Today, AMD released two models of its Ryzen Threadripper high-end desktop processors, AMD Ryzen Threadripper 1950X and AMD Ryzen Threadripper 1920X.

The new processors are built around the new AMD x86 "Zen" core architecture. Both models support the new SocketTR4 platform, sporting sixty-four PCIe lanes, quad channel DDR4 memory, and AMD simultaneous multithreading (SMT). With support for 16 cores and 32 processing threads, the Ryzen Threadripper 1950X delivers high multi-processing power. The Ryzen Threadripper 1920X provides 12 cores and 24 processing threads and will be available on-shelf along with the Threadripper 1950X on August 10th, 2017. A third variant, the 8-core 16-thread Ryzen Threadripper 1900X, is expected to be available August 31.

So the competition for the new AMD CPUS is essentially Skylake-X. The AMD Threadripper 1950X with 16-cores and 1920X with 12-cores are put up against the Core i9-7900X with 10-cores and the Core i7-7820X with 8 cores. Broadwell's Core i7-6950X also makes an appearance due to the different microarchitecture.

• AMD TR 1950X: 16/32 cores/threads, 3.4/4.0 GHz Base/Turbo clock, 32 MB L3, 4x2666 DRAM IDPC, 60 PCIe, 180W TDP - $999
• AMD TR 1920X: 12/24 cores/threads, 3.5/4.0 GHz Base/Turbo clock, 32 MB L3, 4x2666 DRAM IDPC, 60 PCIe, 180W TDP - $799

Ryzen Threadripper 1950X and 1920X processors include 40MB and 38MB of processor cache, respectively, and all Ryzen Threadripper processors from the $549 Threadripper 1900X to the $999 Threadripper 1950X feature the same Quad-Channel DDR4 memory bandwidth, 64 lanes of PCIe 3.0 connectivity, and processor-direct SATA/NVMe/USB connectivity. In addition, every Ryzen Threadripper processor is multiplier-unlocked to provide unlimited user flexibility. A full ecosystem of SocketTR4 X399 platforms, with native USB 3.1 Gen2 10GB/s connectivity, provide support for all Ryzen Threadripper processors at launch, with motherboards coming from top manufacturers like ASRock, ASUS, Gigabyte, and MSI. The motherboard design will be down to how each of the available IO functions is routed. AMD's base block diagram is as follows:

AMD's suggested configuration gives 48 lanes from the CPU to the PCIe slots for 4-way SLI/CFX action (16/16/8/8), 12 lanes from the CPU to M.2 slots for 3-way x4 NVMe, and 4 lanes to the chipset. The chipset then would have two gigabit Ethernet ports, a PCIe x4 slot, a PCIe x1 slot, a PCIe x1 for WiFi, SATA ports, USB 3.1 Gen 1 and USB 3.1 Gen 2, and USB 2.0 ports.

At present we expect the X399 motherboards to vary between $249 and $599, depending on their feature set.

Alienware has also launched its exclusive pre-built 16-core AMD Ryzen Threadripper Edition system to acclaim from high-end desktop enthusiasts worldwide. The new Alienware Area-51 Threadripper Edition sports a similar Triad chassis design to that of existing Area-51 systems, but incorporates AMD's powerful Ryzen Threadripper 1950X processor.