AMD introduced the next generation of Ryzen 7000 processors, and among them are two flagship models: Ryzen 9 7950X and Ryzen 9 7900X. These enthusiast processors are said to deliver intense levels of performance, but they both differ from each other in a number of ways.
Is the extra money worth the Ryzen 9 7950X? Does it bring a massive update over the 7900X? We’ll explore the details of these two processors to help you decide which is the best option if you’re shopping for a new AMD CPU.
Glasses
| AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
| cores | sixteen | 12 |
| neither | 32 | 24 |
| basic class | 4.5GHz | 4.7GHz |
| turn up the clock | 5.7GHz | 5.6GHz |
| combined cache | 80MB | 76MB |
| TDP | 170W | 170W |
| integrated graphics | AMD Radeons | AMD Radeons |
Instead of keeping a coy approach, AMD is quite generous when it comes to sharing information about new processors. Thanks to that, we have a nice set of specs to look at.
Although AMD has improved the specifications of the new processors in many ways, their core configurations have remained unchanged from their Zen 3 counterparts. However, with 16 and 12 cores respectively, both the Ryzen 9 7950X and 7900X should offer good performance across the board.
When it comes to clock speeds, we’re in for a bit of a surprise: the Ryzen 9 7950X offers a higher clock speed (5.7 GHz vs. 5.6 GHz), but a lower base clock speed at 4.5 GHz compared to the 4.7 GHz offered by the 7900X.
In terms of combined cache, the two processors are again pretty similar, at 80MB for the 7950X and 76MB for the 7900X. The TDP is exactly the same, it is 170 W for both processors. Both also offer integrated AMD Radeon graphics, a first for an AMD flagship CPU, with dual 2200 MHz graphics cores.
Prices and availability
AMD has set the same release date for Ryzen 9 7950X and Ryzen 9 7900X. First announced on August 29, the processors will arrive on September 27, accompanied by two more cheaper CPUs: the Ryzen 7 7700X and the Ryzen 5 7600X. The rest of the lineup will follow later. AMD has also confirmed that it will eventually release 3D V-Cache versions of its flagship processors, so it’s not impossible that we could see the return of the 7950X or 7900X in an X3D version in the future.
The Ryzen 9 7950X will cost $700, while the Ryzen 9 7900X is $150 cheaper and costs $550.
Performance
AMD
The official benchmarks for the Ryzen 9 7950X and Ryzen 9 7900X are not ready yet; we’ll have to wait until the reviewers get their hands on the CPUs and share their findings. For now, we just have to rely on AMD’s own numbers, and while they should be viewed with skepticism, they look very, very promising.
According to AMD, the flagship Ryzen 9 7950X will be the best choice for gamers and creators, but honestly, both CPUs are likely to excel at such tasks – the 7950X will be slightly better. To test the capabilities of the 7950X, AMD compared it to its Zen 3 counterpart, the Ryzen 9 5950X.
The new 5nm process technology used by AMD in the creation of Zen 4 offers upgrades across all segments, with 13% higher instructions per clock compared to Zen 3 processors. In gaming, the new part of Zen 4 proved to be up to 35% faster, while in content creation it managed to gain up to 48%. In the content creation demo, when compared to Intel’s flagship Alder Lake Core i9-12900K, the AMD processor was up to 57% faster than Intel. It was also 57% faster in rendering performance with ray tracing.
The Ryzen 9 7950X was also tested against its counterpart at various TDP levels. At 65 watts, it gave 74% more performance; at 105 watts, it outperformed the Zen 3 CPU by 37%; and in the end, at 170 W it still managed to beat its big brother by 35%.
AMD also proved to be superior in performance per watt, a factor that is being heavily targeted in this generation of processors. The Ryzen 9 7950X promises up to 47% more performance per watt than the Core i9-12900K. The former has a seemingly strict TDP of 170 W, while Intel has a base TDP of 125 W that can be increased to 241 W in turbo mode.
AMD’s quest for efficiency shows up in two ways. Overall, Zen 4 processors are said to consume up to 62% less power than Zen 3 while maintaining the same performance. Conversely, when power consumption is the same, Zen 4 parts are up to 49% faster.
it’s a hard call
AMD
AMD made this particularly difficult decision. Comparing the Ryzen 9 7950X vs. the Ryzen 9 7900X reveals some differences, but they’re not big enough to tip the scales in one direction.
When it comes to the Ryzen 9 7950X, we’ve got it all: a higher boost clock, more cores and threads, and a larger combined cache, and we’ve got performance data provided by AMD. The Ryzen 9 7900X is more of an enigma at the moment: AMD hasn’t shared any performance metrics for that processor. Fortunately, it won’t be long before both CPUs are thoroughly tested after launch.
On the other hand, the Ryzen 9 7900X is not far behind on the best part. It has a higher base clock, a fairly similar core count, and the cache is still huge. Both CPUs have exactly the same TDP, so it’s not even a problem.
There is no doubt that both Ryzen 9 7950X and Ryzen 9 7900X will excel in gaming and creative work. The four extra cores can prove important if you’re dealing with a lot of resource-intensive tasks, but for many casual users the difference won’t be a game-changer.
Is the Ryzen 9 7950X worth the extra $150? It very well could be, but profit won’t be a hindrance one way or the other. Get the best of the best if you think you have to, but otherwise you’re better off spending that $150 on the DDR5 RAM that AMD’s new socket AM5 requires.
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Categories: GAMING
Source: newstars.edu.vn