AMD announces powerful new Threadripper 3960X and 3970X CPUs and new-socket TRX40 platform

AMD announced two new processor families today, including the next generations of its Threadripper and Athlon processors, plus a release date for the long-awaited third-gen Ryzen flagship, the Ryzen 9 3950X. Here's what you need to know from the biggest set of AMD CPU announcements since the first Zen 2 processors were revealed earlier this year.

First up: the Ryzen 3950X. As we learned when it was announced at E3 2019, this high-end Zen 2 processor has an unparalleled sixteen cores and thirty-two threads. It should also be a powerful processor for gaming, with AMD quoting a maximum single-core boost frequency of 4.7GHz, with 72MB of combined L2 and L3 cache and a 105W TDP. Despite the modest TDP, AMD is recommending a 280mm or larger all-in-one liquid cooler for the 3950X. AMD's latest AGESA 1.0.0.4 microcode update is required for the new processor.

We'll perform our usual batch of game tests and benchmarks once the 3950X has reached us, but ahead of that AMD has provided some figures comparing the 3950X with Intel's consumer Core i9 9900K and professional Core i9 9920X in a variety of games. Each title was run at 1080p and high settings on a system running an RTX 2080 and 3600MHz of dual-channel G.Skill memory.

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