Before you buy the AMD Ryzen 7950X3D.

Summary

The video script reviews AMD's Ryzen 7000 series CPUs, particularly the 7950X3D, which features 3D V-Cache technology. It compares gaming performance against other CPUs, noting slim improvements in frame rates and latency. The 7950X3D shows promise in games like Overwatch 2 but falls behind in others like Modern Warfare 2. The script also discusses power consumption, heat management, and multi-threaded performance, suggesting the 7800X3D might be a better option for gamers seeking the best value from AMD's new lineup.

Takeaways

• 🚀 The Ryzen 7000 series by AMD has introduced 3D V-Cache technology, which is an enhancement over the previous generation, aiming to improve gaming performance.
• 🔢 AMD offers three 3D V-Cache chips with varying core counts: 8-core, 12-core, and 16-core models, with the 7800X3D appearing to be the most cost-effective option.
• 💡 The 12-core and 16-core models do not receive additional 3D V-Cache beyond the 7800X3D, which means more cores do not equate to more V-Cache.
• 🎮 In gaming benchmarks, the Ryzen 7950X3D shows marginal improvements in frame rates and responsiveness, but not significantly more than the 5800X3D.
• 📉 For gamers upgrading from older Ryzen CPUs, there is a noticeable difference in performance, but for those with a 5800X3D, the upgrade may not be as compelling.
• 🛑 The new chipset driver for AMD's latest CPUs disables non-3D V-Cache CCD during gaming, which means extra cores may not contribute to gaming performance.
• 🔥 The Ryzen 7950X3D shows good scaling in certain games like Cyberpunk 2077, but in others like Modern Warfare 2, it was slightly outperformed by the 5800X3D.
• 🌡️ The 7950X3D has a lower default temperature target and seems to heat up quickly, even with a robust cooling solution, indicating potential thermal management issues.
• ⚙️ In multi-threaded workloads like Cinebench, the standard 7950X outperforms the 7950X3D, suggesting the 3D V-Cache may not offer substantial benefits in all scenarios.
• 🔧 The 7950X3D's single-threaded performance is on par with the regular 7950X, indicating that the heat and power management do not impact this aspect.
• 🔄 For those looking to game and also require 16 cores, the 7950X3D is an option, but the gains from the 3D V-Cache are not as significant as with the 5800X3D, making the latter a better value for some users.

Q & A

What is the significance of the 3D V-cache technology in the Ryzen 7000 series?

The 3D V-cache technology, introduced with the 5800X3D, is significant because it adds an additional 64MB of L3 cache to the CPU, improving gaming performance by reducing latency and enhancing frame rates. AMD has now integrated this technology into the Ryzen 7000 series, including the 7950X3D, 7900X3D, and 7800X3D.

How does the 7950X3D compare to the 5800X3D in terms of gaming performance?

The 7950X3D offers slight improvements in gaming performance compared to the 5800X3D, but the gains are minimal. In some cases, such as Modern Warfare 2, the 5800X3D is actually slightly faster. Overall, the 7950X3D is faster, but the difference is often marginal.

Why might the 7800X3D be a better option for gamers compared to the 7950X3D or 7900X3D?

The 7800X3D might be a better option for gamers because it offers the most 3D V-cache enhancement for the money. Since AMD's latest chipset driver only uses the fastest 8 cores for gaming, the additional cores in the 7950X3D and 7900X3D are often underutilized during gaming, making the 7800X3D a more cost-effective choice.

What impact does the new chipset driver have on gaming performance in the 7950X3D?

The new chipset driver disables the non-3D V-cache CCD when gaming, ensuring that only the cores with the extra L3 cache are used. This optimizes gaming performance by focusing on the fastest 8 cores, which improves efficiency during gaming loads.

How does the 7950X3D handle power consumption and temperature management?

The 7950X3D has lower power consumption, pulling just 76 watts while pushing out 1000 FPS in games like Valorant. However, its temperature management is somewhat unusual, with the chip quickly reaching 89 degrees Celsius under load, even with a 360mm cooler. The CCD with the 3D V-cache heats up significantly more than the non-3D CCD, indicating uneven heat distribution.

In what scenarios does the Intel 13900K outperform the 7950X3D?

The Intel 13900K outperforms the 7950X3D in certain games, such as Red Dead Redemption 2 and Doom Eternal. In these cases, the extra L3 cache of the 7950X3D does not provide a significant advantage, allowing the 13900K to edge out slightly in performance.

What are the main trade-offs when choosing between the 7950X3D and the standard 7950X?

The main trade-offs between the 7950X3D and the standard 7950X involve gaming versus productivity performance. The 7950X3D is better for gaming due to its 3D V-cache, while the standard 7950X is better for multi-threaded workloads like rendering and encoding, where it can sustain higher clock speeds and performance.

Why is the 5800X3D still a relevant choice for gamers, especially those on the AM4 platform?

The 5800X3D remains relevant because it offers strong gaming performance at a lower cost, especially for those already on the AM4 platform. Upgrading to the 5800X3D does not require a new motherboard or DDR5 memory, making it a cost-effective upgrade with significant performance gains.

How does the 7950X3D perform in single-threaded tasks compared to the regular 7950X?

In single-threaded tasks, the 7950X3D performs about the same as the regular 7950X. However, in some cases, the regular 7950X may be slightly faster due to its ability to boost to higher clock speeds when thermal and power limits are not a concern.

What can we expect from the 7800X3D, and why might it be an interesting choice for enthusiasts?

The 7800X3D is expected to be an interesting choice for enthusiasts because it is likely to offer the best balance of price and gaming performance in the Ryzen 7000 series. With the potential to tweak clock speeds and its full utilization of 3D V-cache technology, the 7800X3D could deliver exceptional gaming performance at a more affordable price point.

Outlines

00:00

🎮 Performance Analysis of AMD Ryzen 7000 3D V-Cache CPUs

The script discusses the performance gains in gaming CPUs, particularly focusing on the AMD Ryzen 7000 series with 3D V-Cache technology. It highlights the 7950x3d model, which incorporates the 3D V-Cache from the 5800x3d. The script compares the performance of this new CPU with its predecessors and competitors in various games, noting that while there are some improvements, they are not as significant as those seen in rendering and encoding tasks. It also mentions that the 7800x3d appears to be the better value option due to its price and performance. The testing setup and methodology are described, including the use of an RTX 4090 GPU and specific memory configurations for DDR4 and DDR5 CPUs. The script provides insights into the gaming experience, frame rates, and system responsiveness, concluding that the 7950x3d shows promise but does not significantly outperform the 5800x3d in most gaming scenarios.

05:02

🔥 Power Consumption and Thermal Performance of Ryzen 7950x3d

This paragraph delves into the power consumption and thermal performance of the Ryzen 7950x3d, comparing it with other CPUs in the market. It notes that the 7950x3d has a lower default temperature target and consumes less power than expected, especially when gaming. However, the script points out that the heat management seems off, with the 3D V-Cache CCD warming up quickly even under a 360mm cooler. The comparison extends to multi-threaded performance, where the standard 7950x outperforms the 7950x3d in Cinebench due to better heat distribution and higher sustained clock speeds. Single-threaded performance is noted to be equal, with tasks like 3D motion tracking showing no significant difference. The script also touches on the performance in Adobe Media Encoder and suggests that the upcoming 7800x3d might be a more attractive option for consumers looking for a balance between gaming performance and value.

Keywords

💡Gaming CPUs

Gaming CPUs refer to central processing units specifically designed or optimized for gaming performance. In the video, the discussion revolves around the advancements and limitations of gaming CPUs, particularly in relation to frame rates and rendering capabilities. The script mentions the slow progress in gaming CPU performance, which contrasts with the rapid developments in rendering and encoding technologies.

💡3D V-Cache

3D V-Cache is a technology that involves stacking additional cache memory on top of a CPU die to increase its performance, especially in gaming and rendering tasks. The script discusses AMD's implementation of this technology in their Ryzen 7000 series CPUs, highlighting its impact on gaming performance and the unique configuration where not all models receive additional cache despite having more cores.

💡Ryzen 7000

Ryzen 7000 is a series of CPUs from AMD that represents the latest generation of their desktop processors at the time of the video. The script reviews the Ryzen 7000 series, focusing on the introduction of 3D V-Cache and its effects on gaming performance, with a particular emphasis on the 7950X3D model, which is one of the CPUs being tested.

💡Core Count

Core count refers to the number of independent processing units within a CPU. The script compares different models of CPUs based on their core count, such as the 8-core, 12-core, and 16-core models, and discusses how additional cores do not necessarily equate to more 3D V-Cache, which is a key point in evaluating performance gains.

💡Frame Rate

Frame rate is the frequency at which consecutive images, or frames, appear on a display, measured in frames per second (FPS). In the context of gaming, a higher frame rate generally leads to smoother gameplay. The video script frequently references frame rate, particularly when comparing the performance of different CPUs in various games.

💡Input Latency

Input latency is the delay between a user's input (e.g., pressing a key or moving a mouse) and the corresponding action appearing on the screen. The script mentions input latency in the context of gaming performance, emphasizing the importance of low latency for a responsive gaming experience and comparing it across different CPUs.

💡RTX 4090

The RTX 4090 is a high-end graphics processing unit (GPU) from NVIDIA, used in the video for testing the gaming performance of various CPUs. The script specifies that an RTX 4090, specifically the liquid-cooled Supreme AX from MSI, was used in conjunction with the CPUs to evaluate gaming performance under a consistent GPU setup.

💡DDR4 and DDR5

DDR4 and DDR5 are types of RAM with different specifications; DDR5 is the newer and faster standard. The script discusses the use of DDR4 memory at 3600 CR16 for non-DDR5 CPUs and DDR5 memory at 6000 megahertz CR36 for DDR5 CPUs, indicating the importance of matching the right memory type to the CPU for optimal performance.

💡CPU Bottlenecking

CPU bottlenecking occurs when the CPU cannot keep up with the demands of the GPU, leading to reduced gaming performance. The script mentions instances where even high-end CPUs like the 7950X3D show signs of CPU bottlenecking, especially in games where the GPU is not fully utilized.

💡Power Consumption

Power consumption refers to the amount of electrical power a device uses. The script discusses the power consumption of the 7950X3D CPU, noting that it does not draw as much power as one might expect, especially when pushing out high frame rates in games like Valorant.

💡Heat Management

Heat management is the process of dissipating heat generated by a CPU to prevent overheating and maintain optimal performance. The script points out that the 7950X3D has some unusual heat management characteristics, with certain parts of the CPU getting significantly hotter than others, especially under load.

Highlights

The progress in gaming CPU speed has been slow, while rendering and encoding gains are significant.

AMD introduces the 7950x3d with 3D V-Cache technology, similar to the 5800x3d.

Three Ryzen 7000 3D V-Cache chips are available: 8-core, 12-core, and 16-core models.

12-core and 16-core models do not receive additional 3D cache compared to the 7800X 3D.

The 7800x3d is considered a better option due to its cost-effectiveness and performance.

AMD's latest chipset driver prioritizes the fastest 8 cores for gaming, rendering extra cores inactive.

The 7950x3d showed marginal improvement in gaming benchmarks, such as Overwatch 2.

Upgrading from Ryzen 2000 or 3000 CPUs results in noticeable frame rate and input latency improvements.

In Modern Warfare 2, the 5800x3d outperformed the new 7950x3d on average.

The 7950x3d achieved over 1000 FPS in Valorant, with minimal latency difference from the 5800x3d.

Cyberpunk 2077 showed a 5% performance improvement with the new 3D chip over the non-3D version.

In some games like Red Dead Redemption 2, Intel's 13900k outperformed AMD's 3D V-Cache chips.

The 7950x3d has lower power consumption compared to expectations, especially in Valorant.

The 7950x3d's heat management seems inconsistent, with the 3D V-Cache CCD warming up quickly.

The standard 7950x provides more multi-threaded performance due to better heat and power management.

Single-threaded performance of the 7950x3d is on par with the regular chip and other competitors.

The 7950x3d shows strong performance in Adobe Media Encoder, comparable to the 3900k and 7950x.

The 7800x3d is anticipated to be a more desirable option due to its potential for better performance and cost.

The 7950x3d's gaming benefits are not as impressive as the 5800x3d's, with minimal gains in most cases.

The 5800x3d remains a strong choice for an upgrade on the AM4 platform without needing a new motherboard or DDR5.

The 8-core variant of the 3D chips is expected to deliver promising results, especially with unlocked capabilities.

The Intel 13600k offers gaming performance similar to the 13900k, making it a strong contender for gaming builds.

Transcripts

how much faster can gaming CPUs really

get because lately it seems like the

progress has been really really slow

while the rendering and encoding side of

things is becoming absolutely unhinged

the gains when it comes to frame rate

and gaming are far less inspiring well

let's see if the 7950x3d can change that

AMD have taken the secret Source from

the 5800x3d which is that 3dv cache

stacking and added that here to ryzen

7000 finally five months after ryzen

7000 has launched so this time around

you'll actually have three 3D V cash

chips to choose from and eight core a 12

core and a 16 core model that's the one

that we're reviewing today but very very

important that 12 core and 16 core model

don't actually get additional 3D cache

over the 7800 X 3D it's not like the

more cores you buy the more stacked V

cash you get although that would be

pretty cool instead all three of these

models here only have one of the two

ccds with that extra 64 megabytes of L3

cache so I think we've all agree it's

the 7800x3d which is looking like the

better option out of the three it's the

cheapest for starters and you're kind of

getting the most 3D enhancement for the

money and also because with amd's latest

chipset driver you're only going to be

gaming with the fastest 8 cores anyway

so even if you buy the 12 or 16 core

model those extra four to eight cores

will literally be asleep when you're

running a game in fact I found the

current public driver to already be

doing this with the non 3D 7950x so look

we are kicking things off with the 16

core 7950x3d today but just keep that in

mind the new chipset driver disables the

non-3dv cache CCD whenever it's under

gaming loads as for the test bench I've

tested all CPUs alongside an RTX 4090

more specifically the liquid-cooled

Supreme Ax from MSI for ddr4 CPUs I've

used 3600 cr16 and for ddr5 parts

including Intel 12th and 13th gen I've

used 6000 megahertz cr36 so let's kick

things off with some competitive Games

first these are usually the games where

you'll see the most CPU scaling and for

these ones I've also included the

average latency on the left there as

well so PC latency you can think of that

as the processing latency of the CPU GPU

and the game combined but this doesn't

include the latency of your mouse or

your monitor it's purely how fast your

system can prepare and finish rendering

a frame effectively you can think of the

right side of this graph showing the

smoothness of the game and the left side

showing the responsiveness so here in

OverWatch 2 yeah we do see the new ryzen

7950x3d right at the top of the chart

however it is by a very slim margin a

good chunk of these CPUs are running

into that 600 FPS cap despite running

these benchmarks at 1440p versus the

5800x3d inputs are one millisecond

faster on average and one percent lose

aramir 7 FPS ahead so barely again here

at all if though you're upgrading from a

ryzen 2000 or 3000 CPU then you will

definitely see a difference five

millisecond faster input and roughly a

double in frame rate however that's also

what you'd see if you were to upgrade to

the 5800x3d in Modern Warfare 2 using

the built-in Benchmark I actually found

the 5800x3d to be slightly faster on

average compared to the new

7950x3d this is also something that I

went back and retested but I kept

getting the same result very interesting

to see for sure and one more reason to

hang on to that 5800x3d if you currently

have one as for f122 despite running

1440p High settings here the GPU usage

for our RTX 4090 was only 83 when paired

with the new 7950x 3D so there is still

some CPU bottlenecking at play having

said that everything from the 5800x3d

and upwards basically shows the same

experience between the old and the new

stuff there's about a 3.5 Improvement on

average and PC latency is basically

identical maybe if we ran this at 1080p

medium to low settings we'd see some

more aggressive scaling here but not

even the best Sim races in the world

play with those

in valorant the 7950x3d finally cracks

that 1000 fps mark on our spike plant

simulation with one percent lose over

600 FPS again though experience wise

there's basically no difference here

versus the 5800 X 3D especially when the

difference in latency is just half a

millisecond but for what it's worth the

7950x3d is the faster chip now keep in

mind if you're playing an actual 5v5

match you'll see frame rates far below

this but the scaling for each CPU should

be about the same we also see

surprisingly good scaling in cyberpunk

2077. here the new 3D chip was five

percent faster on average versus the

non-3d part and 13 faster when it came

to the one percent lows at this point as

well the new 7950x3d almost relieves all

CPU bottlenecking with these settings

GPU usage for r4090 was 95 on average

versus around 92 percent for the 5800 X

3D now there are some instances where

Intel's 13900k ends up on top of

everything in Red Dead Redemption 2 for

example I found the 5800 3D and 17950x3d

to be virtually identical but then the

3900k ends up at 5 faster than both on

average similar story in Doom Eternal 3

900k out on top with the new and old 3D

V cash chips basically pushing the same

performance so there are some instances

just as we saw with the 5800x3d with

that extra L3 cache doesn't really help

a lot then in Rainbow Six even less

convincing gains here the margin between

the top five are incredibly slim but

maybe the biggest difference here out of

all of these CPUs is power consumption

and surprisingly the 7950x3d doesn't

pull that much power at all in valorent

just 76 watts and that's also while

pushing out 1000 fps now apart from the

additional L3 cache there are a few

other differences here over the standard

7950x the default temperature target has

been lowered from 95 to 89 degrees C and

I will mention it hits that really

really easily despite using a 360mm

cooler at 2000 RPM on an open bench the

7950x3d hit 89 degrees within just a

couple of seconds of running cinebench

and it did that while not even pulling

160 Watts so the heat management for

this processor looks a little bit funky

if I'm honest those kind of numbers with

a 360 mil cooler just don't really add

up in particular the CCD with the 3D V

cash stacked on top was warming up

extremely easy and at least in this

scenario around about 20 degrees hotter

than the CCD that doesn't have that

extra cash so something is quite odd

here especially compared to the regular

7950x which has pretty even temperatures

across both ccds so more even heat

distribution within the chip a higher

temperature Target as a result the 7950x

can sustain higher clock speeds and

performance while under these all-core

workloads so if you're looking for the

most multi-threaded performance possible

and you're really serious about

productivity and faster processing times

the standard 7950x is the slightly

faster chip in cinebench it was around

nine percent faster than the new 3D chip

which might hint of why AMD price to

both products the same single threaded

performance on the other hand is about

equal since that heat and power

management doesn't really come into play

here 3d motion tracking is a great

example of that this task only runs on a

single thread oddly here though I still

found the regular chip to be a tiny bit

faster and then in Adobe Media encoder

generating proxy files here for video

editing the 7950x 3D sits right

alongside the 3900k and 7950x as you

would expect so for the most part we are

getting that unreal 16 core ryzen 7000

performance it's only the full ball

rendering and encoding stuff that seems

to take about a five to ten percent

penalty versus the non-3d chip that chip

can boost a little bit higher and get a

little bit warmer so do expect more

performance alright so the 7800 x3d is

probably the one that you want to be

waiting for here to be honest the 17950x

3D it's a bit of a weird CPU like I

guess if you want the gaming benefits

that the 3D V cache provides but you

also want 16 cores I guess that's what

this is trying to serve but at the same

time you know the gains that we're

seeing honestly from the 3D V cache this

time around don't seem that impressive

as what we saw with the 5800x 3D and in

most cases the 5800x3d is still there to

play like if you're currently are on the

am4 platform and you're looking for an

upgrade that chip is just an easy easy

pick it's currently around 330 dollars

you know just update your bios and drop

it in your system and there's no need to

additionally purchase a new am5

motherboard along with ddr5 so I am

looking forward to seeing what that 8

core variant can deliver especially

because these 3D chips are unlocked this

time around so potentially you could

tweak them to the same clock speeds as

what we have here or maybe even faster

now one CPU that I didn't have in the

chance for this one is the 13600k for

what it's worth the gaming performance

there is extremely similar to the 13900k

and if you are looking to build

something from the ground up that's

focused around gaming that and the

5800x3d are currently the two that I'd

still be sticking with but yeah that's

pretty much it as always a huge thanks

for watching and I'll see you all in the

next one