Details on AMD's 16-core 'Whitehaven' Ryzen microprocessors leaked online

AMD expected to unveil Whitehaven, as well as Vega, at Computex press conference confirmed for Computex on 31 May

Long-running rumours that AMD will release a number of Ryzen CPUs with 12 or more cores have been firmed up following the leak online of documents listing a number of AMD engineering samples.

The documents indicate plans for 12-core and 16-core parts dubbed 'Whitehaven', which will offer 24 and 32 threads respectively.

The samples were published by the Videocardz.com website. They indicate that the 12-core Whitehaven will have a base speed of 2.7GHz and a boost speed of 3.2GHz, while the 16-core part will come in two variations, both running at 3.1GHz, with a ‘turbo' of 3.6GHz.

The leaks might also shed some light on Ryzen 3, with the inclusion on the list of a two-core, four-threat part, dubbed Gardenia, running at 2.1GHz/2.5GHz, as well as various four-core/eight-thread parts that may also form part of the Ryzen 3 line-up, which is expected to be launched in July.

It is believed that the Whitehaven parts will support quad channel DDR4 memory and provide more PCI lanes for improved SSD performance.

According to WCCFTech, the Whitehaven parts will be aimed at enthusiasts - presumably ones with deep pockets - who might otherwise be tempted by Intel Skylake X, due out in the third quarter, and won't be compatible with AM4 due to their sheer size. An X399-series of motherboards has been mooted to house the CPUs.

"It's still unclear what the new socket - internally code named "S3" — will officially be named but we do know it's going to be LGA, rather than PGA. In other words, the pins will be on the socket rather than the CPUs unlike current Ryzen chips," notes WCCFTech.

The unveiling of new AMD parts is expected at Computex in Taipei, which will run from 30 May to 3 June this year. AMD has already confirmed a press conference for 31 May at Computex, where Whitehaven, Radeon RX Vega graphics cards and the X399 HEDT motherboard platform are expected to be unveiled.

In March, rumours abounded that AMD was planning to launch a 16-core part at Computex in May. The company is also rumoured to have 32-core Ryzen parts on its roadmap.

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