AMD’s new Ryzen 7 9800X3D is already one of many best processors you should buy. It delivers productiveness and gaming beneficial properties throughout the board, although not in equal strides. Regardless of the enhancements AMD made, the last-gen Ryzen 7 7800X3D continues to be potent competitors, notably in the case of gaming.
These are two of the go-to gaming CPUs proper now, and though the Ryzen 7 9800X3D is newer and quicker, the Ryzen 7 7800X3D continues to be the fitting CPU for most individuals. That turns into clear if you take a look at the primary focus of those CPUs — gaming efficiency — and the way costs are beginning to settle.
Specs and pricing
The Ryzen 7 7800X3D and Ryzen 7 9800X3D are virtually equivalent on the specs entrance. You’re getting eight cores, 16 threads, and 104MB of cache by AMD’s 3D V-Cache tech. Each additionally prime out at 120 watts, although they not often ever attain that time. Even when pushed to the restrict, each the Ryzen 7 7800X3D and Ryzen 7 9800X3D not often attain as much as 100W, usually working between 50W and 70W, particularly if you’re enjoying video games.
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It could not appear to be there are a ton of variations between these two CPUs, however there are. First, the Ryzen 7 9800X3D makes use of the brand new Zen 5 structure, which not solely makes use of a smaller node, but in addition comes with a devoted 512-bit knowledge path for AVX-512 directions — each CPUs help the instruction, nevertheless. For avid gamers, the larger distinction is how AMD modified the cache.
Each CPUs include 104MB of whole cache, however the 3D V-Cache die is in a distinct location. On the Ryzen 7 7800X3D, it’s stacked on prime of the CPU cores, whereas on the Ryzen 7 9800X3D, it’s tucked beneath the CPU cores. It may not sound like an enormous distinction, however the Ryzen 7 9800X3D basically offers the CPU cores extra direct entry to cooling. That allowed AMD to push clock speeds additional, in addition to totally unlock the Ryzen 7 9800X3D for overclocking.
| Ryzen 7 9800X3D | Ryzen 7 7800X3D | |
| Structure | Zen 5 | Zen 4 |
| Cores/Threads | 8/16 | 8/16 |
| L3/L2 Cache | 96MB / 8MB | 96MB / 8MB |
| Base frequency | 4.7GHz | 4.2GHz |
| Max turbo frequency | 5.2GHz | 5GHz |
| Socket | AM5 | AM5 |
| Max temperature | 95°C | 89°C |
| TDP | 120W | 120W |
The Ryzen 7 7800X3D doesn’t help handbook overclocking, although you may nonetheless enhance the speeds by AMD’s Precision Enhance Overdrive (PBO). This offers you some management over overclocking or undervolting your CPU, however the Ryzen 7 9800X3D has all the overclocking bells and whistles if you wish to push the CPU to its restrict.
Pricing is an enormous departure for these two CPUs, and on the time of writing, I’m undecided the place costs will find yourself. The Ryzen 7 9800X3D has an inventory worth of $479, which is $30 costlier than the $449 the Ryzen 7 7800X3D launched at. Nevertheless, the Ryzen 7 9800X3D is currently sold out everywhere, and the Ryzen 7 7800X3D is promoting for round $460 in its absence.
Issues received’t keep this fashion without end. When the Ryzen 7 9800X3D comes again in inventory, that can have downward stress on the worth of the Ryzen 7 7800X3D. On the secondhand market, the CPU is promoting for round $350 proper now, and I believe it’ll drop beneath $400 for a brand new one as soon as the Ryzen 7 9800X3D comes again in inventory. AMD has stated that it expects the Ryzen 7 7800X3D will stick round for some time, so we should always see costs drop quickly.
Productiveness efficiency
The Ryzen 7 9800X3D makes huge leaps over the Ryzen 7 7800X3D in the case of productiveness efficiency. You may see the leaps in Cinebench R24 above. A few of that’s attributed to the architectural shift in Zen 5, with a transparent 19% uplift in single-core speeds. The multi-core velocity additionally sees a 19% enhance, nevertheless, exhibiting that the change in cache location is permitting the Ryzen 7 9800X3D to totally capitalize on every core.
Rendering functions like Cinebench are the very best showcase for the Ryzen 7 9800X3D. In Blender, which is one other rendering software, the Ryzen 7 9800X3D is upwards of 21% quicker than the Ryzen 7 7800X3D. That’s a large enhance.
In a multipurpose workload like Geekbench, issues are just a little completely different. Much like Cinebench, you may see a clear 19% uplift in single-core efficiency because of the Zen 5 structure. Nevertheless, in multi-core efficiency, the Ryzen 7 9800X3D’s lead shrinks to 14%. That’s nonetheless a big uplift over the Ryzen 7 7800X3D, although not almost as stark as what I noticed in rendering apps.
In some apps, the distinction actually isn’t that enormous. Take Premiere Professional for example. Right here, the Ryzen 7 9800X3D is 8% quicker than the Ryzen 7 7800X3D. That’s a strong speed-up, little doubt, nevertheless it’s not going to make Premiere Professional considerably higher to make use of total. We’re nonetheless working with two eight-core processors, and whereas the development in single-core efficiency on the Ryzen 7 9800X3D is welcome, it doesn’t dominate throughout all productiveness workloads. That’s simply the character of the beast.
There’s little doubt that the Ryzen 7 9800XD is a greater productiveness CPU than the Ryzen 7 7800X3D. Each of those chips, nevertheless, are constructed for gaming with their further cache. The productiveness efficiency of the Ryzen 7 9800X3D is nearly equivalent to the Ryzen 7 9700X when utilizing that CPU’s 105W mode. And you may choose up that CPU for round $325 — greater than $150 lower than the Ryzen 7 9800X3D. There are some who need gaming and productiveness in equal strides, however compromising one space or the opposite a bit can prevent a ton of cash.
Gaming efficiency
Would you like the quickest gaming CPU, or the secon- quickest gaming CPU? That’s actually what it comes right down to with the Ryzen 7 9800X3D and Ryzen 7 7800X3D. Even costly flagships just like the Core Ultra 9 285K and Ryzen 9 9950X can’t sustain with what these two CPUs supply. They’re in a league of their very own, and though the newer Ryzen 7 9800X3D is technically quicker, it’s not forward by a lot.
At most, the Ryzen 7 9800X3D is round 6% to 7% quicker than the Ryzen 7 7800X3D, and that’s in video games like Cyberpunk 2077 and Closing Fantasy XIV Dawntrail the place you may see huge variations. There are loads of video games, corresponding to Returnal, Murderer’s Creed Mirage, Crimson Lifeless Redemption 2, and Black Delusion: Wukong the place the variations don’t register. In these final two video games, actually, the Ryzen 7 7800X3D was forward — although largely because of some variance in runs.
It’s essential to take into account that these exams had been run at 1080p with Excessive settings. In the event you push up the decision and/or graphics settings, the variations in efficiency begin to disappear. I don’t wish to diminish the position of a CPU in case your gaming PC utterly. Nevertheless, the skinny single-digit margins between the Ryzen 7 9800X3D and Ryzen 7 7800X3D name into query simply a lot quicker the Ryzen 7 9800X3D actually is when inside a high-performance gaming PC.
Frankly, it’s not stunning the 2 CPUs are so tight. AMD’s Ryzen 9000 CPUs didn’t transfer the needle a lot for gaming efficiency, and with the identical quantity of cache on each CPUs, the Ryzen 7 9800X3D doesn’t make enormous enhancements over the Ryzen 7 7800X3D, no less than on the gaming entrance.
Energy and temperature
Each the Ryzen 7 9800X3D and Ryzen 7 7800X3D are very environment friendly CPUs. Nevertheless, the Ryzen 7 7800X3D is extra environment friendly, if solely by a hair. You may see that in motion within the chart above. In comparison with a CPU just like the Intel Core i9-14900K, you see how far more environment friendly each these CPUs are. The Ryzen 7 9800X3D nonetheless attracts extra energy than the Ryzen 7 7800X3D, and that’s true in video games like Returnal the place the 2 CPUs publish equivalent efficiency.
As well as, the Ryzen 7 9800X3D runs hotter. All of AMD’s 3D V-Cache CPUs run sizzling, however the increased clock speeds and energy draw on the Ryzen 7 9800X3D go additional than the Ryzen 7 7800X3D. The distinction isn’t fairly as stark as energy draw.
AMD is pushing the Ryzen 7 9800X3D arduous. The change of the cache location permits for overclocking and better clock speeds, and AMD took benefit of that additional headroom to push the facility and temperature of the CPU, which largely ends in higher productiveness efficiency.
A stunning upset
I’m undecided how lengthy it would take for the Ryzen 7 9800X3D to achieve its $479 record worth. I don’t assume it will likely be quickly, nevertheless. The CPU offered out virtually instantly, and it’s promoting for between $700 and $900 on the secondhand market proper now. In the meantime, the Ryzen 7 7800X3D is at the moment promoting for $460, nevertheless it’s round $350 on the secondhand market, and I believe it’ll drop even decrease as soon as the Ryzen 7 9800X3D comes again in inventory.
Retaining the worth distinction in thoughts, I’m on the aspect of the Ryzen 7 7800X3D. There’s little doubt the Ryzen 7 9800X3D is way quicker in productiveness apps, however these are gaming CPUs. On that entrance, each the Ryzen 7 7800X3D and Ryzen 7 9800X3D are very shut, and the Ryzen 7 9800X3D isn’t price the additional worth. Relying on how issues shake out, you might save upwards of $100 on the Ryzen 7 7800X3D.
We’ll should see the place costs find yourself, however I don’t suspect thry’ll change a lot. The Ryzen 7 9800X3D is a really spectacular CPU, however in case you don’t thoughts sacrificing some productiveness efficiency, the Ryzen 7 7800X3D nonetheless delivers on the gaming entrance for a lot much less cash.
