You thought the socket was intelLGA4677 for Xeon Scalable Processors Sapphire Rapids was huge? A detailed image of the next-generation Intel LGA7259 socket has surfaced online (Courtesy of Marvin Sevilla, aka@SprayOnCopper) demonstrating that this future socket is much larger than the current one. In fact, the LGA7259 could probably compete with AMD’s SP5 socket with 6096
pins.
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Intel socketLGA4677 At 61×82mm without retaining mechanism for Xeon Scalable processors “Sapphire Rapids” and “Emerald Rapids” is already quite a massive socket. However, as the image posted by Marvin Seville shows, it is significantly smaller than the company’s upcoming LGA7259 socket for Intel’s Granite Rapids and Sierra Forest processors, which will contain more cores and consume more power than previous processors from Intel.
Actual Intel DimensionsLGA 7259 is publicly unknown (of course they are available to developers), but based on what is known about the dimensions of the current 4th generation Intel Xeon Scalable. However, the 6096-pin AMD P5 socket for “Gena” and “Bergamot” EPIC processors is 93.4×120.3mm with a retention mechanism, so it outperforms Intel’s LGA4677 and LGA7259.
4th Generation Intel Xeon Scalable Sapphire Rapids processors have a TDP of up to 350W, however, according to media reports, the maximum socket power limit isLGA4677 is 764 watts. If you open this tweet, you will see a picture of a giant socket with a consumer processor added for scale.
In addition to more power, the Intel LGA7259 socket will allow for a 12-channel DDR5 and DDR5 MCR memory subsystem, as well as some additional I/O. So far, it seems that not all additional lines will be used for power.
It remains to be seen how much the Intel LGA7259 socket will cost. Modern sockets with thousands of fine pitch pins (Intel socketLGA4677 has a grid spacing of 0.81389 × 0.9398 mm) are difficult to manufacture and therefore quite expensive. They cost depending on where you buy.$101 to $124 per unit in the amount of 10,000 units. The Intel LGA7259 processor is significantly larger and has more pins, so it’s reasonable to expect this socket to be even more expensive than its predecessor.
Socket costs are only a tiny part of the server bill of materials, so a 7259-pin socket on its own is unlikely to have a significant impact on next-generation server prices. However, given that CPU power consumption increases with more pins, server platform manufacturers are forced to use not only more expensive sockets, but also more advanced voltage regulation modules with stronger components, more powerful cooling systems, and more powerful power supplies.
