Already quite soon, in October, Intel will introduce eight-core processors in the mass sector for the first time. And, apparently, AMD is already preparing a response for them in the form of a Ryzen 7 2800X processor. In any case, there was a photo on the web, which shows the result of testing this microprocessor in the Cinebench benchmark.
One would think that Ryzen 7 2800X is the most overclocked version of the current eight-core flagship Ryzen 7 2700X. But AMD microprocessors with Zen + architecture under Socket AM4 do not have enough frequency potential to match the future of the Intel Core i9-9900K on an equal footing, which will also have 8 cores and 16 streams, but the frequency will be able to reach 5.0 GHz. Therefore, AMD went to an alternative fence – increased the number of cores.
According to the data presented in the photo, the Ryzen 7 2800X processor has 10 physical cores and 20 computational flows. The clock frequency for this is 4.0 GHz. In the multi-threaded test Cinebench R15, the new AMD could score 2130 points. To compare, according to leaks, the microprocessor Core i9-9900K managed to achieve a result of 2212 points, which is justified by a much higher frequency. However, it is worth considering that it is most likely the results of engineering designs, and the final versions of both processors should be able to provide even more characteristics.
But how exactly did AMD manage to add two more cores to eight of them? On the mind come two options: either a completely new crystal was created, or a bundle of two actual eight-core Pinnacle Ridge crystals was used. The first option looks unlikely because creating a new crystal with the Zen + architecture is simply not practical. In fact, the increase in the number of nuclei on the chip should be expected only next year with the architecture of Zen 2 and the transition to a 7-nm process technology.
The use of two crystals of the Pinnacle Ridge generation looks slightly more believable because similar bundles have already been tested in Ryzen Threadripper microprocessors. But here there are some nuances. In each of the crystals, there should be a monotonous number of active cores, in other words in this case by 5. But before that time, AMD did not use an odd number of active cores on Zen or Zen + crystals, because it is more convenient to turn off the nuclei in pairs. It is these technical features that raise huge doubts about the reliability of this leak.