Intel preps new Z990 and Z970 chipsets for next-gen Nova Lake desktop CPUs on LGA1954 socket

Intel has reportedly added next-gen Z990 and Z970 chipsets to its recently updated roadmap, ready for next-gen Core Ultra 400 series "Nova Lake-S" desktop CPUs and the new LGA1954 socket.

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In a new report from VideoCardz, the outlet says that their sources told them that Intel has added the Z990 and Z970 chipsets to its roadmap, without any detailed specifications like PCIe lane counts, new features, I/O, etc. We do know from previous rumors that Intel will be introducing a new LGA1954 socket, so we're looking at totally new motherboards required, and DDR5 as standard.

VideoCardz reports that the Z970 chiplet should use the same "underlying chipset as B960, with no further details shared at this time". The site added that this "points to segmentation through firmware and board features rather than a separate silicon design, but Intel has not outlined any positioning. This may be related to overclocking options".

Intel's new Z990 and Z970 chipsets are ready for new LGA1954-based motherboards, accepting the company's next-gen Core Ultra 400 series "Nova Lake" CPUs, which have been rumored to offer up to 52 cores, and introduce a competitor to AMD's famous X3D (3D V-Cache) technology with its own "bLLC" cache. The new performance-driven bLLC cache powered Nova Lake-S desktop processors are rumored to feature up to 144MB of bLLC, with more info on that in the links above.

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Intel's next-gen Nova Lake-S desktop "Core Ultra 400" series CPU leaked details:

• Core Ultra 9 - 16 P-Cores + 32 E-Cores + 4 LP-E Cores (150W)
• Core Ultra 7 - 14 P-Cores + 24 E-Cores + 4 LP-E Cores (150W)
• Core Ultra 5 - 8 P-Cores + 16 E-Cores + 4 LP-E Cores (125W)
• Core Ultra 5 - 8 P-Cores + 12 E-Cores + 4 LP-E Cores (125W)
• Core Ultra 5 - 6 P-Cores + 8 E-Cores + 4 LP-E Cores (125W)
• Core Ultra 3 - 4 P-Cores + 8 E-Cores + 4 LP-E Cores (65W)
• Core Ultra 3 - 4 P-Cores + 4 E-Cores + 4 LP-E Cores (65W)