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AMD Volcanic Islands coming late 2013
AMD seems to be making some changes for Sea Islands in order to respond to Nvidia's Kepler revision series of products. The new GPU family is now codenamed "Volcanic Islands" and is slated for late 2013, expect the Christmas season. The new Volcanic Islands GPU’s could be be manufactured on a 20nm Gate-Last process through either TSMC or Common Platform Alliance, but that remains unconfirmed though. We have some very intersting specs to share though.
According to reports coming from Chiphell Volcanic Islands could be coming in the last quarter and feature the Hawaii graphics core that is going to replace Tahiti (Tahiti is used in the series Radeon HD 7900 graphics cards). Now the Volcanic Islands architecture although not confirmed could very well stick to 28nm, but 20nm is more plausible if the chip foundries are ready for it. Two additional and possible codenames have been hinted as Reychavik and Honolulu, of which both are active volcanoes and or related to vulcanic islands.
The chip codenamed Hawaii looks to be the most high-end part and would pack some serious muscle:
- 20 nm fabrication proces
- 4096 shader processors
- 16 serial processor units
- 4 geometry engines
- 256 TMUs
- 64 ROPs
- 512-bit GDDR5 memory interface
The early block Diagram has leaked through an Asian website Chiphell, showing "Hawaii," 20nm 16X SPU 4X ACE/Geometry Engine 4096SP 256TMU 64ROPs 512Bit.
The diagram is very blurry but you can see that there will be parallel and serial shader units embedded. If that is the case then AMD is making really significant changes in their architecture as the serial cores that AMD may use (licensing wise) are x86 and could help out on the compute side of things.
Now if we chart it up you can see why this is such big news, as this is a 2x performance increase over the current high-end graphics part.
| AMD Radeon HD 9970 Hawaii GPU | AMD Radeon HD 7970 Tahiti GPU | |
|---|---|---|
| Die Size | 20nm/28nm | 28nm |
| Stream Processors | 4096 | 2048 |
| Compute Units | 16 | 32 |
| TMUS | 256 | 128 |
| ROPS | 64 | 32 |
| Memory | 4 GB GDDR5 | 3 GB GDDR5 |
| Memory Bus | 512-bit | 384-bit |
As always, leaked information and slides like the block diagram shown above should be taken with a grain of salt. You never know if they are correct and the reality is that the block diagram does have the AMD 'feel and aesthetics their typical presentations have. But the leak of this block diagram is seriously significant, if right.
Loophole35
Ancient Guru
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Ancient Guru
Posts: 5623
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#4592660 Posted on: 05/08/2013 06:59 PM
Here's hoping Hawaii destroys Titan at the $500-600 price point.
Here's hoping Hawaii destroys Titan at the $500-600 price point.
Elder III
Maha Guru
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Maha Guru
Posts: 2497
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#4592663 Posted on: 05/08/2013 07:03 PM
Looks good, but please pass the saltshaker.
Looks good, but please pass the saltshaker.
Stukov
Ancient Guru
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Ancient Guru
Posts: 4876
Joined: 2007-10-01
#4592668 Posted on: 05/08/2013 07:11 PM
If it is in fact 20mm and the power is reasonable this will probably be my next and last upgrade for quite a few years.
If it is in fact 20mm and the power is reasonable this will probably be my next and last upgrade for quite a few years.
Angushades
Member Guru
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Member Guru
Posts: 129
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#4592674 Posted on: 05/08/2013 07:16 PM
This doesn't mean jack untill they fix there CFX drivers and even there single GPU stuttering its all for nothing. I would like to go for the under dog again but there drivers are just a joke. Hope that prototype driver comes out soon.
This doesn't mean jack untill they fix there CFX drivers and even there single GPU stuttering its all for nothing. I would like to go for the under dog again but there drivers are just a joke. Hope that prototype driver comes out soon.
chaotic1
Ancient Guru
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Ancient Guru
Posts: 2853
Joined: 2004-02-18
#4592678 Posted on: 05/08/2013 07:26 PM
I wish they would put this kind of power into cpu's tbh
Ho, ho...AMD is getting serious. 
I wish they would put this kind of power into cpu's tbh
deltatux
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Ancient Guru
Posts: 19054
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#4592763 Posted on: 05/08/2013 09:34 PM
Was going to get a Radeon HD 7870 during the summer but if this were to be true, screw it, I'm getting the Radeon HD 9870 (or whatever it's going to be called) instead based on price and availability this winter.
Got no single GPU stuttering going on here, what game are you referring to? Could just be game specific. I've been running my Radeon HD 6870 with no issues with the drivers at all. Multi-GPU setups yes, I know there would be issues, even NVIDIA has SLi issues from time to time, it's just because multi-GPUs, even after a decade are pretty horrible, yes they've vastly improved but they haven't eradicated stuttering.
deltatux
Was going to get a Radeon HD 7870 during the summer but if this were to be true, screw it, I'm getting the Radeon HD 9870 (or whatever it's going to be called) instead based on price and availability this winter.
This doesn't mean jack untill they fix there CFX drivers and even there single GPU stuttering its all for nothing. I would like to go for the under dog again but there drivers are just a joke. Hope that prototype driver comes out soon.
Got no single GPU stuttering going on here, what game are you referring to? Could just be game specific. I've been running my Radeon HD 6870 with no issues with the drivers at all. Multi-GPU setups yes, I know there would be issues, even NVIDIA has SLi issues from time to time, it's just because multi-GPUs, even after a decade are pretty horrible, yes they've vastly improved but they haven't eradicated stuttering.
deltatux
Noisiv
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Ancient Guru
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#4592781 Posted on: 05/08/2013 09:46 PM
thanks, I'll take the whole bucket
Looks good, but please pass the saltshaker.
thanks, I'll take the whole bucket
H83
Maha Guru
Posts: 1336
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Maha Guru
Posts: 1336
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#4592822 Posted on: 05/08/2013 10:23 PM
Maybe it´s just me but those specs seem to good to be true...
In case they are, then just take my money!
Maybe it´s just me but those specs seem to good to be true...
In case they are, then just take my money!
Blackops_2
Master Guru
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Master Guru
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#4592826 Posted on: 05/08/2013 10:28 PM
This is how i feel lol
As for people claiming they don't "need" anymore GPU power.. did the enthusiast in you die?
Crysis 3 can't be handled with AA by any card down the line under Titan and the Dual GPU/PCBs. Up the res and it's a massacre. For those that play on multi-monitor/high res. Soon i'll be making the transition to 3240x1920...uh yeah i want/need more power If these specs hold true 3 9970s should do the trick..gonna need some more salt though.
thanks, I'll take the whole bucket
This is how i feel lol
As for people claiming they don't "need" anymore GPU power.. did the enthusiast in you die?
Crysis 3 can't be handled with AA by any card down the line under Titan and the Dual GPU/PCBs. Up the res and it's a massacre. For those that play on multi-monitor/high res. Soon i'll be making the transition to 3240x1920...uh yeah i want/need more power
If these specs hold true 3 9970s should do the trick..gonna need some more salt though.
Yxskaft
Master Guru
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Master Guru
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#4592867 Posted on: 05/08/2013 11:31 PM
I was expecting the 20nm GPUs to support a new DirectX version
I'm currently planning on upgrading when the 20nm GPUs are available, so I hope the mid-range will let me play with better settings/fps than the PS4
I was expecting the 20nm GPUs to support a new DirectX version
I'm currently planning on upgrading when the 20nm GPUs are available, so I hope the mid-range will let me play with better settings/fps than the PS4
Neo Cyrus
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#4592886 Posted on: 05/08/2013 11:50 PM
Christmas season is still over 7 months away. If nVidia release their rebrand stuff in June/July I'll be buying from them assuming the 780 doesn't cost some outrageous amount due to the Titan's luxury price tag.
That makes me wonder if AMD will pull an nVidia and release $1K card. What lousy trends.
Christmas season is still over 7 months away. If nVidia release their rebrand stuff in June/July I'll be buying from them assuming the 780 doesn't cost some outrageous amount due to the Titan's luxury price tag.
That makes me wonder if AMD will pull an nVidia and release $1K card. What lousy trends.
Blackops_2
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Master Guru
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#4592905 Posted on: 05/09/2013 12:20 AM
I think AMD knows that to release their flagship at 1k is going to hurt them more than anything as it turns away more people than the actual amount that buy it.
If they somehow managed the 20nm process and these specs are true i do expect another 550$ launch. Anything over and i just don't see them selling that well. Hell the community would eventually get sick of it with the new flagship cards getting more expensive every year. Who knows thouh.
It would certainly be interesting to see those specs come true.
I think AMD knows that to release their flagship at 1k is going to hurt them more than anything as it turns away more people than the actual amount that buy it.
If they somehow managed the 20nm process and these specs are true i do expect another 550$ launch. Anything over and i just don't see them selling that well. Hell the community would eventually get sick of it with the new flagship cards getting more expensive every year. Who knows thouh.
It would certainly be interesting to see those specs come true.
sykozis
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#4592922 Posted on: 05/09/2013 12:48 AM
The cost of PC gaming is what's really hurting the pc gaming market....not the piracy. Between the cost of graphics cards and the games, PC gaming has gotten insanely expensive. Hopefully AMD will release these cards with proper, reasonable prices. I won't be buying, but it'd be nice to see prices NOT go up more....
The cost of PC gaming is what's really hurting the pc gaming market....not the piracy. Between the cost of graphics cards and the games, PC gaming has gotten insanely expensive. Hopefully AMD will release these cards with proper, reasonable prices. I won't be buying, but it'd be nice to see prices NOT go up more....
deltatux
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#4592926 Posted on: 05/09/2013 12:52 AM
PC games tend to drop in price faster than console games. Plus, you don't HAVE to upgrade. Hell, technically I don't need to upgrade from my Radeon HD 6870 since it's sufficient for most games, it's the fact that we want to upgrade as PC enthusiasts is why it's expensive.
I know tons of people still on old graphics card who still game on their PCs without touching consoles (my brother for example, has my old Radeon HD 4850 and still doesn't touch our XBOX 360). I have a friend who still stuck with his Radeon HD 5770 even though I advised him to upgrade.
deltatux
The cost of PC gaming is what's really hurting the pc gaming market....not the piracy. Between the cost of graphics cards and the games, PC gaming has gotten insanely expensive. Hopefully AMD will release these cards with proper, reasonable prices. I won't be buying, but it'd be nice to see prices NOT go up more....
PC games tend to drop in price faster than console games. Plus, you don't HAVE to upgrade. Hell, technically I don't need to upgrade from my Radeon HD 6870 since it's sufficient for most games, it's the fact that we want to upgrade as PC enthusiasts is why it's expensive.
I know tons of people still on old graphics card who still game on their PCs without touching consoles (my brother for example, has my old Radeon HD 4850 and still doesn't touch our XBOX 360). I have a friend who still stuck with his Radeon HD 5770 even though I advised him to upgrade.
deltatux
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It makes me laugh when 1080p gamers say they dont need anymore gpu power.lol
WHat about 2560/5760 res users?
And these next gen consoles are going to be a joke compared to what the pc gamers have been using over the last 3 years (eyefinity).
MoRe gpu and video memory please. Would be nice to run 3x2560 ips screens at 120fps with one gpu.
NIce.
WiSh.