AMD’s upcoming flagship Ryzen 9 9950X3D has been tested in 3DMark and Cinebench R23, showing identical performance to its non-X3D sibling. This 3D V-Cache CPU will be better suited for gamers who also use their machine for work.
Bulgarian hardware retailer PCBuild has shared some test results of AMD’s 16-core Ryzen 9 9950X3D. In these, we can see the CPU managing 42,413 multi-core and 2,279 single-core points in Cinebench. This puts it head-to-head with Ryzen 9 9950X, which carries similar specs bar the missing 3D V-Cache layer. It also confirms previous leaks regarding 9950X3D’s non-gaming performance.
The chip ran at 4.9GHz during heavy loads, boosting up to 5.7GHz – its maximum official clock – when a single core was used. Note that while Ryzen 9 7950X3D does reach 5.25GHz under full load, frequency always depends on cooling solutions and which app is running. So, don’t take these as fixed clocks, they dynamically adjust.
PCBuild has also tested 9950X3D in 3DMark, showcasing scaling based on the number of active cores. Same here, 9950X3D delivers a similar score to the standard 9950X, 16,593 vs. 16,856 for the latter. Generally, it’s a great app to compare GPU performance but rarely used for CPUs, so take these with a grain of salt. Besides, we don’t have any information on the RAM speed, which is an important factor in processor performance.
Results aside, you have two ways to look at this chip, as a Ryzen 9 7950X3D with Zen 5 instead of Zen 4 cores or as a Ryzen 9 9950X with 64MB of extra 3D V-Cache on one CCD (Core Complex Die). The latter is likely the fairest comparison since it gives you an idea of the performance you can expect on apps that don’t take advantage of the added cache. To put it a different way, it combines the best of two worlds: the great gaming performance of X3D models with the multi-threaded oomph of 16-core Ryzen processors.
That said, this high flexibility will surely come at a price; likely $699. If you mainly use apps that don’t benefit from 3D V-Cache, you better save yourself some cash by opting for a 9950X instead. Though to be honest, the ‘one chip to rule them all’ aspect is quite appealing.
Ryzen 9 9950X3D and its smaller Ryzen 9 9900X3D sibling are expected to launch on March 12, with reviews coming a day earlier. Unsurprisingly, AMD claims it will be its fastest consumer CPU yet, but we will wait until we put it to the test before commenting one way or another.
