During the European announcement for their 2nd Generation EPYC Rome processors, AMD unveiled their new and fastest EPYC chip, the EPYC 7H12. The processor is said to exceed the EPYC 7742 in terms of performance which was the initial flagship of the lineup but unlike the 7742, it's specifically for liquid-cooled environments.
AMD EPYC 7H12 CPU Unveiled - Fastest 7nm Rome Processor Designed Specifically For Liquid-Cooled Servers
The AMD EPYC 7H12 is based on the same 7nm Zen 2 core architecture as the other EPYC 'Rome' chips around. The specifications include 64 cores and 128 threads which is the same as the other two 64 core variants in the lineup. Along with 256 MB of L3 cache and 128 PCIe Gen 4.0 lanes, the chip offers a top-of-the-line design. In terms of clock speeds, the chip is a completely different beast. The AMD EPYC 7H12 has a base clock of 2.60 GHz, the highest on any 64 core EPYC chip and a boost clock of 3.30 GHz which is just 100 MHz lower than the EPYC 7742.
The chip has a rated TDP of 280W which is 55W higher than the EPYC 7742. While the EPYC 7H12 comes with a 100 MHz lower boost clock, the higher TDP would allow it to sustain much higher all-core boost clocks. According to AMD themselves, the EPYC 7H12 delivers 11% better overall performance in Linpack benchmark compared to the EPYC 7742. The EPYC 7742 costs $6950 US so the EPYC 7H12 can be priced close to $9000-$10000 US.
AMD EPYC Rome '7nm Zen 2' CPU Lineup Specifications and Prices:
| CPU Name | Cores / Threads | Base Clock | Max Boost Clock | Cache | TDP | Stepping | OPN | US Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EPYC 7H12 | 64 / 128 | 2.60 GHz | 3.30 GHz | 256 MB | 280W | TBD | TBD | TBD |
| EPYC 7742 | 64 / 128 | 2.25 GHz | 3.40 GHz | 256 MB | 225W | SSP-B0 | 100-000000053 | $6950 |
| EPYC 7702 | 64 / 128 | 2.00 GHz | 3.35 GHz | 256 MB | 180W | SSP-B0 | 100-000000038 | $6450 |
| EPYC 7702P | 64 / 128 | 2.00 GHz | 3.35 GHz | 256 MB | 200W | SSP-B0 | 100-000000047 | $4425 |
| EPYC 7662 | 64 / 128 | 2.00 GHz | 3.30 GHz | 256 MB | 225W | SSP-B0 | TBD | TBD |
| EPYC 7642 | 48 / 96 | 2.40 GHz | 3.40 GHz | 256 MB | 225W | SSP-B0 | 100-000000074 | $4775 |
| EPYC 7552 | 48 / 96 | 2.20 GHz | 3.35 GHz | 192 MB | 180W | SSP-B0 | 100-000000076 | $4025 |
| EPYC 7542 | 32 / 64 | 2.90 GHz | 3.40 GHz | 128 MB | 225W | SSP-B0 | 100-000000075 | $3400 |
| EPYC 7532 | 32 / 64 | 2.40 GHz | 3.20 GHz | 256 MB | 200W | SSP-B0 | TBD | TBD |
| EPYC 7502 | 32 / 64 | 2.50 GHz | 3.35 GHz | 128 MB | 180W | SSP-B0 | 100-000000054 | $2600 |
| EPYC 7502P | 32 / 64 | 2.50 GHz | 3.35 GHz | 128 MB | 180W | SSP-B0 | 100-000000045 | $2300 |
| EPYC 7452 | 32 / 64 | 2.35 GHz | 3.35 GHz | 128 MB | 155W | SSP-B0 | 100-000000057 | $2025 |
| EPYC 7402 | 24 / 48 | 2.80 GHz | 3.35 GHz | 128 MB | 180W | SSP-B0 | 100-000000046 | $1783 |
| EPYC 7402P | 24 / 48 | 2.80 GHz | 3.35 GHz | 128 MB | 180W | SSP-B0 | 100-000000048 | $1250 |
| EPYC 7352 | 24 / 48 | 2.30 GHz | 3.20 GHz | 128 MB | 155W | SSP-B0 | 100-000000077 | $1350 |
| EPYC 7302 | 16 / 32 | 2.80 GHz | 3.30 GHz | 128 MB | 155W | SSP-B0 | 100-000000043 | $978 |
| EPYC 7302P | 16 / 32 | 2.80 GHz | 3.30 GHz | 128 MB | 155W | SSP-B0 | 100-000000049 | $825 |
| EPYC 7282 | 16 / 32 | 2.00 GHz | 3.20 GHz | 64 MB | 120W | SSP-B0 | 100-000000078 | $650 |
| EPYC 7272 | 12 / 24 | 2.60 GHz | 3.20 GHz | 64 MB | 120W | SSP-B0 | 100-000000079 | $625 |
| EPYC 7262 | 8 / 16 | 3.20 GHz | 3.40 GHz | 128 MB | 155W | SSP-B0 | 100-000000041 | $575 |
| EPYC 7252 | 8 / 16 | 2.80 GHz | 3.20 GHz | 64 MB | 120W | SSP-B0 | 100-000000080 | $475 |
| EPYC 7252P | 8 / 16 | 2.80 GHz | 3.20 GHz | 64 MB | 120W | SSP-B0 | 100-000000081 | $450 |
One of the highlights of the chip is that it is designed specifically for liquid-cooled environments. This is due to the higher 280W TDP which for the chip to be able to sustain, better cooling (liquid) would be a necessity. For that, the latest ATOS 1U blade would be featuring an all-liquid cooled design and would be powered by eight of these new EPYC 7H12 CPUs. The same racks would be powering BullSequana XH2000 supercomputer which is set to be completed by 2020.
The AMD EPYC 7H12 is to be generally available but is specifically designed for liquid-cooled spaces. The chip is socket compatible on the SP3 platform which would allow easy compatibility for buyers when upgrading to the new chip. Once again, no pricing or launch date has been announced but we will make sure to update when AMD announces that too.
