Smart Access Memory : How Does It Boost Ryzen 3000 Performance?
Smart Access Memory is AMD’s marketing term for their implementation of the PCI Express Resizable BAR (Base Address Registers) capability.
What does that mean exactly?
CPUs are traditionally limited to a 256 MB I/O memory address region for the GPU frame buffer. This of it as an “data dump” for stuff like textures, shaders and geometry.
Since this “data dump” is limited to 256 MB, the CPU can only send texture, shader and geometry data as and when the GPU requires them.
This introduces some latency – delay from when the GPU requires the data, and the CPU send them.
Turning on Resizable BAR or Smart Access Memory greatly expands the size of that data dump, letting the CPU directly access the GPU’s entire frame buffer memory.
Instead of transferring data when requested by the GPU, the CPU processes and stores the data directly in the graphics memory.
Graphics assets can be transferred to graphics memory in full, instead of in pieces. In addition, multiple transfers can occur simultaneously, instead of being queued up.
While this AMD graphic above suggests that Smart Access Memory will widen the memory path (and thus memory bandwidth) between the CPU and GPU, that is not true.
Smart Access Memory / Resizable BAR will not increase memory bandwidth.
What it does is let the CPU directly access the entire GPU frame buffer memory, instead of using the usual 256 MB “dump”. That reduces latency because the graphics assets are now accessible by the GPU at all times.
Smart Access Memory For Ryzen 3000 : Requirements
This is what you currently require to enable AMD Smart Access Memory for Ryzen 3000 desktop processors :
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Note that the actual Ryzen 3rd Gen price in the US will vary, once sales taxes (between 0% and 12.875%) are factored in.
Our Advice On Buying The Ryzen 3rd Gen In The US
The AMD Ryzen 9 3900X appears to be a surprise hit. Due to overwhelming demand and extremely limited stocks, it is currently marked-up by a shocking 70% to $849.
The Ryzen 7 3800X and Ryzen 7 3700X are also selling at marked-up prices of $484.99 and $399.99 respectively due to high demand.
The good news is you can still buy the Ryzen 5 3600X and Ryzen 5 3600 at their SRP, or even at a slight discount – $239 and $199.99 respectively.
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Our advice? Skip the Ryzen 9 3900X, Ryzen 7 3800X and Ryzen 7 3700X for the moment. They are ridiculously overpriced.
If you must buy a Ryzen 7 processor, consider getting these Ryzen 2nd Gen bargains instead!
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When AMD launched the Ryzen 5 2400G and Ryzen 3 2200G desktop APUs, they also announced price cuts for their existing Threadripper, Ryzen 7, Ryzen 5 and Ryzen 3 processors. In June 2018, they announced even lower prices. Check out the AMD Ryzen price cut details below!
Updated @ 2018-06-20 :Added the new AMD Ryzen price cut list, after the abolition of the 6% GST.
Updated @ 2018-03-23 :Added the AMD Ryzen price cut list in the US, and a comparison of that price list against the price cuts in Malaysia.
Originally posted @ 2018-02-13
The 2018 AMD Ryzen Price Cut Details
The original Ryzen price cut list was sparse, so we added prices in USD (after conversion), the price difference, and even the prices of the new Ryzen 5 2400G and Ryzen 3 2200G desktop APUs.
In the latest version, we added the new Ryzen price list after the abolition of the 6% GST.We also added the 2nd Gen Ryzen processor prices. Some have called this a price cut, but it’s not. The prices are just lower because there’s no longer a 6% tax,
The 2018 AMD Ryzen price cut list showed price cuts across every Ryzen model. The biggest discount was a massive RM 900 / ~$228 discount on the AMD Ryzen 7 1800X. The least was a paltry RM 20 / ~$5 discount on the AMD Ryzen 3 1300X.
If you read our AMD Ryzen 3 2200G Review, you may have noticed that it is supposed to be $10 / ~RM 39 cheaper than the Ryzen 3 1200. Yet, AMD is pricing it ABOVE the Ryzen 3 1200 here in Malaysia.
Unfortunately, there was no further price cuts after the launch of the 2nd Gen Ryzen processors.
The 2018 AMD Ryzen Price Cut In The US
Here was the AMD Ryzen price cut list announced for the United States. If you compare how the Ryzen price cut list in Malaysia compares to the Ryzen price cut list in the US, you can see some differences.
Also, AMD positioned (and priced) the Ryzen 3 1300X CPU above Ryzen 3 2200G in the US, while the opposite is true in Malaysia. On the other hand, the Ryzen 5 2400G is slightly more expensive than the Ryzen 5 1400 CPU in Malaysia.
The latest June 2018 AMD Ryzen price list also show that the Ryzen 5 1400 and Ryzen 3 1200 have not been phased out. They were supposed to be replaced by the Ryzen 5 2400G and Ryzen 3 2200G desktop APUs. But it looks like, AMD will continue to sell them, alongside the new Ryzen desktop APUs.
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AMD launched the Ryzen 7 processors in March 2017. Just over a year later, they finally launched the 2nd Gen Ryzen desktop processors, codenamed Pinnacle Ridge, and popularly known as Ryzen 2.
Here is everything you need to know about 2nd Gen Ryzen processors – key features, specifications, price and performance! As always, we will keep updating the article when new information comes to light.
Colloquially known as Ryzen 2, the 2nd Gen Ryzen desktop processors promise even to deliver even better price-performance value than their award-winning Ryzen brethren. But calling the actual models Ryzen 2 is confusing, because the Ryzen family is split into three numerically-named lines – Ryzen 7, Ryzen 5 and Ryzen 3.
Officially, they should be known as the 2nd Gen Ryzen processors, or the AMD Ryzen 2000 Series, like so :
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AMD Ryzen 7 2000 Series
AMD Ryzen 5 2000 Series
AMD Ryzen 3 2000 Series
Even so, many people still insist on calling them the Ryzen 2 processors…
AMD Raven Ridge
The first AMD Ryzen 2 processors already hit the market on 12 February 2018. The AMD Ryzen 2000G Series, codenamed Raven Ridge, is considered to be part of the Ryzen 2000 series, even though they are based on the original Zen microarchitecture.
They are Accelerated Processing Units (APUs) – essentially Ryzen CPUs with integrated Vega graphics. You can read more about them in our articles :
The true 2nd Gen Ryzen desktop processors are codenamed Pinnacle Ridge. They are based on the Zen+ microarchitecture, and fabricated using the 12LP process technology. Here are the first four 2nd Gen Ryzen processors :
Existing AMD 300-series motherboards will support the new 2nd Gen Ryzen “Pinnacle Ridge” processors with a BIOS update, which should be available starting March 2018.
The AMD Ryzen 2000 Series Stack
According to the current AMD Ryzen 2000 Series Stack, the AMD Ryzen 7 2700X replaces both the Ryzen 7 1700X and Ryzen 7 1800X.
2nd Gen Ryzen @ Ryzen 2 Specifications
Here are the specifications of the six AMD Ryzen 2000 series processors – four 2nd Gen Ryzen “Pinnacle Ridge” processors, and two Raven Ridge APUs.
Specifications
Ryzen 7 2700X
Ryzen 7 2700
Ryzen 5 2600X
Ryzen 5 2600
Ryzen 5 2400G
Ryzen 3 2200G
Code Name
Pinnacle Ridge
Pinnacle Ridge
Pinnacle Ridge
Pinnacle Ridge
Raven Ridge
Raven Ridge
Socket
AM4
AM4
AM4
AM4
AM4
AM4
Process Technology
12 nm FinFET
12 nm FinFET
12 nm FinFET
12 nm FinFET
14 nm FinFET
14 nm FinFET
Cores / Threads
8 / 16
8 / 16
6 / 12
6 / 12
4 / 8
4 / 4
Base Clock
3.7 GHz
3.2 GHz
3.6 GHz
3.4 GHz
3.60 GHz
3.50 GHz
Boost Clock
4.3 GHz
4.1 GHz
4.2 GHz
3.9 GHz
3.90 GHz
3.70 GHz
L2 Cache
4 MB
4 MB
3 MB
3 MB
2 MB
2 MB
L3 Cache
16 MB
16 MB
16 MB
16 MB
4 MB
4 MB
Integrated GPU
None
None
None
None
Radeon RX Vega 11
Radeon Vega 8
PCIe Lanes
16
16
16
16
8
8
Max. DDR4 Speed
DDR4-2933
DDR4-2933
DDR4-2933
DDR4-2933
DDR4-2933
DDR4-2933
TDP
105 W
65 W
95 W
65 W
65 W
65 W
Bundled Cooler
Wraith Prism
Wraith Spire (LED)
Wraith Spire
Wraith Stealth
Wraith Stealth
Wraith Stealth
Launch Price
US$ 329
US$ 299
US$ 229
US$ 199
US$ 169
US$ 99
2nd Gen Ryzen Price & Availability
The 2nd Gen Ryzen @ Ryzen 2 processors are available for sale beginning 19 April 2018, at the following price points :
Will the first generation Ryzen (Summit Ridge) processors get a price cut when the 2nd Gen Ryzen begins shipping? Find out in our article – Cheaper Ryzen CPUs When Ryzen 2 Launches?
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2nd Gen Ryzen @ Ryzen 2 Key Features Part 1
The AMD Ryzen 2 processors are based on an improved Zen microarchitecture, what AMD calls the Zen+ microarchitecture. Let’s take a closer look at what’s new with the 2nd Gen Ryzen processors!
2nd Gen Ryzen @ Ryzen 2 Tech Briefings
This time, we have not one, but TWO, tech briefings on the 2nd Gen Ryzen processors. This one was recorded at the March preview event in Bangkok, featuring Kevin Lensing (AMD Corporate Vice President and General Manager, Client Business Unit) and James Prior (AMD Senior Product Manager).
And here is an online tech briefing by Robert Hallock, AMD Head of Global Technical Marketing.
AMD Zen+ Microarchitecture
The 2nd Gen Ryzen processors are based on the improved AMD Zen+ microarchitecture, which delivers slightly better performance, with lower cache and memory latencies :
3% more 1T IPC (instructions per second)
13% lower L1 cache latency
34% lower L2 cache latency
16% lower L3 cache latency
11% lower memory latency
Official support for JEDEC DDR4-2933
12LP Process Technology
The 2nd Gen Ryzen processors are fabricated using the 12LP (12 nm Leading Performance) process technology from GlobalFoundries.
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This is really a 14 nm process, with improvements and a tighter pitch, so the die size and transistor count remain the same. However, the improved process allows for these improvements :
top clock speed increased by 250 MHz
“all core” now overclock around 4.2 GHz
CPU voltage is reduced by about 50 mV at all clock speeds
up to 11% lower power consumption, compared to 14 nm
up to 16% better performance per watt, compared to 14 nm
Precision Boost 2
Precision Boost 2 is one of the biggest improvements in AMD SenseMI. It replaces the old 2-core boost model, with a linear boost model. This allows for much greater performance for games and applications that use more than 2 cores.
Precision Boost Overdrive
James Prior revealed that AMD will introduce a feature called Precision Boost Overdrive in the future. The motherboard will be able to communicate its actual capabilities to the 2nd Gen Ryzen processor, allowing for better boost profiles and a relaxed vcore limiter with better motherboards.
Extended Frequency Range 2 (XFR 2)
XFR 2 boosts the 2nd Gen Ryzen processor’s performance by 4-7%, depending on the performance of the installed CPU cooler.
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2nd Gen Ryzen @ Ryzen 2 Key Features Part 2
Soldered IHS
All 2nd Gen Ryzen processors will feature soldered heatspreaders, using premium indium alloy solder. This allows die temperatures to be reduced by 10°C.
Multiplier Unlocked
Like its predecessor, the 2nd Gen Ryzen processors are all multiplier unlocked, so you have full flexibility in overclocking them. Fun fact : The entry-level A320 chipset, which doesn’t allow CPU overclocking, will still allow you to overclock the DDR4 memory.
New Wraith Prism Cooler
The AMD Ryzen 7 2700X (Price Check) now comes with the new Wraith Prism cooler, which is basically the Wraith Max with a “swirling vortex of colour“. The heatsink fin profile was reshaped to allow for better compatibility with smaller motherboards.
The heatsink was also improved with direct contact heat pipes. The fan is also quieter at just 37 dBA, although there is a switch that allows the fan to be overclocked.
AMD 400-Series Chipsets
AMD announced the AMD X470 chipset to complement the new 2nd Gen Ryzen processors. Eventually, they will also release the B450 chipset in mid-2018. However, this does not mean you need to pair the 2nd Gen Ryzen processors with an AMD X470 motherboard.
The 2nd Gen Ryzen processors are drop-in compatible with AMD 300-Series motherboards, with one caveat – they must have an updated BIOS. To help you with that, motherboards that have the updated BIOS will come with an AMD Ryzen Desktop 2000 Ready sticker.
The AMD X470 is very similar to the previous-generation X370 chipset. It is an evolutionary upgrade that improves idle power draw, and introduces an improved power infrastructure to help 2nd Gen Ryzen processors achieve higher boost speeds.
The AMD 400-Series chipsets boast better memory routing, better VRM and power layouts, and a lower idle power of less than 2 watts. While the 2nd Gen Ryzen processors will run on the existing AMD 300-series motherboards, an AMD 400-Series motherboard will allow for better overclocking, and a free AMD StoreMI licence.
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AMD StoreMI Technology
AMD StoreMI is an OEM version of the Enmotus FuzeDrive Basic. It combines all of your storage drives into a single virtual storage drive. It can even add up to 2 GB of DDR4 memory as a very fast cache to the combined drive.
The software than automatically assigns frequently used data blocks to the fastest storage devices, optimising your storage devices to deliver the best performance possible. This allows you to leverage your much faster SSD and system memory to boost the performance of your HDD drives.
According to AMD’s tests, StoreMI will let you load your games faster by 2.8X, and applications by 9.8X.
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2nd Gen Ryzen @ Ryzen 2 Demos
We had an early preview of the 2nd Gen Ryzen processors in Bangkok. Here are videos of the previews and demos :
First Look At The AMD Ryzen 7 2700X
This was our first look at the AMD Ryzen 7 2700X (Price Check). AMD ran it on the ASUS ROG Crosshair VII Hero (WIFI) motherboard, with G.SKILL Sniper X DDR4 memory. It was also our first look at the new AMD Wraith Prism cooler, with its RGB LED ring, and illuminated fan blades.
Extreme overclocker Sami Mäkinen from AMD’s Technical Marketing team showed us how to overclock the 2nd Gen Ryzen processor using the new AMD Ryzen Master 1.3 utility.
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The AMD Ryzen 7 2700X Up Close!
The AMD Ryzen 7 2700X (Price Check) processor is the top-of-the-line Ryzen 7 model. It has eight Ryzen processor cores, with a 3.7 GHz base clock, and a 4.3 GHz boost clock. It supports SMT (simultaneous multi-threading), and can therefore handle 16 threads simultaneously.
The AMD Ryzen 5 2600X (Price Check) processor is the top-of-the-line Ryzen 5 model. It has six Ryzen processor cores, with a 3.6 GHz base clock, and a 4.2 GHz boost clock. It supports SMT (simultaneous multi-threading), and can therefore handle 12 threads simultaneously.
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A detailed performance analysis of the AMD Ryzen 7 2700X and Ryzen 5 2600 processors was leaked before the launch. It compared their performance against the Ryzen 7 1700X and Intel Core i7-6700K processors. For your convenience, here are the leaked performance charts :
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The Complete 2nd Gen Ryzen @ Ryzen 2 Presentation Slides
Here are the fifty (50) 2nd Gen Ryzen @ Ryzen 2 presentation slides for your perusal!
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On 27 March 2017, AMD organised an exclusive 2nd Gen Ryzen tech briefing and demo session in Bangkok. Space was extremely limited, so we are most fortunate to attend.
Don’t worry though – we recorded everything, so you can see for yourselves what went on during the 2nd Gen Ryzen tech briefing and demo in Bangkok! ENJOY!
Codenamed Pinnacle Ridge, the 2nd Gen Ryzen processors were more popularly (albeit inaccurately) called Ryzen 2. We had earlier shared with you the key features and specifications of the 2nd Gen Ryzen processors, as well as a price comparison.
Now, let’s join Kevin Lensing (AMD Corporate Vice President and General Manager, Client Business Unit) and James Prior (AMD Senior Product Manager) for their 2nd Gen Ryzen tech briefing.
The entire 2nd Gen Ryzen tech briefing runs just over an hour, including the Q&A session. If you are in a rush, here are the key points.
For a price comparison against the first-generation Ryzen processors, click here!
Performance Vs. Coffee Lake
The AMD Ryzen 7 2700X will come within 5% of the Intel Core i7-8700K in 1080p gaming performance (average of 12 games), while delivering over 20% better content creation performance (average of 5 applications).
Value Vs. Coffee Lake
The AMD Ryzen 7 2700X comes with two additional processor cores, a premium Wraith Prism cooler, but is priced 6% cheaper than the Intel Core i7-8700K.
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The 2nd Gen Ryzen Tech Briefing (Continued)
AMD Zen+ Microarchitecture
The 2nd Gen Ryzen processors are based on the improved AMD Zen+ microarchitecture, which delivers slightly better performance, and lower cache and memory latencies :
3% more 1T IPC (instructions per second)
13% lower L1 cache latency
34% lower L2 cache latency
16% lower L3 cache latency
11% lower memory latency
Official support for JEDEC DDR4-2933
12 nm Process Technology
The 2nd Gen Ryzen processors are fabricated using the 12 nm LP (Leading Performance) process technology from GlobalFoundries. While the die size and transistor count remain the same, the smaller transistors allow :
top clock speeds increased by 250 MHz,
“all core” now overclock around 4.2 GHz
CPU voltage is reduced by about 50 mV at all clock speeds
Precision Boost 2
Precision Boost 2 is one of the biggest improvements in AMD SenseMI. It replaces the old 2-core boost model, with a linear boost model. This allows for much greater performance for games and applications that use more than 2 cores.
Precision Boost Overdrive
James Prior revealed that they will introduce Precision Boost Overdrive in the future. The motherboard will be able to communicate its actual capabilities to the 2nd Gen Ryzen processor, allowing for better boost profiles and a relaxed vcore limiter with better motherboards.
Extended Frequency Range 2 (XFR 2)
XFR 2 boosts the 2nd Gen Ryzen processor’s performance by 4-7%, depending on the performance of the installed CPU cooler.
Soldered IHS
All 2nd Gen Ryzen processors will feature soldered heatspreaders, using premium indium alloy solder. This allows die temperatures to be reduced by 10°C.
Multiplier Unlocked
Like its predecessor, the 2nd Gen Ryzen processors are all multiplier unlocked, so you have full flexibility in overclocking them. Fun fact : The entry-level A320 chipset, which doesn’t allow CPU overclocking, will still allow you to overclock the DDR4 memory.
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New Wraith Prism Cooler
The AMD Ryzen 7 2700X now comes with the new Wraith Prism cooler, which is basically the Wraith Max with a “swirling vortex of colour“. The heatsink fin profile was reshaped to allow for better compatibility with smaller motherboards.
The heatsink was also improved with direct contact heat pipes. The fan is also quieter at just 37 dBA, although there is a switch that allows the fan to be overclocked.
Ryzen 2000 Series Stack
According to the current AMD Ryzen 2000 Series Stack, the AMD Ryzen 7 2700X replaces both the Ryzen 7 1700X and Ryzen 7 1800X.
AMD X470
AMD X470 is very similar to the previous-generation X370 chipset. It is an evolutionary upgrade that improves idle power draw, and introduces an improved power infrastructure to help 2nd Gen Ryzen processors achieve higher boost speeds. X470 motherboards will also come with AMD StoreMI Technology.
AMD StoreMI Technology
AMD StoreMI is an OEM version of the Enmotus FuzeDrive Basic. It combines all of your storage drives into a single virtual storage drive. It can even add up to 2 GB of DDR4 memory as a very fast cache to the combined drive.
The software than automatically assigns frequently used data blocks to the fastest storage devices, optimising your storage devices to deliver the best performance possible.
If you like our work, you can help support our work by visiting our sponsors, participating in the Tech ARP Forums, or even donating to our fund. Any help you can render is greatly appreciated!
First Look At The AMD Ryzen 7 2700X
This was our first look at the AMD Ryzen 7 2700X (Price Check). AMD ran it on the ASUS ROG Crosshair VII Hero (WIFI) motherboard, with G.SKILL Sniper X DDR4 memory. It was also our first look at the new AMD Wraith Prism cooler, with its RGB LED ring, and illuminated fan blades.
Extreme overclocker Sami Mäkinen from AMD’s Technical Marketing team showed us how to overclock the 2nd Gen Ryzen processor using the new AMD Ryzen Master 1.3 utility.
If you like our work, you can help support our work by visiting our sponsors, participating in the Tech ARP Forums, or even donating to our fund. Any help you can render is greatly appreciated!
We had earlier leaked the specifications and benchmark results of the 2nd Gen Ryzen processors, codenamed Pinnacle Ridge. Now, we can reveal to you the official 2nd Gen Ryzen price list, and our price comparison with other AMD Ryzen CPUs!
2nd Gen Ryzen Price Comparison
AMD has officially announced that they will be launching four 2nd Gen Ryzen processors :
For your convenience, we prepared a table to compare the 2nd Gen Ryzen price lists, with the recently discounted prices for the existing AMD Ryzen processors.
As you can see, there are some differences in the 2nd Gen Ryzen price list for Malaysia, and the United States.
The AMD Ryzen 7 2700 costs the same as the Ryzen 7 1700 in the US, but in Malaysia, it is priced RM 30 (~US$ 12) or about 2% higher.
It appears that the AMD Ryzen 7 2700 will directly replace the Ryzen 7 1700 in the US, but both models will continued to exist side-by-side in Malaysia, at least initially.
You can also see that the positioning of the AMD Ryzen 3 2200G versus the Ryzen 3 1200 is different in the US, than it is in Malaysia.
2nd Gen Ryzen Availability
The 2nd Gen Ryzen processors will be available for purchase worldwide on 19 April 2018 (9 AM EDT).
Pre-orders for these new processors, though, will kick off today – 13 April 2018 (9 AM EDT). Here are some pre-order links for your convenience :
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