Two of AMD’s yet-to-be-released 64-core EPYC 7773X ‘Milan-X’ CPUs with 804MB of cache have been obtained by a Chinese video blogger (per CPU). They not only benchmarked them, but they also overclocked them to a previously unheard-of 4.80 GHz frequency.
AMD has begun shipping its EPYC ‘Milan-X’ processors with 3D V-Cache to select partners, but mass availability is still months away. However, when AMD prepares to publicly introduce its new products, it sends out samples to dozens of its partners, which is why samples of such CPUs invariably leak and end up in the hands of journalists or bloggers.
This is what happened to engineer samples of AMD’s EPYC 7773X processor that were obtained and put through a series of tests by Chinese video blogger Kenaide (via @momomo us). The EPYC 7773X CPU sample is a 64-core processor with a base frequency of 2.10 GHz and a boost frequency of 3.40 GHz, but the Milan-key X’s feature is their internal 512MB of 3D V-Cache. A total of 804MB of the cache will be available on 64-core Milan-X CPUs: 32MB L2, 256MB L3, and 512MB 3D V-Cache.
With such a large cache, it’s clear that the CPU is optimised for memory-intensive programmes, which is why a machine with 128 cores in total did not achieve record-breaking performance in benchmarks like Cinebench. Meanwhile, engineering samples are typically performance-limited for competitive reasons, which could be another reason why the system failed to impress in some applications.
Kenai attempted to do more with the future server than only performing content creation benchmarks. He also attempted to overclock the CPUs. Because server platforms aren’t built for overclocking, the specialist had to use a specialised motherboard designed for hyperscale data centres and containing an upgraded voltage control module to push the frequency of AMD’s EPYC 7773X processors to 4.80 GHz (boost).
They upped power limitations to 1500W (up from 280W by default) and increased voltage to 1.55V using the AMD EPYC Overclocking software. However, the CPUs were cooled using air coolers, which were running at high speeds and so making a lot of noise.
The engineering sample of AMD’s EPYC 7773X ‘Milan-X’ has overclocking potential that rivals the size of 3D V-Cache. However, it remains to be seen whether AMD would use this capability in CPUs intended at supercomputers and other workloads that aren’t routinely pushed to extreme clock speeds. Still, if a corporation wants fast chips but isn’t concerned with power usage, special edition EPYC chips may emerge.
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