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From the most recent AMD Ryzen 7000 Series, the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X is a flagship processor with 16 cores and 32 threads that uses the brand-new Zen 4 architecture.

The 3D V-Cache variant eventually replaced this as the most potent AMD Ryzen 7000 Series CPU available.

The AMD Ryzen 9 7950X is already a strong competitor to the most recent 13th-generation Intel Raptor Lake CPUs, with a launch price of £599/$699 and excellent multi-core performance.

But is that sufficient to combat Intel? And if all someone wants to do with their PC is play games, do they really need such a powerful processor? Learn more about my experience with the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X by reading on.

AMD Ryzen 9 7950X Specifications

Based on AMD’s newest architecture, Zen 4, is the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X. Like the Zen 3 before it, this new architecture follows AMD’s chiplet-based design methodology, giving it a high-level appearance similar to all of the earlier Zen CPU designs.

However, by altering the core design and switching to a new 5nm manufacturing process, AMD was able to significantly boost performance.  The Zen 4 is anticipated to be generally bigger and more robust than the Zen 3. Compared to the previous Zen 3 design, Zen 4 features a more robust front end with hardware that is capable of making two branch-per-cycle predictions.

This improvement reduces pipeline delays while increasing the overall throughput on the CPU cores. AMD has quadrupled the size of its L1 B2B cache in comparison to Zen 3. Additionally, compared to Zen 3, the Op cache was increased by 68%, and the size of the L2 B2B cache increased by an unknown percentage. Three more macro operations may now be processed by the Op cache each cycle thanks to an improvement in its throughput.

The AMD Ryzen 9 7950X is a straightforward 16-core, 32-thread CPU that packs two eight-core computation chiplets alongside an I/O die to handle all data entering and exiting the processing package. 

Zen 4 is a derivative architecture of Zen 3(opens in new tab), although there are several key distinctions. First of all, it is constructed using a brand-new process node from its trusted TSMC foundry partner. The I/O die (IOD) has moved to a 6nm node, while the eight-core chiplet (CCD) is constructed using 5nm lithography. 

Although it undoubtedly results in a more efficient chip overall, the transition from 7nm to 5nm may not have been as significant as that from Zen 3’s 12nm IOD to a new 6nm version. And perhaps, more than in the new Zen 4 CCD, the platform level is where the major changes have been made. 

AMD switched to using a DDR5 memory controller and added PCIe 5.0 capability as well. With a new generation connection, you have the same fast memory as Intel’s Alder Lake architecture while also having access to tremendous bandwidth options for future graphics cards and next-generation SSDs. which won’t arrive until November, but hey, at least the new AM5 platform is prepared.

However, AMD is now including integrated graphics in its chips, specifically the IOD, for the first time outside of its APU lineup. This is the introduction of modern GPU technology to all of its Ryzen 7000-series CPUs.

AMD has been careful to emphasize that this is basically only to keep the lights on for your monitor without a separate GPU, so don’t get too excited just yet. Because the majority of businesses do not want discrete graphics cards in their office systems, it is also there to help Intel sell into the corporate Dell box market that it has dominated.

AMD Ryzen 9 7950X General Information

Regional Availability	Global
Product Line	AMD Ryzen™ 9 Processors
Max. Boost Clock	Up to 5.7GHz
L2 Cache	16MB
Processor Technology for CPU Cores	TSMC 5nm FinFET
Thermal Solution (PIB)	Not included
Launch Date	9/27/2022
Platform	Desktop
# of CPU Cores	16
Base Clock	4.5GHz
L3 Cache	64MB
Unlocked for Overclocking	Yes
Product Family	AMD Ryzen™ Processors
# of Threads	32
L1 Cache	1MB
Default TDP	170W
CPU Socket	AM5
Max. Operating Temperature (Tjmax)	95°C

AMD Ryzen 9 7950X Benchmarks & Tests

We’ll start with Cinebench R23 multi-core results, although considering how quickly this thing runs, we really should have included some Threadripper CPUs.

For comparison, the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X outperforms the 24-core/48-thread Threadripper 3960X on this test, scoring nearly 34,000 points. Astonishingly, despite having half as many cores as the 3970X, it is just slightly slower, or 50% less cores, less than 20% slower.

The AMD Ryzen 9 7950X is over 60% faster than its predecessor, the 5950X, and around 40% faster than the Core i9-12900K when compared to common desktop CPUs. That’s amazing.

Since single core is also powerful, the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X shouldn’t have any obvious weaknesses. Here, the difference between the 12900K and the 5950X is 4% and 30%, respectively.

Moving on to the results of the 7-Zip compression test, we can see that the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X performed admirably, defeating the DDR5-equipped 12900K and the 5950X by 22% and 27%, respectively. For those who are curious, it was 73% quicker than the 7600X, and scalability is poor since compression doesn’t make good use of AMD’s SMT.

Raptor Lake may soon change this, but the 7950X is also a monster in Blender, offering 30% more performance than the 5950X and 60% more than the 12900K. As a result, AMD appears to be back to edging out Intel in productivity benchmarks.

AMD Ryzen 9 7950X Conclusion

Despite having a significant generational advantage over the Ryzen 9 5950X, the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X has struggled to compete favorably with Intel. This is especially true when it comes to gaming. While the multi-threaded performance is rather impressive, we are in a position where we know Intel will increase it with its next Raptor Lake CPUs, which may completely cancel out the improvements AMD was able to achieve with Zen 4.

Then, unavoidably, you’ll probably hear a lot of talk about how disappointing the release was. However, it strikes me as a confident, steady release. You may argue that it isn’t particularly ambitious, but AMD has always succeeded by keeping its Zen promises, and once again Dr. Su’s team has done that.

Despite not being the best AMD CPU for gaming, the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X is the fastest, hottest, and most power-hungry Zen chip yet.