Tomorrow, sales of older models of desktop processors of the new Ryzen 9000 series based on the Zen 5 architecture – Ryzen 9 9950X and Ryzen 9 9900X – will begin. As in the case of the previously released junior Ryzen 5 9600X and Ryzen 7 9700X, AMD allowed the specialized press and bloggers to publish reviews of the new chips the day before the start of their sales. Brief conclusions: on the one hand, older chips offer the highest single-threaded and multi-threaded performance in creative applications, but for games there are faster and cheaper options.
Image Source: Computer Base
According to the TechPowerUp portal, the flagship Ryzen 9 9950X, priced at $650, showed the highest results in application tests among all processors participating in these tests. The chip has 16 Zen 5 cores on board with support for 32 virtual threads, with a base frequency of 4.3 GHz and a maximum frequency of 5.7 GHz. The processor received 64 MB of L3 cache and has a stated TDP of 170 W, like its predecessor Ryzen 9 7950X. The maximum power consumption (PPT) is 225 W.
In turn, the Ryzen 9 9900X model has 12 Zen 5 cores with support for 24 virtual threads, with a base frequency of 4.4 GHz and a maximum frequency of 5.6 GHz. It also received 64 MB of L3 cache, but its TDP is stated at 120 W, which is 50 W less than its predecessor Ryzen 9 7900X. The source does not report the maximum power consumption of the new chip (PPT indicator). Also included in the Ryzen 9 9950X and Ryzen 9 9900X are two cores (2 CUs) of integrated graphics based on RDNA 2 architecture, operating at a frequency of 2.2 GHz. The “built-in” supports H.265 and H.264 encoding, AV1, VP9, H.265 and H.264 decoding, but in general it is intended for one purpose – the ability to run a PC without a discrete video card. One of the main features of the new Ryzen 9000 series of processors is support for the AVX-512 instruction set with a full 512-bit data path.
Productive productivity in applications. Image source: TechPowerUp
In 49 application tests conducted by TechPoweUp, the Ryzen 9 9950X set a record of sorts. It was only 3.4% faster than the previous generation Ryzen 9 7950X, but that was enough to propel the new chip to the top of the workload performance rankings. It even outperformed the Core i9-14900K.
In turn, the Ryzen 9 9900X, based on the same 49 tests, turned out to be an average of 4.4% better than its predecessor, the Ryzen 9 7900X. It is faster than the Core i7-14700K (by about 1%), but given the difference in cost of these processors (the Core i7-14700K is $120 cheaper than the Ryzen 9 9900X), the choice in favor of the Ryzen 9 9900X is questionable. Moreover, by adding just $20 to the $500 price of the Ryzen 9 9900X, you can buy the Ryzen 9 7950X, which has four more cores and therefore higher multi-threaded performance.
Relative performance and average FPS in games for the Ryzen 9 9950X. Image source: TechPowerUp
In games the situation is more dramatic. The problem is that the previous series of Ryzen 7000 processors based on Zen 4 architecture and especially its branch of X3D models with additional 3D V-Cache memory turned out to be very fast indeed. In gaming tests, the Ryzen 9 9950X is slightly faster than its predecessors without the X3D console. However, the cheaper 8-core Ryzen 7 7800X3D with Zen 4 architecture is 7.5% faster in games. In addition, the new 16-core AMD is on average 2.8% slower than the Ryzen 9 7950X3D. Also, the new AMD flagship is several percent inferior in terms of gaming performance to the cheaper Core i9-14900K. Interestingly, the difference in 1080p gaming performance between the 16-core Ryzen 9 9950X and the six-core Ryzen 5 9600X is on average only 1% (TechPowerUp benchmark data).
Relative performance and average FPS in games for the Ryzen 9 9900X. Image source: TechPowerUp
The same situation is observed with the Ryzen 9 9900X. In games, it is only 2% faster than the Ryzen 9 7900X, but up to 9% slower than the Ryzen 7 7800X3D. The Ryzen 9 9900X is also inferior by 2 to 5% to the older Intel Raptor Lake and Raptor Lake Refresh models (Core i7-13700K, Core i9-13900K, Core i7-14700K and Core i9-14900K). The performance difference between the Ryzen 9 9950X and Ryzen 9 9900X in games is also homeopathic and is only a couple of percent at best.
There was also some “dancing with a tambourine.” According to TechPowerUp, AMD contacted them two days before the publication of the reviews and reported that “the Ryzen 9 9900X and 9950X processors feature optimization of core parking technology using the Windows Game Mode feature, which is installed with the AMD PPM Provisioning File Driver” Therefore, for optimal test results, “the Xbox Game Bar feature in Windows must be enabled and updated from the Microsoft Store to the latest version,” and the operating system’s power plan must be set to “Balanced.” However, Windows sometimes does not apply the correct settings after installing a new processor, “so it is recommended that you reinstall the AMD chipset driver after installing a new CPU.” But the ideal solution, of course, is a fresh installation of Windows. Previously, such requirements were voiced only for Ryzen X3D processors equipped with two CCD units, so that games would primarily use cores with additional 3D V-Cache memory. The new Zen 5 processors use the same mechanism to improve the distribution of game threads, likely to load the cores with the highest clock speeds by default. How big the difference in performance is with the Xbox Game Bar feature enabled and disabled is unknown – tests were conducted with AMD recommendations. The TechPowerUp columnist believes that the difference will be insignificant, within a few percent, but he would, without a twinge of conscience, sacrifice them in favor of turning off the Game Bar.
Ryzen 9 9900X power consumption in applications and games
As with the younger Ryzen 5 9600X and Ryzen 7 9700X models, reviewers praised the energy efficiency of the older Ryzen 9 9950X and Ryzen 9 9900X models. According to TechPowerUp, the average power consumption of the first in productivity tests was 134.2 W, and the second – 112.5 W (in games 102.5 and 99.5 W, respectively). The ComputerBase portal had slightly higher figures. In games, the power consumption of the older model was 113 W, and the younger one – 109 W, respectively.
Ryzen 9 9950X power consumption in applications and games
AMD itself recommends using liquid cooling systems for new processors. However, efficient air cooling systems can also cope with the new products. But when overclocking, you can’t do without a life support system, which can be noted in the graphs below.
Temperature
To test processors at standard settings, TechPowerUp used a Noctua D15 air supercooler. Under load, the temperature of the new flagship AMD chip was 81.6 degrees, and in games – 71.1 degrees Celsius. The Ryzen 9 9900X reached 71 degrees Celsius in workloads, and 65.7 degrees Celsius in games. In general, the new chips are cooler than their predecessors. With standard settings, the use of a liquid lubricant led to a decrease in temperature by a few more degrees. However, acceleration can be difficult even for her. AMD itself said that it reduced the heat dissipation of the Ryzen 9000 by 15% (an average of 7 degrees Celsius) by optimizing the location of the hardware units, as well as a better location of the thermal sensor. No significant changes were made to the heat-distributing covers of the processors and the thermal interface between the cover and the chip crystals.
Reviewers agree that although the Ryzen 9 9950X and Ryzen 9 9900X processors turned out to be interesting, especially in terms of performance in resource-intensive applications, they will have plenty of competition in the gaming segment. For example, instead of the same Ryzen 9 9950X for games, it would be more reasonable to buy the Ryzen 7 7800X3D, Core i7-13700K, Ryzen 5 9600X or Ryzen 7 5800X3D, saving up to $300 on their purchase, which can be invested in a more powerful video card. This is guaranteed to give a more noticeable increase in the number of frames per second.