Guru3D.com
  • HOME
  • NEWS
    • Channels
    • Archive
  • DOWNLOADS
    • New Downloads
    • Categories
    • Archive
  • GAME REVIEWS
  • ARTICLES
    • Rig of the Month
    • Join ROTM
    • PC Buyers Guide
    • Guru3D VGA Charts
    • Editorials
    • Dated content
  • HARDWARE REVIEWS
    • Videocards
    • Processors
    • Audio
    • Motherboards
    • Memory and Flash
    • SSD Storage
    • Chassis
    • Media Players
    • Power Supply
    • Laptop and Mobile
    • Smartphone
    • Networking
    • Keyboard Mouse
    • Cooling
    • Search articles
    • Knowledgebase
    • More Categories
  • FORUMS
  • NEWSLETTER
  • CONTACT

New Reviews
Corsair H170i Elite Capellix XT review
Forspoken: PC performance graphics benchmarks
ASRock Z790 Taichi review
The Callisto Protocol: PC graphics benchmarks
G.Skill TridentZ 5 RGB 6800 MHz CL34 DDR5 review
Be Quiet! Dark Power 13 - 1000W PSU Review
Palit GeForce RTX 4080 GamingPRO OC review
Core i9 13900K DDR5 7200 MHz (+memory scaling) review
Seasonic Prime Titanium TX-1300 (1300W PSU) review
F1 2022: PC graphics performance benchmark review

New Downloads
FurMark Download v1.33.0.0
Intel ARC graphics Driver Download Version: 31.0.101.4091
Corsair Utility Engine Download (iCUE) Download v4.33.138
CPU-Z download v2.04
AMD Radeon Software Adrenalin 23.1.2 (RX 7900) download
GeForce 528.24 WHQL driver download
Display Driver Uninstaller Download version 18.0.6.0
Download Intel network driver package 27.8
ReShade download v5.6.0
Media Player Classic - Home Cinema v2.0.0 Download


New Forum Topics
RTX 4090 Owner's thread Netflix threatens to ban customers who share an account unauthorized Cyberpunk 2077 NVIDIA DLSS 3 Update Is Out Now AMD Ryzen 7 7700X sees price drop to $299 HYTE Y60 with 3-sided panoramic glass comes in a Snow white editiion New Details Emerge on AMDs A620 Chipset: What We Know So Far NVIDIA GeForce 528.24 WHQL driver download & Discussion GeForce NVIDIA RTX 6000 with fully active AD102  Does Not Beat RTX 4090  in 3DMark AMD Software: Adrenalin Edition 23.1.2 for AMD Radeon™ RX 7900 Series Ambient Occlusion doesn't work on my laptop




Guru3D.com » Review » AMD Ryzen 3 1200 and 1300X review » Page 4

AMD Ryzen 3 1200 and 1300X review - The AMD Chipsets

by Hilbert Hagedoorn on: 07/27/2017 03:00 PM [ 5] 27 comment(s)

Tweet

The Chipset(s)

A new processor will need a new chipset. AMD sold its chipset division I think two years ago already, a new processor series will need a new chipset as the motherboard needs an infrastructure as well. While most of the chipset functionality is harbored inside the processor, a new generation and architecture processor will always require a new motherboard chipset.
  

 
AMD announced chipsets for Ryzen based on AM4: X370, B350, A320 and the mini-ITX X300, and A300/B300 with the X370 and B350 already available. Only the X370 chipset is going to support SLI. That means the B350 would not support SLI (but does support Crossfire). This information has been confirmed. The B350 series is a more budget aimed one so that choice makes a lot of sense. Please notice that there are 20 PCIe 3.0 lanes pulled from the Ryzen processor. Ryzen all by itself has 24 PCI-Express lanes, 4 are being used to interface with the chipset (which adds Gen 2.0 lanes as shown in the tables). So depending on the chipset used it adds gen 2.0 PCIe lanes through the chipset. The X370 will add 8 lanes, B350 6 lanes and onwards. Have a peek at the chart for more details. Let's check out the I/O interfaces of the chipsets and processors:

 

X370 B350 A320 X300 / B300 / A300  Ryzen CPU Bristol Ridge CPU
PCIe 3.0 0 0 0 4 20 10
PCIe 2.0 8 6 4 0 0 0
USB 3.1 Gen 2 (10 Gbit/s) 2 2 1 1 0 0
USB 3.0 6 2 2 2 4 4
USB 2.0 6 6 6 6 0 0
SATA 6 Gbit / s 4 2 2 2 2 2
SATA-Raid 0/1/10 0/1/10 0/1/10 0/1 - -
Overclocking Yes Yes - Yes ** - -
CrossFire / SLI Yes / Yes Yes / - - - - -
* 18 when 2 x SATA is running
** Only X300

  
Each chipset will add USB ports, but the Ryzen processor also offers four native USB 3.0 ports. There is support for RAID 0/1/10 configurations as well as overclocking support on the X370, B350 and X300 chipset. Obviously the motherboard partners can add 3rd party chips to increase USB 3.0 and so on.
  

 
For you guys two series will jump out the most, high-end enthusiast class end-users will go for the series X370 chipset whereas the B350 series hints towards the budget or business side of things. Mind you, there will be five chipsets for Socket AM4, namely the X370, B350, A320 and, for smaller form factors, the X300 and A300.

DDR4 DIMM Memory Support

AMD obviously brings DDR4 support to Ryzen, this remains to be dual-channel; we certainly would have liked to have seen quad-channel support to be brutally honest. The motherboards will be paired with 4 DIMM slots, again in dual-channel setup. AMD will support the standard Jedec SPD timings and frequencies at 2133/2400 and 2667 MHz, but we have already tested motherboards which support 3200 MHz in OC mode. So yeah, that will be solely dependent on the motherboard partners. While that is not in the same ballpark as what Intel is doing, a nice 2933 MHz kit with CL16 latency would be very sufficient for all your bandwidth needs. Ryzen processors really like fast memory, hence we recommend 2933 or 3200 MHz single rank dual-channel kits. Please check this article for some more advise on your purchasing choices.

AMD X370 Chipset (High-End)

Other than that, PCI-Express Gen 3.0 is now confirmed as well as support for the NVMe protocol, USB 3.1 Gen 2 (10 Gbps) and M.2 and SATA Express support. Interestingly the Ryzen processor has IO paths and a controller built in for USB 3.1 (Gen 2) as well as 4 PCI lanes dedicated to your NVMe needs. The chipsets can be used for adding more as well of course. So the most high-end chipset will be the X370 with that 'X' for 'Extreme'. This chipset will support Multi-GPU rendering (Crossfire and SLI) with two x16 PCI Express slots (Gen 3.0). The Ryzen processor has an I/O of 24 PCIe 3.0 lanes. Four of them are used as an interconnect to the chipset and then the chipset adds another 8 PCIe 2.0 lanes. So if you run Crossfire or SLI, you will be running at Gen 3 x8 modes. The chipset will support overclocking. Basically this is the chipset series you and yours truly will be using much like Z170, Z270 and X99 for Intel. 

 


  

AMD B350 Chipset (Mainstream)

If it has a 'B' in the naming schema, you should think mainstream and that 'B' is for 'Business'. A more generalized chipset that offers full performance, yet less tweaking options and often less PCI-Express lanes available, the mainstream series. For B350, specs show 8x Gen 3 PCI-Express lanes for graphics, it'll add/hook another 6 Gen 2 lanes through the chipset and will offer a wide variety of USB connectivity. This motherboard series will offer dual channel DDR4 memory.

AMD obviously already showcased high-performance AM4 motherboards from several manufacturers, including ASRock, Asus, Biostar, Gigabyte and MSI as well as innovative third-party CPU cooler designs, demonstrating a ready and robust ecosystem for Ryzen CPUs. For us gurus the most interesting will be the X370, X300 and B350 series. X370 chipset-based motherboards are designed for those who need the most performance, features, and I/O connectivity from their PCs including support for overclocking, and dual graphics. For users looking for performance in a more compact size, the X370 chipset also features an AMD Ryzen-ready AM4 socket while utilizing the mini-ITX size ideal for small form factor PCs. Both chipsets take full advantage of innovative technology features including:

  • Dual-channel DDR4 memory
  • NVMe
  • M.2 SATA devices
  • USB 3.1 Gen 1 and Gen 2
  • PCIe 3.0 capability

AMD Ryzen Master Utility

Tweaking and overclocking can be managed in two ways. Standard traditional tweaking can be managed in the BIOS of course. I assume 99% of you guys will do just that. However, AMD is introducing their Ryzen Master Utility as well. You might recognize the design as the tool is styled in the very same way as Radeon Crimson drivers, it works the same and feels the same. The tool has been designed to tweak and overclock the basics like your clock frequency, voltages, memory and core parking. Once you OC above 3.7 GHz, the protection will switch off and stuff like XFR is automatically disabled for you to gain maximum performance. Ehm, yeah - we'd still advise a BIOS OC though.




28 pages « 3 4 5 6 next »



Related Articles
AMD Ryzen 9 7900 processor review
AMD also released a Ryzen 9 7900, this 65W non-X model offers absolutely beautiful performance and temperatures. Next to the 7700, this actually might become a best seller in the current Ryzen 7000 pr...

AMD Ryzen 7 7700 processor review
We check out AMD's new non-X Ryzen 7 7700 series 8-core processor, and it impressed me far more than the original X model. The newer version's performance is superior, and its thermal design power ...

AMD Ryzen 5 7600 processor review
AMD has released the non-X version of their Ryzen 7000 series processor. The new update isn't intended for extreme performance but is tagged with a far friendlier 65W TDP. And that means better heat ...

AMD Ryzen 9 7900X processor review
For our 4th and last Ryzen 7000 review, we look at the 12-core part, and meet the Ryzen 9 7900X. A processor that is going to be less popular due to that somewhat odd core configuration, make no mista...

© 2023