Massive Intel CPU socket leak reveals LGA9324 with an extraordinary 9,324 pins for energy-intensive Diamond Rapids Xeons, capable of handling up to 700 watts.
Unleashing the Behemoth: Intel's Gigantic LGA9324Socket for Diamond Rapids Xeon CPUs
Strap in, geeks! Gigantic pins, mammoth socket, and next-gen Xeon processors are on the horizon. Here's what we know so far.
The mayhem starts with a rumored snapshot of the mammoth LGA9324 socket that is tipped to be home to Intel's upcoming Diamond Rapids Xeon series — the seventh-gen Xeons. As spotted by tech aficionados at HXL, this behemoth reportedly boasts an astounding number of over 10k pins when you factor in debug pins and company-specific paraphernalia. If this pans out, it's set to be the biggest LGA CPU socket to date, beating out any future Venice offerings from AMD, if they dare to challenge it.
A sneak peek into last year's test tool listings suggested that Intel's Diamond Rapids CPUs will require a new Oak Stream platform teeming with the LGA9324 socket. These processors are expected to replace the existing Granite Rapids line-up under the Xeon 7 family, across the Advanced Performance Xeon 6900P and Scalable Performance Xeon 6700P/6500P offerings. Prototypes of cooling solutions from Dynatron hint at Intel possibly cutting Diamond Rapids into AP and SP flavors, implying a potential lesser socket for Diamond Rapids-SP.
Compared to Intel's largest current socket, the LGA7529, which features a whopping 7,529 contacts, and AMD's SP5 with 6,096 pins, the LGA9324 socket is set to have nearly 30% more pins. Expect more I/O, memory channels, skyrocketing TDPs, and possibly even core counts. Although we don't have a banana for size comparison, let's just say that this socket is huge, dwarfing the LGA1851 (used by Arrow Lake) by almost five times.
The mysterious Goofish listing indicates that the picture in circulation was plucked from a junkyard and belonged to an initial thermal test board. This suggests that Intel is most likely testing Diamond Rapids with its partners and, who knows, we might get our hands on some early benchmarks or even a CPU sample soon.
The forthcoming Diamond Rapids is rumored to be built upon the Panther Cove-X architecture, which is said to serve as a server's doppelganger to the Coyote Cove on Nova Lake. According to mumble in the industry, the launch of Diamond Rapids hinges on its High Volume Manufacturing (HVM) readiness, with Panther Lake anticipated to hit HVM by late 2025 or early 2026[1][2]. Solidifying the timeline, Intel has officially confirmed a 2026 release for both Diamond Rapids and Clearwater Forest (an efficiency-focused Xeon line)[3].
Sit tight, folks, because that means we can expect these humongous Xeon processors to make their debut sometime in 2026. Keep your eyes peeled for AMD's Venice server platform, as it's destined to go head-to-head with Intel's Diamond Rapids[3].
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As the rumors spread, speculation arises about the applications of such advanced technology in both science and finance sectors.The increased number of I/O and memory channels could potentially revolutionize the efficiency of data-intensive scientific research and financial modeling, pushing the boundaries of what's possible in these fields.
