Zen 5 performance expectations are very steep (very far).

AMD has barely narrowed down its timeline for the new Zen 5 architecture in servers, desktops, and laptops when the usually well-informed rumor mill is already on the boil. The outlook for desktop CPUs from the Ryzen 9000 (“Granite Ridge”) product family and their expected performance is currently very steep (far too high). But one by one.

Zen 5 with at least 30 percent more IPC than Zen 4

Like the YouTube channel known for its advance predictions.RedGamingTechIn his latest video titled “Zen 5 IPC Gains Are Ridiculous,” he claims to have learned from “very reliable sources” that the upcoming build has more than 30 percent higher IPC. A jump in performance of this magnitude would be extraordinary.

Increase IPC (Gen ➜ Gen):

• Zain+ ➜ Zain 2: +15 percent
• Zain 2 ➜ Zain 3: +19 percent
• Zain 3 ➜ Zain 4: +13 percent
• Zain 4 ➜ Zain 5: +30 percent*

*) According to current rumours.

If these rumors, which according to RedGamingTech, are “ridiculous” in their current form, are confirmed, it will not only mark the huge leap from Zen 2 to Zen 3, but it will be somewhat of a new “Ryzen moment” for AMD. The first generation of Zen increased by more than 40 percent over Excavator in terms of instructions per clock cycle (“IPC”).

Source: AMD



However, at that time, it was a completely new architecture, and its predecessor was not at the absolute top and produced processors such as the AMD Athlon X4 970 (“Bristol Ridge”). It is questionable whether a similarly large jump in performance from Zen 4 to Zen 5 is possible.

Zen 5 should also enable higher clock frequencies

While observers expect an IPC increase of 15 to 20 percent in terms of the performance increase from Zen 4 to Zen 5, it is also assumed that the clock frequencies will drop at least a little. RedGamingTech would also like more information about this matter.

The clock frequencies do not witness any decline and are excellent.

– Red Gaming Tech –

While the rumors about the Ryzen 9000 (“Granite Ridge”), which PCGH previously rated accordingly, appear to have been further confirmed, the rumors about Zen 5 provide additional background, which should also be viewed with the utmost caution. AMD itself has not yet commented on this matter.

• According to a highly reliable source, IPC growth is over 30 percent.
• According to another source, the IPC gains are higher than when switching from Zen 2 to Zen 3.
• I'm still skeptical at the moment. Because the increases are so ridiculous, I'm assuming it's 15 to 20 percent and I hope it's more.
• Zen 5 scale is probably better architecturally for servers, so Torino's IPC is probably a little better than Granite Ridge.

– Red Gaming Tech –

More light has now been shed on AMD's timeline for introducing Zen 5. AMD CEO Lisa Su has already confirmed the Ryzen 9040 (“Strix Point”) with Zen 5, RDNA 3.5 and XDNA 2 “later” this year and the Epyc 9005 (” Turin”) for the second half of the year. Ryzen 9000 series (“Granite Ridge”) desktop processors are also expected to debut in the second half of the year. The Ryzen 9000X3D (“Granite Ridge-X”) could in turn be presented to the world at CES 2025 in January next year and represent a major event.

Rumors about the specifications are increasing

After the first confirmed information about the expected specifications of the Ryzen 9000 (“Granite Ridge”), which was still trading as the Ryzen 8000 at the time, leaked in mid-2023, @Kepler_L2 who is known for such “leaks”, asked Peter Wetzlmaier, Marketing Director of the Austrian company Adwerbea Marketing Service GmbH, announced that serial production of the AMD Ryzen 9000 processor has now successfully begun. YouTuber High Yield confirms the leaked specifications and also provides new details.

Ryzen 9000 (“Granite Ridge”)*

• AM5 (“LGA 1718”)
• Zen 5 CCD devices (“Eldora”)
• Zen 5 CPUs (“Nirvana”)
• 6 to 16 Zen 5 processor cores
• iGPU with RDNA 2 or RDNA 3.5**
• Power loss from 65 to 170 watts (“TDP”)
• Clock frequencies are comparable to Ryzen 7000
• Up to 64 MiByte L3 caches and 16 MiByte L2 caches
• The I/O die should be taken over by the Ryzen 7000
• 4nm (“N4”) manufacturing at TSMC
• Support DDR5 up to 6,400 MT/s
• Issued on 04/2024 to 06/2024

*) Not officially confirmed. **) Depending on the I/O template used.

PCGH's editorial team has already compiled all the relevant rumors about the Ryzen 9000 in November last year and ranked them accordingly. It has been supplemented with new information.

AMD Ryzen 8000 and 9000: All the information about Zen 5 and Zen 5c

A 20-minute video from 'RedGamingTech' on YouTube provides more rumours, although many of them are still largely speculative.