recent Zen chips can even function without a Southbridge
Does this mean the processors have built-in USB and PCI controllers? Or is this more a case of "if you don't need many peripherals, you can do without a southbridge"?
I suspect the reason they can do without the southbridge is because many high-speed connections are PCIe these days (including storage and networking). But I don't see a good reason why Zen would have on-chip USB or RS232 controllers.
Does this mean the processors have built-in USB and PCI controllers? Or is this more a case of "if you don't need many peripherals, you can do without a southbridge"?
I suspect the reason they can do without the southbridge is because many high-speed connections are PCIe these days (including storage and networking). But I don't see a good reason why Zen would have on-chip USB or RS232 controllers.