With the release of the new Ryzen 3000 processors built on the Zen 2 microarchitecture, AMD plans to conduct a comprehensive update of its ecosystem. Although the new CPUs will maintain compatibility with the Socket AM4 processor socket, developers plan to introduce PCI Express 4.0, which will now be universally supported: not only by the processors but also by the chipset. In other words, after the Ryzen 3000 launch, PCI Express 4.0 will become a standard feature for AMD platforms—any expansion slot on new generation motherboards will have the capability to operate in PCI Express 4.0 mode. This will be the key innovation in the X570 chipset, which AMD plans to present along with the Ryzen 3000 processors.
However, in addition to transitioning the PCI Express bus to a new mode with doubled bandwidth, the X570 chipset is expected to receive another significant improvement: an increased number of available PCI Express lanes, allowing motherboard manufacturers to add additional controllers to their platforms without sacrificing the number of expansion slots and other functional capabilities.
The website PCGamesHardware.de has conducted a comprehensive analysis of the specifications of AMD X570-based motherboards, which we learned about in recent days. Based on this data, it appears that the number of available PCI Express 4.0 lanes in the new chipset will reach 16, which is double the number of PCI Express 2.0 lanes in the previous X470 and X370 chipsets. Additionally, the new chipset will feature two USB 3.1 Gen2 ports and four SATA ports. However, motherboard manufacturers can expand the number of SATA ports by reconfiguring PCI Express lanes and add additional high-speed USB ports by connecting external controllers, such as the ASMedia ASM1143.
Thus, a typical AMD X570-based motherboard will be able to receive a PCIe 4.0 x4 slot, a couple of PCIe 4.0 x1 slots, and a pair of M.2 slots with four PCI Express 4.0 lanes connected to each. Even with this set of slots, there will be enough PCI Express lanes to connect an additional dual-port USB 3.1 Gen2 controller and a gigabit LAN controller to the chipset.
It is important to note that 24 PCI Express 4.0 lanes will also be supported directly by the Ryzen 3000 processors. These lanes are intended to be allocated for the graphics subsystem (16 lanes), for the M.2 slot for the primary NVMe drive (4 lanes), and for connecting the processor to the chipset (4 lanes).
Unfortunately, there is a downside to the powerful upgrade of the basic chipset for the Socket AM4 platform. The support for a significant number of high-speed interfaces has increased the heat output of the X570 chipset to up to 15W, while the typical heat output of other modern chipsets is only 5W. As a result, motherboards based on the AMD X570 will be required to include a fan on the chipset heatsink, which, due to its small diameter, may cause some acoustic discomfort for users of X570 systems. Unfortunately, this is a necessary measure. As explained by MSI's marketing director Eric Van Beurden: "No one will like [such fans]. But they are crucial for this platform because there are many high-speed interfaces inside, and we must ensure that you can use them. That's why proper cooling is needed."
It is worth adding that several motherboard manufacturers have reported that the X570 chipset is still not finalized from its final development stage, so some specifications may change before the boards are released. Nonetheless, this should not hinder manufacturers from showcasing new products for Socket AM4 processors at the upcoming Computex 2019.
Source: 3dnews.ru
