AMD Threadripper 2970WX & 2920X Review: 12-core and 24-core CPUs for work

[Julio Franco]

AMD is launching new 12 and 24-core 2nd-gen Threadripper parts known as the 2920X and 2970WX. Spec-wise the 12-core part is virtually identical to the 16-core part we saw in August, minus the obvious reduction in core count and the same is true when comparing the 24-core and 32-core parts. In our review we benchmark and check out the added value offered by these new CPUs.

Read the full article here.

https://www.techspot.com/review/1737-amd-threadripper-2970wx-2920x/

 

[Theinsanegamer]

"Unfortunately this remains a huge problem for the 2990WX -- and we suspect the 2970WX -- and while Microsoft hasn’t done anything to improve the situation yet, AMD has"

"In AMD’s words, Dynamic Local Mode automatically migrates the system’s most demanding application threads onto the Threadripper 2990WX and 2970WX CPU cores with local memory access."

I'm sorry, but if this can be fixed with a simple piece of software, then it is not on MS to make these multi die CPUs work, it is on AMD. Why is this not part of threadripper's driver? Why, much like their open source GPU drivers, does AMD need other people to fix their stuff for them?

 

[yeeeeman]

That was the editor's thoughts. Indeed, it is AMD's job to do the dirty work and provide ideas and details about its new architecture and how it could be used to its full potential.

 

[VitalyT]

It seems odd that 2920X sells for $649, while 1920X with the same parameters sells for $390. Is there some difference that the comparative table doesn't show?

 

[Lew Zealand]

Only about a 3% IPC difference. The 1920X is the real value in the HEDT space right now, but being a year old with "only" 12 cores, it's low end HEDT.

 

[Cooe14]

"Unfortunately this remains a huge problem for the 2990WX -- and we suspect the 2970WX -- and while Microsoft hasn’t done anything to improve the situation yet, AMD has"

"In AMD’s words, Dynamic Local Mode automatically migrates the system’s most demanding application threads onto the Threadripper 2990WX and 2970WX CPU cores with local memory access."

I'm sorry, but if this can be fixed with a simple piece of software, then it is not on MS to make these multi die CPUs work, it is on AMD. Why is this not part of threadripper's driver? Why, much like their open source GPU drivers, does AMD need other people to fix their stuff for them?

It cannot "be fixed with a simple piece of software". AMD's basically trying to ghetto-rig their way around Microsoft's incompetent Windows 10 task/thread scheduler as best they can & get software threads where they need to be based on memory access demands, but it's still a complete "duck tape & spit" solution until Microsoft gets off their asses & actually fixes the damn Win 10 scheduler for the soon to be post-Moore's law & increasingly MCM + NUMA world we're now living in.

Having to redirect already scheduled (improperly, considering the WX's hardcore NUMA layout) threads to the proper CCX's based on observing their memory demands wastes time, performance, and increases latency compared to having them largely be put in the correct CCX's automatically by the Windows 10 scheduler, with AMD's Dynamic Local Mode service just there to catch & redirect the occasional straggler/misplacement (instead of having to try & do it all, but always after the fact), as I imagine is AMD's intended end goal for the software.

 

[Stark]

Awesome review but I need to stop visiting TS for few days am seeing graphs in my dreams >.< but its a good dream!

 

[Sausagemeat]

These really are great CPUs for work. But I have no idea how it compares to the CPUs my employer has been giving me all my working life as I don’t see Xeon reviews on this site. And I don’t mean the ridiculously priced Xeon-W parts, I’ve literally never seen one of those in my office or anywhere in the wild. But lower grade Xeon parts are everywhere in the professional world and always have been. It would be nice to see comparisons to those products.

 

[Badvok]

but it's still a complete "duck tape & spit" solution until Microsoft gets off their asses & actually fixes the damn Win 10 scheduler

Amazing how the AMD fans like to blame Microsoft for the failure of Threadripper to perform when "duck tape & spit" is actually more a description of AMD's fudge to get more cores in a package because they can't do it in a single cpu.
I'd like to see tech sites actually differentiate the cores per CPU from the cores per package. The fact is that Threadripper is a multi-CPU package so it is only 6 or 8 cores per CPU but you get 2 CPUs in the package. Intel has supported multi-CPU solutions for decades and these are what comparisons should be made against.

 

[LinkedKube]

These really are great CPUs for work. But I have no idea how it compares to the CPUs my employer has been giving me all my working life as I don’t see Xeon reviews on this site. And I don’t mean the ridiculously priced Xeon-W parts, I’ve literally never seen one of those in my office or anywhere in the wild. But lower grade Xeon parts are everywhere in the professional world and always have been. It would be nice to see comparisons to those products.

Not sure but it seems AMD and NVID has hijacked the site as far as promotions. idk. Maybe just talking out my ***, but I've been here for 12 years, so just sayins...

 

[jpuroila]

"Unfortunately this remains a huge problem for the 2990WX -- and we suspect the 2970WX -- and while Microsoft hasn’t done anything to improve the situation yet, AMD has"

"In AMD’s words, Dynamic Local Mode automatically migrates the system’s most demanding application threads onto the Threadripper 2990WX and 2970WX CPU cores with local memory access."

I'm sorry, but if this can be fixed with a simple piece of software, then it is not on MS to make these multi die CPUs work, it is on AMD. Why is this not part of threadripper's driver? Why, much like their open source GPU drivers, does AMD need other people to fix their stuff for them?

Handing cores and threads to programs is a job for the kernel, plain and simple. The fact that AMD can improve upon this with software just showcases how impossibly terrible Microsoft is when it comes to kernel programming.

 

[EndRessentiment]

"Unfortunately this remains a huge problem for the 2990WX -- and we suspect the 2970WX -- and while Microsoft hasn’t done anything to improve the situation yet, AMD has"

"In AMD’s words, Dynamic Local Mode automatically migrates the system’s most demanding application threads onto the Threadripper 2990WX and 2970WX CPU cores with local memory access."

I'm sorry, but if this can be fixed with a simple piece of software, then it is not on MS to make these multi die CPUs work, it is on AMD. Why is this not part of threadripper's driver? Why, much like their open source GPU drivers, does AMD need other people to fix their stuff for them?

Did you actually read the conclusion? It was implied that Linux CAN take advantage of all the cores. The simple consequence of that is that it's Microsoft who has to get its **** together, which is hardly the first time.

 

[EndRessentiment]

These really are great CPUs for work. But I have no idea how it compares to the CPUs my employer has been giving me all my working life as I don’t see Xeon reviews on this site. And I don’t mean the ridiculously priced Xeon-W parts, I’ve literally never seen one of those in my office or anywhere in the wild. But lower grade Xeon parts are everywhere in the professional world and always have been. It would be nice to see comparisons to those products.

Good point, if Threadripper is getting reviews, a comparison to Xeons seems in order.

There was an article on Xeons around two years ago, I saw googling: https://www.techspot.com/review/1155-affordable-dual-xeon-pc/

 

[Yuri N]

Which version of HandBrake was used?
A screenshot in the Youtube video shows something really old.
I want to compare the results with some of my CPUs.

 

[Yuri N]

And what video and settings were used?