AMD Ryzen 7 9800x3D storms the desktop gaming world

AMD released Ryzen 7 9800X3D on November 7 and it already looks like the shelves will soon empty by the gamers with reasonable budgets for that. It goes for $480 on Amazon, and after you’ve read this review, you’ll probably want it too.

All about AMD Ryzen 7 9800x3D

1. Technical specifications

AMD describes it as an advanced desktop processor designed for gamers and creators seeking high performance and efficient multitasking. As this description might seem boring, let’s allow the technical specifications provided by AMD speak for themselves first.

The chip is based on AMD’s Zen 5 architecture and it comes with 8 cores and 16 threads, offering a 4.7 GHz base clock that can turbo boost up to 5.2 GHz. AMD says that their new CPU is 20% better than Intel’s latest flagship (we assume they’re talking about Intel Core 9 285K). If that’s the comparison we’re looking for, the equivalent Intel Core 9 285K with 24 cores is $600 on Amazon, which makes Ryzen 7 9800X3D look like a bargain for $480.

The bomb here is that according to Tom Hardware’s review on the chip, it utterly smashes Core 9 285K with an average 35% boost in performance. That alone might be the clear sign that we’re dealing with a superstar gaming CPU.

What makes Ryzen 7 9800X3D so good? AMD says that it’s 3D V-Cache technology with a whooping 96 MB of L3 cache that make everything go faster in CPU-intensive applications and games. We’ve talked about this when we reviewed the AMD Ryzen 7 7800x3D. However, AMD states that Ryzen 7 9800X3D is 8% faster.

However, as with any new tech, the 3D V-Cache is still pretty new and not all the games are optimized to use the X3D chip’s feature. Even so, AMD argues that even on those titles you will see at least a 1% framerate increase than with Ryzen 7 7800x3D.

2. Memory and configuration

The Ryzen 7 9800X3D supports DDR5 memory with speeds up to 5600 MT/s in a dual-channel configuration, although you can do even better with overclocking. The CPU is compatible with PCIe 5.0 for fast data transfer and high-performance graphics card compatibility. Overclocking capabilities are unlocked, marking a significant shift, as AMD had previously restricted overclocking on chips with 3D V-Cache. This makes the 9800X3D more versatile for enthusiasts aiming to push its limits in custom cooling setups.

Integrated Radeon Graphics offers basic display functionality, a convenient feature for users who may not immediately add a dedicated GPU. The processor is optimized for high-end gaming and heavy multitasking, supporting the AVX-512 instruction set, which can significantly enhance performance for AI, rendering, and other complex workloads. Hardware virtualization is another highlight, allowing smooth handling of virtual machines.

The Ryzen 7 9800X3D is built on TSMC’s 4nm process for the CPU cores and a 6nm process for the I/O die, resulting in efficient energy usage while delivering a robust 120W TDP, which actually means that you will need an efficient cooling solution.

As we’ve mentioned about Ryzen 7 7800x3D, the new CPU works on the AM5 socket also used by X870 and X670, so you won’t need to change much here. However, make sure you’ve got a DDR5 compatible motherboard since Ryzen 7 9800X3D won’t work with DDR4 memory modules.

3. Benchmarks and performance

According to Techspot’s benchmarks, AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D is simply flying on most of the gaming titles of the moment. For instance you will get an average framerate of 668 against only 514 with Intel Core 9 285K in Counter-Strike 2. The CPU gets a top FPS place in games like Hitman 3, Warhammer 40,000, Watch Dogs: Legion, and many others.

If you’re a graphics designer, you will also want this as your next CPU. To be fair, it falls behind Intel Core 9 285K when it comes to Adobe Premiere Pro 2024, but it still shows great results.

In fact, although it’s a top performance CPU for gaming, it slightly falls behind the modern Intel CPUs for productivity apps in general.

It also draws more power in idle state: approximately 35W compared to around 12W for the Intel counterparts.

The specialists who tested AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D paired the CPU with an NVIDIA RTX 4090 graphics card, but you might as well wait for the RTX 5090 (early next year launch) and the numbers will improve even further.

Should I get the new AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D?

Ryzen 7 9800X3D is only $30 higher than the launching price of its predecessors and it clearly leaves Intel’s Core 9 285K in the dust when it comes to gaming. Actually, for it’s value, it could stand pretty close to Core i7-14700K.

So, if you’re building a gaming rig, you’ve got the budget and you find it now in stores, go for it. Then again, AMD is expected to launch the new dual-CCD X3D chips soon, and they might have a lot more horsepower. There are always lots of ifs and whens, but if you’re living in the moment, there is no better gaming chip right now.