AMD has officially unveiled its next-generation Threadripper 9000 CPUs , along with details on core counts, clock speeds, TDPs, and—importantly—pricing. Though the high-end nature of these CPUs (and AMD's relatively uncontested market position) means the prices are indeed high, they aren't as bad as they looked like they would be after this week's retailer leaks . The cheapest model will offer 16 cores and 32 threads for a mere $1,650, while the 96-core top CPU will be priced at $11,700.
Threadripper CPUs have always been a little mad, pushing up the core counts we can expect in desktop computers—even high-end ones. Prices have always reflected that, but as core counts have risen over the generations, the prices have skyrocketed.
Still, AMD's price tags are a relief compared with the $13,000 some retailers mistakenly cited just a few days ago. It's also always worth remembering that these are professional processors designed for enterprises and business server clusters. Other prices throughout the range are cheaper than we were told, too, with VideoCardz stating it's between a $300 and $1300 decrease, depending on which model you're looking at.
AMD has yet to announce pricing information for the more consumer-facing variants that only go up to 64 cores (9980X).
Credit: AMD
AMD hasn't provided any details about the launch of this new line of CPUs, so we don't know exactly when they'll become available. What we do, know, though, is that they should all work as "drop-in" upgrades for existing WRX90 and TRX50 systems, since the chips use the same socket and maintain the same 350W TDP as their predecessors. That means existing cooling setups should work just as well, too, meaning no server redesigns or retooling are required.
Elsewhere, though, these CPUs will enjoy the benefits of AMD's latest Zen 5 architecture, built on a smaller process node than their predecessors. That's netted a few hundred megahertz extra in frequency increases across the board.
Although these new CPUs emphasize the OEM market and their inclusion in pre-built, professional workstations and servers, AMD will also sell the entire range into the DIY market. So, if you have the deepest of pockets, you, too, can build your own super-powered rendering system at home.
