An alleged Intel Core i9-12900K "Alder Lake-S" sample is shown beating the 32-core AMD Ryzen Threadripper 2990WX HEDT processor at AMD's favorite benchmark, Cinebench R23, in its multi-threaded (nT) test. At this point it's not known whether the i9-12900K is overclocked, but the CPU-Z instance in the screenshot reads 5.30 GHz, which could very well be the processor's stock Thermal Velocity Boost frequency. The sample scored upward of 30000 points, putting it above the Threadripper 2990WX reference score in Cinebench.

The 2990WX is based on the "Zen+" microarchitecture, and released in 2018, but is a 32-core/64-thread chip that should have ripped through this rendering workload. The i9-12900K, on the other hand, has eight "Golden Cove" performance cores that have HyperThreading, in addition to 8 "Gracemont" efficiency cores that lack HTT. This benchmark was run on Windows 10, which lacks awareness of the Intel Thread Director, a hardware component that optimizes utilization of the two kinds of CPU cores. Windows 11 is known to feature better awareness of hybrid core architectures. The i9-12900K sample is possibly installed on a Gigabyte Z690 AORUS Ultra motherboard, and has 32 GB of DDR5-5200 memory (two modules, logically four 40-bit channels).

Computer Upgrade King (CUK) is a new BTO (build-to-order) gaming PC manufacturer based out of Virginia, USA. Unlike other system integrators, CUK extends component choices all the way down to the cases. At Computex, the company showed off its Stratos Mini high-end desktop (HEDT), powered by an AMD Ryzen Threadripper 2990WX processor, AMD Radeon VII graphics, 32 GB of quad-channel DDR4-3000 memory, an ASRock X399M Taichi motherboard, and a SeaSonic Prime 1300W 80 Plus Gold PSU. Also shown off was the Continuum Mini, a compact powerhouse built around a mini-ITX motherboard. Its chops include the Core i9-9900K processor seated on an MSI MPG Z390I Gaming Edge AC motherboard; GeForce RTX 2080 Ti graphics, 16 GB of dual-channel DDR4-3200 Apacer NoX memory; and a 750W power supply.

Hardwarebot has graced us with the confirmed feat of an AMD Ryzen Threadripper 2990WX reaching almost 6 GHz across all of its cores. The overclocking effort, supported by an extreme overclocking setup with liquid nitrogen - and as such, worth more for the sheer PR and "fun tech factor" associated with it. Overall, the overclock up to 5.955 GHz on all cores amounts to a practically 100% increased clockspeed over its base, all-core 3 GHz base clocks.

The overclocking effort was achieved bu user IvanCupa on MSI's X399 MEG Creation motherboard paired with 8 GB of single-channel DDR4 memory (easier on the CPU to support than if more channels were populated). We'll see whether this chip can be taken even closer to the stratosphere than this - remember it's only been a few days since the chip's release to the wild. "Tinkerers be tinkering still."

AMD today announced the availability of world's most powerful desktop processor, the 2nd Gen AMD Ryzen Threadripper 2990WX processor with 32 cores and 64 threads. Designed to power the ultimate computing experiences, 2nd Gen AMD Ryzen Threadripper processors are built using 12 nm "Zen+" x86 processor architecture and offer the most threads on any desktop processor with the flagship model delivering up to 53% greater performance than the competition's flagship model. Second Gen AMD Ryzen Threadripper processors support the most I/O, and are compatible with existing AMD X399 chipset motherboards via a simple BIOS update, offering builders a broad choice for designing the ultimate high-end desktop or workstation PC.

"We created Ryzen Threadripper processors because we saw an opportunity to deliver unheard-of levels of multithreaded computing for the demanding needs of creators, gamers, and PC enthusiasts in the HEDT market," said Jim Anderson, senior vice president and general manager, Computing and Graphics Business Group, AMD. "With the 2nd Gen processor family we took that challenge to a whole new level - delivering the biggest, most powerful desktop processor the world has ever seen."

AMD announced its second-generation Ryzen Threadripper high-end desktop (HEDT) processor series, succeeding its lean and successful first-generation that disrupted much of Intel's Core X HEDT series, forcing Intel to open up new high-core-count (HCC) market segments beyond its traditional $1000 price-point. AMD's 16-core $999 1950X proved competitive with even Intel's 12-core and 14-core SKUs priced well above the $1200-mark; and now AMD looks to beat Intel at its game, with the introduction of new 24-core and 32-core SKUs at prices that are sure to spell trouble for Intel's Core X HCC lineup. The lineup is partially open to pre-orders, with two SKUs launching within August (including the 32-core one), and two others in October.

At the heart of AMD's second-generation Ryzen Threadripper is the new 12 nm "Pinnacle Ridge" die, which made its debut with the 2nd Generation Ryzen AM4 family. This die proved to introduce 3-5 percent IPC improvements in single-threaded tasks, and multi-threaded improvements with an improved Precision Boost II algorithm, which boosted frequencies of each of 8 cores on-die. The Threadripper is still a multi-chip module, with 2 to 4 of these dies, depending on the SKU. There are four of these - the 12-core/24-thread Threadripper 2920X, the 16-core/32-thread Threadripper 2950X; the 24-core/48-thread Threadripper 2970WX, and the flagship 32-core/64-thread Threadripper 2990WX.