 2000 Ready” sticker on packaging for drop-in support.

The ecosystem that AMD and its motherboard partners have built is perfect for both new and current customers who want a best-in-class graphics solution built-in to a powerful, advanced desktop processor.1

Ryzen™ processors with Radeon™ Vega graphics also offer new 33MHz dividers for true DDR4-3000 support, delivering more precise memory tunability for customers who need to squeeze as much performance out of their system as possible.2

AMD Ryzen™ Desktop Processors with Radeon™ Vega Graphics: For the Most Powerful Graphics Performance you can get on a Desktop Processor
Ryzen™ desktop processors with Radeon™ Vega graphics offers an all-in-one solution that delivers incredible power from one chip, which means customers don’t need separate processors and graphics cards; perfect for customers who appreciate high performance, and for those who use small form-factor desktops.

With 4 cores and up to 8 processing threads, Ryzen™ processors with Radeon™ Vega graphics deliver powerful multiprocessing out-of-the-box. But in applications that take advantage of GPU acceleration, Ryzen™ processors with Radeon™ Vega graphics can provide even higher levels of responsiveness.

Combining these two powerful AMD technologies in a single, convenient processor makes Ryzen™ processors with Radeon™ Vega graphics perfect for partners to offer to customers who are looking for ease, upgradability, performance, and convenience in one package."

Footnotes:

1. Testing by AMD Performance labs as of 12/08/2017 for the Ryzen 5 2400G, and 09/04/2015 for the Core i7-5775c on the following systems. PC manufacturers may vary configurations yielding different results. Results may vary based on driver versions used. System Configs: All systems equipped with Samsung 850 PRO 512GB SSD, Windows 10 RS2 operating system. Socket AM4 System: Ryzen 52400G processor, 16B (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2667 RAM, Graphics Driver 1710181048-17.40-171018a-319170E 23.20.768.0 :: 12/08/2017. Socket LGA1150 System: Core i7-5775c processor, 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3-1867 MHz RAM, graphics driver 10.18.15.4256:: 09/04/2015. 3DMark 11 Performance benchmark used to represent graphics power. The following processors achieved the following scores in 3DMark 11 ‘performance’ benchmark v1.0.132.0: The Ryzen 5 2400G: 5042. Also in v1.0.132.0, .The Core i7-5775c, the Intel desktop processor with the highest Intel desktop graphics performance, achieved 3094. RZG-01
2. Overclocking memory will void any applicable AMD product warranty, even if such overclocking is enabled via AMD hardware and/or software. This may also void warranties offered by the system manufacturer or retailer or motherboard vendor. Users assume all risks and liabilities that may arise out of overclocking memory, including, without limitation, failure of or damage to RAM/hardware, reduced system performance and/or data loss, corruption or vulnerability. GD-112

Where to buy AMD Ryzen™ Desktop Processors with Radeon™ Vega Graphics
https://www.amd.com/en/where-to-buy/ryzen-with-radeon-vega

 

I wonder what the X470 chipset will bring to the table? I'm sure I will upgrade to Zen+, but not sure about upgrading the MB, unless the chipset offers something new.

 

I can not see many more features as not that much new has been introduced, maybe higher interface standards. I might upgrade the TR if there is a true 15%, or better, increase to performance. At that level the TR should compare at stock favorably to a 7980xe. I can not believe how much of a monster the TR is though so there is no need here to upgrade at all.

I had wondered how it does on just say an 8 thread task like used to flood my i7-3940 in my laptop. R15 score is 679 there but when limited to 8 threads on the TR I get R15 at 1290. So I can have encoding or whatever that flooded my laptop running here and tons of processing to spare.

 

The new Ryzen APU's have Thermal Interface Material (TIM) under the Lid (IHS), but the new Ryzen+ CPU Lid's will continue to be soldered just like the Ryzen, ThreadRipper, and Epyc.

AMD confirms that Ryzen 2nd Generation will be soldered - Zen+ CPUs will not need to be delidded
Published: 15th February 2018 | Source: AMD - Robert Hallock
https://overclock3d.net/news/cpu_mainboard/amd_confirms_that_ryzen_2nd_generation_will_be_soldered/1

"AMD confirms that Ryzen 2nd Generation will be soldered
AMD's new Raven Ridge series APUs use thermal paste instead of solder, a chance that allows AMD to maintain a low price point for their budget-oriented product while offering adequate levels of thermal performance.

Thermal paste is fine, provided users have a powerful enough cooling solution, though it is sub-optimal in terms of raw cooling/thermal transfer potential. Directly soldered CPUs can transfer heat more efficiently from the CPU die to its IHS and then to the user's cooling solution, making soldered CPUs preferable on high-end overclockable CPUs.

AMD's Robert Hallock has confirmed that "2nd-gen Ryzen will use solder", which means that AMD's upcoming 12nm Zen+ CPUs will be not be using thermal paste under its IHS. This confirmation is great news for overclockers, though not exactly unexpected given the fact that Ryzen is a high-end/high margin product.

Ryzen 2nd Generation products will be more powerful than their current generation counterparts, releasing on Globalfoundries' more efficient 12nm process node which higher clock speeds, precision boost 2 technology and a couple of other design tweaks. These processors are set to launch in April 2018 alongside AMD's new 400-series motherboards. "

 

AMD Ryzen 5 2400G gets delidded and temperature tested-Guru3d.com

 

Asus GL702zc Review - Worlds 1st 8 Core Gaming Laptop

Published on Feb 17, 2018
AMD has finally unleashed a gaming notebook with its Ryzen 7 1700 8 core CPU (16 threads) and a Radeon RX580 GPU.
The Asus GL702zc is great value at $1500 and you can buy it here:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B077GBJCNC

 

Raven Ridge - Ryzen 5 2400G delidding. Before/After Temps (en)

 

AMD Raven Ridge 8GB vs. 16GB Reserved Memory Benchmark & Explanation

 

AMD To Release Ryzen V1000 SoC To Take on Intel Gemini Lake
by Hilbert Hagedoorn on: 02/18/2018 09:55 AM
http://www.guru3d.com/news-story/em...n-v1000-soc-to-take-on-intel-gemini-lake.html

"2017 has been the year of the rise of AMD in everything regarding processors. From entry-level up-to enthusiast class with Threadripper and Epyc.

With Ryzen 2000G just launching and the Zen+ updates in April. They do not stop there, you can now add to that an SoC development, as the low-power embedded market was still left untouched, meet the Ryzen V1000.

The AdvanTech website is (was) showing a motherboard that holds an AMD Ryzen Embedded V1000-processor, the preliminary product page for a SOM-5871 has been pulled but was showing the embedded R-Series SoC line based on the same a Zen Core already, the AMD V1000 SoC.

So what exactly is the V1000 SoC you might wonder?

AMD V1000 SoC
The V1000 is actually based on Raven Ridge, but developed under what you guys might remember us posting back in 2016 already, the AMD R-Series "Horned Owl" and G-Series “Banded Kestrel.” These two parts are big updates to AMD’s embedded SoC line.

When we go back to the Advantech SOM-5871 product page we can see product specifications listed as the AMD V1000 supports a core/thread of “2/4/8.” This means dual, quad and octa-core likely with threaded SKUS as well.

This SoC series will see 1MB or 2MB cache with TDPs in the 12 to 54 Watt ranges. Being a SoC it has a built-in I/O chipset. The clock frequencies have not been listed but much like the Ryzen 5 2400G it should get a Vega GPU with 11 compute units including H.265 decode and encode and VP9 decode and Ultra HD support. An earlier leaked iBase Mini-ITX revealed the Vega and CPU core count as well as the up to 32GB of dual-channel DDR4-2400/3200 with optional ECC. the AdvenTech page has been showing.

 

I don't know if this was posted here before or not, but here's some more news on Zen+ :
https://www.forbes.com/sites/antony...-17-faster-in-leaked-benchmarks/#75c889d92169

So, single threaded performance seems to have been boosted by ABOUT 5% and multithreaded up to 17%?

Clock speed bumps however could probably be higher... and as of yet, we still don't know what the end results will be with the final product upon release... plus GeekBench was spoofed before.
Like anything else, I wouldn't be surprised to see these chips can be overclocked and undervolted to operate within the current TDP and temp. range with a higher clock count... but otherwise, its a good bump up... otherwise, I think we can easily wait for Rzyen 2 for a more substantial boost, unless precisionboost, etc. bring about better improvements.

 

Not a big fan of AMD CPU / GPU rumors, or Intel ones for that matter.

It's a big disappointment for some here when release reality doesn't meet previous rumors expections, and then for some strange reason they blame AMD... very odd.

AMD should have countered the rumors with real results - before release...

Of course no company would do that, they wouldn't respond to some fanboy fantasy posts with information on performance before release. That's why everyone involved is under strict NDA and reviewers are under embargo dates to keep their results quiet until release.

Rumors are inevitably tantalizing, but best ignored in the long run and wait for actual results.

 

What most do not realize is the TR bone stock does about 3000 on CB R15. Locked to all cores @4.0 GHZ it does about 3500, that alone is a 16% increase. So the new XFR 2 could possibly yield that alone tuned properly.

The problem with that is if XFR 2 uses up the overclocking headroom then we who do overclock will see less of an increase overall. This is why, for me, only 200 MHz would be a huge disappointment and one I would probably have to pass on.

 

AMD Ryzen 5 2400G Delidded: Solder vs. Thermal Paste vs. Liquid Metal-Tomshardware.com

 

If I remember year ago Eurocom rumored Clevo laptop with Ryzen CPU? What about it? Whole idea died?

Damn... I'm still waiting for DTR with 1800X or gen2 ryzen for renders... 1700/1800 + 64gb RAM would do awesome Adobe job...

Sine MXM is dead, Intel CPU upgrades are dead (BGA or LGA... both is impossible to upgrade (chipsets, LGA changes, rude bioses...)...
AMD AM4 in laptop is only hope to still receive upgradeable DTR.

I'm sick of waiting, if nothing happens I'll just buy a damn desktop and leave P650HS-G as my portable fun-machine (since it's better than P870DM imho... except extremely crappy speakers, P870DM had excellent ones).

 

Out of curiosity... do you know about Asus ROG Strix GL702ZC?
Ryzen 1700 (socketed), B350 motherboard, upgradeable to 32GB (but probably can go higher than that if you can find 32GB sticks), and RX 580 (soldered to the mobo yes, but does the job).
We still don't know if Asus will release newer BIOSes for Ryzen+, 2 and 3 generations, but it's possible they might... in which case we will have a clear upgrade path.

So, as far as portable systems go, you might want to consider that one.
Alternatively, get a desktop.

 

Realistically that's what I would expect. Upgrading a CPU on every new incremental release is not typically beneficial, unless there are other feature or additional IO unlocks (removing bottlenecks) or other considerations, unless you can parley it into 2 machines, one with the "old" CPU and one with the new CPU, and you need a another CPU to build new machines you might as well build them on the new motherboard chipset and CPU.

Every other generation upgrade makes more sense, which is why AMD tuned the socket AM4 / TR4 support for 4 years, so you could get at least 1 beneficial CPU upgrade in that socket - if you start at the beginning of the socket cycle.

You definitely can't do that with Intel, at least not any more. I had several 1366 upgrades, but even so the OC'ability of that series of CPU's gave little reason to "upgrade" CPU's as well. My 920 was good for 4.0ghz on air, and even the 980x was a tough call, discounted after the 990x came out it finally made sense. By the time I wanted to build an 1155 the 2700K was out, and at 5.2ghz is still running strong. That socket topped out with my first build.

AM2 worked out well for me, AM3 as well, now AM4 / TR4 are a good run too.

With AMD vs Intel, if you don't have to have the fastest at any cost, you can work smart and tune your expectations to your real needs, and save 50% or more if you plan and shop well too.

 

I know but it has 1700 which might OC lower than 1800X selected chip. Also 64GB is a must. Radeon GPU also is nope since i need CUDA acceleration. My lovely 4K Auo 60Hz G-Sync display or any 120Hz display with G-Sync would be deal breaker. :/

 

I can overclock my 1700 to 3.6GhZ across all cores on either stock or a notch or two lower voltage and same or slightly lower temps than stock.
Of course, that's without touching the stock paste on the laptop.
If it were further repasted with say GeLid GC extreme and had Fujipoly thermal pads on VRM's and GPU VRAM chips, temps would likely drop even more.

Laptops by default are more constrained in terms of how much you can overclock anyway... but the fact that we can overclock 1700 by 20% over stock in a mobile setting without shooting past stock temps is great.

As for the GPU... well, I use the laptop for content creation and gaming.
I have more use of OpenCL and various software is including support for AMD GPU's to rival CUDA (Which is proprietary)... even 3d studio Max works nicely with Radeons these days.
As for 64GB RAM... it should be possible in the GL702ZC, its just that the cost wouldn't exactly be justified.

In terms of the screen, well, the only thing I can say is that if you have those specific requirements, then GL702ZC is likely NOT for you.
I mentioned that laptop because you also said 1700/1800 for CPU... and GL702ZC has a desktop 1700 in it.... but as I said, even in a laptop setting, you end up with a trade-off in terms of overclocking (or raising performance).
Wouldn't a desktop be a better option for you instead?
It would certainly be cheaper.

 

The problem is that PC is far more expensive, not cheap.
Add such things:
- Monitor about 600-800 EURO (notebook screens are cheaper to add in configuration (60-200 EUR)... and are excellent quality too and my eyes like smaller screens with higher PPI)
- Case about 100 EURO + CPU cooling about 100-130 EURO
- Insane GPU prices, about year ago my friend bought 1070 EVGA FTW 30% cheaper than it's current value... and GPU is getting old...

Clevo DTR's (MSI still overpriced and mobile crippled cpu's in that price...) are way cheaper, mainly due to monitor cost. That's why I'm still looking at

I'd like to see MSI GT73 with Ryzen and nVidia GPU with 4K display, but it would be so overpriced that our eyes would burn and travel to the eye of terror...

 

I am aware of the GPU and RAM prices.
I meant to say that a desktop would be a cheaper option under regular circumstances... and also for overclocking.

In a mobile setting, the GL702ZC is the only all AMD platform available right now with very potent hardware.
Also, this laptop has freesync (which is the same as gsync - only cheaper)... and while it has a 60Hz panel, it is more than enough for content creation and gaming if you ask me.

If you can see past the CUDA requirements (but you can always check if your software might be able to use OpenCL or AMD hardware in general for acceleration - most does, so it shouldn't be an issue), I would definitely recommend you at least consider GL702ZC - and if not... wait a bit longer for Ryzen+ and lets see if Asus updates the GL702ZC with that CPU and possibly Vega or maybe includes Nvidia GPU's (but I would personally prefer they stick with AMD to increase availability of that hardware in general and proliferate in the mobile sector).

The latest versions of GL702ZC will likely come with better binned silicon... which of course translates to users being able to set higher frequencies and lower voltage the CPU, while the GPU can only be undervolted right now using MSI Afterburner, and I am running the core on -93mV... one might be able to shoot past 3.6GhZ across all cores on the CPU with better silicon and same or lower temps than stock... but that's just speculation for now (as I said, it might be worth waiting for Ryzen+).

But generally speaking, I wouldn't get a laptop if overclocking is something you want.
Yes the GL702ZC can easily do so and cool it properly... but for OC-ing, you'd likely be better off with a desktop (if and when prices go down).

 

AMD has gone the multiple (2, 4, more?) ccx vs monolithic die (Intel) for a far to give wafer yield's for die's are incredibly better with smaller dies interconnected vs a single monolithic die.

This video does a great job of preparing you for the point / conclusion, and I recommend you watch it all.

AMD has an Epyc advantage in yield's over Intel that allows AMD to offer much less expensive CPU's, with a small loss in interconnect, now and in the future predictably as shown in the video. Well worth it.

This video also shows why Intel was having so much trouble shipping 8700's, at about 6 good CPU's yield per wafer, it's ridiculous how much silicon / process time Intel was/is investing in each 8700 CPU.

An Epyc Master Plan

 

A bit of intel on AMD's embedded Epyc and Ryzen processors
Dips Zen toes into embedded world with hot new SoCs
By Chris Mellor 23 Feb 2018 at 10:59
https://www.theregister.co.uk/2018/02/23/amds_embedded_epyc_ryzen/

"The "other" X86 mill-maker, AMD, has unveiled its efforts to position its Zen architecture kit as an embedded solution for networking, storage, edge and industrial devices: a brace of Epyc and Ryzen processors.

The semiconductor firm is aiming Epyc 3000 at networking, storage and edge computing devices and the Ryzen V1000 at medical imaging, industrial systems, digital gaming and thin clients. Both are embedded systems.

There are four pairs of Epyc products, each with 4, 8, 12 or 16 cores, and 1 or 2 threads per core:
AMD said the Epyc 3000 has up to 2.7X more performance/$ than the competition, citing a Xeon D 1540 and not one of the newer (Skylake) Ds.

The Epyc 3000 also has twice the connectivity, with up to 64 PCI Express high speed I/O lanes, 8 x 10 GbitE, 16 SATA, and – like Epyc's server-class chips – up to 4 memory channels per CPU. The processors also boast up to 32MB shared L3 cache. It compares it to a Xeon D 1587 with 32 PCIe lanes, 4 x 10GbitE, 6 SATA, 2 memory channels.

Epyc 3000

The newer Xeon D-2100 supports 32 PCIe lanes, up to 4 x 10GbitE ports, and four memory channels.

The Ryzen V1000 features an Accelerated Processing Unit (APU) coupling Zen CPUs and Vega GPUs on one die, offering up to four CPU cores/eight threads and up to 11 GPU compute units to achieve processing throughput as high as 3.6 TFLOPS.

Ryzen V1000 model matrix - click to embiggen

The Ryzen SoCs have up to four cores / eight threads with up to 2MB of shared L2 cache plus 4MB of shared L3.

AMD claims the V1000 provides space and power savings and performance benefits over Intel competition. For example:

• Up to 2X uplift in performance over previous AMD generations,
• Up to 3X more GPU performance than the competition (AMD V1807B vs Intel Core i7-7700HQ).
• Up to 46 per cent more multi-threaded performance than the competition (Intel Core i3 -7100U),
• Up to 26 per cent smaller footprint than the competition (Intel i7-7700HQ package size in FCBGA1440) for optimized board design.

Ryzen V1000

The V1000 supports up to 16 PCIe lanes, dual 10 GbitE, up to four USB 3.1/USB-C interconnects, with additional USB, SATA and NVMe support. Graphically it can drive up to four independent displays running in 4K, with the ability to support 5K graphics, including support for H.265 decode and encode, and VP9 decode.

Supporting RyzV1000 partners include Arrow Electronics Intelligent Systems, Esaote, QTechnology, Quixant, Sintrones, SMACH Z and others. AMD is promising Epyc 3000 and Ryzen V1000 support for 10 years.

Get an Epyc 3000 product brief here (PDF) and a Ryzen V1000 brief here (PDF). "


Smach Z handheld gaming PC to integrate AMD's Ryzen V1000 embedded CPU
After 4 years of development, the Smach Z handheld PC could finally see the light of day in H2 2018. Smach partnered with AMD to include a custom embedded RX-421B CPU that integrates an 8CU R7 GPU, and the device will also include at least 4 GB of DDR4-2400 RAM and 64 GB of storage.
by Bogdan Solca, 2018/02/22
https://www.notebookcheck.net/Smach...-AMD-s-Ryzen-V1000-embedded-CPU.285008.0.html

Spoiler

"2018 is shaping up to be quite a good year for handheld gaming systems. Smartphone makers like Razer, Asus and Xiaomi are hard at work on dedicated gaming devices, and, while these are running Android on powerful mobile SoCs, there are other companies like GPD or Smach that power their handheld devices with embedded PC processors.

The Smach Z is formerly known as Project Steamboy and has been in development for almost 4 years now. Silence has fallen over this project in the past few years, but just recently there were some rumors that Smach could actually ship the device this year. Confirming the rumors, Smach has just announced its collaboration with AMD, which will provide custom made Ryzen V1000 embedded processors for the Smach Z.

With a 12-25W TDP, the processor powering the Smach Z is the Ryzen V1605B, which includes four cores and 8 threads clocked at 2 GHz (3.6 GHz boost). The actively-cooled CPU also integrates an 8 CU Vega 8 GPU clocked at 1.1 GHz similar to the one found in the Ryzen 5 2500U laptop CPU. According to Liliputing, Smach CEO Daniel Fernandez claims that this processor can handle any current AAA game, however, some graphics option tweaking might be necessary. The latest specs for the Smach Z handheld PC include a 6-inch FHD display, 4 / 8 GB (Pro version) of DDR4-2400 RAM and 64 / 128 GB (Pro version) storage. Users will further be able to customize the device with 16 GB of RAM and 256 GB storage. The case will feature gaming buttons and pads on each side of the screen, plus a 5 MP camera for the Pro version. Networking features include WiFi + Bluetooth 4.0, while connectivity is ensured through ports like USB-C, USB-A, Micro USB, Display Port, SD card reader and Audio minijack.

Smach also intends to showcase the Z handheld at the Embedded World expo next week, and there is a good chance the device could ship in H2 2018."

Source(s)
Smach Kickstarter campaign

Liliputing

AMD Launches EPYC™ Embedded and Ryzen™ Embedded Processors for End-to-End “Zen” Experiences from the Core to the Edge
─ EPYC Embedded processors deliver up to 2.7X more performance-per-dollar and Ryzen Embedded processors deliver up to 3X more GPU performance ─
http://ir.amd.com/news-releases/new...-embedded-and-ryzentm-embedded-processors-end

Spoiler

"SANTA CLARA, Calif. , Feb. 21, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- AMD (NASDAQ:AMD) today introduced two new product families – the AMD EPYC™ Embedded 3000 processor and AMD Ryzen™ Embedded V1000 processor – to enter a new age for high-performance embedded processors. AMD EPYC Embedded 3000 brings the power of “Zen” to a variety of new markets including networking, storage and edge computing devices, while AMD Ryzen Embedded V1000 targets medical imaging, industrial systems, digital gaming and thin clients. These new AMD Embedded processors deliver breakthrough performance, exceptional integration and on-chip security.

“Today we extend the high-performance x86 ‘Zen’ architecture from PCs, laptops and the datacenter to networking, storage and industrial solutions with the AMD EPYC Embedded and AMD Ryzen Embedded product families, delivering transformative performance from the core to the edge,” said Scott Aylor, corporate vice president and general manager, Datacenter and Embedded Solutions Business Group, AMD. “AMD EPYC Embedded 3000 raises the bar in performance for next-generation network functions virtualization, software-defined networking and networked storage applications.

AMD Ryzen Embedded V1000 brings together the ‘Zen’ core architecture and ‘Vega’ graphics architecture to deliver brilliant graphics in a single chip that provides space and power savings for medical imaging, gaming and industrial systems. With these high-performance products, AMD is ushering in a new age for embedded processors.”

Several customers announced products based on AMD EPYC Embedded 3000 and AMD Ryzen Embedded V1000, including:

• The Esaote ultra-performance MyLab™9 eXP ultrasound system for general medical imaging, women’s healthcare and cardiovascular diagnostics, based on the Ryzen Embedded V1000 and targeting Q3 availability.
• The Quixant QX-70 4K Ultra HD casino gaming platform, based on the Ryzen Embedded V1000 and available today.
• Four products from Advantech based on the Ryzen Embedded V1000, including an integrated casino gaming platform and multimedia gaming engine, high-performance Com-E module for medical, automation and gaming applications, and a mini-ITX embedded motherboard.

Also, with support from more than 16 major ecosystem partners, companies can purchase boards and access software with AMD EPYC Embedded 3000 and AMD Ryzen Embedded V1000 technology. These include:

• The new IBASE MI988 Mini-ITX motherboard, SI-324 4x HDMI 2.0 digital signage player and FWA8800 1U rackmount network appliance that deliver datacenter class dependability, advanced integration and superior performance for a wide number of embedded applications.
• The Mentor Embedded Linux and Codesourcery software tools from Mentor Graphics that provide developers with improved performance and features to grow the embedded ecosystem, available today.

The excitement and momentum around today’s announcement from AMD is supported by several significant proof points.

AMD EPYC Embedded 3000 processor portfolio delivers:

• Up to 2.7X more performance-per dollar than the competition1
• Up to 2X more connectivity than the competition3
• Enterprise-grade reliability, availability and serviceability (RAS) features

AMD Ryzen Embedded V1000 processor portfolio delivers:

• Up to 2X uplift in performance over previous generations4
• Up to 3X more GPU performance than the competition2
• Up to 46 percent more multi-threaded performance than the competition5
• Up to 26 percent smaller footprint than the competition for optimized board design6

In addition to performance, security remains a top concern for enterprise customers, whether they are designing top-of-rack switches, thin client devices or anything in between. AMD EPYC Embedded and AMD Ryzen Embedded processors help protect data at the hardware level with an on-chip secure processor, complemented by hardware validated boot capabilities to help ensure systems are booted up from trusted software. Additionally, Secure Memory Encryption (SME) deters unauthorized physical memory access while Secure Encrypted Virtualization (SEV) offers further deterrence by encrypting virtual machine (VM) memory, without the need to make changes at the application level.

AMD EPYC Embedded 3000 Product Overview

• Highly scalable processor family with designs ranging from four cores to 16 cores, available in single-thread and multi-threaded configurations.
• Support for thermal design power (TDP) ranges from 30W to 100W.
• Expansive, integrated I/O with support for up to 64 PCIe® lanes and up to eight channels of 10 GbE.
• Up to 32MB shared L3 cache with up to four independent memory channels.
• Unparalleled enterprise-grade RAS to address data detection, correction, recovery and containment, helping ensure that systems are continuously running even under the most stringent enterprise environments.
• On-board secure processor for crypto co-processing, SME to defend against unauthorized physical memory access, and SEV for encrypting VM memory to help protect against various administrator attacks without disrupting application codes.
• Product availability for up to 10 years, offering customers a long lifecycle support roadmap.

AMD Ryzen Embedded V1000 Product Overview

• Breakthrough Accelerated Processing Unit (APU) coupling high-performance ‘Zen’ CPUs and ‘Vega’ GPUs on a single die, offering up to four CPU cores/eight threads and up to 11 GPU compute units to achieve processing throughput as high as 3.6 TFLOPS7.
• By combining the power of ‘Zen’ and ‘Vega’ architectures, the Ryzen Embedded V1000 family can deliver up to 200 percent more performance compared to previous generations5.
• Support for TDP ranges from 12W to 54W, enabling scalability for high-performance devices and reduced power consumption for energy-conscious applications.
• Robust I/O capabilities that support up to 16 PCIe lanes, dual 10 GbE and expansive USB options, including up to four USB 3.1/USB-C interconnects, with additional USB, SATA and NVMe support.
• Incredible resolution in a small package, driving up to four independent displays running in 4K, with the ability to support 5K graphics for applications demanding next-generation visual clarity, including support for H.265 decode and encode, and VP9 decode8.
• Equipped with dual-channel 64-bit DDR4, with performance up to 3200 MT/s.
• On-board secure processor for crypto co-processing, SME to defend against unauthorized physical memory access, and SEV for encrypting VM memory to help protect against various administrator attacks without disrupting application codes.
• Product availability for up to 10 years, offering customers a long lifecycle support roadmap. "

 

Very interesting. Does Intel have another Manufacturing process up their sleeves? Things look very bright for AMD, and not so good for Intel.

 

Hope it is true too about Epyc plans but too much speculation and as he says "based on his current information".

 

If you watched the video you'll see the process passes count increases greatly at each die shrink, which makes the yield's go down progressively, so unless Intel splits up the monolithic die like AMD has, another process shrink will devastate Intel's yield further and further.

What Intel needs is a new architecture that allows them to split the CPU across die's as AMD has done.

Maybe Intel can add that to their list of needs for their new more secure design architecture, but that might push the implementation out another year or two.

 

OC'd 2200G: 1650mhz GPU 3.9ghz CPU

Ryzen 3 2200G Gaming Footage, 16 Games Tested with Mixed Results

Ryzen 3 2200G, Overclocking Guide with a $20 Cooler!

 

https://www.pcgamesn.com/amd-ryzen-2-release-date-specs-performance/

Kind of strange, like the video was cut short.

 

The Fastest Linux Distribution For Ryzen: A 10-Way Linux OS Comparison On Ryzen 7 & Threadripper
Written by Michael Larabel in Computers on 25 January 2018. Page 1 of 8. 36 Comments
https://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=article&item=ryzen-linux-10way&num=1

"While we frequently do Linux OS/distribution performance comparisons on the latest Intel desktop and server hardware, some requests came in recently about looking closer at the fastest Linux distribution(s) when running on AMD's Ryzen desktop processors. Here are benchmarks of ten popular Linux distributions tested out-of-the-box on Ryzen 7 1800X and Threadripper 1950X systems."

Spoiler

"The Linux operating systems tested on these two current AMD platforms include Antergos, CentOS, Clear Linux, Debian, Fedora, Solus, Ubuntu LTS, Ubuntu, Void Linux, and openSUSE. Each operating system was cleanly installed and tested out-of-the-box for how Linux desktop users would find it when first deployed and applying all stable updates.

Interested in seeing some fresh #Linux distribution comparison benchmarks about which Linux OS is the fastest on @AMDRyzen #Ryzen and #Threadripper systems? If so, which distros would you like to see compared?

— Phoronix (@phoronix) January 20, 2018

The choice of Linux distributions came from asking on Twitter about a Ryzen Linux distribution comparison. With updates, all of these distributions had at least minimal Retpoline support for Spectre v2 AMD mitigation but most (except Ubuntu) had the "full" support, a.k.a. being built with a patched compiler. KPTI (Kernel Page Table Isolation) wasn't needed and none of the tested distributions had inadvertently enabled it as Meltdown only affects Intel CPUs and all recent kernel patches treat it so accordingly. Some notes/summary on each of the tested distributions:

Antergos 18.1 Rolling - This Arch-based Linux distribution is currently riding with the Linux 4.14.14-1 kernel, GNOME Shell 3.26.2, GCC 7.2.1, and an EXT4 file-system. One notable design choice of Antergos is using the CPUFreq Schedutil governor by default where as the other distributions were defaulting to ondemand or performance.

CentOS 7 - CentOS 7 with updates is using the Linux 3.10.0-693.11.6 kernel, GNOME Shell 3.22.3, GCC 4.8.5, and an XFS file-system by default.


Clear Linux 20500 - Intel's rolling-release distribution when tested had the Linux 4.14.14 kernel, GCC 7.2.1, and uses an EXT4 file-system by default. An additional item to note is that Clear Linux recently switched to using the KYBER I/O scheduler even on NVMe storage as used in today's testing where as the other Linux distributions all defaulted to "none" for their I/O scheduler choice while using the common EXT4 file-system.

Debian Testing - Tracking the development of Debian 10 "Buster", the latest testing snapshot was used with the Linux 4.14.0-3 kernel, GNOME Shell 3.26.2, GCC 7.2.0 and an EXT4 file-system.

Fedora Workstation 27 - This latest Fedora Workstation release has the Linux 4.14.14 kernel, EXT4, GNOME Shell 3.26 on Wayland, and GCC 7.2.1.

Solus 3 - Solus with the Budgie desktop was included in this testing given it has been focusing on performance optimizations as well, some of which were pulled in from Clear Linux. Solus 3 with updates has the Linux 4.14.14 kernel, EXT4, and GCC 7.2.

Ubuntu 16.04.3 LTS - The current Long-Term Support release of Ubuntu in its current HWE stack has Linux 4.13.0-31, GCC 5.4.0, and EXT4 atop a Unity 7.4 desktop.

Ubuntu 17.10 - The current short-lived Ubuntu stable release with Linux 4.13.0-31, GNOME Shell 3.26.2 on Wayland, EXT4, and GCC 7.2.0.

Void Linux - We benchmark Void Linux once in a while and saw some requests come in for Ryzen testing. This rolling-release Linux distribution with Xfce 4.12 had the Linux 4.14.15 kernel, GCC 7.2.0, and an EXT4 file-system.

openSUSE Tumbleweed - SUSE's rolling-release is up to the Linux 4.14.14 kernel, KDE Plasma 5.11.95, GCC 7.2, and is using XFS for the home directory.

For the duration of the benchmarking process, none of the distributions had any stability problems or other issues to note with the two Ryzen systems used for testing.

Ryzen 7 1800X - The first system was the Ryzen 7 1800X with the MSI X370 XPOWER GAMING TITANIUM motherboard and BIOS 1.90. The system had 2 x 8GB DDR4-3200MHz memory, MSI Radeon RX 580 graphics card, and Corsair Force MP500 128GB NVMe SSD.

Ryzen Threadripper 1950X - The Threadripper 1950X box had a Gigabyte X399 AORUS Gaming 7 motherboard with F3g BIOS. This system also had a Corsair Force MP500 128GB NVme SSD for storage, MSI Radeon R7 370 graphics card and 4 x 4GB DDR4-3600 memory.

All ten of these Linux distribution benchmarks on the two AMD Ryzen systems were carried out in a fully-automated and reproducible manner using the open-source Phoronix Test Suite benchmarking software.

First up was the basic SQLite embedded database benchmark for getting an idea of the rough I/O impact between distributions. Starting things off, Intel's Clear Linux distribution was the fastest on both Ryzen systems while CentOS 7 and Solus 3 were the slowest in this case.



With CompileBench, Clear Linux was the fastest while CentOS 7 and Void Linux tended to be the slowest. Besides Clear Linux pulling in various performance optimizations and extra patches, as noted earlier, it did recently switch to using the Kyber I/O scheduler rather than no I/O scheduler for NVMe storage. Kyber is the recently mainlined I/O scheduler originally developed at Facebook.


Moving onto more CPU focused tests, the Parboil OpenMP scientific test was the fastest on Clear Linux and Solus 3, which shares some of the performance optimizations of Clear Linux with Solus lead developer Ikey Doherty being a former Intel/Clear developer.

In the MRI Gridding test the margins were closer while Debian Testing and openSUSE Tumbleweed this time were competing for the top spot.

With the Rodinia OpenMP benchmark, Clear Linux was the fastest while CentOS 7 was notably slower with its stock compiler toolchain.

And with HMMer, Clear Linux was again the fastest on these AMD Ryzen systems while Antergos 18.1 was the slowest.

With the CPU-based TTSIOD phong renderer, Clear Linux had a narrow but measurable victory over the nine other distributions while Ubuntu 16.04.3 LTS this time was the slowest. Fedora, Solus, and Void Linux were other competitive performers in this benchmark.

With x264 video encoding, Clear Linux once again came out in front... Yes, Intel's Linux distribution on AMD hardware. Ubuntu 16.04.3 and 17.10 as well as Antergos 18.1-Rolling were notably slower than the others.

The ebizzy benchmark aims to resemble web-server workloads. On the Ryzen 7 1800X box, Antergos 18.1 had a narrow path to victory. The results on the Threadripper 1950X system were quite close among most of the distributions tested, but Clear Linux attained another win. Ubuntu 16.04.3 LTS was noticeably slower on both systems than the others tested.

When it came to measuring the time needed to compile a Linux x86_64 default configuration kernel, CentOS, Clear Linux, and Ubuntu 16.04.3 LTS were all nearly tied for first while Void Linux was the slowest.

C-Ray ray-tracing was the fastest on Clear Linux, Ubuntu 16.04.3 LTS, and CentOS 7 while the other seven Linux distributions were running slower but at around the same speed.

The FLAC audio encoding results were mostly flat but if counting outright wins/losses, Clear Linux again had the fastest result while CentOS 7 was the slowest.

The FFmpeg results were also close but with Clear, Fedora, and Solus competing for the fastest while Antergos 18.1 was noticeably slower.


With the Hackbench kernel benchmark, Void Linux was substantially slower than all other tested kernel configurations while Antergos and CentOS won the cake this time.

For the total boot time, Clear Linux booted the fastest on the Ryzen 7 1800X system while on Threadripper 1950X, Solus 3 was the fastest followed by Antergos and then Clear Linux. On both systems, CentOS 7 and openSUSE Tumbleweed were the slowest. Void Linux numbers were not available as it's one of the few distributions not using systemd.

The PyBench results for looking at the Python performance was the fastest on Clear Linux followed immediately by Debian Testing and Ubuntu 17.10. CentOS 7, Solus 3, and Void Linux were among the slowest.

Lastly was PHPBench with Antergos 18.1 and Clear Linux performing for the top spot while CentOS 7 with its PHP5 stack by default being the slowest.

Of all the benchmarks ran, Clear Linux 20500 was the front-runner. On the Ryzen 7 1800X system, Clear Linux won 65% of the time followed by Antergos 18.1 with 15% of the wins and Solus in third. On this Ryzen 7 1800X box, CentOS 7 was the slowest 38% of the time given its older but vetted Enterprise Linux 7 stack.

With the Threadripper 1950X system, Clear Linux was the fastest 57% of the time followed by Solus at 15% and Antergos 18.1 at 7%. CentOS 7 here was the slowest with it coming in last 46% of the time.

So as shown previously in past benchmarks, while Clear Linux is a project out of Intel's Open-Source Technology Center, even when running on modern AMD x86_64 hardware it still packs a mighty performance punch thanks to its aggressive compiler defaults, FDO / LTO / FMV / other compiler performance techniques, various backported patches for performance, and many other smaller optimizations. Hopefully more Linux distributions will take note in 2018 and work on similar performance aspirations, in part to make up for some of the performance losses incurred by the Meltdown and Spectre mitigation techniques. As shown when testing on Intel hardware with KPTI and full Meltdown protection, the fully-patched Clear Linux system can generally still outperform distributions prior to their Spectre/Meltdown penalties. Solus 3 and Antergos also deserve shout-outs for their strong performance on these two AMD Ryzen systems.

For those wondering about the OpenGL graphics performance, there are results on the following page. It wasn't a main focus for this testing since it's not really Ryzen-specific and mostly comes down to a race of who has the most-updated Mesa/kernel. But there are a few OpenGL results for those interested.

Lastly onto the extra results featuring a few OpenGL tests of the Ryzen 7 1800X with the Radeon RX 580 on supported platforms. As just stated, the OpenGL tests weren't a main focus due to not being Ryzen-specific, mostly just a straight-forward Mesa/kernel race, and this testing already being quite lengthy... Due to all the time involved, just some standalone Linux OpenGL games/benchmarks were used rather than setting up a Steam environment on each platform, etc.


Antergos 18.1 with its up-to-date stack tended to be in front.


Even with the demanding Unigine tests, not too much variation, hence the lack of focus on graphics/gaming in this comparison.

CentOS 7 tends to be the slowest due to its dated graphics drivers.

If you enjoyed this comparison, consider showing your support by joining Phoronix Premium to support future large Linux hardware/software comparisons.

 

AMD A320 or B350 For Raven Ridge? Buying The Right Motherboard

 

Ryzen (1000-Series) Overclocking Guide
Want to overclock your Ryzen Threadripper CPU? Here's an OC guide.
https://www.tweaktown.com/guides/8506/ryzen-1000-series-overclocking-guide/index.html

"AMD's Ryzen CPUs have been out for almost a year, and it's now time for us to put out an easy to understand and easy to follow overclocking guide for the CPU. The AM4 platform has matured a lot, and so things are much more stable and overclocking is easier now than ever.

AMD offers two ways to overclock their Ryzen CPUs; through the motherboard's UEFI and through AMD's Ryzen Master application. We are going to focus on the UEFI as AMD has done an excellent job of covering how to overclock with their software. If you aren't okay with overclocking in the UEFI you can read AMD's Ryzen Master OC Guide."

Spoiler

"The flow chart above is pretty basic but spells out some things you should know before you begin. At around 95C the CPU will throttle, so you want to stay at least 10-15C below that for safety. CPU core voltage maximum is 1.45v, and SoC voltage is 1.2v.

AMD's Ryzen CPUs do not run off a VID table; they run between 0.2-1.5v depending on load and environmental characteristics, but when you overclock, you should not set anything above 1.5v (I doubt you could even cool a CPU at that voltage). You should expect a 3.9-4.1GHz overclock.

While temperature is typically your limiter, in this case, you will not be going over 4.1GHz on ambient cooling solutions. Some Thread Ripper CPUs can hit 4.2GHz, but Thread Ripper is made out of the top 5% of all Ryzen dies. I always aim for 4GHz, but I have seen some of my CPUs not hit 4.0GHz.

The cool thing about the new processors is that their multipliers can be increased in 0.25 increments. AMD's AGESA code is the basic code AMD gives its partners to build a UEFI. AMD has made big leaps with code updates, especially on the memory overclocking side, and they publish a lot of information on their blogs as you can see here.

Disclaimer Overclocking your CPU technically can damage your CPU. TweakTown and the writer of this guide take zero responsibility if you damage or kill your CPU. There is also a chance that AMD will not replace a CPU damaged by overclocking. AMD states that "The limited warranty does not cover damages due to external causes, including improper use, problems with electrical power, accident, neglect, alteration, repair, improper installation, or improper testing".

Have you Overclocked Before?
If you have overclocked before and understand hardware selection and the basics of overclocking, you should skip to the next page. The first part of this guide is for those who want to know what to do before overclocking.

Where do I start?
Ryzen Overclocking Guide Systems

CPU: All Ryzen SKUs can overclock

Motherboard: You will need to use an X370 or B350 motherboard to overclock your CPU. A-series motherboards are designed to maintain standard reliability, so overclocking is locked on those motherboards. When looking for a motherboard to overclock with, the main limitation on the motherboard will be the VRM. Our reviews extensively cover motherboard VRM and we thermal test every motherboard, so look for our reviews.

DRAM: AMD and motherboard vendors have greatly improved DDR4 compatibility and speed potential, but we still recommend buying a kit off your motherboard's Qualified Vendors List (QVL). AMD's AGESA 1.0.0.6 code greatly increased DRAM overclocking potential, and increased maximum memory multiplier up to 40x, but so far most people are seeing 3200-3600Mhz as their limitation.

There are also many vendors that have memory certified for AMD Ryzen; I highly recommend those kits. Also, you can look at the memory we use in our Ryzen reviews, as that exact kit has been validated by AMD to work at the speed of the profile of the kit. Dual-rank modules are harder to find these days, but if you do come into possession of them don't expect overclocks similar to single rank kits. Single rank kits overclock much easier. Dual rank kits are typically double-sided modules.

Cooler: High-end air coolers or all-in-one watercoolers are recommended. The maximum frequency of your CPU will probably be 4.1GHz, and the way voltage scales on the platform means that increasing cooling to crazy levels probably won't get you up to 4.1GHz. That means that even mid-range air coolers are good enough for most Ryzen overclocking.

PSU: I would leave about 150-200W aside for a nice overclock on an Ryzen 7 1800X.

You enter the BIOS/UEFI by hitting delete or F2 (on most boards) during boot up. For most boards you have basic and advanced modes, I always skip to the advanced mode and tend to navigate with the keyboard. To enter a setting you either type (or delete and then type), use +/- keys, or you click and scroll. Then you have to "Save & Exit" the BIOS/UEFI for the settings to apply.

CPU Multiplier
Every brand with an AM4 motherboard is included in all of our images of settings to alter. We have done this to include all overclockers.

Some motherboards require you to choose a mode on how to overclock. ASRock might also include CPU Voltage in multiple areas; you should only need to change it in one place. ASUS allows you to choose to overclock with D.O.C.P/XMP mode, which is how we do it on their motherboards. It automatically takes up your RAM to its profile settings and then allows you to set CPU ratio. On Biostar motherboards at the time we tested, you could not easily input a multiplier. Instead, you had to rely on core FID and DID values, and Core VID could be used to change the VCore.

On the Biostar motherboard you can increase FID and leave DID at 8, and you will see the greyed out frequency increase or decrease based on what you do. On the GIGABYTE board you see above we just change CPU clock ratio. MSI has a normal and expert mode, we just use expert mode, but you can also use normal. Remember you can change the multiplier in 0.25x increments so that you can increase CPU frequency in 25Mhz steps. Default voltage when you overclock should be 1.3625v, and you can change it, but on many motherboards I just use the 1.35v that comes with default VID. Coincidentally my nice 1800X likes 1.35v for 4GHz.

There two ways you might be able to increase your overclock if you reach a thermal or another limit. You can disable Simultaneous Multi-Threading (SMT) which will remove the two threads per core feature of the CPU. So if you disable SMT on a 1800x (8 cores 16 threads), you will get only eight cores with eight threads. You can also turn off cores, and that can be done through Downcore Control. The good news here is that all motherboard vendors have decided to call these settings the same thing.

Some motherboards allow users to access AMD's CBS menu. Inside the menu, the settings are standardized as this is part of AMD's core part of the UEFI. If you navigate to AMD CBSZen Common OptionsCustom Core Pstates and you accept the warning, you can actually change individual core P states and FID, DID, and VID. You can see the resulting frequency and voltage. I believe that VID is in hexadecimal. I wouldn't overclock through this menu, but there has been a lot of discussions online about it.

The main voltage you need to change to overclock the CPU is the CPU Core voltage; most vendors call this VCore. Don't set this over 1.45v for 24/7 use, although cooling the CPU at that high of a voltage is pretty though. I like to stay below 1.4v. By default the CPU VCore should go to 1.3625 when you overclock, you might want to change the voltage manually, so you aren't over or undervolting the CPU. You also can change the CPU SoC voltage, and that should increase memory overclocking potential. Default SoC voltage is 0.99v, and AMD recommends no more than 1.2v. There are also other voltages you might need to change, for instance on most motherboards you need to increase DRAM voltage to what your sticks want.

Depending on your motherboard you might also have VRM/PWM settings that control the external VRM's PWM controller. These settings can be used to stabilize a fluctuating voltage and increase power limits. Load Line Calibration (LLC) is used to stabilize fluctuating voltage, switching frequency determines the aggressiveness of the VRM (higher is more aggressive but less efficient), and over current and voltage protects can be increased to maximize output. You typically don't need to touch any of these settings other than LLC. CPU SoC LLC is called VAXG on GIGABYTE boards and NB on MSI motherboards.

Some motherboards might have a more basic VRM, and on those motherboards, you might not have the ability to set the whole voltage and instead just an offset. The offset is an amount added to the base voltage of the CPU, so that should be between 1.35 and 1.3625 when you change the CPU multiplier. The SoC should be 0.99v by default so your offset can be added to that.

Power Saving Settings

Most motherboard vendors have decided to call AMD's advanced CPU features the same thing. So AMD's Cool'n'Quiet can be disabled if you want to disable the CPU's low-power c-states and you can disable C6 as well if you want. On Intel platforms, many users disable virtualization to help increase stability (I tend not to bother), and on AMD SVM is virtualization.

Vendors have taken it upon themselves to make up their own memory profile names. XMP (ASRock/GIGABYTE), D.O.C.P., and A-XMP are all the same thing. They enable a profile built in the memory module to automatically overclock it. It's a good idea on all motherboards to manually set DRAM voltage, and sometimes you need to set the DRAM voltage for each channel. DRAM voltage, frequency, and primary timings can be found on the DRAM module's sticker.

While AGESA 1.0.0.6 brought on a ton of more timings, many users might not understand the complexity of those timings and might just opt to change primary timings you see above. On some motherboards memory profiles might not work, in that case, you need to manually set your memory frequency and primary timings.

If you want to tweak the new timings and other features like gear-down mode, you can read AMD's block post found here. There is also a DDR4 PHY voltage, I see it more often on Thread Ripper motherboards, it's called CLDO_VDDP, and AMD states this voltage can solve some memory frequency holes. It's an offset voltage you can take up and down (both can be useful). It should be configured to DIMM voltage -0.1v, but you aren't to exceed 1.05v offset on this.

Stability Testing

I prefer running lighter (HandBrake) and more obsolete (IntelBurnTest, IBT) stress tests for quick testing to see how stable the CPU is while making one tweak after another. However, just running these types of tests and passing doesn't mean your CPU is 24/7 stable. Memtest is one of the most popular tests for testing memory stability. From my experience, if you can pass Handbrake encoding with a large 4K video or IBT, you aren't far off from your voltage required for 24/7 stability, but just running something like HandBrake or IBT isn't enough to say your CPU is totally stable. I like Handbrake for quick testing because it spits out a performance figure in FPS in its log and you can see throttling with that number, and it is a real-world test and uses AVX. However, AVX is not a huge issue for Ryzen CPUs because they don't have large dedicated AVX units built into them. I like Intel Burn Test because it does get your CPU very hot and if your system is very unstable it will freeze, but if it is mid-stable, it will error out while HandBrake will just skip to the end of the queue.

Some users will just go to the strong stress testers like Prime95, and run it for a day or two. I mainly use three stability testing programs; HandBrake encoding of a 4K video (very quick but shows performance and uses AVX), Intel Burn Test with a decent chunk of memory usage (has AVX and can be run however long you like), and Prime95 blend one day and small FFTs for another (latest version with AVX). Prime95 has a few different tests you can run. The default test is a blend test, which tests most everything, but isn't going to demolish CPU core instabilities as Small FFTs would. AIDA64 also has a built-in test, and you can choose what you test (core, FPU, etc.) but I would increase the amount of RAM used in that test as the default value is a bit low. AIDA64 is considered a "safe" test by many, as it's not designed to beat your CPU up, but many believe you can't become a man until you get a really good beating. Over time, it's possible for certain stress testing programs to do better than others, and the best place to find this information is in the stress testing threads on overclocking forums.

When you stress test, it's also a great idea to keep a monitoring program up and running. I like HWinfo, as it monitors a ton of metrics and is often updated. I wouldn't keep up multiple monitoring programs. That means I highly recommend using a program like HWinfo and disabling or uninstalling any other software like motherboard monitoring software. It's also a good idea to not have a CPUz tab up either, as it polls the CPU a lot and HWinfo already reports on CPU speed. You might also want to set your Windows Power Plan to high-performance. Overall, in the end, some people recommend up to 2 days of stress testing to ensure your system is totally stable. The only thing to keep in mind in the long term is that any overclocking and hardcore stress testing can negatively impact the lifespan of your components, but overclocking is fun and can increase performance with ease."

 

I'd say that is about right for what to expect from at least the TR series. I would have liked to have seen more but TBH at 16 cores 4.0 GHZ is a lot of computing power.

 

https://www.pcgamesn.com/globalfoundries-intel-7nm-10nm