Now that AMD has released its first 7nm Ryzen 3rd Generation processors, what will the future look like for Threadripper 3rd Generation – its next line of HEDT processors?
The new Zen 2 architecture was revealed at CES 2019, with AMD promising dramatically improved efficiency and performance, thanks to the new 7nm manufacturing process.
This is the architecture behind the latest Ryzen processors like the AMD Ryzen 9 3900X, and sees performance jump up dramatically, thanks to a 15% boost to IPC (instructions per clock). In fact, a mysterious Threadripper 3rd Generation chip recently appeared, boasting an incredible performance. More leaks about the AMD Ryzen Threadripper 3000 series have also emerged to suggest that the new range of CPUs will be using new chipsets and set to launch in 2019.
This is definitely exciting information if you’re looking to upgrade to a new Ryzen chip, but we’re interested in Threadripper 3rd Generation here. But, if this same jump in performance can appear in the next Threadripper processors, we could see some of the best CPUs for creative work yet.
Still, AMD has yet to officially announce when we'll actually see these processors, much less how powerful they'll actually be. However, that doesn't mean we don't have anything to go off of – we've used our tech expertise to gather up all the Threadripper 3rd Generation rumors and speculation in one spot. So, be sure to keep this page bookmarked, and we'll keep it updated with all the latest Threadripper news.
Cut to the chase
- What is it? AMD’s next line of HEDT processors
- When is it out? Likely late 2019
- What will it cost? TBD
Image Credit: TechRadar
AMD Ryzen Threadripper 3rd Generation release date
AMD CEO Lisa Su took to the stage at the Hot Chips conference and promised that we’d get more information about the third generation of Threadripper processors “soon”, later clarifying that we’ll hear more later this year. However, AMD hasn’t actually come out and announced the release date for the next Threadripper chips.
Still, the last two generations have had pretty consistent release dates, so we have a solid basis for speculation. Both the original Threadripper and Threadripper 2nd Generation launched in August of 2017 and 2018, respectively. We’re fairly sure that AMD is going to follow the same general release schedule this time around, but, obviously we don’t know that for sure.
The Zen 2 architecture launched with Ryzen 3rd Generation in July 2019, however we still don't know when we'll see this architecture enter the HEDT market.
For a while there, it looked like we may have to wait until 2020 to even see these processors. AMD’s next-gen HEDT chips have dropped off of Team Red’s roadmap entirely, so we might be waiting quite a while to get our hands on them. This isn’t the most concrete of rumors, but it’s better to be prepared for the worst.
We’ll update this article as soon as we hear more substantial rumors about the release date.
Image Credit: TechRadar
AMD Ryzen Threadripper 3rd Generation price
As we’re ahead of AMD Ryzen Threadripper 3rd Generation’s launch, we don’t have any official pricing information, but we can look at past generations to get an idea of what AMD’s next HEDT chips will cost.
The original lineup of Threadripper topped out with the $ 999 (£999, AU$ 1,439) AMD Ryzen Threadripper 1950X, but the second generation introduced surprisingly lower priced replacements. There were also two higher specced – and higher priced – additions. We believe Threadripper 3rd Generation will follow the latter model.
The prices of AMD Ryzen Threadripper 2nd Generation chips are as follows:
- Ryzen Threadripper 2990WX: $ 1,799 (£1,639, AU$ 2,679)
- Ryzen Threadripper 2970WX: $ 1,299 (£1,159, AU$ 2,039)
- Ryzen Threadripper 2950X: $ 899 (£809, AU$ 1,415)
- Ryzen Threadripper 2920X: $ 649 (£583, AU$ 1,019)
AMD could very well surprise us and introduce an even higher-end SKU, like it did with the Ryzen 9 3900X and 3950X, but we're not sure that will actually happen. Stay tuned, and we’ll update this page as soon as we hear any Threadripper 3rd Generation price information.
Image Credit: TechRadar
AMD Ryzen Threadripper 3rd Generation specs
With AMD Ryzen Threadripper 3rd Generation, we expect to see a huge bump in core counts, efficiency and per-core performance with Threadripper 3rd Generation. If you need a refresher on last year’s Threadripper lineup’s specs they’re as follows:
- Ryzen Threadripper 2920X: 12-cores, 24-threads, clocked at 3.5GHz to 4.3GHz
- Ryzen Threadripper 2950X: 16-cores, 32-threads, clocked at 3.5GHz to 4.4GHz
- Ryzen Threadripper 2970WX: 24-cores, 48-threads, clocked at 3.0GHz to 4.2GHz
- Ryzen Threadripper 2990WX: 32-cores, 64-threads, clocked at 3.0GHz to 4.2GHz
With its Ryzen 3rd Generation processors, the move to 7nm has massively improved specs, not only resulting in higher core counts, but boosted clock speeds, much higher cache and lower power consumption. So, we're sure that performance is going to be massively improved. You can just look at the recently-announced Epyc processors, also based on Zen 2, which feature up to 64-cores.
The AMD Ryzen 9 3950X, which will hit store shelves in September, features 16-cores, for instance, double that of the previous-generation Ryzen 7 2700X. And, when it comes to power consumption, just look at the Ryzen 7 3700X, which beats the Intel Core i9-9900K with a 65W TDP (thermal design power).
AMD Zen 2 processors feature up to 8-core chiplets that are smaller than the IO die. This means that Threadripper 3rd Generation should have many more cores in the same amount of space.
Right now, all the rumors are pointing to AMD Threadripper 3rd Generation processors having up to 32-cores and 64-threads. That's the same amount of cores and threads featured in the Threadripper 2990WX, but a leaked 3rd Generation Threadripper processor appeared that's 13% faster with the same amount of cores.
In addition, more leaks are suggesting that the new range of CPUs will be using new chipsets – TRX40, TRX80 and WRX80, which means you’ll need a new motherboard if these are accurate.
If AMD is able to bring higher core counts to Castle Peak HEDT processors, we could see AMD absolutely dominate Intel’s Basin Falls Refresh – and potentially the Cascade Lake-X family that’s rumored to follow it. And, if Intel can’t answer with anything but 14nm silicon, AMD might claim the HEDT throne just as it toppled Intel’s mainstream sales. This is especially true if Intel can’t get a smaller manufacturing process out before Zen 3 comes out and refines AMD’s 7nm process, likely in 2020.
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