The AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D’s launch on the finish of February made one factor abundantly clear: the primary of Team Red’s 7000-series 3D V-Cache processors had been gaming monsters. Their additional further layer of spicy L3 cache supercharged their efficiency.

But the chip everybody was ready on—the Ryzen 7 7800X3D—was nonetheless a query mark. Held till its April 6 launch, the $450 CPU is the “affordable” possibility in comparison with the $699 7950X3D and $599 Ryzen 9 7900X3D, and one which many avid gamers had been eyeing with prepared anticipation. We knew the 7800X3D’s technical particulars (which you’ll be able to dig into through our YouTube coverage), however the way it’d slot on to the leaderboards was a thriller.

Now with this chip on cabinets, we lastly know: Like its siblings, this processor is a beast, too. In truth it’s one of the best CPU you should buy for gaming, if that’s all you do. 

Of course, there’s extra to this newest addition to the Ryzen 7000 lineup, because the benchmarks from throughout the net present—and the information can closely affect if the 7800X3D is best for you. Here’s what you must know.

In video games, it sits with Intel and AMD’s greatest chips

On website after website, the benchmarks present an identical final result—the Ryzen 7 7800X3D punching means above its weight class in video games. Whether it’s Tom’s Hardware or TechSpot, this processor’s common efficiency in video games places it on the identical footing as its far more costly sibling, the 7950X3D. And that’s a CPU which edges previous Intel’s high chips, just like the Core i9-13900K. 

In truth, when wanting on the combination scores, the 7800X3D generally displaces the 7950X3D from high spot. And for the evaluations the place it doesn’t, you’ll often discover it in second place. Meanwhile, Intel’s $418 Core i7-13700K—its closest rival in value—trails behind. Depending on the benchmarking suite (as reviewers don’t have full overlap within the video games they take a look at with), the 7800X3D can supply about 6 to 13 % greater efficiency on common.

That mentioned, the Ryzen 7 7800X3D doesn’t at all times high the charts in each single particular person recreation. In titles with higher optimization for Intel processors, or ones extra affected by clock pace than cache measurement, the 7800X3D falls to the center and even towards the underside of the pack of high-powered processors. If you fireplace up the identical recreation each evening (e.g., Counter-Strike: Global Offensive) and count on high body charges out of your system, you must study the related take a look at outcomes to verify this processor is an effective match.

But it’s not as nice in different duties

PCWorld

Throw video games on the Ryzen 7 7800X3D, and it’ll deal with most of them with aplomb. Even when falling notably behind the highest performers, it posts large body charges. You’ll discover the variations even much less at greater resolutions and/or graphical settings that shift extra work onto your graphics card—which might make its comparatively extra inexpensive value all of the extra alluring in comparison with different Ryzen 9 and seven components, in addition to Intel Core i9 and i7 CPUs.

However, with non-gaming duties, the Ryzen 7 7800X3D’s outcomes can’t be contextualized in the identical means. Either a chip is quicker in encoding and rendering, or it’s not. And for something closely reliant on CPU pace or core depend, the 7800X3D lags behind. You can see it for your self in Cinebench R23 multicore outcomes—in comparison with the 13700K, AMD’s newest is 37% slower in TechSpot’s review. Other retailers had related findings.

This conduct tracks with what we noticed within the first-generation 3D V-Cache CPU, the similarly fantastic Ryzen 7 5800X3D (the 7800X3D’s predecessor!), in addition to the 7950X3D when it launched. Neither of these chips may pull even with their X-variant siblings (5800X, 7950X) in content material creation duties.

Adam Patrick Murray / IDG

But AMD’s two higher-end Ryzen 7000 3D V-Cache processors can nonetheless rip by heavy manufacturing workloads—they’re not incapable, just a bit slower than the highest CPUs in that regard. They’re well-suited for avid gamers who additionally need robust efficiency in all-core workloads, simply not as a lot as somebody whose foremost precedence is figure first, play second.

Meanwhile, the Ryzen 7 7800X3D is at the beginning a gaming CPU. If you want a processor with extra even, balanced efficiency throughout the board, a rival like Intel’s Core i7-13700K is a extra superb selection, as you’ll see within the comparability video embedded beneath. But when you’re all in on gaming efficiency and may wait longer for encodes to complete, that is your chip.

It’s probably the most power-efficient gaming chip

Jim Martin / Foundry

In chart after chart measuring energy consumption, the Ryzen 7 7800X3D drinks down electrical energy way more modestly than equally priced processors—and positively lower than AMD and Intel’s normal flagship CPUs.

The exception, in fact, are the opposite 3D V-Cache CPUs. These components eat much less power because of decrease voltages, in flip lowers the quantity of warmth produced—a needed design option to mitigate the thermal penalties of getting extra L3 cache stacked on.

So once in a while, you possibly can see a benchmark consequence the place the 7950X3D noses previous the humbler Ryzen 7 7800X3D. But general, the 7800X3D hits a utility invoice way more softly than the 7950X and 13900K, which take no prisoners and make no apologies for wolfing down watts. Its weaker manufacturing efficiency will be traced on to how a lot power it makes use of. Just have a peek at TechSpot’s examination of electricity used whereas working a Blender rendering take a look at. The 13700K is 44 % quicker, but it surely additionally consumes 89 % extra energy.

In video games, the hole isn’t fairly so extensive, however nonetheless notable—you’ll see variations between 20 and 28 % in energy consumption in comparison with chips just like the 13700K and 13900K, typically whereas the Ryzen 7 7800X3D is outperforming them. And as you would possibly guess, utilizing much less power not solely interprets to larger financial savings in your utility invoice, however much less warmth to dissipate. TechSpot by no means noticed the 7800X3D rise above 84 degrees Celsius throughout all-core workloads in Cinebench R23, or 66 levels throughout this system’s single-core take a look at.

You shouldn’t purchase this as an alternative of a extra highly effective GPU

Brad Chacos/IDG

The Ryzen 7 7800X3D is a ferocious chip, however you gained’t profit if it’s probably the most highly effective element in your construct. Unlike with a processor that may additionally tear by manufacturing work, its foremost objective is to maintain your gaming rig firing on all cylinders.

And in a gaming rig, you’ll be greatest served by skewing your funds extra towards your GPU, relatively than your CPU. You don’t need your processor to bottleneck your graphics card, in fact, but when your CPU is extra highly effective than the GPU, you’re not profiting from your construct.

Given how far the Ryzen 7 7800X3D can stretch its legs, it may possibly comfortably accomplice one of the best video playing cards in the marketplace, e.g., the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090 or AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT. It’s one of the best gaming CPU for high-end but nonetheless price-conscious consumers—once you need the best possible for the wide range of video games you play, with out overspending on efficiency for closely threaded or clock-speed-sensitive workloads you’ll by no means run.

So when you’re deciding between an RTX 3060 and an RTX 3070 (or Radeon RX 6800 XT), the higher graphics card and a less expensive (say, $300) CPU will provide you with higher bang on your gaming buck. That doesn’t make the 7800X3D a nasty selection—relatively, it’s greatest fitted to high-end gaming rigs the place the CPU might be a possible choke level.

Intel nonetheless holds the lead on worth

Would-be patrons of Ryzen 7000 CPUs obtained welcome information this week—the launch of a budget A620 chipset for AM5 motherboards. But even when you had been to scrape that low to save lots of a couple of bucks (maybe to afford the 7800X3D, nonetheless ill-advised), the fact is that you just nonetheless can’t beat the financial savings you will get with an Intel chip. Not when you’re keen to drop all the way down to slower (and cheaper) reminiscence.

AM5 motherboards—the only motherboards compatible with Ryzen 7000—assist DDR5 reminiscence solely. Prices have come down for this quicker RAM, however they haven’t bottomed out to match DDR4 reminiscence pricing but. Meanwhile, DDR4 motherboards exist for Intel chips, and so they’re cheaper than DDR5 motherboards. So you’ll save on each the mobo and the reminiscence with Intel.

Editor’s be aware: This article initially revealed on April 6, 2023, and was up to date on May 1st, 2023 with a hyperlink to our benchmark comparability video between the Ryzen 7 7800X3D and the Intel Core i7-13700K.