If you own an X570 (or one of the upcoming B550) motherboards, you’re all set for AMD’s next-gen architecture. Robert Hallock, AMD’s Technical Marketing lead, has confirmed that Zen 3-based Ryzen processors will be compatible with both of these chipsets.
“AMD officially plans to support next-gen AMD Ryzen desktop processors, with the “Zen 3” architecture, on AMD X570 and B550 motherboards,” wrote Hallock. “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. We’ve also updated our official chipset/CPU support matrix to take future “Zen 3” processors into account (below!).”
Older chipsets will not support Zen 3, however. While AMD would love to bring its next-gen architecture to X370, B350, A320, X470, and B450, Hallock explained that this isn’t possible due to their flash memory chips, which 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,” he wrote.
So, just how long will Socket AM4 ultimately last? That’s unclear due to the state of I/O technologies, which are rapidly changing. “Such technology changes typically require adjustments to the pin count or layout of a processor package, which would necessitate a new socket,” Hallock said.