The MilkyWay@Home database recently revealed an unannounced AMD processor known as Family 25 Model 120 Stepping 0. The CPU can handle 12 threads at once, and CPU expert @InstLatX64 believes it’s AMD’s codenamed Phoenix 2 processor, which includes two high-performance Zen 4 cores and four energy-efficient Zen 4c cores.
The AMD Eng Sample processor marked 100-000000931-21 N [Family 25 Model 120 Stepping 0] has 12 logical cores (i.e., six physical cores with simultaneous multithreading) and reports about 1MB of cache, indicating that the MilkyWay@Home client cannot correctly determine the chip’s cache size.
The listing does not demonstrate that we are dealing with AMD’s Phoenix 2 hybrid processor with Big. Little-like core configuration, but an unknown CPU with six physical/12 logical cores gives us a hint that this may match the rumors.
AMD’s Phoenix 2 processor is said to have two ‘big’ Zen 4 cores with 2MB L2 and 4MB L3 cache as well as four small Zen 4c cores with 4MB L2 and 4MB L3 cache, which is an unusual cache configuration.
According to 3DCenter, the APU also has an RDNA 3-based integrated GPU with 512 stream processors and a DDR5/LPDDR5X-supporting memory subsystem. @InstLatX64 claims that AMD’s Phoenix 2 APU has an A70F8x CPUID, whereas CoelacanthDream claims that the CPUID is 0x00a70f80.
For the time being, any information about Phoenix 2 in general, and the 100-000000931-21 N [Family 25 Model 120 Stepping 0]processor in particular, should be treated with caution because AMD has a slew of products in the works.
Since early March, the alleged Phoenix 2 processor with two Zen 4 cores and four Zen 4c cores has been running the MilkyWay@Home client, indicating that someone within AMD or even outside the company is testing the chip. This could indicate that the CPU will be released shortly, though it is unclear when. Meanwhile, AMD is expected to release its Phoenix 2 APUs in the second half of 2023, according to unofficial sources.
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