According to some reviewers, the next update for owners of the AMD AM5 platform has brought a lot of disappointment, but is it really true? Using the AMD Ryzen 7 9700X as an example, we dispelled these myths by testing the new product in work scenarios and video games, as well as measuring the level of performance per unit of power consumption.
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| Technical characteristics | |
| Lithography | TSMC 4 nm |
| Platform | AMD AM5 |
| Number of cores | 8 |
| Number of threads | 16 |
| Base frequency | 3.8 GHz |
| Max. frequency | 5.5 GHz |
| Third level cache | 32 MB |
| Unlocked multiplier | Yes |
| Basic TDP | 65 W |
| PCI-E version | 5.0 |
| Embedded graphics | AMD Radeon |
| Type of RAM | DDR5 5600 MHz |
| Maximum RAM | 192 GB |
We tested the processor with the following components:
The processor is sold in a BOX or Tray version without a bundled cooler, like other AMD X-series processors. The hero of the review from its brothers in the store stands out only because of the «not for sale» inscription on the box.
Before proceeding to the usual ITC benchmarks, let’s take a quick look at the differences and features of the new AMD Ryzen 9000 series of processors. The new chips are based on 4 nm technology (versus 5 nm) and have significantly higher performance per core than their predecessors.
With unchanged TDP, this means that Ryzen 9000s perform significantly more work per unit of energy consumption. Another feature is improved support for RAM. Now the base frequency is 5600 MHz, the maximum capacity is 192 GB, and overclocking up to 8000 MHz is supported.
Today we’ll take a look at a representative of the mid-range class, namely AMD Ryzen 7 9700X, and in a week’s time we’ll review the most powerful processor of our time (in the desktop segment, of course) AMD Ryzen 9 9950X.
What immediately catches your eye is the good performance of the kernel, which has grown significantly compared to its predecessors. This is reflected in the speed of the entire operating system, office programs, browser, and almost everything installed on the computer.
Multicore performance has also improved, but the difference is not the same everywhere. For example, in old benchmarks that do not use all the capabilities of new CPUs, the gap with their predecessors is minimal.
Using the recommended AMD Precision Boost Overdrive settings can improve the results by several percents. It’s a pity that the crystal was not excellent, so you can’t get a strong underclock.
The RAM works perfectly with the base frequency, XMP profile, or manually selected parameters. The speed difference is not huge, only slightly better latency,
This once again confirms the irrelevance of flagship RAM for the AM5 platform. AMD Ryzen 9000 processors with inexpensive memory deliver excellent results in real-world use.
The integrated graphics are from the «that was» category, that is, there is definitely no point in playing games on it, it is too weak. But it copes with hardware acceleration in the browser perfectly.
Video games were tested in Full HD resolution to avoid fully loading the video card. However, this does not always help, so in some games we still rely on the capabilities of AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX.
Abbreviations:
В Battlefield 2042 we easily get 250-330 FPS, depending on the size of the card, with full (i.e. 100%) CPU utilization, all 16 of its threads Delta Force produces a similar frame rate, but at the same time, it loads the CPU much less.
Fortnite as always, is unstable, so FPS can fluctuate from 200 to 600. The average is 300-400 FPS Doom Eternal as an example of optimization, fully loads the graphics card at medium graphics settings, delivering 500+ FPS in open areas during battles.
Starfield is known for its CPU requirements, so in some areas the frame rate can drop to 100-110 FPS, but with the frame generator, we get 200-250 FPS with a smoothed frame rate — the game really runs smoother.
In the processor-dependent strategy Cossacks 3 everything depends on the performance of a single core, so here we have FPS at the Intel Core i9-14900K level, which is the highest possible among all x86 computers. During huge online battles, you should still expect a drop of up to 20-30 FPS (better than up to 5-10 FPS on older systems). Benchmark Black Myth Wukong against failed due to constant departures.
Before testing, the limits were removed, or rather set to the maximum available preset of 170 W (230 W). In the Cinebench 2024 Single Core test, the processor consumes only 30 watts. Similarly, in office tasks with a low system load, power consumption is low and ranges from 15 to 40 watts.
The highest power consumption was 125 W with AMD Precision Boost Overdrive Negative 20. These are the parameters that give the best performance to power consumption ratio.
At the same time, the crystal is not a success. For example, AMD Ryzen 9 7900 allows you to lower the voltage much more, and with AMD Ryzen 7 9700X with PBO -30, -40, the system regularly freezes.
Enthusiasts can always use the AMD Ryzen Master program to fine-tune their processor, but it refused to work on our test system.
According to the sensors, the CPU heats up to 90-95 °C, which means that we are relying on the capabilities of thermal paste, not the liquid cooling system. We can’t get better results with Arctix MX-4 because the paste literally doesn’t have time to transfer heat from the crystal to the water block – the liquid temperature is three times (30-35 °C) lower after 30 minutes of testing!
If it weren’t for a few crashes during benchmarks, it would be hard to notice the differences between AMD Ryzen 7 9700X and AMD Ryzen 9 7900. Yes, the new product is noticeably faster on the core, delivers more FPS in games, and the progress is noticeable, but not revolutionary.
Perhaps if you have a motherboard recommended for testing (there are only four of them: ASRock X670E Taichi, ASUS ROG Crosshair X670E Hero, Gigabyte X670E Aorus Master, MSI MEG X670E ACE), we would have been able to get a more stable system, but the MSI B650 Carbon Wi-Fi is also a fairly productive motherboard.
We attribute the bugs to the freshness of the product. As practice shows, AMD rarely leaves well-known problems with processors, so all you have to do is follow the BIOS updates for your motherboard model and test with new firmware versions.
In Ukraine AMD Ryzen 7 9700X is sold for 18800 hryvnias, which is still too much. In fact, the difference in price between Ryzen 7 7700X and Ryzen 7 9700X is greater than the real performance difference. However, if the highest possible performance per core is a priority, then the new product is the favorite without any options.
For video games, it is optimal to take AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D for UAH 18750, and AMD Ryzen 7 7700X costs from UAH 13500 and still looks favorable compared to the hero of the review.
Intel Core i7-14700K is a direct competitor from the opposite camp, which has both its disadvantages and advantages over AMD Ryzen 7 9700X. Older model Intel Core i7-13700K for UAH 15800 can also compete, although it is slightly weaker in terms of core.