Which 3D Chip Is the Best?

AMD has finally released the latest X3D chips for its Ryzen 7000-series processors. With this, you can finally build the gaming PC of your dreams.

But instead of just releasing one 3D V-Cache CPU, like the Ryzen 7 5800X3D, AMD came out with three options: 7800X3D, 7900X3D, and 7950X3D. So, which processor should you get?

Comparing Ryzen 7000-Series X3D Specifications

AMD's 3D V-Cache technology adds a cache layer to the processor, adding more CPU cache memory. This allows it to process instructions faster since they're already stored on the faster processor cache instead of slower RAM.

This technology boosted the performance of AMD's Ryzen processors so much that even the last-generation Ryzen 7 5800X3D can compete against the newer, non-X3D Ryzen 7000 chips.

But before everything else, we should compare the specifications of each Ryzen 7000X3D processor.

The information above shows that the Ryzen 9 7950X3D is the most powerful chip among the three. That makes sense, as it's the top of the pile with the most cores and threads. What's interesting to note, though, is that it has a lower base clock speed than the Ryzen 7900X3D.

Nevertheless, we should check how these chips perform in the real world.

Ryzen 7000 X3D Performance Benchmarks

These specifications on paper can amaze people, especially if you're going for the best PC that money can buy. But do they translate to real-world performance? Let's compare the results of a couple of benchmarks.

First, let's look at Gamer Nexus' results testing the Ryzen 7 7800X3D. They paired the three AMD chips with an ASUS 4090 Strix GPU and a DDR5-6000 Corsair RAM.

We will also check out the results from Linus Tech Tips. For this test, he used a Gigabyte X670E Aorus Master motherboard with BIOS F9e, two 16GB G.SKILL Trident Z5 Neo DDR5-6000 RAM sticks, a 2TB Samsung 980 Pro SSD, and an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 Founders Edition GPU.

When you look at the gaming results, you might be surprised that the Ryzen 7 7800X3D outperforms both Ryzen 9 3D V-Cache chips. Although the Ryzen 9 7950X3D and the Ryzen 9 7900X3D have two core complex dies, only one is equipped with 3D V-Cache technology.

So, even if they have higher clock speeds than the 7800X3D, they can't perform as well in gaming tasks (more on this later). But when you compare these three processors in productivity tasks, you'll see that the 7950X3D outperforms all the other chips, with the 7900X3D sitting squarely in the middle of the X3D pack.

The Issue With Ryzen 9 3D V-Cache Chips

As mentioned earlier, the Ryzen 9 7950X3D and Ryzen 9 7900X3D chips are consistently outperformed by the Ryzen 7 7800X3D in gaming. This doesn't make sense for most systems, but the dual-core complex die (CCD) architecture of the Ryzen 9 is causing this drop in gaming performance.

That's because only one of the two CCDs is equipped with 3D V-Cache technology. AMD did that to save on costs and make the Ryzen 9 chips more affordable. Furthermore, 3D V-Cache equipped CCDs must run slower for stability, so apps that prefer higher clock speeds over larger L3 cache will use the CCD without a 3D V-cache.

Because of this, the operating system will park the non-3D V-Cache cores when you're running a gaming load. If it doesn't do that, the system will use both CCDs to run your game. However, since the L3 cache is only located on one of the CCDs, it will introduce latency to its processes. That's because the processor will wait for data to transfer between CCDs if it doesn't park the CCD without the 3D V-Cache.

However, if you're running tasks that don't need a massive L3 cache, you'll notice the improvement that two CCDs bring to your system.

Launch Price vs. Market Price

Most CPUs reduce their prices after launching, so let's check if this is true with AMD's latest X3D chips.

• AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D: $699.00 (at MSRP)
• AMD Ryzen 9 7900X3D: $580.92 (-3.0% MSRP)
• AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D: $449.00 (at MSRP)

Looking at Amazon prices at the time of writing, only the 7900X3D dropped its price—and only at a measly 3%. Still, let's check out the value of these chips for gaming by comparing their $/FPS.

Our chart shows that the AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D delivers the best bang for the buck in terms of performance. Not only does it perform better in games, reaching the highest average of 292.7 FPS, but it does so at a lower price—a little over $1.53 for every FPS it delivers.

Which X3D Chip Should You Buy?

Given our results, does it mean that the AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D is the best X3D chip of the bunch and the one that you should get? Well, the answer to those questions is both yes and no.

If you're buying a PC solely for gaming, go for the 7800X3D. But if you're also into productivity, like video editing, programming, or 3D rendering, the 7950X3D delivers the best performance. And if you find its $699 price tag a little bit too steep, then the 7900X3D offers excellent value despite its slightly reduced gaming performance.

Build a Powerful Gaming PC With X3D

The Ryzen 7 5800X3D changed the game with its powerful gaming performance, and AMD didn't disappoint with the next generation of 3D V-Cache chips. The Ryzen 7 7800X3D continues the gaming prowess of the first X3D processor, but the Ryzen 9 7950X3D and Ryzen 9 7900X3D processors let gamer creators have their cake and eat it, too.

You no longer have to choose between gaming and productivity. You can get a high-performance chip for both tasks with the AMD Ryzen 9 X3D chips.

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