How long do you think am5 compatibility will last for as compared to am4 or intel's last few LGA sockets?

[LeWhiske]

I remember hearing rumors that am5 will be an LGA socket similar to intel, does that bring any issues in regards to CPU upgrade paths? I know intel forces a new motherboard with every other generation of cpu, so is that an intel thing or a downside of LGA sockets?

[mariushm]

I would expect at least 4-5 years,  and 2 maybe 3 generations of processors just like we had Ryzen 1xxx , 2xxx and 3xxx  working on even the oldest A320 chipset motherboards.

 

I'd expect  AM5 socket with DDR5 and pci-e 4.0 and usb 20gbps , then maybe 1-2 years later new chipset with usb 4 / thunderbolt , then maybe another year or two later pci-e 5.0 if it catches.

[porina]

AM5 could last as long as DDR5 is current and not replaced by DDR6 or something else. However do expect more chipset and CPU generation limitations going forward. I feel AMD would like to match CPUs and chipset generations more like Intel, even if for now they offer a little more flexibility than Intel.

 

As for Intel typically offering two CPU generations per chipset, that's a choice they make. It makes sense from a company perspective to limit support as it reduces the variables that have to work well together.

[YoungBlade]

It's an Intel thing, but if AMD manages to hold a superior market position, I'd imagine they'll take the Intel route and start forcing motherboard upgrades every couple of generations. If they have no reason to give that level of support, they won't.

 

AMD made that decision to appeal to the enthusiast market, and it worked well. By getting enthusiasts to start recommending AMD systems, it helped them in the larger market as time went on. But frankly, only enthusiasts care about motherboard support. More than 90% of computers never see a CPU or motherboard upgrade. Heck, most never even get more RAM installed. So motherboard inter-generational compatibility only matters to a small fraction of the market. If AMD is in a dominant position, they don't have to appeal to a niche like that anymore.

 

It's not entirely Intel being greedy, either. It can be difficult to make a new CPU have support on older motherboards. You're limited by the older technology on the motherboard, or on the older CPU, which can introduce compatibility issues. We even see this within Intel's model, with Z590 motherboards losing their top M.2 slot when paired with a 10th gen CPU.

[LeWhiske]

Yeah that makes sense, mostly goes with what i was thinking.

 

On a slightly unrelated note, since current ryzen is very dependent on fast ram will that mean at the beginning of DDR5 a first gen AM5 CPU could be relatively slow and overtime once ddr5 matures get better?