After a few years of waiting, the next generation AMD Enthusiast/Prosumer level of CPUs are finally here! These new processors are known as the Ryzen series, and will be available globally starting from tonight, 11pm (9am CT). We were told by by insiders that customers who preordered from the resellers in Sim Lim Square will be able to get their new processors starting from 4th or 5th of March.
That aside, having tested the AMD Ryzen 7 CPUs for a few days, the team at The Tech Revolutionist thought that it will be good to come out with a simple guide for your information before purchasing the new Ryzen 7 CPUs. Here are 5 things that you should know, before getting your hands on a shiny new AMD Ryzen 7 System.
1. New AM4 Socket – New CPU Cooler Mounting holes
With the AMD Ryzen series, AMD has also upgraded their CPU socket. Known as AM4, this new motherboard socket will only be compatible with the new Ryzen based CPUs and is not backwards compatible with previous AMD processor products. Additionally, AMD has also changed the configurations of the CPU cooler mounting holes on the motherboard. All previous AM3 CPU coolers will not be compatible with the newer AM4 motherboards. Some CPU cooler manufacturers have released compatibility kits and new adapters to adopt the new AM4 mounts. This means that you will likely be required to buy a new CPU cooler!
2. The AMD Ryzen 7 1700X and 1800X will not be bundled with any CPU Cooler
The Ryzen 7 1700X and 1800X will not come bundled with any CPU cooler and you will need to look out for a new AM4 compatible CPU cooler for the new build. As of now, we understand that such products are still limited in the market, and you may need to search online for the exact model and release date of the product (some newer shipments of CPU coolers comes with the additional AM4 brackets) to ensure compatibility. Luckily, some motherboard manufacturers such as ASUS, has also made their motherboard compatible with the AM3 CPU mounting kits, with additional AM3 mounting holes. You may want to look into the respective specifications of the motherboard of your choice to find out they have such a feature.
3. You will require a dedicated graphics card
The new Ryzen 7 series will not feature any integrated graphics processing unit. Therefore, there is a need to purchase an additional dedicated graphics card to have video output to a monitor. All motherboard for the new Ryzen processors will be compatible with both AMD Radeon and Nvidia graphics card. If you are intending to set up a multi-graphics card system, only the motherboard models with the X370 chipset will be compatible. It is also said that AMD will also release another chipset that targets Small Form Factor systems. This chipset will also support multi-GPU configurations.
4. You need DDR4 memory
Of course, it is expected that the AM4 systems will use the newer and faster DDR4 DRAM technology. However, as DDR4 memory is currently scarce in the market, prices have been increasing in recent months. It is likely that with the increase in demand of the DDR4 DRAM with the new AMD Ryzen platform, prices are likely to skyrocket. It is recommended that you purchase your DRAM early. According to sources, DRAM prices are expected to stabilize only later in the third quarter of the year.
5. There is only small differences between the Ryzen 7 1700, 1700X and 1800X
|
Country
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1800X
|
1700X
|
1700
|
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Singapore
|
S$818
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S$599
|
S$499
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Here are the SRP for the new Ryzen 7 processors. Which processor will actually be more worth it? In our opinion, definitely the 1700X.
Firstly, all three processors are designed with 8 physical compute cores, and off the shelves will already perform very well for all common computing workloads. This includes gaming, and most definitely multi-threaded applications. Secondly, AMD has also created their version of multi-threading technology for each compute core. This is called SMT (Simultaneous Multi-Threading). Essentially, with SMT, processes will be able to make better use of resources on the CPU, and thus increase the level of parallelism for increased performance across the board. This feature will benefit all of today’s commonly used multi-threaded applications. Technical talk aside, we would simply want to bring a point across that THE RYZEN 7 PROCESSORS ARE ALREADY VERY POWERFUL OUT OF THE BOX.
In fact, the three different models are all equipped with the same specifications, other than clock speeds. The 1700 runs at a slower 3.0GHz and has a boost speed to 3.7GHz. This allows the processor to be kept within a 65W TDP package, which means that the whole CPU will remain very cool and stable for both light and heavy workloads.
The 1700X on the other hand, has a 95W TDP, and has a much higher 3.4GHz base clock rate. It can boost to a speed of 3.8GHz and even higher, with XFR technology. The 1800X is essentially identical to the 1700X, but has a higher base clock and boost clock at 3.6 and 4.0GHz respectively.
If you are someone who knows how to do a little bit of overclocking, you can essentially get the performance of a 1800X with the 1700X. In fact, some motherboard will even do it for you. Is the $209 difference in price justified? We seriously don’t think so.
That sums up the different points that you need to know before your new purchase of the new Ryzen 7 systems! Feel free to contact us via Facebook if you need any clarifications or have any questions. We will be happy to help!
*Disclaimer: All information gathered are found publicly on the internet. Some information may not be accurate, until official sources confirm them after the NDA is lifted tomorrow.
Other Ryzen related topics that may interest you :
- Ryzen 7 1800X Temperatures – http://www.thetechrevolutionist.com/2017/03/does-amd-ryzen-7-1800x-run-hot-simple.html
- CPU Single Thread VS Multi Thread Performance Benchmark – http://www.thetechrevolutionist.com/2017/03/amd-ryzen-7-1800x-single-and-multi.html
- Ryzen 7 1800X Power Consumption – http://www.thetechrevolutionist.com/2017/03/how-much-electrical-power-does-amd.html
- Ryzen 7 1800X Overclocked to 4.12GHz – http://www.thetechrevolutionist.com/2017/03/ryzen-7-1800x-overclocked-to-412ghz-on.html
- Ryzen Official Press Release – http://www.thetechrevolutionist.com/2017/03/amd-ryzen-7-desktop-processors.html
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