AMD’s Zen 5 Ryzen 9000-series looms — latest chipset drivers add support

Sometimes new drivers point to products that aren’t yet released, but for whom launch is imminent. This may be the case with AMD’s Ryzen 9000-series products, as the company’s chipset driver V6.03.19.217, released by Asus this week, included mentions of the Ryzen 9000 platform management framework (PMF), according to X user @9550pro.

Release notes for AMD’s chipset driver V6.03.19.217 for its AMD X670E-based motherboards this week indicate that, in addition to AMD’s Ryzen 6000-, 7040-, 8000-, and 7736-series platforms, the software package also supports AMD’s (as of yet) unreleased Ryzen 9000-series platforms. This doesn’t necessarily mean AMD’s Ryzen 9000-series processors are just around the corner, but it at least indicates the company is prepping for launch. 

AMD’s current-generation Zen 4-based products for high-performance desktops belong to the Ryzen 7000-series range, while Zen 4-powered processors with integrated Radeon graphics for mainstream desktops belong to the Ryzen 8000-series family. Therefore, AMD’s next-generation Zen 5-based CPUs are poised to find themselves in a brand new product family — which will likely be the Ryzen 9000-series lineup.

AMD has publicly stated it will continue to support the AM5 socket until at least through 2025, so its Zen 5-based processors set to launch this year will use the existing socket and existing motherboards. So it’s not surprising that AMD and its motherboard partners are getting ready to support Zen 5-based CPUs (most likely, Ryzen 9000-series) on existing platforms, such as the AMD X670E. 

Note that AMD’s chipset drivers tend to start adding support for new processors months before they’re released — we saw this with the the Ryzen 8000-series accelerated processing units in late 2023. AMD is expected to release Zen 5-based Ryzen 9000-series offerings this fall, so it’s about time for the company to start prepping for launch. Computex 2024 is just weeks away, and we wonder if AMD and its partners are getting ready to showcase Ryzen 9000-based machines at the Taipei-based tradeshow. 

AMD’s Zen 5-based processors are expected to increase performance compared their predecessors in various workloads, so high-end desktop enthusiasts are eagerly awaiting them.