AMD has officially announced that its next-generation Ryzen 4000 CPUs based on the Zen 3 core architecture will be supported by X570 and B550 chipset based motherboards. This suggests that those willing to upgrade to a Zen 3 based processor will have to upgrade to either a 500-series or new-generation of motherboards that will be available later this year.
AMD Ryzen 4000 'Zen 3' Desktop CPUs Compatible With AM4 Socket But Only on X570 & B550 Motherboards
AMD has so far offered inter-compatibility with all Ryzen CPUs on its AM4 socket with existing 300, 400, and 500 series chipsets however things will change with the launch of the 4th Generation CPU family based on the Zen 3 core architecture.
Q: Will the “Zen 3” architecture be compatible with AMD Socket AM4?
A: Yes! AMD officially plans to support next-gen AMD Ryzen desktop processors, with the “Zen 3” architecture, on AMD X570 and B550 motherboards. This will require a BIOS update. Specific details about this update will come at a later time, but we’re committed to keeping you up-to-date.
Owners of existing 500-series motherboards will have to update their motherboards with the latest BIOS to enable support for the new Ryzen 4000 processors. While this is great news for X570 & new B550 board owners, it doesn't mean everyone has to be excited about it, especially older 300 & 400 series motherboard owners who might've bought the boards expecting that AMD would later drop-in support for next-gen CPUs on their motherboards too, especially since they carry the AM4 socket too.
AMD Ryzen / Intel Core CPU Socket/Chipset Roadmap:
| Intel CPU | Socket | Chipset | Compatibility | AMD CPU | Socket | Chipset | Compatibility |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7th Generation Kaby Lake (2017) | LGA 1151 | 200-Series | Skylake 6th Gen Compatible | AMD Ryzen 1000 (Zen 1 - 2017) | AM4 | 300-Series | Up To 3rd Gen Ryzen, 4th Gen Incompatible |
| 8th Generation Coffee Lake (2017) | LGA 1151 | 300-Series | No Previous Gen Compatible | AMD Ryzen 2000 (Zen + - 2018) | AM4 | 400-Series | Up To 3rd Gen Ryzen, 4th Gen Incompatible |
| 9th Generation Coffee Lake Refresh (2018) | LGA 1151 | 300-Series | Coffee Lake 8th Gen - Works | AMD Ryzen 3000 (Zen 2 - 2019) | AM4 | 500-Series | Up To 4th Gen Ryzen Support |
| 10th Generation Comet Lake (2020) | LGA 1200 | 400-Series | No Previous Gen Compatible | AMD Ryzen 4000 (Zen 3 - 2020) | AM4 | 600-Series | Up To 4th Gen Ryzen Support |
| 11th Generation Rocket Lake (2020) | LGA 1200 | 400-Series | Comet Lake 10th Gen Compatibile | AMD Ryzen 5000 (Zen 4 - 2022) | AM5 | 700-Series? | No Previous Gen Compatible |
| 12th Generation Alder Lake (2021-2022) | LGA 1700 | 500-Series? | No Previous Gen Compatible | AMD Ryzen 6000 (Zen 5 - 2023) | AM5 | 800-Series? | Ryzen 5000 (Zen 4) Compatible |
AMD has highlighted the main reason as to why they don't plan on adding support for Zen 3 Ryzen CPUs on pre-500-series chipsets to be the flash memory limitation. As per AMD, the flash memory chips that store the BIOS have capacity limitations, and not all AM4 boards feature dual-BIOS chip design (usually found on more expensive and high-end boards).
Q: What about (X pre-500 Series chipset)?
A: AMD has no plans to introduce “Zen 3” architecture support for older chipsets. While we wish could enable full support for every processor on every chipset, the flash memory chips that store BIOS settings and support have capacity limitations. Given these limitations, and the unprecedented longevity of the AM4 socket, there will inevitably be a time and place where a transition to free up space is necessary—the AMD 500 Series chipsets are that time.Q: How long will Socket AM4 last from here?
A: This will depend on the schedule of industry I/O technologies. Such technology changes typically require adjustments to the pin count or layout of a processor package, which would necessitate a new socket. We have no specific details to share concerning this roadmap or timing right now, but we know it’s important to keep you updated—and we will.
While AMD officially says 'No Support' on the matter, there's a slight chance that a few board makers might add BIOS support for Ryzen 4000 CPUs on older AM4 motherboards. Notebook maker, XMG, confirmed that they will enable AMD Ryzen 4000 series compatibility with B450 chipset through a microcode update. So there's still hope that a few manufacturers who had flagship solutions with dual-BIOS design could sneakily add support for the processors which would be awesome for users who paid top dollar for these once flagship and very expensive motherboards.
With that said, the Ryzen 4000 series family would be the last generation of Zen-based processors to be built around the AM4 socket with Ryzen 5000, based on the Zen 4 architecture, moving on to a new socket and a new chipset. This would still be a great run for the AM4 socket which was introduced all the way back in 2017. Looking at the AM4 platform progression, we have seen some fantastic gains overall as listed below:
- 4X more cores and 8X more threads (4C4T → 16C32t)
- 4X architectures (“Excavator” → “Zen” → “Zen+” → “Zen 2”)
- 4X process technologies (28nm → 14nm → 12nm → 7nm)
- 4X PCIe bandwidth (12x PCIe Gen 3 → 24x PCIe Gen 4)
- +33% DRAM bandwidth (DDR4-2400 → DDR4-3200+)
AMD might also introduce new features on its newer boards for Ryzen 4000 processors which might entice users to upgrade but they aren't forcing you a new socket/chipset down your throat as aggressively as Intel has been doing for past several years.