What a great time to be alive. We are back again in this processor review with the AMD Ryzen 9 7900X featuring a new CPU core architecture, a new socket, with a new platform. Here we will be checking out the new silicon, have a quick look at its capabilities that makes this the new bleeding edge in computer processors advancement.
What is the Ryzen 9 7900X?
The Ryzen 9 7900X is part of the new processor family that AMD launched this year, coming in a new package. This time around, AMD has chosen to go with the LGA socket in the all-new AM5 platform, offering new bleeding edge features for every DIY PC Enthusiast out there.
AMD claims to have increased the IPC for desktop applications up to 13% higher than the previous generations, meaning it will have more significant gains in both performance and efficiency. In comparison, the new Ryzen 9 7900X will have equal performance to the Ryzen 5000 series if you peg it at a lower power wattage. Unlocking the power limits however will give you a huge boost over the previous generation of processors making the new Ryzen 7000 processors a huge leap in enthusiast desktop performance.
With the new processor, AMD also introduced the AMD EXPO memory overclocking profiles, similar to Intel’s XMP Profiles but more catered to the new DDR5 memory support of the Zen 4 architecture.
New socket, new installation method
As you can see on the photo below, the new AMD Ryzen 7000 series family of processors are now using a different socket. This is an LGA-style mounting, which means the pins will be directly on the motherboard. Just simply look for the triangle on the upper-left corner of the processor and align it to the similar triangle in the CPU socket and it should fit in nicely.
Ryzen 9 7900X in a nutshell
| Platform | Desktop |
| # of CPU cores: | 12 |
| # of Threads: | 24 |
| Base Clock : | 4.7GHz |
| Max Boost Clock: | Up to 5.6Ghz |
| L1 cache: | 768kb |
| L2 cache: | 12mb |
| L3 cache: | 64mb |
| Default TDP | 170W |
| CPU Socket | AM5 |
| Max Operating Temp | 95°C |
| Graphics | AMD Radeon Graphics |
| Graphics Frequency | 2200Mhz |
| Graphics Cores | 2 |
What to expect in the new Zen 4 Core Architecture and AM5 platform?
With that said, we can summarize all the goodies in these aspects:
- Powerful new architecture – The Zen 4 architectures have up to 13% more IPC improvement compared to the previous generation of Ryzen processors.
- Major frequency gains – All Ryzen 7000 series of processors will have a maximum boost above 5.0GHz effortlessly, especially in single-core performance. Thanks to its power efficiency we also get to enjoy higher clock speeds without worrying too much about CPU temperatures going overboard.
- New 6nm I/O Die – all Zen 4 processors will have a light-duty RDNA2 integrated graphics that supports DisplayPort, HDMI, and USB-C with DP Alt mores.
- Leadership in Process technology – because of substantial reductions in power across all CPU cores, we will be able to run each Ryzen 7000 processors at a lower wattage but still maintaining up to 40% performance compared to the previous generations. We have the option to run these processors at 65w/105w/170w for different applications.
- Finally, a new socket and platform – The new AMD Socket AM5 uses the LGA1718 socket which allows for support for PCIe Gen5, DDR5 memory, and up to 230w socket power delivery. AMD commits to support the AM5 socket through 2025 and beyond, similar to the support for AM4 socket which we have grown up with.
Test Bench Setup
| Processor | Ryzen 9 7900x |
| Memory | G.Skill Trident Neo 5 6000mhz |
| Motherboard | X670E Aorus Master |
| CPU Cooler | MSI MPG K360 AIO Cooler |
| Graphics Card | RX 6950XT Sapphire Nitro Pure |
For storage, we used the Kingston KC3000 SSD – One of the fastest PCIe Gen 4 SSD’s with read/write speed up to 7Gb/s, which will suit all our needs for this test. We would’ve loved to use PCIe Gen5 for this generation but unfortunately, they aren’t available yet.
CPU Profiling
Using 3DMark’s CPU Profile benchmark, we are able to show how the CPU clock frequency and CPU temperature change throughout a synthetic workload.
On a full multi-core workload from a full 14-thread load down to 4-threads, the Ryzen 9 7900X manages to sustain 5.3Ghz while the temperature is maintained at 85.11°C.
Changing it up to a single thread workload however it manages to sustain its rated max frequency of 5.67Ghz average, with temperatures at around 72.8°C.
Power consumption wise, we are able to see the Ryzen 9 7900X consume up to 137W of power in a full multi-thread load. For me, this is just amazing as out of the box the Ryzen 9 7900X boosts up beyond 5.0GHz effortlessly without overclocking and hitting any thermal limits.
Gaming Tests
We tested this processor in different games ranging from esports titles that require high frame rates and AAA game titles that prioritize visuals and eye candy. We paired this processor with the RX 6950XT while running the games in 1080p resolution to eliminate any possibility of being GPU limited in our tests. The gaming results are beyond of what we expected coming from the experience with the Ryzen 7 5800X3D, the last processor to be released in the AM4 platform.
In Counter Strike: Global Offensive, we were able to easily push beyond 500 FPS thanks to the boost clock speeds of above 5.0Ghz. Other AAA game titles such as The Division 2, Ghost Recon Breakpoint, Dirt 5, were all able to go above 200 FPS giving a fairly good game experience. Cyberpunk 2077 and Far Cry 6, both being large games on their own was able to run pretty smoothly as well and the Ryzen 9 7900X held on.
We were supposed to put the Ryzen 9 7900X directly against the Intel Core i9 12900K but the Z690 motherboard that we had didn’t work properly in time for this article. But in the coming weeks, we will have a follow up on the test results that includes the comparison with the Core i9 12900K.
Who should use the Ryzen 9 7900X? / Final Thoughts
AMD’s Ryzen 9 processors have been dubbed the “baby” Threadrippers offering HEDT CPU core count and performance, while not being an actual HEDT processor. In this generation it will be hard to blur the lines between HEDT and consumer desktop processors. But definitely for those who needs all the 12-cores and 24-threads in both gaming and creation work, this is going to be your next sweet-spot performance CPU. This does have a bigger brother, the Ryzen 9 7950X which offers 16-cores and 32-threads, and I am thinking that if you want to be over-the-top, without actually being too over-the-top, then the Ryzen 9 7900X is just right.
There are many things to like about this processor. On the performance side, it is amazing that it just boosts itself well beyond 5.0GHz without any overclocking and without any effort while providing exceptional performance in games.
AMD did not follow Intel’s direction of offering a hybrid architecture (with 12th Gen Intel Core Processor’s P-cores and E-cores) as the latter is facing a totally different challenge as Robert Hallock, former Lead Marketing for AMD, explained in an interview with KitGuru. Here we can see that AMD’s processor tech and efficiency wins.
Pricing and Availability
The Ryzen 9 7900X will have an SRP of PHP 36,250 (tax inclusive) in the Philippine market and will be available starting Sept. 28, 2022.