As much as the title seems to be click bait this is what is happening in the world of CPUs. Provided of course you believe in rumours. Let’s analyse the core i9 news first.
According to a photo that originated on the AnandTech forums, the following specifications outline the upcoming Intel Core-i9 CPUs:
| CPU Name | Cores/Threads | Base Clock | Boost Clock |
|---|---|---|---|
| Core i9-7920X | 12 / 24 | N/A | N/A |
| Core i9-7900X | 10 / 20 | 3.3GHz | 4.3GHz Turbo 2.0 4.5GHz Turbo 3.0 |
| Core i9-7820X | 8 / 16 | 3.6GHz | 4.3GHz Turbo 2.0 4.5GHz Turbo 3.0 |
| Core i9-7800X | 6 / 12 | 3.5GHz | 4.0GHz |
The 7920X and 7900X models are said to feature 44 PCI-e lanes and a TDP of 160 watts, while the 7820X and 7800X will have 28 PCI-e lanes with a 140-watt TDP. All Core i9 processors will be based on the Skylake-X architecture, an evolution of the previous Broadwell-E.
The vanilla core i7 7700k and i5 7600k also get an upgrade in the forms of higher clock speeds with the new 7740k and 7640k. All these CPUs are excepted to be released during June at Computex. Interesting developments, over to you AMD.
AMD is rumoured to be readying a Ryzen 9 series comprised of at least nine different SKUs spanning 10-core, 12-core, 14-core, and 16-core processor options, each one with quad-channel DDR4 memory support.
As it stands now AMD will have 2 12 core 24 thread CPUs ready to fight the 7920X when it launches. There will be two 10-core parts with 20 threads, including the Ryzen 9 1955 clocked at 3.1GHz (base) to 3.7GHz (boost) and Ryzen 9 1955x clocked at 3.6GHz to 4GHz. Both will have a max TPD of 125W.
But AMD is not done, their 155W TDP 1998 and 1998x Contains a massive 18 cores and 32 threads. The Thread Reaper codename is well founded it seems. AMD also has a 140 W TDP 14 core 1977x and 1977.
All of these processors are said to support 44 PCIe lanes. If that turns out to be true, it would be a big advantage for AMD, as Intel typically reserves the most PCIe lanes for only its top (and most expensive) enthusiasts SKUs. That is rumoured to again be the case with Intel’s forthcoming Core i9 lineup consisting of two SKUs supporting 44 PCIe lanes and two others supporting just 28 PCIe lanes.
