Looking into further games reveals 7950X3D doesn’t have the benchmark wow factor of 5800X3D. That’s because Intel’s latest Raptor Lake architecture has moved the gaming needle to the right, limiting X3D’s comparative gains. The first part is a 3D V-Cache performance optimiser driver that’s included in chipset software 5.01.03.005 or newer. According to AMD, ‘the driver evaluates the performance in real time and dynamically modifies the preferred cores seen by Windows based on workload preference for the 3D V-Cache CCX or the standard die.’ Run automatically for best performance, behaviour can be overridden by the user for manual tinkering. Testing a processor is arguably one of the most involved processes of any component I review because there are so many things to measure and quantify. Synthetic single and multi-core benchmarks test the performance of specific instruction sets and processor operations like floating-point calculations using benchmark tools like GeekBench, Cinebench, and PassMark.

AMD Ryzen 9 7950X 16 Core AM5 CPU/Processor - Scan AMD Ryzen 9 7950X 16 Core AM5 CPU/Processor - Scan

When it comes to the Intel Core i9-13900K, it too outperforms the 7950X3D in single core performance, with the 7950X3D running about 12% slower than the 13900K on average. The difference between the two tightens on multicore performance, with the 7950X3D running about 5% slower in multicore on average. The amount of cache on CPUs has grown over time usually by very small steps, but there have also been a few times when AMD and Intel have significantly jumped up the amount of cache in an effort to boost performance. These efforts in the past have seen mixed results with, at the best of times, a modest performance gain occurring and, at the worst of times, nothing really changing. In part, the mixed results are due to software development, as apps need to be explicitly programmed to take advantage of the added cache for a noticeable improvement to occur.Speaking of performance — boy howdy, this is a hell of a processor. It doesn't always hit the highest score on a given test, and it can often lag 5% to 10% behind the 7950X or i9-13900K on a few synthetic CPU benchmarks like CineBench R23 or Geekbench 5, but that could be chalked up to the pre-release BIOS and chipset drivers I used for testing. Even if that isn't the case, nobody buys a processor to run artificial test suites on it. Not the start we had expected. After numerous runs, we couldn’t get 7950X3D past the scores recorded by single-CCD 5800X3D. Multiple Intel chips are faster, too, and perusing AMD’s supporting documentation shows X3D a fair bit slower than rival Intel Core i9-13900KS. Leveraging the same technology we first witnessed with the impressive Ryzen 7 5800X3D, suffusing more L3 cache is inherently more difficult on two-CCD processors such as the review Ryzen 9 7950X3D and 7900X3D. The asymmetrical design and restrained power budget work well enough to deliver the same level of overall gaming performance as MadWattage™ Core i9-13900KS, which is a feat in itself.

AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D | NVIDIA RTX 4090 | Custom Gaming PC AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D | NVIDIA RTX 4090 | Custom Gaming PC

The emergence of Zen 4-based desktop CPUs late last year paved the way for X3D models to follow soon after. AMD has duly delivered on that rollout by releasing three chips touting enhanced cache for improved performance in gaming. ASUS ROG Strix SCOPE RX PBT Wireless Compact TKL Mechanical RGB Keyboard & ASUS ROG Pugio II Wireless Gaming Mouse + 264.95 What's also so notable about the 7950X3D is that while Intel's latest processors have been outstanding, that performance is far more a function of just throwing power at the problem, literally, than it is some kind of technological magic behind the scenes.

Testing the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D: Cache Writes Checks It Can't Cash

You also really can't discount the performance-per-watt that you're getting with the Ryzen 9 7950X3D, which is at least twice what you'd get with the Intel Core i9-13900K and about 55% better than the 7950X. When trying to come to an overall assessment of these chips' relative performance, it's better to look at the measurable performance gains between chips across different tests. This makes for a much more sensible average when all is said and done than averaging absolute scores where one CPU test with one very large result can badly skew a final average. The cache clearly does not help enough to give the Ryzen 9 7950X3D the performance advantage in any other CPU test in our suite. At the same time, its lower TDP and heat limit cause the 7950X3D to operate a bit slower and perform worse in almost every test except that one. The Ryzen 9 7950X is slightly faster in many of these tests, but, considering how much cheaper that chip is at list price, it’s a bit of a no-brainer which is the better value in this scenario.

AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D - Review 2023 - PCMag UK

After traditional levers have been twiddled and optimised to the nth degree, out-the-box thinking is required to increase performance without resorting to the age-old, sledgehammer technique of slamming as much power through the best CPU as possible. AMD believes it has uncovered a gem in X3D technology. First seen on Ryzen 7 5800X3D, the latest 7000 Series range is receiving cache-enriched upgrades to not one but three processors. Ryzen 9 7950X3D and Ryzen 9 7900X3D stride forward today, with Ryzen 7 7800X3D arriving April 6. Another solid set of results. Zen 4 has previously shown good aptitude when running at lower wattages; 7950X3D carries on the good work. Though the focus ought to rightfully be on gaming performance first and foremost, let’s remember this is a 16-core, 32-thread chip empowered with the full might of the Zen 4 architecture. The lower power consumption measured during Adobe Premiere and Cinebench gives the Ryzen 9 7950X3D better overall performance per watt and slightly better overall energy efficiency. This is hurt by the high idle power consumption, however, which never drops below 97W with the system sitting idle at the desktop for prolonged periods. This latter issue may be resolved with a BIOS or driver update, though. ASUS ROG Strix SCOPE NX Moonlight Keyboard & ASUS ROG Gladius III Wireless Aimpoint Mouse - White + 279.95

The Hitches in AMD's Plan

Cache has been an essential and highly influential part of computers for decades now, and its importance is unquestionable. What is questionable, however, and what has been questioned since the beginning, is how much cache is enough. Some argue that you can never have enough, but this is illogical. More cache means a larger, or in this case, an extra, chip—and that leads to higher costs. Past a certain point, it becomes questionable if the CPU will even be able to use or take advantage of all the cache you have. Editors' Note, March 2, 2023: Some scrutiny by Tom's Hardware scrutiny by Tom's Hardware and online commenters pointed out that our integrated graphics (IGP) testing numbers for the earlier Ryzen 9 7950X chip were unnaturally low; this was likely due to early-driver issues that only became evident with this review of the 7950X3D, and made the 7950X3D's IGP look like a leap forward by comparison. We have retested the Ryzen 9 7950X and updated the numbers in the IGP testing table here and in that original review, and made minor tweaks to this article's intro and IGP Testing section to reflect the new numbers. We'll also be retesting the IGPs on the Ryzen 7 7700 and 7700X in the coming days. The original, fundamental conclusions we made about this chip, though, have not changed.] We’re curious as to why AMD restrained power so much when a 170W TDP and associated 220W PPT is fine for 7950X. Is it really a case of ensuring an extra 64MB of L3 cache doesn’t overheat, or is there something more sinister going on? Putting our conjecturing hat on, equipping X3D with the standard 170W TDP would make regular 7950X redundant. Product positioning and all that. For most tests, we utilize an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Founders Edition graphics card as the primary display adapter. This is also used for all of the gaming tests—except those focused on testing the integrated graphics processor, or IGP. During those tests, we remove the Nvidia graphics card from the system. All tests are performed on Windows 11 Pro with all the latest Windows updates installed. This difference is even more telling when it comes to gaming performance. Compared to the 7950X, the 7950X3D performs like it is fully one to two generations ahead of its non-3D V-Cache counterpart with roughly 20% to 25% better gaming performance at 1080p. Likewise, when it comes to the Intel Core i9-13900K, the 7950X3D lands about 16% to 19% faster on average, but some games will perform substantially better, and the 7950X3D is never that far behind the 13900K when it does occasionally lose out.