Upgrade immediately or hold off for Zen 3?
Upgrade immediately or hold off for Zen 3?
So at the moment I have a Core i7-4771 CPU that's getting a little long in the tooth, and I recently set aside some money to upgrade to an AMD 3950x. I do a lot of AI work on my computer, as well as 3D rendering, so the increased number of cores, AMD's price points, and performance reviews convinced me that it's the right time to switch back over from Intel. I was going to head into the shop today to get the new parts, but this morning I saw a story on AMD's new 4000 series that everyone thinks will be dropping around the end of summer. I cannot find a whole lot of information beyond that, like whether the new series should be around the same price points, and whether they will represent a significant increase in performance over the current series. I am kind of waffling between just buying the 3950x like I was going to, maybe buying a 3900x or 3800x to save some money and making sure to get an X570 motherboard so I can grab a 4000 series later, and just waiting for the 4000 series to drop and hoping the performance increase comes in around the same price point and is worth the wait. Can anyone who has been following this closer than I have chime in with your take on this, or any additional information that might be useful in deciding?
The fourth generation is expected in October, which is still a long time away. Because Zen 3 won't alter transistor dimensions, the enhancements will likely be nearer to the performance jump between Zen and Zen+, around a 10% improvement. I’d consider the third generation now, as there will always be something better. If your main focus is productivity, you might also want to explore thread ripper.
Difference is rumoured to be much greater than between Zen and Zen+ as this is not Zen2+ - this is a redesign with MUCH lower latency and on an optimized 7nm+ process.
I suggest holding off for now. Zen 3 will likely be the final chip on the AM4 socket, giving you excellent value. Based on current trends with the 4000 series mobile chips, we could expect a performance increase of around 10% compared to the previous generation. If AMD delivers on their promises, IPC could jump by 10-15%. The main improvement will come from reducing CCXs per CCD from two to one, which should significantly enhance memory performance—something Ryzen handles well. For creators and AI workers, a Threadripper might be ideal, though the 3950X offers solid value as it starts near $1400. When picking a motherboard, check out Buildzoid’s video; they go into detail and provide timestamps for each board. Typically, around $300 provides the best return, but there are great options over $500 that are worth considering.
The 4000 series chips run Zen 2 technology, which makes them a substantial upgrade over the 3000 series. The future performance of Zen 3 remains uncertain, but the transition from Zen+ to Zen 2 won’t be as large because the transistor dimensions haven’t changed.
Would you like another year? That would be ideal. I'm also upgrading to a 4790k and doing the same. We're heading toward DDR5 memory soon. It's smarter to move to a newer platform than stay tied to one that's nearing its end. Plus, prices are high right now because of the pandemic, making it a poor moment to purchase.