AMD”s new eight-core goes into the duel for the gaming crown: Can it challenge the slightly older Ryzen 7 5800X3D for the title of “Best CPU for Gamers”?
About five months ago, my colleague Nils attested that the Ryzen 7 5800X3D would knock Intel off its gaming throne with a vengeance and secure the performance crown for itself. Now the next processor from AMD”s Ryzen 7 portfolio, the Ryzen 7 7700X, is just around the corner.
It would be unfair to put it up against the already beaten and almost one year old 12000s from Intel in our test. So instead, the 7700X is pitted against its own eight-core rival.
And who would have thought it: the two meet on equal terms. Nevertheless, each of the two CPUs can decide one area apart from pure gaming performance in its favour. In the following test, we”ll tell you which AMD processor we recommend and when.
Do you want to know right now when you should buy the Ryzen 7 7700X? Then you”ll find the most important pros and cons in our short summary of the new eight-core. For details on the new CPU, of course, you”re welcome to read on afterwards.
Table of Contents
What changes with Ryzen 7000?
Everything is new in September. Because with the launch of Ryzen 7000, the long-standing AM4 socket will be replaced by its successor AM5. For you, this means that a motherboard replacement will also be necessary with the new CPU. But AMD has already announced that it will also support this socket over several generations.
One of the most important technical innovations is the DDR5 memory technology. Previously, AMD only used the predecessor DDR4. This finally paves the way for the broad adoption of the new RAM standard. Unfortunately for you, this also means that you will need a new mainboard and new RAM.
Not to be forgotten is the added support for PCIe 5.0. From October, the first SSDs will be released that use the new memory standard and its up to 60 per cent better sequential read values. Older SSDs will of course also work with PCIe 5.0, but will not benefit from the faster transfer speeds.
The Ryzen 7700X sets a new record for clock speed in our gaming benchmarks: With its 8 cores, it reaches 5.5 GHz each. That is top performance!
AMD”s Ryzen 7000 processors are also the first models based on the new Zen 4 microarchitecture. According to the manufacturer, this brings a considerable increase in IPC (instructions per clock) and thus also for a higher single-thread performance. The semiconductors are manufactured by contract manufacturer TSMC using the N5 process.
Technical specifications
In the following table you will find the technical data of the Ryzen 7000 series from AMD. Included are the models that AMD will offer at launch.
Be careful with the socket! As already mentioned, you should make sure that you use a motherboard with the new AM5 socket for Ryzen 7000. The matching chipsets are X670E, X670, B650E and B650.
In many cases, however, you can continue to use older coolers. Most major manufacturers have already announced that previously purchased coolers can either simply be reused or made compatible with the new socket with an AM5 mounting kit. Nevertheless, in individual cases it is advisable to do some research or ask the manufacturer”s customer service department to be on the safe side.
The Ryzen 7 7700X in gaming benchmarks
As already mentioned in the introduction, the Ryzen 7 7700X has a clear opponent: the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D. It has to beat it in games, applications, efficiency and price. Especially in games, however, it”s a real head-to-head race.
On average, the newer Ryzen 7 7700X can achieve a razor-thin victory and only has to fall behind its own big brother, the Ryzen 9 7950X. At least at a low resolution of 720p.
Depending on the game, the Ryzen 7 7700X even gets the gold medal in our benchmarks. In Anno 1800 and F1 2020, for example, no other processor is a match for the eight-core.
In Assassin”s Creed: Valhalla, Troy: A Total War Saga and Watch Dogs Legion, on the other hand, the Ryzen 7 5800X3D wins – but only with a few FPS, except for Watch Dogs.
Since the two Ryzen 7 processors don”t give each other much in terms of gaming performance, the duel will have to be decided primarily in the other three disciplines: Application performance, efficiency and, above all, price. Here, the Ryzen 7 5800X3D is currently around 440 euros – a value that will have to be beaten at the sales launch tomorrow.
Why do we only test in 720p for our CPU test? To be able to compare the processors with each other at all. Because especially at higher resolutions, the graphics card is quickly the limiting factor.
To highlight this, we also tested our CPUs again at higher resolutions and with a weaker graphics card – the AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT. As a result, the Ryzen 7 7700X even placed second and only had to admit defeat to the Ryzen 7 5800X3D with its 3D V-Cache. However, the differences between the processors are noticeably smaller.
Performance rating high resolutions: Ø FPS
Radeon RX 5700 XT, 32.0 GByte DDR4-3800, high details, Windows 10
The Ryzen 7 7700X in application benchmarks
Compared to the previous generation, the Ryzen 7 7700X makes a strong increase in multithreaded applications. In the Cinebench benchmark, the new processor even ranks slightly ahead of the Ryzen 9 5900X with its twelve cores.
It is only beaten by the Ryzen 9 7950X and Intel Core i9-12900K with their 16 cores each. Apart from the two bolides, however, the Ryzen 7 7700X presents itself as a strong multithreaded processor.
Especially in the duel with the 5800X3D, the Ryzen 7 7700X is the clear multithread winner. In contrast to the gaming performance, the result in Cinebench is more than clear with a 34 percent difference.
Those who use their processor for rendering and the like in addition to gaming will find the answer to the question about AMD”s better eight-core processor here.
How efficient is the Ryzen 7 7700X?
When it comes to power consumption, the Ryzen 7 7700X doesn”t cover itself with glory at first glance. As with its larger sibling, the wattage requirements are very high. In games, the Ryzen 7 7700X requires an average of 19% more power than the Ryzen 7 5800X3D.
However, the new AMD eight-core also knows how to implement this performance fantastically. The Ryzen 7 7700X beats almost all other processors we tested in terms of Watts/FPS in games. The downside: It only has to admit defeat to its direct rival, the 5800X3D.
In our application benchmark Cinebench, the multi-cores from the Ryzen 9 portfolio as well as Intel”s Core i9-12900K are especially more efficient, achieving their good scores mostly via the pure performance crowbar. But even here, the 5800X3D has a razor-thin lead thanks to its overall lower power consumption.
All in all, the Ryzen 7 7700X is not exactly frugal, but still very efficient – but it clearly loses to the efficiency king, the 5800X3D.
For whom is the Ryzen 7 7700X worthwhile?
Whoever decides on AMD CPUs with the Ryzen 7 designation is usually not only looking for pure gaming performance. Often, multithreaded performance in demanding applications is also important. In this combination of games and applications, the Ryzen 7 7700X can be recommended almost without reservation.
However, those who are looking for a processor just for gaming should definitely compare it to the Ryzen 7 5800X3D or even check whether a smaller six-core is not sufficient.
For whom the Ryzen 7 7700X is definitely worthwhile
- For those looking for the high gaming power of the Ryzen 7 5800X3D, but at the same time don”t want to sacrifice multi-threaded performance
For whom the Ryzen 7 7700X is conditionally worthwhile
- For those looking for top performance in games, but for whom the Ryzen 9 7950X is too expensive
For whom the Ryzen 7 7700X is not worthwhile
- For those who only pay attention to gaming performance and can get the Ryzen 7 5800X3D cheaper
- For those for whom six cores are enough in the gaming system
Editor”s verdict
The Ryzen 7 7700X has a clear rival from its own house: The Ryzen 7 5800X3D. The duel shows that the innovations of the 7700X and the 3D V-Cache of the 5800X3D are on a par. At least when it comes to pure gaming performance.
In multithreaded applications, however, the Ryzen 7 7700X clearly wins. Those who also work with video editing or 3D modelling in addition to gaming will clearly want to reach for the new 7000 processor.
In terms of efficiency, however, the Ryzen 7 7700X is clearly behind the Ryzen 7 5800X3D despite good Watt/FPS values. Particularly frugal gamers will probably prefer the older model with 3D V-cache.
Those who only play games and can live with the power consumption of both models, on the other hand, will mainly pay attention to the price: since the two duelists are almost identical in the FPS comparison, the CPU that is currently available at a lower price is recommended here – or in many cases even a cheaper six-core.
And of course we have to refer to the upcoming Intel processors from Raptor Lake at the end. How the Ryzen 7 7700X fares against the Core i7-13700K remains to be seen.
