Comparison of AMD X470 and X570 chipsets What's new?

So, what is interesting about Zen 2 family processors?

Multiple crystals instead of one

As mentioned above, with the transition to the new Zen 2 core, AMD engineers have made a revolution. Instead of a single crystal, they switched to the concept of a "chiplet", essentially dividing the responsibilities into several different crystals. One "chiplet" CCD (Core Complex Die) is produced by a 7 nm process technology and is responsible for computing blocks and cache. The second one is called cIOD (Central I/O Die), is manufactured according to a 12 nm process technology and is responsible for the rest of the processor, including the memory controller and PCI-E lines.

In addition to the obvious reduction in the cost of crystal production (from one complex to three simplified), the bus was untied from both the processor frequency and the RAM frequency. Therefore, the "RAM" will no longer be a deterrent during overclocking.

The first mass 12 and 16-nuclear

Thanks to these improvements in the new generation of Ryzen chips, AMD Ryzen 9 Matisse 3900X BOX Price from 27 200 up to 28 854 ₴, the first mass processor with 12 physical and 12 virtual cores. And very soon, the top Ryzen 9 will land on the shelves, where there will already be 16/32 cores. The hardware should also be ready for such an increase in power. Therefore, the power of the voltage converter has increased in the new boards, and the boards on the X570 are in most cases equipped with an enhanced cooling system. Let's look at the example of the upcoming Ryzen 9 3950X, what is so interesting about the new platform from AMD.

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AMD Ryzen 9 Matisse 3950X BOX 

X470 and 570: What exactly has changed?

Having understood the coolness of the Zen 2 architecture, let's move on to comparing X470 sockets with X570 and try to figure out which board is better to buy. Let's make a reservation right away that the motherboards on the X470 are flashed for Zen 2 chips, so it's not necessary to completely update the system to install a new Ryzen. Otherwise, there are enough differences between them.

PCI-E 4.0

Perhaps the most important thing is the support of the PCI-E 4.0 bus, which provides twice the bandwidth compared to PCI-E 3.0. No other chipset currently supports this except the X570. And although nothing can really use this technology yet (except PCI-E 4.0 SSDs), the large bandwidth means that we will finally be able to use the M slots.2, without worrying about disconnecting other ports. This was kind of a problem with the X470 and older chipsets.

The modified power subsystem and VRM are designed for voracious processors

And the chip turned out to be much more powerful than the previous ones (figures from 10 to 15 watts are mentioned), which is why in most cases the manufacturers of the boards equipped the corresponding cooler with a fan. Also, many of the mothers that we managed to test had a fairly pumped power subsystem designed for voracious "stones" of the new generation. Therefore, even medium–level boards for $ 170 – $ 200 were able to pick up and ensure stable operation of a powerful Ryzen. But the performance of the tandem X470 + Ryzen X3900 will have to be checked on a case-by-case basis.

Improved overclocking and 4800 MHz RAM support

The ceiling of available frequencies on the chip and memory has also increased. Thanks to the improved VRM and Precision Boost Overdrive function, the X570 boards provide an additional margin (sometimes much larger than the processor expects) to increase processor power. The memory frequency now rests against the ceiling of 4800 MHz. While the X470 boards had maximum frequencies not exceeding 3600 MHz.

Options for any pocket

Well, the most important thing is that despite the flagship nature of the new socket, AMD tried to push the new socket into all price ranges, so a pack of both expensive overclocker boards and very inexpensive options with the expectation of office computers or inexpensive gaming assemblies flooded into store shelves overnight. Moreover, if you delve into the comparison of the passport characteristics of X570-boards with fundamentally different price positioning, it suddenly turns out that 700-dollar boards like the ASUS Crosshair VIII Formula are not so much superior to boards with a price of about $ 200.

Let's look at all the chips of the new socket just on the example of such a successful 200-dollar Gigabyte X570 UD board.

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Gigabyte X570 UD 

Conclusion: so what to take for Ryzen 3000 — X470 or X570?

There are a lot of variables in this equation and it's hard to say something unambiguous here. The future is on the X570 side. Here you have PCI-E 4, and zoning for Zen 2, and power system changes that allow you to export powerful 8-cores even to mid-level motherboards.

The X470 plays into the hands of full compatibility with Zen 2 chips and the price. The chipset is no longer new (and no longer the flagship), so the price difference for a motherboard of the same series based on the X570 and X470 can be up to $ 50. That is, for a conditional $200, you will get either a rather fancy version based on the X470, or a strong mid-level board on the X570. But with an eye to the future and support for PCI-E fourth version.

If the upgrade issue is right now, then we would still focus on boards for enthusiasts from $250 and powerful processors. Do you want to use the capabilities of the new socket? Then it doesn't make sense to put something simpler Ryzen 7 3700X in such a board. Right now, the list of current processors for the X570 looks like this:

• AMD Ryzen 9 Matisse 3950X BOX Price from 25 975 up to 35 197 ₴: 16 cores/32 threads
• AMD Ryzen 9 Matisse 3900X BOX Price from 27 200 up to 28 854 ₴: 12 cores/24 threads
• AMD Ryzen 7 Matisse 3800X BOX Price from 11 838 up to 12 371 ₴: 8 cores/16 threads
• AMD Ryzen 7 Matisse 3700X BOX Price from 8 799 up to 18 504 ₴: 8 cores/16 threads

And for everything that is weaker, there are enough mothers for the X470.