What is the best gaming processor?

Today, AMD is giving reviewers the opportunity to reveal the performance numbers for possibly the hottest and most anticipated PC hardware launch of 2024. Set to cost $479, the Ryzen 7 9800X3D is the first processor in its new Zen 5 Ryzen 9000 series with AMD’s 3D V-Cache, which is an additional part of the cache added to the processor or CCD that increases performance, especially in games. However, AMD has even more exciting news as it has made some surprising tweaks to the 3D V-Cache that could boost performance more than expected, meaning it might be more than just the best gaming processor. We will look at this more in this Ryzen 7 9800X3D review.

AMD has moved the 3D V-Cache to the underside of the CCD, which means it no longer acts as a thermal bottleneck, hindering heat transfer between the cores and the heat spreader. An advantage is that the Ryzen 7 9800X3D can run at much higher frequencies than the Ryzen 7 7800X3D, which gets 200MHz on peak boost and a base frequency 500MHz higher.

This could mean not just even higher frame rates in games, but also much improved performance outside of them in other tasks that have often meant that 3D V-Cache processors have not been the first choice for content creators playing on the side.

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The likes of Ryzen 7 5800X3D and 7800X3D have been some of the most sought after models for gamers thanks to their frame rate boosting 3D V-Cache and in the wake of disappointing launches of AMD’s Ryzen 9000 series and Intel’s Core Ultra 200 models such as the 285K and 245K, many turned to the aging Ryzen 7 7800X3D for their new systems, pushing prices up in recent months.

AMD is expected to launch more Ryzen 9000 X3D models with higher core counts, but there is no word yet on launch dates for these. Today we will focus on the eight core Ryzen 7 9800X3D and compare it to other CPUs in gaming and content creation benchmarks.

AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D benchmarks

AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D test system

A fully updated test system was used that included Windows 11 24H2, Nvidia driver 566.03 and the latest AMD and Intel drivers. This is installed on a WD Blue SN5000 SSD with other hardware including a Palit Game Rock RTX 4090 graphics card, MSI MPG X870E Carbon WiFi motherboard and 32GB of Corsair Vengeance RGB EXPO DDR5 6000 memory.

AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D content creation and multi-threaded performance

The Ryzen 7 9800X3D has significantly improved performance in content creation and even bested the Ryzen 7 9700X in many tests thanks to a higher TDP out of the box. In general, the Ryzen 7 9800X3D is a match for Intel’s Core i5-14600K, which is no mean feat here, but it often matches or betters Intel’s Core i7-14700K and Core i9-14900K, as well as Intel’s newer Core Ultra 9 2455K and 2455K and 2455K. which is very worrying for Intel.

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AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D gaming performance

The Ryzen 7 9800X3D’s gaming performance was outstanding, giving it a significant lead over the Ryzen 7 7800X3D in many tests and being massive amounts faster than anything Intel has, wiping the floor with the Core i9-14900K and Core Ultra 9 285K at both test resolutions. The fact that it was so much faster than its predecessor shows what an advantage the higher frequencies have had thanks to the relocated 3D V-Cache.

AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D power consumption

The Ryzen 7 9800X3D uses significantly more power than the Ryzen 7 9700X at its default settings, but that’s to be expected since the latter has a much lower TDP. This does not reflect game performance, but full load in Cinebench. In games, 3D V-Cache is usually very efficient in terms of frames per second generated per watt.

AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D conclusions

While the Ryzen 9000 series has been disappointing so far, the Ryzen 7 9800X3D is definitely the processor we’ve been waiting for, even if it costs closer to $500 than its predecessor. It provides huge increases in content creation performance, so if you avoided 3D V-Cache CPUs in the past due to their lower frequencies and reduced performance, it’s no longer a serious issue. That’s a problem for Intel, though, as it’s traditionally been your best option for CPUs that were good across the board with decent gaming performance and excellent performance in content creation software.

With the disappointing Core Ultra 200 series, AMD’s Ryzen 9000 Zen 5 3D V-Cache models look set to steal huge amounts of market share from Intel as it now has a range of processors that aren’t just one-trick ponies, but offer decent performance outside of games as well as devastating performance in them. The fact that the Ryzen 7 9800X3D was significantly faster than the Ryzen 7 7800X3D in most tests means that while that CPU is cheaper, the Ryzen 7 9800X3D makes a very strong case for itself if you’re considering one or the other.

It might not be entirely worth upgrading from the 7800X3D, but if you want the fastest gaming processor out there that also doubles as a modern eight-core processor for content creation, the Ryzen 7 9800X3D is a great choice, even if it’s set retails for closer to $500 than its predecessor and is unfortunately out of reach for anyone with a $400 limit on their CPU.

Even more exciting for casual gamers who need more multi-threaded grunt is that AMD should release higher core count X3D processors in the next few months, where a Ryzen 9 9950X3D could become the most sought-after processor for at least the next 12 months. Fortunately, at least we have the Ryzen 7 9800X3D to put on our Christmas card lists.