Intel's Ultra 285k Multi-Die Design Sparks Concerns Over Memory Latency and Gaming Performance

Intel’s newly released Ultra 285k processor has garnered significant attention, but not all for positive reasons. The chip’s multi-die design, while technologically impressive, has resulted in substantially higher memory latency compared to previous generations. This has sparked concerns and debate within the tech community about the chip’s gaming performance.

Initial testing has revealed that the Ultra 285k’s P-cores are seeing memory latency as high as 80ns under default XMP settings, while the E-cores fare better at around 57ns. This is a substantial increase from the 14th generation Intel processors which managed latencies around 50ns. The higher latency appears to stem from Intel’s design decision to separate the I/O die from the compute tiles, increasing the distance between the memory controller and compute cores.

The impact on gaming performance has been a hot topic of discussion. While the 285k maintains a lead in some titles like Cyberpunk 2077, it falls behind the previous generation 14900K in others like Shadow of the Tomb Raider. This mixed bag of results suggests that the increased memory latency is not the only factor at play. System scheduling, game optimization for the new architecture, and graphics driver maturity likely also have significant roles.

Looking forward, the impending availability of CUDIMM memory, which integrates clock drivers to boost speeds and improve stability, could be a potential solution to the Ultra series' memory latency woes. Early reports suggest CUDIMM modules can reach speeds over 9000MHz with latencies around 50ns, which would put the 285k on par with previous generation chips.

However, the 285k’s rocky launch has reignited debates about Intel’s architectural decisions and competitiveness against AMD’s offerings. With AMD’s Zen 4 and upcoming Zen 5 architectures offering strong performance with lower memory latency due to their chiplet designs, Intel faces mounting pressure to optimize its hybrid architecture for both performance and efficiency.

As the battle for processing supremacy continues, it’s clear that memory latency has become the new front line. How Intel addresses this with the Ultra series and future generations will be crucial to its success in the high-performance desktop and gaming markets. For now, all eyes are on the 285k to see if it can overcome its memory challenges and deliver the generational leap in performance that Intel has promised.