Tag Archives: Computer hardware

MSI Users At Risk Of Rogue BIOS / Firmware Updates!

MSI users are at risk of rogue BIOS / firmware updates, after hackers got hold of its source codes, private keys and BIOS firmware!

 

MSI Hit By Ransomware Attack + Data Theft!

On 7 April 2023, MSI (Micro-Star International) was hit by a ransomware attack, in which the hackers allegedly exfiltrated 1.5 terabytes of source codes, BIOS firmware, private keys and other data from its servers.

In its terse regulatory filing with the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE), MSI admitted that it was hacked, but did not detail the circumstances or nature of the attack.

After detecting some information systems being attacked by hackers,MSI’s IT department has initiated information security defense mechanism and recovery procedures. The Company also has been reported the anomaly to the relevant government authorities.

MSI claimed that the attack had “[no] significant impact our business in terms of financial and operational currently“, but said that it was “enhancing the information security control measures of its network and infrastructure to ensure data security.

In a public statement, MSI also urged users to only obtain firmware / BIOS updates from its official website, and refrain from using other sources.

Read more : MSI Hit By $4 Million Ransomware Attack + Data Theft!

 

Stolen Data Exposes MSI Users To Rogue BIOS / Firmware Updates!

The MSI ransomware attack and data theft appear to be committed by the Money Message ransomware gang, which has threatened to release the 1.5 terabytes of critical data that it exfiltrated from MSI servers.

While MSI has apparently restored files encrypted by the ransomware, exposure of the private keys and source codes, will likely allow Money Message or other threat actors to develop rogue BIOS or firmware updates.

Installing rogue BIOS / firmware updates will give the malware the access level of a super-low-level rootkit, giving it full control over your computer, with the ability to spy on almost everything you do. Such malware will also be extremely difficult to detect and remove. After all, it boots up before the operating system!

These days, rogue BIOS or firmware updates are much less of a problem because they are usually digitally-signed by the vendor, MSI in this case. Even if threat actors distribute Trojanised downloads for MSI users, they cannot create the right digital signatures for those files.

However, now that MSI’s private keys have been stolen, they can be used to create rogue BIOS or firmware updates with authentic digital signatures! MSI users downloading and installing those updates will never know the difference.

Recommended : Can Approve New Participant block WhatsApp hackers?!

The biggest risk right now is with PC hardware enthusiasts who enjoy installing unofficial firmware updates to gain access to special settings. That is precisely why MSI is urging its users to only download files from its official website.

Of course, this assumes that the MSI download servers are secure, and have not been compromised. If the threat actors have access to the MSI download servers, they can insert Trojanised downloads with proper signatures, and MSI system administrators may be none the wiser!

Let’s hope that this incident forces MSI to take a much closer look at its cybersecurity measures, and run penetration tests to ensure that its download servers are secure. Otherwise, some threat actors will likely hit pay dirt with MSI users!

 

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Dr. Adrian Wong has been writing about tech and science since 1997, even publishing a book with Prentice Hall called Breaking Through The BIOS Barrier (ISBN 978-0131455368) while in medical school.

He continues to devote countless hours every day writing about tech, medicine and science, in his pursuit of facts in a post-truth world.

 

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Shocking Reason Why ASUS Z690 Motherboards Are Melting!

ASUS Z690 Hero owners are FUMING because their motherboards are MELTING, SMOKING and CATCHING ON FIRE!

Take a look at the SHOCKING REASON why these premium motherboards are literally melting down…

 

ASUS ROG Maximus Z690 Hero : Potential Fire Hazard?!

ASUS ROG Maximus Z690 Hero owners are complaining on social media, and in the ASUS Support Forum, that their premium motherboards are literally burning up!

In fact, one user, TheMaxXHD, had two of his ASUS Z690 Hero motherboards die in just 3 days, with one actually catching on fire!

Late at night I am merely surfing the web and all of a sudden it hard shuts off again, and this time when I look over there I see a component on the motherboard literally on fire.

Other users reported hearing loud pops, and either smelling or seeing smoke wafting from their ASUS Z690 Hero motherboards, before shutting down.

Even users who were lucky not to experience a fire or melting components, reported that their ASUS Z690 Hero motherboards were unstable, rebooting on and off.

The motherboard’s Q Code display would also show Error Code 53, which refers to a memory error. However, replacing or swapping the memory modules will not solve the problem.

 

Why ASUS Z690 Hero Motherboards Are Melting / Catching On Fire!

Users who reported problems with their ASUS ROG Maximus Z690 Hero motherboards, have noted that they were melting / smoking / catching on fire in roughly the same area – between the last DIMM slot and the Q Code display.

In that location, you can see two MOSFETs (Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor Field-Effect Transistors), but they are apparently not the cause.

According to a YouTuber called Buildzoid, the capacitor next to those two MOSFETs are the likely cause of the melting / smoking / catching on fire.

He pointed out that the etched text on the capacitor is upside down, which suggests that they were incorrectly installed in reverse!

In this comparison, the reversed capacitor is seen in the picture on the left, with the positive terminal on the left, instead of to the right, as seen on the picture on the right.

When such a capacitor is installed in reverse polarity, it will not only fail to work, it will actually act as a short circuit.

This quickly creates hydrogen gas (which is flammable!), and eventually destroys the capacity and could even start a fire.

There is no doubt that installing capacitors in reverse polarity is a dangerous mistake.

 

ASUS Confirms Reversed Capacitor On Z690 Hero Motherboards!

ASUS confirmed Buildzoid’s assessment, stating that they have “preliminarily identified a potential reversed memory capacitor issue in the production process“.

They also confirmed that the reversed capacitor issue affects units manufactured in 2021, with the part number 90MB18E0-MVAAY0 and serial numbers starting with MA, MB, or MC.

They did not, however, reveal how this dangerous mistake happened, or why their quality control (QC) measures failed to pick up the mistake.

To identify whether your ASUS ROG Maximus Z690 Hero motherboard is affected by this reversed memory capacitor mistake, you can check the part and serial numbers in the product packaging label.

ASUS also created a serial number tool, for you to check if your motherboard is affected.

 

ASUS ROG Maximus Z690 Hero : Is There A Recall?

Unfortunately, there is no general recall of the ASUS ROG Maximus Z690 Hero.

While ASUS admitted that there is a reversed memory capacitor issue, they did not recall the ROG Maximus Z690 Hero motherboards.

They only stated that they are going to continue their “thorough inspection” with their suppliers and customers, and “will be working with relevant government agencies on a replacement program“.

It is unknown why ASUS would need to work with government agencies on a replacement program, but for now – there is no recall program.

Neither did ASUS get back to the user whose Z690 Hero motherboard caught on fire after 2 weeks :

I have heard nothing from them. I sent them via reddit dm my second board’s serial number that I had returned to my local microcenter, which was the board that actually caught on fire, so they have a paper trail to follow and maybe retrieve that board from the store, and I explained the issue.

My only hope is they are actually looking into this, because it is a serious concern. However, I have heard nothing, so I don’t know.

One can only hope, but if they just sit there doing nothing, its a pretty big shame, as Asus support is one of the supposed big reasons why people buy Asus

 

ASUS ROG Maximus Z690 Hero : What Should You Do?

It is unfortunate that ASUS did not recall all affected ROG Maximus Z690 Hero motherboards. The memory capacitor installed in reverse polarity poses a real danger, and is a fire hazard.

Therefore, it would be advisable to avoid buying the ASUS ROG Maximus Z690 Hero until this issue is resolved satisfactorily.

If you are using a Z690 Hero motherboard that is affected by this issue, you should IMMEDIATELY STOP USING IT, and reach out to ASUS.

Until ASUS agrees to fix the affected motherboards, the ROG Maximus Z690 Hero should only be used by “Those Who Dare” to risk damage, or worse, from the reversed memory capacitor…

If possible, return the motherboard for a full refund, or exchange it for alternative motherboards like the GIGABYTE AORUS Z690 Master (US | UK | AU | SG | MY), like TheMaxXHD whose Z690 Hero caught fire :

I have since swapped out the board for a Gigabyte Aorus Z690 Master and has been going just fine for almost a full week. Nothing else was changed other than the motherboard, indicating to me, this is a motherboard issue.

All in all, it appears like some boards have components in flames, some merely just become bricked with code 53. In any case, I would advise avoiding until and if Asus responds.

 

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Support my work through a bank transfer /  PayPal / credit card!

Name : Adrian Wong
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Dr. Adrian Wong has been writing about tech and science since 1997, even publishing a book with Prentice Hall called Breaking Through The BIOS Barrier (ISBN 978-0131455368) while in medical school.

He continues to devote countless hours every day writing about tech, medicine and science, in his pursuit of facts in a post-truth world.

 

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2021 HP OMEN 25L Gaming Desktop Revealed!

HP just revealed the 2021 HP OMEN 25L gaming desktop, powered by AMD and NVIDIA! Here are the details…

 

2021 HP OMEN 25L Gaming Desktop Revealed!

The 2021 HP OMEN 25L gaming desktop packages the latest AMD Ryzen processors and NVIDIA GeForce graphics in a slim, minimalistic design that will fit right into any modern home.

On top of using branded gaming components, it is also designed to be easily upgradable, and software-customisable via the OMEN Command Center.

Performance

The 2021 HP OMEN 25L gaming desktop is built around the 3rd Gen AMD Ryzen 9 or Ryzen 7 processor, paired with up to the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti graphics card.

All that is kept cool by Cooler Master cooling solutions – you can opt for a 92 mm round air cooler, or a 120 mm liquid cooled radiator.

It also features redesigned elevating 15 mm legs, and a new raised graphics slot, to improve system air intake.

Memory + Storage

HP offers up to 32 GB (64 GB in some countries) of Intel XMP-certified HyperX DDR4 memory, with and without RGB lighting.

You can equip it with up to a 2 TB WD Black PCIe TLC SSD, with up to two additional 2 TB hard disk drives for maximum storage capacity.

Connectivity

The HP OMEN 25L comes with both Gigabit LAN wired connectivity, as well as WiFi-6 wireless connectivity through its built-in AX 2×2 card.

DTS Headphone: X Technology

The HP OMEN 25L supports DTS Headphone: X technology, which gives you spatially-accurate 3D sound through any headphones or earbuds.

Micro-ATX Upgradability

The galvanised steel chassis is designed to offer easy tool-less access, and easy cable management. It also lets you easily upgrade the OMEN 25L with aftermarket parts.

 

2021 HP OMEN 25L : Specifications + Configuration Options

The 2021 HP OMEN 25L gaming desktop comes with these configuration options :

Specifications HP OMEN 25L
Colour Shadow Black
Design Options Glass Side Cover (optional dust filter)
Metal Side Cover (optional dust filter)
OS Options Microsoft Windows 10 Pro
Microsoft Windows 10 Home
FreeDOS 3.0
CPU Options AMD Ryzen 9 3900
AMD Ryzen 7 3700X
Chipset AMD B450
RAM Options Up to 32 GB HyperX DDR4 RGB
Lighting
Up to 32 GB HyperX DDR4
GPU Options NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 SUPER
Storage Options Up to 2 TB WD Black PCIe SSD
Up to 2 x 2 TB 7200 RPM HDD
Audio DTS Headphone:X support
Networking AX WiFi-6 and Bluetooth 5.1 combo
Gigabit LAN Ethernet
Top I/O Ports 2 x USB 3.0 Type A
1 x audio combo jack
Rear I/O Ports 1 x USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type C
1 x USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type A
2 x USB 3.0 Type A
3 x audio ports
1 x RJ45 LAN port
Power Supply 500 Watt ATX power supply
Security Kensington Security Lock Slot
Dimensions 165.1 mm wide
394.5 mm deep
433.1 mm tall
Weight 11.5 kg

 

2021 HP OMEN 25L : Price + Availability

The new HP OMEN 25L desktop has a starting price of RM 6,899 (about US$1,707 / £1,205 / A$2,154 / S$2,252).

It comes with 3-years of on-site warranty, and is available from the HP Online Store in Malaysia right now.

Here are purchase options in other countries :

 

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Dell UltraSharp 24 (U2422HE) USB-C Hub Monitor Revealed!

Dell just unveiled the UltraSharp 24 (U2422HE) – a new UltraSharp USB-C hub monitor for CES 2021!

Find out if this could be the productivity monitor you have been waiting for!

 

Dell UltraSharp 24 (U2422HE) USB-C Hub Monitor

The Dell UltraSharp 24 (U2422HE) is a 23.8-inch Full HD monitor, with a built-in USB-C hub for greater productivity.

It has a Full HD resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels, with ComfortView for low blue light emission, a wide viewing angle of 178°, and a maximum brightness of 250 nits.

On top of that, it has a wide colour gamut of 99% sRGB, 99% Rec. 709, and 85% DCI-P3, as well as colour accuracy of Delta-E < 2.

Thanks to its USB 3.1 Gen 1 Type C input, the Dell UltraSharp 24 also doubles as a productivity hub, offering Ethernet connectivity and up to 65 watts of power delivery.

The Dell UltraSharp 24 (U2422HE) comes with a wide range of connectivity options :

  • 1 x USB 3.1 Gen 1 Type C / DisplayPort 1.4 port with Power Delivery
  • 1 x DisplayPort 1.4 with HDCP
  • 1 x DisplayPort 1.4 output (MST)
  • 1 x HDMI 2.0 with HDCP
  • 2 x USB 3.0 (Type A) ports with Battery Charging 1.2
  • 2 x USB 3.0 (Type A) ports
  • 1 x RJ45 LAN port

Its four USB 3.0 ports allow you to easily connect your storage devices, smartphones and laptop, even charging them at up to 65 watts.

It is also adjustable for your comfort – 130 mm in height adjustment, with the ability to tilt by -5° to 21°, and swivel by 40° both ways.

The Dell UltraSharp 24 (U2422HE) comes with a 3-year Advanced Exchange Service, which means if a replacement is necessary, it will be shipped to you the next business day.

In addition, it comes with Dell Premium Panel Exchange, which allows a free monitor replacement during the 3-year Limited Hardware warranty, even if only one bright pixel is found.

 

Dell UltraSharp 24 (U2422HE) : Specifications

Specifications Dell UltraSharp 24
Model U2422HE
Display Size
(Diagonal)
23.8 inches
Native Resolution 1920 x 1080 pixels
Native Refresh Rate 60 Hz
Aspect Ratio 21:9
Pixel Pitch 0.2745 mm
Pixel Density 92.5 ppi
Brightness 250 cd/m²
Colour Gamut 99% sRGB
99% Rec. 709
85% DCI-P3
Colour Accuracy Delta-E < 2
Colour Depth 16.7 million colours
Contrast Ratio 1000:1
Viewing Angle 178° vertical
178° horizontal
Response Time 5 ms (fast mode)
8 ms (normal)
Panel Type IPS (In-Plane Switching)
Backlight LED
Display Coating Anti-Glare Treatment
3H Hard Coating
Other Features ComfortView
Dell Display Manager
Speakers None
Display Inputs 1 x DisplayPort 1.4 / USB-C
1 x DisplayPort 1.4
1 x HDMI 2.0
USB Ports 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 input (Type B)
2 x USB 3.0 (Type C)
2 x USB 3.0 (Battery Charging 1.2)
1 x 3.5 mm audio jack
1 x RJ45 port
Adjustability Height : 130 mm
Tilt : -5° to 21°
Swivel : -40° to 40°
Security Security lock slot
VESA Mount Yes, 100 x 100 mm
Power Input 120 VAC to 230 VAC (50 / 60 Hz)
Power Usage Off : 0.19 W
Standby : 0.21 W
On : 14 W
Dimensions Height : 348.4 mm
Width : 538.5 mm
Depth : 165.0 mm
Weight Panel Only : 9.5 kg
With Stand + Cables : 13.8 kg
Warranty 3 Years Advanced Exchange Service
Premium Panel Exchange

 

Dell UltraSharp 24 (U2422HE) : Price + Availability

The Dell UltraSharp 24 (U2422HE) will be available in Malaysia in March 2021.

It has a recommended retail price of £213 – approximately RM 1,165 / US$289 / A$372 / S$383.

According to Dell, the UltraSharp 24 (U2422HE) will ship with these items in the box :

  • Monitor with stand
  • Power cable
  • DisplayPort cable (DP to DP)
  • USB 3.1 Gen 1 upstream cable (Type C to Type C)
  • Quick Setup Guide
  • Safety and regulatory information

 

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Dell UltraSharp 40 (U4021QW) Curved Monitor Revealed!

Dell just unveiled the UltraSharp 40 (U4021QW) – a new UltraSharp curved monitor for CES 2021!

Take a look at it, and see why this could be the curved monitor you have been waiting for!

 

Dell UltraSharp 40 (U4021QW) Curved Monitor

The Dell UltraSharp 40 (U4021QW) is their first 40-inch curved ultra wide WUHD monitor, offering 32% more screen space than a 32-inch 4K display.

It boasts a 2500R curved screen, with a resolution of 5120 x 2160 pixels, and a 140 ppi pixel density. It also has a maximum brightness of 300 nits, with a wide viewing angle of 178°.

On top of that, it has a wide colour gamut of 100% sRGB, 100% Rec. 709, and 98% DCI-P3. And it comes factory calibrated with a colour accuracy of Delta-E < 2.

Thanks to its Thunderbolt 3 input, the Dell UltraSharp 40 (U4021QW) also doubles as a productivity hub, offering Ethernet connectivity and up to 90 watts of power delivery.

It also comes with a built-in KVM, allowing you to connect up to two computers to the monitor. Its Auto KVM feature automatically detects the new computer, and switches to it.

The Dell UltraSharp 40 (U4021QW) comes with a wide range of connectivity options :

  • 1 x Thunderbolt 3 / DisplayPort 1.4 port with HDCP 2.2 (10-bit colour @ 60 Hz)
  • 2 x HDMI 2.0 with HDCP 2.2 (10-bit colour @ 30 Hz)
  • 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 (Type C) port
  • 5 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 (Type A) ports
  • 1 x RJ45 LAN port

Its six USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports – one Type C and five Type A – allow you to easily connect your storage devices and smartphones, even charging them at up to 15 watts.

It is also adjustable for your comfort – 120 mm in height adjustment, with the ability to tilt by -5° to 21°, and swivel by 30° both ways.

The Dell UltraSharp 40 (U4021QW) comes with a 3-year Advanced Exchange Service, which means if a replacement is necessary, it will be shipped to you the next business day.

In addition, it comes with Dell Premium Panel Exchange, which allows a free monitor replacement during the 3-year Limited Hardware warranty, even if only one bright pixel is found.

 

Dell UltraSharp 40 (U4021QW) : Specifications

Specifications Dell UltraSharp 40
Model U4021QW
Display Size
(Diagonal)
39.7 inches
(100.85 cm)
Native Resolution 5120 x 2160 pixels
Native Refresh Rate 60 Hz
Aspect Ratio 21:9
Pixel Pitch 0.1815 mm
Pixel Density 140 ppi
Brightness 300 cd/m²
Colour Gamut 100% sRGB
100% Rec. 709
98% DCI-P3
Colour Accuracy Delta-E < 2
Colour Depth 1.07 billion colours
Contrast Ratio 1000:1
Viewing Angle 178° vertical
178° horizontal
Response Time 5 ms (GTG fast mode)
8 ms (GTG normal)
Panel Type IPS (In-Plane Switching)
Backlight LED
Display Coating Anti-Glare Treatment
3H Hard Coating
Other Features ComfortView
Dell Display Manager
Picture-by-Picture (PBP)
Picture-in-Picture (PIP)
KVM, Auto-KVM
Speakers 2 x 9 W speakers
Display Inputs 1 x Thunderbolt 3 / DisplayPort 1.4
2 x HDMI 2.0
USB Ports 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 input (Type B)
1 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 (Type C)
5 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 (Type A)
1 x 3.5 mm audio jack
1 x RJ45 port
Adjustability Height : 120 mm
Tilt : -5° to 21°
Swivel : -30° to 30°
Security Security lock slot
Anti-theft stand lock slot
VESA Mount Yes, 100 x 100 mm
Power Input 100 VAC to 240 VAC (50 / 60 Hz)
Power Usage Off : 0.3 W
Standby : 0.3 W
On : 51.5 W
Max : 240 W
Dimensions Height : 457.8 mm ~ 577.3 mm
Width : 946.6 mm
Depth : 248.0 mm
Weight Panel Only : 9.5 kg
With Stand + Cables : 13.8 kg
Warranty 3 Years Advanced Exchange Service
Premium Panel Exchange

 

Dell UltraSharp 40 (U4021QW) : Price + Availability

The Dell UltraSharp 40 (U4021QW) will be available in Malaysia this month – January 2021.

It has a recommended retail price of RM 6,809 – approximately US$1,695 / £1,247 / A$2,191 / S$2,236.

According to Dell, the UltraSharp 40 (U4021QW) will ship with these items in the box :

  • Monitor with stand
  • Power cable
  • Thunderbolt 4 (Type C) active cable
  • HDMI cable
  • DP cable (DP to DP)
  • USB 3.2 Gen 2 upstream cable (Type A to Type B)
  • Quick Setup Guide
  • Factory Calibration Report
  • Safety and regulatory information

 

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AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT Preview : RDNA 2 In Action!

We have been playing around with the AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT and here is our preview of the first RDNA 2 graphics card!

Take a look at our unboxing and hands-on videos, as well as the Radeon RX 6800 XT in action!

 

AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT : A Quick Primer!

The AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT is one of three Radeon RX 6000 series graphics cards. Based on the new AMD RDNA 2 architecture, they offer these key features :

  • AMD Infinity Cache – a large 128 MB data cache that dramatically reduces memory latency and power consumption.
  • AMD Smart Access Memory – offers the Ryzen 5000 series processor greater access to its GDDR6 graphics memory for better gaming performance.
  • DirectX 12 Ultimate – offering support for the next-generation games with DirectX Raytracing and Variable Rate Shading.
  • New Ray Accelerator – delivers real-time lighting, shadow and reflection realism through DirectX Raytracing.
  • Variable Rate Sharing (VRS) – dynamically reduces shading rate for better performance at little to no loss in image quality.
  • DirectStorage Support – delivers faster load times and high-quality textures in the future.

 

AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT : Price + Availability

The AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT has a RRP of US$649, and will be available for sale starting 18 November 2020.

Custom boards will be available from brands like ASRock, ASUS, Gigabyte starting in November 2020.

 

AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT : Specifications

This table summarises how the RX 6800 XT compares against the RX 6900 XT and the RX 6800.

Specifications Radeon RX
6900 XT
Radeon RX
6800 XT
Radeon RX
6800
Transistors 26.8 billion
Fab Process 7 nm
Die Size 519 mm²
Total Graphics Power 300 W 250 W
Compute Units 80 72 60
Ray Accelerators 80 72 60
Stream Processors 5120 4608 3840
Game Clock 2015 MHz 2015 MHz 1815 MHz
Boost Clock 2250 MHz 2250 MHz 2105 MHz
TFLOPS 23.04 20.74 16.17
TMUs 320 288 240
Max. Texture Rate 720 GT/s 648 GT/s 505 GT/s
ROPs 128 96
Max. Pixel Rate 288 GP/s 202 GP/s
Infinity Cache 128 MB
Graphics Memory 16 GB GDDR6 (16 Gbps)
Bus Width 256-bit
Bandwidth 512 GB/s
PCIe Interface PCIe 4.0 x16

 

Unboxing The AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT!

The AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT comes in a large and heavy cardboard box. Very heavy duty, with thick foam packaging.

Next Page > Radeon RX 6800 XT Hands-On + In Action!

 

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AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT : Hands-On Experience!

The AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT is a rather bulky and heavy card, because it comes with a large 2.5-slot cooler with triple axial fans.

Take a closer look at it in our hands-on video, followed by pictures of the card.

It features a die-cast aluminium backplate at the back.

Here you can see its thick heatsink, and how its cooler is designed to suck in air from the front of the card, and exhaust the hot air from the top and the bottom of the card.

It has four display connectors. From left to right : one USB Type C port, two DisplayPort 1.4 ports, and one HDMI 2.1 port.

The card uses up to 300 watts of power, and comes with two 8-pin PCI Express power connectors.

It should work with two 6-pin power cables though – both 8-pin and 6-pin cables deliver 150 watts.

AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT supports PCI Express 4.0, which offers double the bandwidth of PCI Express 3.0.

However, that requires you to use a PCI Express 4.0 motherboard, like the recommended AMD X570 motherboards.

But do not fret if you are on the Intel platform. It is backward-compatible with PCI Express 3.0, and will work just fine with PCIe 3.0 motherboards.

 

AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT : In Action!

Our testbed pairs the AMD Ryzen 9 5950X processor with the ASUS CROSSHAIR VIII Hero (AMD X570) motherboard, with 32 GB of DDR4 memory.

Our benchmark results will be released tomorrow, but in the meantime, you can take a look at the Radeon RX 6800 XT in action, running 3DMark Time Spy Extreme.

Be sure to come back and check our comprehensive review tomorrow, with benchmark results!

 

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AMD Ryzen 7 5800X In-Depth Review : 8-Core Powerhouse!

Built on the new Zen 3 architecture, the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X promises to offer a leap forward in performance.

Take a look at its performance in our in-depth review, and find out if this is the Ryzen for you!

 

AMD Ryzen 5000 Series : Built On Zen 3

The AMD Ryzen 5000 series is designed using the new AMD Zen 3 architecture, which promises to deliver 19% more instructions per cycle (IPC) over the last generation, thanks to these new features :

  • improved load / store performance and flexibility
  • double the size of directly-accessible L3 cache per core
  • a unified 8-core complex (CCX) with direct access to the 32 MB L3 cache
  • wider issue in floating point and integer engines
  • Zero Bubble branch prediction

The new architecture also reduces memory latency through improved core and cache communication, and offer a higher maximum boost clock.

This allows the Ryzen 5000 series desktop processors to deliver up to 2.8X more performance-per-watt versus the competition.

 

AMD Ryzen 7 5800X : Price + Availability

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X processor will be available for sale starting 5 November 2020, at these RRP inclusive of tax :

  • Malaysia : RM 2,049 (~US$493) inclusive of 6% tax
  • United States : RM 449

Note : It comes with a free copy of Far Cry 6

Here are some online purchase options :

 

AMD Ryzen 7 5800X : Specifications

Here is how the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X compares to the other Ryzen 5000 series processors :

Ryzen 9
5950X
Ryzen 9
5900X
Ryzen 7
5800X
Ryzen 5
5600X
Process 7 nm (CCD) + 12 nm (IOD)
Transistor
+ Die Size
CCD : 4.15 billion, 80.7 mm²
IOD : 2.09 billion, 125 mm²
CCD Count 2 x CCD
1 x IOD
1 x CCD
1 x IOD
Cores / Threads 16 / 32 12 / 24 8 / 16 6 / 12
Base Clock 3.4 GHz 3.7 GHz 3.8 GHz 3.7 GHz
Boost Clock 4.9 GHz 4.8 GHz 4.7 GHz 4.6 GHz
L1 Cache 1 MB 768 KB 512 KB 384 KB
L2 Cache 8 MB 6 MB 4 MB 3 MB
L3 Cache 64 MB 32 MB
TDP 105 W 65 W
Cooler None Wraith
Stealth

 

Unboxing The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X comes in a slimmer box, because it doesn’t come with any bundled cooler.

The last-generation Ryzen 7 3800X, you may recall, came with the Wraith Prism cooler.

 

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X Up Close!

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X has eight Ryzen processor cores, with a 3.8 GHz base clock, and a 4.7 GHz boost clock.

It has a 105 watt TDP, and supports SMT (simultaneous multi-threading), which means it can handle up to 16 threads simultaneously.

Like the 3rd Gen Ryzen, it has 512 KB L2 cache per core, for a 4 MB L2 cache size; and a large 32 MB L3 cache.

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X can be installed unto existing AMD 500 series motherboards, and later, the AMD 400 series as well, after a simple BIOS update.

Next Page > AMD Zen 3 Architecture + SoC Design

 

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AMD Zen 3 Architecture

Codename Vermeer, Zen 3 is the next evolution of the Zen architecture, delivering a 19% improvement in instructions per clock (IPC) through these improvements :

Front-End Enhancements

  • Faster fetching, especially for branchy and large-footprint code
  • L1 branch target buffer doubled in size to 1024 entries for better prediction latency
  • Improved branch predictor bandwidth
  • Faster recovery from misprediction
  • “No bubble” prediction capabilities to make back-to-back predictions more quickly and better handle branchy code
  • Faster sequencing of op-cache fetches
  • Finer granularity in switching of op-cache pipes

Execution Engines

  • Reduce latency and enlarge structures to extract higher instruction-level parallelism (ILP)
  • New dedicated branch and st-data pickers for integer, now at 10 issues per cycle (+3 vs. Zen 2)
  • Larger integer window at +32 vs. Zen 2
  • Reduced latency for select float and int operations
  • Floating point has increased bandwidth by +2 for a total of 6-wide dispatch and issue
  • Floating point FMAC is now 1 cycle faster

Load Store

  • Larger structures and better prefetching to support the enhanced execution engine bandwidth
  • Overall higher bandwidth to feed the appetite of the larger/faster execution resources
  • Higher load bandwidth vs. Zen 2 by +1
  • Higher store bandwidth vs. Zen 2 by +1
  • More flexibility in load/store operations
  • Improved memory dependence detection
  • +4 table walkers in the TLB

SOC Architecture

  • Reduce dependency on main memory accesses, reduce core-to-core latency, reduce core-to-cache latency.
  • Unify all cores in a CCD into a single unified complex consisting of 4, 6, or 8 contiguous cores
  • Unify all L3 cache in a CCD into a single contiguous element of up to 32MB
  • Rearchitect core/cache communication into a ring system

 

AMD Zen 3 SoC Design

In addition to micro architectural improvements, Zen 3 (Vermeer) also features SoC design changes.

In Zen 2, each CCD (Compute Die) is made up of two CCX (core complexes), each with a 16 MB L3 cache.

Zen 3 uses a unified complex, in which each CCD now contains a single CCX with a unified 32 MB L3 cache.

This unified CCD design eliminates CCX-to-CCX communication, greatly improving core-to-core latency.

On the other hand, AMD reused the chiplet design, with one or two CCDs (fabricated on 7 nm) paired with a 12 nm IOD (I/O Die).

Reads from CCD to IO are still 2X write, to conserve die area and transistor budget. And it uses the same IOD from Matisse (Zen 2).

The new Zen 3 CCD has 4.15 billion transistors, with a die size of 80.7 mm². The Matisse-era IOD remains the same – 2.09 billion transistors, with a die size of 125 mm².

 

AMD Ryzen 7 5800X Benchmarking Notes

In this review, we will take a look at the content creation and gaming performance of the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X, comparing it to 6 other processors :

Cores /
Threads
Base
Clock
Boost
Clock
L2
Cache
L3
Cache
Memory
AMD Ryzen 7 5800X 8 / 16 3.8 GHz 4.7 GHz 4 MB 32 MB DDR4-3200
AMD Ryzen 7 3700X 8 / 16 3.6 GHz 4.4 GHz 4 MB 32 MB DDR4-3200
AMD Ryzen 7 2700X 8 / 16 3.7 GHz 4.3 GHz 4 MB 16 MB DDR4-2933
AMD Ryzen 5 5600X 6 / 12 3.7 GHz 4.6 GHz 3 MB 32 MB DDR4-3200
Intel Core i7-8700K 6 / 12 3.7 GHz 4.7 GHz 1.5 MB 12 MB DDR4-2666
AMD Ryzen 5 2600X 6 / 12 3.6 GHz 4.2 GHz 3 MB 16 MB DDR4-2933
AMD Ryzen 3 3300X 4 / 8 3.8 GHz 4.3 GHz 2 MB 16 MB DDR4-3200

Here are the specifications of the Intel and AMD testbeds we used.

Intel Testbed AMD Testbed
Motherboard ASUS ROG Strix Z370-F-Gaming ASUS ROG Crosshair VIII Hero
Memory G.SKILL Sniper X DDR4-3400 (8 GB x 2)
Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR4-3200 (8 GB x 2)
Graphics NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER (GeForce 457.09)
Storage 1 TB SanDisk Ultra 3D SSD
OS Microsoft Windows 10 (64-bit)

Next Page > 3D Rendering, Transcoding, Radial Blur Performance

 

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AMD Ryzen 7 5800X : 3D Rendering Speed

CINEBENCH R20 is a real-world 3D rendering benchmark based on the MAXON Cinema 4D animation software.

It is a great way to accurately determine the actual performance of a processor in 3D content creation.

CINEBENCH R20 Single Core Performance

This Single Core test is not reflective of real world performance, but it is useful to find out the performance of the individual core.

Look at that! What a phenomenal boost in single-core performance!

The Ryzen 7 5800X broke past the 600 mark, and was 22.5% faster than the Ryzen 7 3700X, even though it only has a 6.8% higher boost clock!

That works out to a 14.7% better performance per clock, over the last-generation Ryzen.

CINEBENCH R20 Multi Core Performance

The Multi Core test shows the processor’s real-world 3D rendering performance.

A score of almost 6000! That’s 23.6% faster than the Ryzen 7 3700X, which is also an 8-core, 16-thread processor.

It was actually 58.8% faster than the Ryzen 7 2700X, which makes it a great upgrade for the older 8-core, 16-thread processor.

Multi-Threading Boost

This is not a CINEBENCH benchmark result. The Multi-Threading Boost is our calculation of the performance boost that the processor’s Multi-Threading capability provides.

Interestingly, the Ryzen 7 5800X has better SMT performance than the Ryzen 5 5600X, even though they both use a single CCD.

 

AMD Ryzen 7 5800X : Transcoding Speed

HandBrake is a free, open-source video transcoding utility, which converts a video file from one resolution / format to another.

As you can imagine, it’s very compute-intensive, which makes it a great benchmark for multi-core processors. In our test, we converted a 4K video of 1.3 GB in size into a 1080p video (HQ1080p30).

That’s a nice speed bump! The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X was 10.4% faster than the Ryzen 7 3700X and 33.8% faster than Ryzen 7 2700X.

 

AMD Ryzen 7 5800X : Radial Blur Speed

The radial blur filter adds the perception of motion to a picture. This is a compute-intensive operation that benefits from multiple processing cores.

This radial blur test was performed on Photoshop 2020 using a single 13.5 megapixel photo, with a filesize of 4,910,867 bytes.

This is a big boost in performance! The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X was 24.5% faster than the Ryzen 7 3700X and 42.3% faster than both Ryzen 7 2700X and Ryzen 5 5600X.

Next Page > Gaming Performance : 3DMark | F1 2019

 

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Synthetic Game Test : 3DMark

We used 3DMark’s Time Spy and Time Spy Extreme synthetic benchmarks, which supports DirectX 12, and the latest features like asynchronous compute, and multi-threading support.

Time Spy – 2560 x 1440

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X was 14.3% faster than Ryzen 7 3700X, and 33% faster than Ryzen 7 2700X.

Of course, the CPU only has a slight influence on a game’s performance, so its effect on the overall gaming score is less significant.

Time Spy Extreme – 3840 x 2160

At the higher 4K resolution, the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X was 20% faster than Ryzen 7 3700X, and 40% faster than Ryzen 5 5600X.

Now check out the processors’ effect on the overall gaming score… Obviously, CPU performance only has a small effect at this resolution.

 

F1 2019

F1 2019 is a racing game by Codemasters, released on 28 June 2019. We tested it on three resolutions at the Ultra High settings :

  • 1080p : 1920 x 1080 pixels
  • 1440p : 2560 x 1440 pixels
  • 2160p : 3840 x 2160 pixels

1080p Gaming Resolution

Look at that. The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X delivered 6.5% higher frame rates than the Ryzen 7 3700X, and 12.5% higher frame rates than the Ryzen 7 2700X!

1440p Gaming Resolution

At the higher 1440p resolution though, the effect of CPU performance was negligible, even with the GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER.

2160p Gaming Resolution

At 4K resolution, processor performance had no effect. The game was graphics-limited, not CPU-limited.

Next Page > Gaming Performance : World War Z | Strange Brigade

 

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World War Z

Based on the 2013 movie, World War Z is a relatively recent third-person shooter game, released in April 2019.

We tested it on three resolutions using the Vulkan API at the High settings :

  • 1080p : 1920 x 1080 pixels
  • 1440p : 2560 x 1440 pixels
  • 2160p : 3840 x 2160 pixels

1080p Gaming Resolution

Look at that! The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X topped this comparison, tying with the Ryzen 5 5600X.

It delivered 17% higher frame rates than the Ryzen 7 3700X, and 21% higher frame rates than the Core i7-8700K.

1440p Gaming Resolution

When we bumped the resolution up to 1440p, it really didn’t matter that much which processor we used. They all performed about the same.

2160p Gaming Resolution

At 4K resolution, processor performance had absolutely no effect. The game was completely graphics-limited.

 

Strange Brigade

Strange Brigade is a third-person shooter game, released in August 2018. We tested it in three resolutions using the Vulkan API at the Ultra High settings :

  • 1080p : 1920 x 1080 pixels
  • 1440p : 2560 x 1440 pixels
  • 2160p : 3840 x 2160 pixels

1080p Gaming Resolution

CPU performance had only a small effect on frame rates in Strange Brigade, even at 1080p.

1440p Gaming Resolution

At 1440p, they were virtually all equal in performance. The game was already graphics-limited.

2160p Gaming Resolution

It was the same at 4K, of course – the game was completely graphics-limited.

Next Page > Gaming Performance : Metro Exodus | AotS

 

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Metro Exodus

Metro Exodus is a first-person shooter game, released in February 2019. We tested it in three resolutions using the Ultra settings :

  • 1080p : 1920 x 1080 pixels
  • 1440p : 2560 x 1440 pixels
  • 2160p : 3840 x 2160 pixels

1080p Gaming Resolution

Metro Exodus is graphics-intensive, so CPU performance has limited effect on its frame rate.

1440p Gaming Resolution

All of the processors performed the same at 1440p, with a slight edge to the Core i7-8700K.

2160p Gaming Resolution

At 4K, the game was completely graphics-limited, so it didn’t matter which processor we tested.

 

Ashes of the Singularity

Ashes of the Singularity is a 2016 game that supports multi-core processing and asynchronous compute.

In this game, the single core CPU performance has a significant effect on the actual frame rate.

We tested it on three resolutions using the DirectX 12 API at the High settings :

  • 1080p : 1920 x 1080
  • 1440p : 2560 x 1440
  • 2160p : 3840 x 2160

1080p Gaming Resolution

Nice! The Ryzen 7 5800X delivered 11% higher frame rates than the Core i7-8700K, and 13% higher frame rates than the Ryzen 7 3700X.

1440p Gaming Resolution

At 1440p, the Ryzen 7 5800X delivered 15.5% higher frame rates than both the Core i7-8700K and the Ryzen 7 3700X.

2160p Gaming Resolution

Even at 4K, CPU performance mattered in Ashes of the Singularity. The Ryzen 7 5800X delivered 12% higher frame rates than both the Core i7-8700K and the Ryzen 7 3700X.

Next Page > AMD Ryzen 7 5800X : Verdict, Price + Availability

 

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AMD Ryzen 7 5800X : Our Verdict!

Thanks to the new Zen 3 core optimisations and SoC design, the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X offers a nice leap forward in performance.

Its single-core performance has been improved significantly over its predecessors, and so has its multi-core performance, offering a nice boost to both content creation and gaming performance.

Gamers will favour the cheaper Ryzen 5 5600X, but this is a great option for those who also need serious multi-core performance for content creation work.

It offers a large performance boost over the Ryzen 7 3700X and Ryzen 7 2700X in both content creation and gaming performance.

Another great point about the Ryzen 7 5800X – even though it uses a new microarchitecture, it continues to use the AM4 socket

If you have an existing AMD 500 Series motherboard, you can pop it in after a BIOS upgrade.

Those on AMD 400 Series motherboards will have to wait until Q1 2020, before they receive BIOS upgrades to support Zen 3.

But while the Ryzen 7 5800X’s performance may be a leap forward, so is its price tag…

You may recall that the last-generation Ryzen 7 3800X had a launch price of $399 (RM1,799), with a nice Wraith Prism cooler.

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X costs substantially more at $449 (RM2,049), and no longer comes with a very nice bundled cooler!

On the other hand, it comes with a free copy of the upcoming game – Far Cry 6 Standard Edition...

So who should, or should NOT, buy the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X?

  • Buy : If you want the best possible 8-core processor for a new gaming or content creation system.
  • Buy : If you are upgrading from a first-generation Ryzen processor.
  • Buy : If you need more computing cores than your current system.
  • Consider : If you are upgrading from a second-generation Ryzen processor.
  • Skip : If you are already using a 3rd Gen Ryzen processor.

Those on a budget can consider purchasing a Ryzen 7 3700X. It may be slower for sure, but the money you save can be used towards the upcoming Radeon RX 6000 series graphics card!

 

AMD Ryzen 7 5800X : Price + Availability

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X processor will be available for sale starting 5 November 2020, at these RRP inclusive of tax, in Malaysia :

  • Malaysia : RM 2,049 (~US$493) inclusive of 6% tax
  • United States : RM 449

Note : It comes with a free copy of Far Cry 6

Here are some online purchase options :

 

AMD Ryzen 7 5800X : Specifications

Here is how the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X compares to the other Ryzen 5000 series processors :

Ryzen 9
5950X
Ryzen 9
5900X
Ryzen 7
5800X
Ryzen 5
5600X
Process 7 nm (CCD) + 12 nm (IOD)
Transistor
+ Die Size
CCD : 4.15 billion, 80.7 mm²
IOD : 2.09 billion, 125 mm²
CCD Count 2 x CCD
1 x IOD
1 x CCD
1 x IOD
Cores / Threads 16 / 32 12 / 24 8 / 16 6 / 12
Base Clock 3.4 GHz 3.7 GHz 3.8 GHz 3.7 GHz
Boost Clock 4.9 GHz 4.8 GHz 4.7 GHz 4.6 GHz
L1 Cache 1 MB 768 KB 512 KB 384 KB
L2 Cache 8 MB 6 MB 4 MB 3 MB
L3 Cache 64 MB 32 MB
TDP 105 W 65 W
Cooler None Wraith
Stealth

 

Recommended Reading

Go Back To > First Page | Computer Hardware | Home

 

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AMD Ryzen 5 5600X In-Depth Review : A Leap Forward!

Built on the new Zen 3 architecture, the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X promises to offer a leap forward in performance.

Find out in our in-depth review why we agree, and gave it our Reviewer’s Choice Award!

 

AMD Ryzen 5000 Series : Built On Zen 3

The AMD Ryzen 5000 series is designed using the new AMD Zen 3 architecture, which promises to deliver 19% more instructions per cycle (IPC) over the last generation, thanks to these new features :

  • improved load / store performance and flexibility
  • double the size of directly-accessible L3 cache per core
  • a unified 8-core complex (CCX) with direct access to the 32 MB L3 cache
  • wider issue in floating point and integer engines
  • Zero Bubble branch prediction

The new architecture also reduces memory latency through improved core and cache communication, and offer a higher maximum boost clock.

This allows the Ryzen 5000 series desktop processors to deliver up to 2.8X more performance-per-watt versus the competition.

 

AMD Ryzen 5 5600X : Price + Availability

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600X processor is available for sale starting 5 November 2020, at these RRP inclusive of tax :

  • Malaysia : RM 1,349 (~US$324) inclusive of 6% tax
  • United States : RM 299

Note : Unlike the Ryzen 9 5950X, Ryzen 9 5900X and Ryzen 7 5800X, the Ryzen 5 5600X will NOT come with a free copy of Far Cry 6.

Here are some online purchase options :

 

AMD Ryzen 5 5600X : Specifications

Here is how the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X compares to the other Ryzen 5000 series processors :

Ryzen 9
5950X
Ryzen 9
5900X
Ryzen 7
5800X
Ryzen 5
5600X
Process 7 nm (CCD) + 12 nm (IOD)
Transistor
+ Die Size
CCD : 4.15 billion, 80.7 mm²
IOD : 2.09 billion, 125 mm²
Chiplets 2 x CCD
1 x IOD
1 x CCD
1 x IOD
Cores / Threads 16 / 32 12 / 24 8 / 16 6 / 12
Base Clock 3.4 GHz 3.7 GHz 3.8 GHz 3.7 GHz
Boost Clock 4.9 GHz 4.8 GHz 4.7 GHz 4.6 GHz
L1 Cache 1 MB 768 KB 512 KB 384 KB
L2 Cache 8 MB 6 MB 4 MB 3 MB
L3 Cache 64 MB 32 MB
TDP 105 W 65 W
Cooler None Wraith
Stealth

 

Unboxing The AMD Ryzen 5 5600X

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600X comes in a slimmer box, with a bundled AMD Wraith Stealth cooler inside.

The Wraith Stealth is the most basic cooler AMD ships, usually with entry-level processors like the Ryzen 5 2400G and Ryzen 3 3300X.

 

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600X Up Close!

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600X has six Ryzen processor cores, with a 3.7 GHz base clock, and a 4.6 GHz boost clock.

It has a 65 watt TDP, and supports SMT (simultaneous multi-threading), which means it can handle up to 12 threads simultaneously.

Like the 3rd Gen Ryzen, it has 512 KB L2 cache per core, for a 3 MB L2 cache size; and a large 32 MB L3 cache.

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600X can be installed unto existing AMD 500 series motherboards, and later, the AMD 400 series as well, after a simple BIOS update.

Next Page > AMD Zen 3 Architecture + SoC Design | Benchmark Notes

 

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AMD Zen 3 Architecture

Codename Vermeer, Zen 3 is the next evolution of the Zen architecture, delivering a 19% improvement in instructions per clock (IPC) through these improvements :

Front-End Enhancements

  • Faster fetching, especially for branchy and large-footprint code 
  • L1 branch target buffer doubled in size to 1024 entries for better prediction latency 
  • Improved branch predictor bandwidth 
  • Faster recovery from misprediction 
  • “No bubble” prediction capabilities to make back-to-back predictions more quickly and better handle branchy code 
  • Faster sequencing of op-cache fetches 
  • Finer granularity in switching of op-cache pipes

Execution Engines

  • Reduce latency and enlarge structures to extract higher instruction-level parallelism (ILP)
  • New dedicated branch and st-data pickers for integer, now at 10 issues per cycle (+3 vs. Zen 2)
  • Larger integer window at +32 vs. Zen 2
  • Reduced latency for select float and int operations
  • Floating point has increased bandwidth by +2 for a total of 6-wide dispatch and issue
  • Floating point FMAC is now 1 cycle faster

Load Store

  • Larger structures and better prefetching to support the enhanced execution engine bandwidth 
  • Overall higher bandwidth to feed the appetite of the larger/faster execution resources 
  • Higher load bandwidth vs. Zen 2 by +1 
  • Higher store bandwidth vs. Zen 2 by +1 
  • More flexibility in load/store operations 
  • Improved memory dependence detection 
  • +4 table walkers in the TLB

SOC Architecture

  • Reduce dependency on main memory accesses, reduce core-to-core latency, reduce core-to-cache latency.
  • Unify all cores in a CCD into a single unified complex consisting of 4, 6, or 8 contiguous cores 
  • Unify all L3 cache in a CCD into a single contiguous element of up to 32MB 
  • Rearchitect core/cache communication into a ring system

 

AMD Zen 3 SoC Design

In addition to micro architectural improvements, Zen 3 (Vermeer) also features SoC design changes.

In Zen 2, each CCD (Compute Die) is made up of two CCX (core complexes), each with a 16 MB L3 cache.

Zen 3 uses a unified complex, in which each CCD now contains a single CCX with a unified 32 MB L3 cache.

This unified CCD design eliminates CCX-to-CCX communication, greatly improving core-to-core latency.

On the other hand, AMD reused the chiplet design, with one or two CCDs (fabricated on 7 nm) paired with a 12 nm IOD (I/O Die).

Reads from CCD to IO are still 2X write, to conserve die area and transistor budget. And it uses the same IOD from Matisse (Zen 2).

The new Zen 3 CCD has 4.15 billion transistors, with a die size of 80.7 mm². The Matisse-era IOD remains the same – 2.09 billion transistors, with a die size of 125 mm².

 

AMD Ryzen 5 5600X Benchmarking Notes

In this review, we will take a look at the content creation and gaming performance of the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X, comparing it to 6 other processors :

Cores /
Threads
Base
Clock
Boost
Clock
L2
Cache
L3
Cache
Memory
AMD Ryzen 7 5800X 8 / 16 3.8 GHz 4.7 GHz 4 MB 32 MB DDR4-3200
AMD Ryzen 7 3700X 8 / 16 3.6 GHz 4.4 GHz 4 MB 32 MB DDR4-3200
AMD Ryzen 7 2700X 8 / 16 3.7 GHz 4.3 GHz 4 MB 16 MB DDR4-2933
AMD Ryzen 5 5600X 6 / 12 3.7 GHz 4.6 GHz 3 MB 32 MB DDR4-3200
Intel Core i7-8700K 6 / 12 3.7 GHz 4.7 GHz 1.5 MB 12 MB DDR4-2666
AMD Ryzen 5 2600X 6 / 12 3.6 GHz 4.2 GHz 3 MB 16 MB DDR4-2933
AMD Ryzen 3 3300X 4 / 8 3.8 GHz 4.3 GHz 2 MB 16 MB DDR4-3200

Here are the specifications of the Intel and AMD testbeds we used.

Intel Testbed AMD Testbed
Motherboard ASUS ROG Strix Z370-F-Gaming ASUS ROG Crosshair VIII Hero
Memory G.SKILL Sniper X DDR4-3400 (8 GB x 2)
Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR4-3200 (8 GB x 2)
Graphics NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER (GeForce 457.09)
Storage 1 TB SanDisk Ultra 3D SSD
OS Microsoft Windows 10 (64-bit)

Next Page > 3D Rendering, Transcoding, Radial Blur Performance

 

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AMD Ryzen 5 5600X : 3D Rendering Speed

CINEBENCH R20 is a real-world 3D rendering benchmark based on the MAXON Cinema 4D animation software.

It is a great way to accurately determine the actual performance of a processor in 3D content creation.

CINEBENCH R20 Single Core Performance

This Single Core test is not reflective of real world performance, but it is useful to find out the performance of the individual core.

Look at that! What a phenomenal boost in single-core performance!

The Ryzen 5 5600X was 19.5% faster than the Ryzen 7 3700X, even though it only has a 4.5% higher boost clock!

That works out to a 14.3% better performance per clock, over the last-generation Ryzen.

CINEBENCH R20 Multi Core Performance

The Multi Core test shows the processor’s real-world 3D rendering performance.

This is very good performance for a 6-core processor, performing just 12.6% slower than the Ryzen 7 3700X, which is an 8-core, 16-thread processor.

More so when you realise that it was actually 12.3% faster than the Ryzen 7 2700X, which is an older 8-core, 16-thread processor.

Multi-Threading Boost

This is not a CINEBENCH benchmark result. The Multi-Threading Boost is our calculation of the performance boost that the processor’s Multi-Threading capability provides.

While the Zen 3 microarchitecture gave it a big boost in single core performance, its SMT performance appears to have taken a slight hit.

 

AMD Ryzen 5 5600X : Transcoding Speed

HandBrake is a free, open-source video transcoding utility, which converts a video file from one resolution / format to another.

As you can imagine, it’s very compute-intensive, which makes it a great benchmark for multi-core processors. In our test, we converted a 4K video of 1.3 GB in size into a 1080p video (HQ1080p30).

Look at that! Despite having just six cores, the Ryzen 5 5600X was slightly faster than the Ryzen 7 2700X, which has 8 cores.

 

AMD Ryzen 5 5600X : Radial Blur Speed

The radial blur filter adds the perception of motion to a picture. This is a compute-intensive operation that benefits from multiple processing cores.

This radial blur test was performed on Photoshop 2020 using a single 13.5 megapixel photo, with a filesize of 4,910,867 bytes.

Even though it was a 6-core processor, the Ryzen 5 5600X was just slightly slower than the Ryzen 7 2700X, which has 8 cores. Impressive!

Next Page > Gaming Performance : 3DMark | F1 2019

 

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Synthetic Game Test : 3DMark

We used 3DMark’s Time Spy and Time Spy Extreme synthetic benchmarks, which supports DirectX 12, and the latest features like asynchronous compute, and multi-threading support.

Time Spy – 2560 x 1440

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600X was 5% slower than the Ryzen 7 2700X, and 5% faster than the Core i7-8700K.

Of course, the CPU only has a slight influence on a game’s performance, so its effect on the overall gaming score is less significant.

Time Spy Extreme – 3840 x 2160

At the higher 4K resolution, the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X was 8.3% faster than both the Ryzen 7 2700X and the Core i7-8700K.

Now check out the processors’ effect on the overall gaming score… Obviously, CPU performance only has a small effect at this resolution.

 

F1 2019

F1 2019 is a racing game by Codemasters, released on 28 June 2019. We tested it on three resolutions at the Ultra High settings :

  • 1080p : 1920 x 1080 pixels
  • 1440p : 2560 x 1440 pixels
  • 2160p : 3840 x 2160 pixels

1080p Gaming Resolution

Look at that. The AMD Ryzen 5 5600X delivered 6.5% higher frame rates than the Ryzen 7 3700X, and 12.5% higher frame rates than the Ryzen 7 2700X!

1440p Gaming Resolution

At the higher 1440p resolution though, the effect of CPU performance was negligible, even with the GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER.

2160p Gaming Resolution

At 4K resolution, processor performance had no effect. The game was graphics-limited, not CPU-limited.

Next Page > Gaming Performance : World War Z | Strange Brigade

 

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World War Z

Based on the 2013 movie, World War Z is a relatively recent third-person shooter game, released in April 2019.

We tested it on three resolutions using the Vulkan API at the High settings :

  • 1080p : 1920 x 1080 pixels
  • 1440p : 2560 x 1440 pixels
  • 2160p : 3840 x 2160 pixels

1080p Gaming Resolution

Look at that! The AMD Ryzen 5 5600X delivered the best performance in this comparison, matching the Ryzen 7 5800X.

It delivered 17% higher frame rates than the Ryzen 7 3700X, and 21% higher frame rates than the Core i7-8700K.

1440p Gaming Resolution

When we bumped the resolution up to 1440p, it really didn’t matter that much which processor we used. They all performed about the same.

2160p Gaming Resolution

At 4K resolution, processor performance had absolutely no effect. The game was completely graphics-limited.

 

Strange Brigade

Strange Brigade is a third-person shooter game, released in August 2018. We tested it in three resolutions using the Vulkan API at the Ultra High settings :

  • 1080p : 1920 x 1080 pixels
  • 1440p : 2560 x 1440 pixels
  • 2160p : 3840 x 2160 pixels

1080p Gaming Resolution

CPU performance had only a small effect on frame rates in Strange Brigade, even at 1080p.

1440p Gaming Resolution

At 1440p, they were virtually all equal in performance. The game was already graphics-limited.

2160p Gaming Resolution

It was the same at 4K, of course – the game was completely graphics-limited.

Next Page > Gaming Performance : Metro Exodus | AotS

 

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Metro Exodus

Metro Exodus is a first-person shooter game, released in February 2019. We tested it in three resolutions using the Ultra settings :

  • 1080p : 1920 x 1080 pixels
  • 1440p : 2560 x 1440 pixels
  • 2160p : 3840 x 2160 pixels

1080p Gaming Resolution

Metro Exodus is graphics-intensive, so CPU performance has limited effect on its frame rate.

1440p Gaming Resolution

All of the processors performed the same at 1440p, with a slight edge to the Core i7-8700K.

2160p Gaming Resolution

At 4K, the game was completely graphics-limited, so it didn’t matter which processor we tested.

 

Ashes of the Singularity

Ashes of the Singularity is a 2016 game that supports multi-core processing and asynchronous compute.

In this game, the single core CPU performance has a significant effect on the actual frame rate.

We tested it on three resolutions using the DirectX 12 API at the High settings :

  • 1080p : 1920 x 1080
  • 1440p : 2560 x 1440
  • 2160p : 3840 x 2160

1080p Gaming Resolution

Nice! The Ryzen 5 5600X was almost as fast as the Ryzen 7 5800X, and delivered 9.4% higher frame rates than the Core i7-8700K, and 11.3% higher frame rates than the Ryzen 7 3700X.

1440p Gaming Resolution

At 1440p, the Ryzen 5 5600X delivered 12.8% higher frame rates than both the Core i7-8700K and the Ryzen 7 3700X.

2160p Gaming Resolution

Even at 4K, CPU performance mattered in Ashes of the Singularity. The Ryzen 5 5600X delivered 9.2% higher frame rates than both the Core i7-8700K and the Ryzen 7 3700X.

Next Page > Our Verdict + Award | Price + Availability

 

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AMD Ryzen 5 5600X : Our Verdict + Award!

There is no doubt that the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X is a leap forward for AMD, thanks to the new Zen 3 core and SoC design.

Its single-core performance has been improved significantly over its predecessors, offering a nice boost to content creation and gaming performance.

Gamers, in particular, will favour this model over the Ryzen 7 5800X because it delivers the same gaming performance at 2/3rds the cost.

It also handily beats the Ryzen 7 3700X in gaming performance, making it a better option for gaming systems.

Even though the Ryzen 5 5600X uses a new microarchitecture, it continues to use the AM4 socket and will support AMD 500 Series chipsets on launch day (with a BIOS upgrade).

That’s really great news for those planning to upgrade from their existing Ryzen processors.

Those on AMD 400 Series motherboards will have to wait until Q1 2020, before they receive BIOS upgrades to support Zen 3.

But while the Ryzen 5 5600X’s performance may be a leap forward, so is its price tag…

You may recall that the last-generation Ryzen 5 3600X had a launch price of $249 (RM859), with a Wraith Spire cooler.

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600X costs substantially more at $299 (RM1,349), and ships with the smaller and cheaper Wraith Stealth cooler.

That said, the Ryzen 5 5600X truly provides a significant boost in performance, and it deserves our Reviewer’s Choice Award.

So who should, or should NOT, buy the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X?

  • Buy : If you want the best possible 6-core processor for a new gaming system.
  • Buy : If you are upgrading from a first-generation Ryzen processor.
  • Consider : If you are upgrading from a second-generation Ryzen processor.
  • Skip : If you are already using a 3rd Gen Ryzen processor.

Those on a budget can consider purchasing a Ryzen 5 3600X. It may not be as fast, but the money you save can be used towards the upcoming Radeon RX 6000 series graphics card!

 

AMD Ryzen 5 5600X : Price + Availability

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600X processor is available for sale starting 5 November 2020, at these RRP inclusive of tax :

  • Malaysia : RM 1,349 (~US$324) inclusive of 6% tax
  • United States : RM 299

Note : Unlike the Ryzen 9 5950X, Ryzen 9 5900X and Ryzen 7 5800X, the Ryzen 5 5600X will NOT come with a free copy of Far Cry 6.

Here are some online purchase options :

 

AMD Ryzen 5 5600X : Specifications

Here is how the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X compares to the other Ryzen 5000 series processors :

Ryzen 9
5950X
Ryzen 9
5900X
Ryzen 7
5800X
Ryzen 5
5600X
Process 7 nm (CCD) + 12 nm (IOD)
Transistor
+ Die Size
CCD : 4.15 billion, 80.7 mm²
IOD : 2.09 billion, 125 mm²
Chiplets 2 x CCD
1 x IOD
1 x CCD
1 x IOD
Cores / Threads 16 / 32 12 / 24 8 / 16 6 / 12
Base Clock 3.4 GHz 3.7 GHz 3.8 GHz 3.7 GHz
Boost Clock 4.9 GHz 4.8 GHz 4.7 GHz 4.6 GHz
L1 Cache 1 MB 768 KB 512 KB 384 KB
L2 Cache 8 MB 6 MB 4 MB 3 MB
L3 Cache 64 MB 32 MB
TDP 105 W 65 W
Cooler None Wraith
Stealth

 

Recommended Reading

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Frontier Supercomputer From AMD + Cray Is World’s Fastest!

AMD and Cray just unveiled the Frontier supercomputer, which will deliver exascale performance! Here is a primer on the world’s fastest supercomputer!

 

The Frontier Supercomputer – Designed By Cray, Powered By AMD

AMD announced that it is joining Cray, the U.S Department Of Energy and Oak Ridge National Laboratory to develop the Frontier supercomputer. It will be the fastest in the world, delivering exascale performance.

Developed at a cost of over US$600 million, the Frontier supercomputer will deliver over 1.5 exaflops of processing power when it comes online in the year 2021!

AMD Contributions To The Frontier Supercomputer

AMD is not just a provider of hardware – the CPUs and GPUs – for the Frontier supercomputer. They will contribute their years of experience in High Performance Computing and Artificial Intelligence :

  • Experience in High Performance Computing (HPC) and Artificial Intelligence (AI)
  • Custom AMD EPYC CPU
  • Purpose-built Radeon Instinct GPU
  • High Bandwith Memory (HBM)
  • Tightly integrated 4:1 GPU to CPU ratio
  • Custom, high speed coherent Infinity Fabric connection
  • Enhanced, open ROCm programming environment for AMD CPUs and GPUs support

 

Frontier Supercomputer And The Future Of Exascale Computing

With the development of the Frontier supercomputer, AMD and Cray will usher in a new era of exascale computing. It will lay the foundation for advanced and high performance of Artificial Intelligence (AI), analytics and simulation.

The use of this super-fast supercomputer by the U.S Department of Energy will further boost the limits of scientific discovery for the U.S and the world.

Recommended Reading

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Here Is The Ryzen R1000 APU That Powers The Atari VCS!

AMD just showed off the Ryzen R1000 APUs, the latest addition to the Ryzen Embedded family. This is the processor that will power by upcoming Atari VCS gaming console!

Here is a quick primer on the new AMD Ryzen R1000 APU!

 

The AMD Ryzen R1000 APU

Known officially as the AMD Ryzen Embedded R1000, this APU brings multi-threaded performance for the first time to the low-power R-series of processors.

AMD claims it will offer 3X performance improvement per watt over the last generation, and 4X CPU and graphics performance per dollar advantage over its competition!

It brings to the AMD R-series new features like :

    • Dual-core, quad-threaded Zen processor
    • 3 Vega Graphics Compute Units
    • Low power with ability to run without a fan
    • Supports up to three 4K displays at up to 60 FPS
    • 4K H.265 encode / decode(10b) + VP9 decode capabilities
    • Secure Root of Trust + Secure Run Technology
    • Dual 10G Gigabit Ethernet

Its low power and ability to run fanless makes it suitable for applications like digital displays, high-performance edge computing, networking and thin clients… and yes, gaming consoles!

 

The AMD Ryzen R1000 Will Power The Atari VCS!

AMD quoted a number of Ryzen R1000 customers – Advantech, ASRock Industrial, IBASE, Netronome, Quixant and STRATACACHE. But the biggest name is none other than Atari.

Its ability to deliver multi-threaded processing with an integrated GPU in a fanless package makes it ideal to power the upcoming Atari VCS gaming console.

 

AMD Ryzen R1000 Availability

The AMD Ryzen R1000 will be available Q2 2019 to ODMs and OEMs worldwide. It supports the Mentor Embedded Linux Flex OS which is already available in the market.

 

Recommended Reading

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