Tuesday, December 12th 2023
Sony PlayStation 5 Pro Packs an Updated RDNA3 GPU with 60 CU
Sony is developing the PlayStation 5 Pro console that targets higher refresh-rate gaming at 4K Ultra HD, or higher in-game eye-candy, given its faster hardware. Details about the console are few and far between, given its late-2024 tentative release, but by now the company would have co-developed its semi-custom SoC, so it could spend the next year extensively testing and optimizing it, before mass production in the 2-3 quarters leading up to the launch. Kepler_L2 and Tom Henderson on Twitter are fairly reliable sources for PlayStation hardware leaks, and piecing their recent posts together, VideoCardz compiled the most probable specs of the SoC at the heart of the PlayStation 5 Pro.
The semi-custom SoC powering the PlayStation 5 Pro is co-developed by Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE) and AMD; and is codenamed "Viola." The monolithic chip is built on the TSMC N4P foundry node (4 nm EUV), which is a big upgrade from the 7 nm DUV node on which the "Oberon" SoC powering the original PlayStation 5, and 6 nm DUV node powering the "Oberon Plus" SoC of the refreshed PS5, are based on. Sony is leaving the CPU component largely untouched, it is an 8-core/16-thread unit based on the "Zen 2" microarchitecture, spread across two 4-core CCXs. The CPU has a maximum boost frequency of 4.40 GHz, dialed up from the 3.50 GHz maximum boost of "Oberon." The iGPU is where all the magic happens.
The iGPU is based on the latest RDNA 3 graphics architecture, which is a step up from the RDNA 2 powering "Oberon." It has 30 workgroup processors (WGPs), which amount to 60 compute units, or 3,840 stream processors, 120 AI accelerators, and 60 Ray accelerators. In comparison, Oberon's iGPU is based on RDNA 2, and has just 18 WGPs (36 CU, or 2,304 stream processors). The memory sub-system gets an upgrade, too. It is 16 GB in size, just like the original PS5, but with its memory clock slightly bumped up to 18 Gbps (vs 14 Gbps), resulting in 576 GB/s bandwidth. This memory uses a unified memory architecture, and is shared between the CPU (main memory), and iGPU (graphics memory).
The picture above is fan-art by Technizo Concept, Sony hasn't finalized a production design. The company is allegedly targeting a November 2024 launch for the PlayStation 5 Pro.
Sources:
Tom Henderson (Twitter), Kepler L2 (Twtitter), VideoCardz
The semi-custom SoC powering the PlayStation 5 Pro is co-developed by Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE) and AMD; and is codenamed "Viola." The monolithic chip is built on the TSMC N4P foundry node (4 nm EUV), which is a big upgrade from the 7 nm DUV node on which the "Oberon" SoC powering the original PlayStation 5, and 6 nm DUV node powering the "Oberon Plus" SoC of the refreshed PS5, are based on. Sony is leaving the CPU component largely untouched, it is an 8-core/16-thread unit based on the "Zen 2" microarchitecture, spread across two 4-core CCXs. The CPU has a maximum boost frequency of 4.40 GHz, dialed up from the 3.50 GHz maximum boost of "Oberon." The iGPU is where all the magic happens.
The picture above is fan-art by Technizo Concept, Sony hasn't finalized a production design. The company is allegedly targeting a November 2024 launch for the PlayStation 5 Pro.
101 Comments on Sony PlayStation 5 Pro Packs an Updated RDNA3 GPU with 60 CU
The CPU clock speed bump is almost 1/4. A complete new architecture for the graphics. The memory bandwidth almost 1/3 increase.
These are changes that have exceeded previous full gen uplifts.
I be surprised if games developed for PS5 pro as target hardware dont have issues on the base PS5, it feels inevitable. Not sure what Sony's motivations are here given the console sales likely wont yield much direct profit, if any at all, and that I dont know a single soul who cares about refresh rates and resolutions on console. (above 4k, above 60fps).