Assemble that Passes # 281
In these days there has been a lot of talk about the patent filed on December 31st by AMD that has formalized the work of the company on the GPU based on chiplet technology. On the other hand, the same technology has given great results with Ryzen processors and could pave the way for graphics chips based on a single base unit, with an obvious advantage in terms of ease of production and savings, to be combined in solutions with more and more core depending on the desired power. All avoiding the silicon quality problems of large monolithic chips and obtaining GPUs that are easier to balance from the point of view of consumption.
It is no coincidence that Intel and NVIDIA are working, as we have known for some time, on similar solutions that should come out in the near future using the EMBIB technology in the case of the former and the Hopper architecture, of which however we he knows little in the case of the second. But while it's probably still in its infancy, AMD's patented technology could have an advantage. In fact, there is talk of cores able to access the cache memory of the other cores with a speed similar to that necessary to access their own cache and this should minimize the disadvantage of using a multi-core technology, ensuring excellent scaling that would magnify the promising prospects in terms of raw power of a Zen-like approach. There are those who already see in this technology an imperious leap in graphic power, also betting on a mutual optimization work destined to bring advantages also to future Ryzen processors.
On the other hand, while cutting the bridges in terms of backward compatibility with current AMD CPUs, the Ryzen 6000 will most likely maintain the chiplet philosophy, now necessary to avoid the problems associated with the limits of the miniaturization of the production process. Limits that will force Intel to make some significant changes, now finally ready to bid farewell to 14 nanometers even in the desktop environment. But first, the production process that has accompanied the Core CPUs for generations has a final mission called Rocket Lake and which after the first Geekbench benchmarks is back to being talked about.
Also in this case the scores emerged on the net concern the Core i9-11900K which marks the return from the 10 cores of the predecessor, decidedly hungry for energy, to the 8 cores of a solution that in Cinebench R20, a test that rewards AMD CPUs, travels almost paired to a Ryzen 9 5900X in single thread. Instead, it inevitably loses in multithread, where the 12 cores of the AMD processor guarantee an unbridgeable advantage, but in the face of frequencies similar to previous models, with 5.3 GHz peak obtained using the Thermal Velocity Boost, it seems to find confirmation a good leap forward in terms of IPC. However, there is talk of consumption in line with a 10900K and temperatures of 75 degrees with Cinebench R20 and over 90 degrees with Aida 64, but in the absence of information on the heatsink used for the tests, it is not possible to draw sensible conclusions.
We can bet on the short presentation of the new mobile GeForce that we expect to be among the novelties of the event on January 12 organized by NVIDIA for CES 2021. MSI suggested that with an advance on laptops that will unveil on January 13, has heated the hearts with the specs of the new GF65. Close to the 144Hz 1080 display and a classic Core i7-10750H, in fact, we find a GeForce RTX 3060 Max-Q, with 6 GB of memory, which promises a nice jump in power for gaming laptops, replacing the RTX 2060 Max -Q in laptops from 1300-1500 euros. Among other things, for the CES we expect that in one way or another Lenovo, ASUS and Dell will present similar solutions during the CES 2021 which will take place, online, next week, focusing the spotlight mainly, as usual, on notebooks and monitor. And it is among the latter, among other things, that we will find a new LG screen with a very special feature.
We are used to screens that can be rotated and rotated, but soon we may find ourselves in the house screens able to go from flat to curved in order to adapt to different needs. LG is in fact about to present, during the digital CES of this 2021 still marked by the pandemic, its Bendable Cinematic Sound OLED (CSO), a 48-inch 4K and 120Hz that can be folded thanks to an OLED designed to exploit the malleability of this effective video technology. It can therefore be hung on the wall but can also transform into a 1000R curvature display perfect for pairing with a realistic steering wheel and driving simulator. The features also highlight the desire to fully support the HDMI 2.1 standard and therefore the next generation consoles. Despite this wink to the gamer market, we expect a significant price for a latest generation solution that adds a notable plus. But it is likely that it will take a while to see such a product on the market and we expect some youth issues for a device that is certainly not destined to go mainstream anytime soon.
Budget configuration
The budget configuration is the one aimed at saving but it is not certain that there is no room for the upgrade where interesting prospects arise. The proposals in this range include solutions designed for low-tech games and 1080p-oriented builds.Still limited in the choices by price increases that have also involved the low-end, also inflating the price of the Core i3 -9100F, we want the Core i3 10100 which still does take a bit of a sacrifice in terms of power, but guarantees good in-game performance at a very affordable price.
Meanwhile, while we wait for the GeForce RTX 3050, options are also dwindling on the GPU front with the GeForce RTX 1650 Super increasingly difficult to find and increasingly expensive. We are therefore forced to go down a step, with the GeForce RTX 1650 which is already on the rise.
BUDGET Component Price PROCESSOR Intel Core i3-10100 3.6-4.3 GHz 115,00 € MSI H410M-A PRO MOTHERBOARD € 80.00 EVGA GeForce GTX 1650 XC 4GB VIDEO CARD 175.00 € HyperX FURY Black 2x8GB 2666MHz CL16 RAM 70.00 € EVGA POWER SUPPLY 450 BR 80+ Bronze 45.00 € HARD DISK Kingston A400 480GB SATA III 50,00 € CASE Kolink Nimbus RGB Mid Tower 55,00 € TOTAL 510,00 €
Gaming configuration
In the gaming range there are usually those components that allow to face the PC game without fear and to hold on for some time. The frame rate showdown is just around the corner but, with a good base, it's always possible to sell the old GPU before it devalues too much so you can buy a new one just in time to take on the next hardware-smashing blockbuster.We continue on saving even in the case of the mid-range GPU, but with the aim of saving according to the video card. This is why we are focusing on the Core i5-10400F which, even without overclocking, offers pretty good in-game performance and has a decidedly low price despite a small increase compared to last week.
The savings on the CPU, we said, it is functional, as it was last week, to the GeForce RTX 3060 Ti which, difficult but not impossible to find, is the only mid-range option that with a little effort can fit into a mid-range configuration. Unless you are in a hurry, however, it is advisable to wait given the possible presentation of the smooth GeForce RTX 3060 soon.
GAMING Component Price PROCESSOR Intel Core i5-10400F 2.9-4.3GHz 160 , 00 € ASUS TUF Gaming B460M-PLUS MOTHERBOARD 120.00 € GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 3060 Ti Eagle OC 8GB 560.00 € RAM Crucial Ballistix 2x8GB 3200MHz CL16 75.00 € FSP Hydro PRO 600W 80+ Bronze 65.00 € HARD DISK Samsung 860 Evo 500GB SATA III 60,00 € CASE Corsair R275 Airflow Mid Tower 80.00 € TOTAL 1120.00 €
Extra Configuration
The push configuration has a complete meaning only for those who aim at high resolutions, aware that luxury often doesn't go hand in hand with rationality. On the other hand, let's face it, who doesn't like having a nice engine under the hood even if you have to respect the speed limit?The Ryzen 7 5800X remains our favorite choice while we wait to see the price normalization of the other Ryzen 5000 and while we wait to discover in-game performance and consumption of the now imminent Intel Rocket Lake that in terms of IPC increase they promise pretty well.
Also with regard to the GPU we are waiting for a price drop of AMD's RX 6000 to finally open up to new alternatives, but in the meantime, refusing to bow to older generation cards sold at prices anyway excessive, we focus on the GeForce RTX 3070, less complicated to find than the GeForce RTX 3080.
EXTRA Component Price PROCESSOR Ryzen R9 5800X 3.8-4.7GHz 535,00 € Noctua NH-D15 Chromax HEAT SINK Black 100,00 € MOTHERBOARD Gigabyte X570 AORUS ELITE 200,00 € VIDEO CARD ASUS GeForce RTX 3070 Dual 8 GB 665,00 € RAM Crucial Ballistix RGB 2x16GB DDR4 3600MHz CL16 185,00 € ANTEC POWER SUPPLY HCG-850 80+ Gold 130, 00 € HARD DISK Sabrent Rocket 1TB M.2 PCIe 4.0 170.00 € CASE A-Data XPG Battlecruiser Super RGB Mid Tower 145.00 € TOTAL 2130.00 €
