A leak has allowed us to see the first image of the SP5 socket that will be used by AMD’s EPYC Genoa processors, a series that will be based on Zen 4 architecture and that it will mark a significant step forward from the current generation, based on Zen 3 and known as EPYC Milan, which has recently been updated with the Milan-X range, which uses 3D stacked L3 cache.
The SP5 socket is huge in size, and the retention system is quite bulky. This is perfectly understandable, as the EPYC Genoa processors are going to have a core and thread count that, in their most powerful configuration, is going to significantly exceed the current generation. To show a button, the most powerful EPYC Milan processor that exists today has 64 cores and 128 threads, while the most powerful EPYC Genoa processor that AMD will launch will have 96 cores and 192 threads.
The difference is staggering, and to pack that huge number of cores into a processor under the modular design that AMD uses it is necessary to concentrate 12 chiplets (8 cores per chiplet) on a large substrate, since all of them are distributed horizontally and not vertically. Also note the presence of the I/O chip, which collects the key interconnect elements of the system, including the memory controllers.
The EPYC Genoa processors will have more cores, and also a higher IPC thanks to the generational leap that the new Zen 4 architecture will represent. Nothing is official yet, but the first rumors speak of a “double digit” increase. This new generation will have 1 MB of L2 cache per core, 32 MB of L3 cache per chiplet, will support twelve-channel memory configurations (type DDR5 and at a frequency of up to 5,200 MHz) and will have a maximum TDP of 400 watts.
All EPYC Genoa processors will be manufactured on the 5nm node, and will be revised later under the Bergamo core, which will use the same socket and manufacturing process, but will increase the maximum number of cores and threads to 128 and 256, respectively. It is rumored that these processors could be the first to use the Zen 4c architecture, which would have a hybrid core configuration. This means that would be equipped with high-performance cores and high-efficiency coresbut it is not confirmed.
