AMD Ryzen 7 9700X CPU Review - Zen 5 Gamer's Choice

TweakTown's Rating: 93%

The Bottom Line

Drawing only 65W, the mid-range AMD Ryzen 9700X CPU is faster for PC gaming than the 170W Ryzen 9 7950X - a remarkable achievement and a great way to start a new CPU generation for AMD. So far, Zen 5 lives up to the hype.

Pros

• + Faster gaming performance than the Zen 4's Ryzen 9 7950X
• + Zen 5 architecture improvements
• + Super-efficient CPU package at 65W
• + Excellent single-core performance

Cons

• - 8 Cores hold performance back in creator workloads
• - DDR5 6000 MT/s is still the sweet spot for a stable EXPO profile

Should you buy it?

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Introduction

Editor Note: Our usual TweakTown CPU reviewer, Tyler, is currently in the hospital and has been unable to test and review this CPU. Therefore, we don't have the usual array of CPUs to compare against. We thank you for your understanding.

AMD's Ryzen 9000 Series of desktop processors are finally here, and even though a last-minute delay means that we've only got two out of the four CPUs to review (so far) - the Ryzen 5 9600X and the Ryzen 7 9700X - they paint a pretty clear picture of what the Zen 5 generation is all about. More performance than the previous generation? Sure, but with a complete architectural overhaul, we're also looking at more efficiency and significant single-core performance gains, which means the 8 Core Ryzen 7 9700X can deliver better overall gaming performance than the previous generation's flagship 16 Core Ryzen 9 7950X.

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The Ryzen 7 9700X, priced at $359 USD, arrives at a particularly strange time for desktop CPUs, mainly due to issues surrounding Intel's offerings. Granted, AMD and its team of engineers have been developing Zen 5 for years, and the desktop Ryzen 9000 Series represents only a part of a more expansive CPU line-up that includes mobile APUs with integrated AI and graphics hardware and server chips designed to handle complex AI workloads for powerful supercomputers.

However, the focus on efficiency feels like a massive win for AMD - more performance with lower power, lower temps, and increased stability. Faster productivity performance and gaming performance compared to the Ryzen 7000 Series is lovely to see and part of what every new CPU generation is 'supposed' to bring to the table. However, the Ryzen 7 9700X is rated at 65W compared to the Ryzen 7 7700X's 105W, a massive 38% reduction in power usage that, in our tests, directly results in a chip that runs cooler and quieter.

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Throwing more cores, higher frequencies, and more power isn't the only way - in fact, it seems antiquated when you dive a little deeper into the Zen 5 architecture. There's a lot to the new Ryzen 7 9700X, a CPU that AMD describes as an excellent option for PC gamers and a CPU that benefits from the company's one-click overclocking it provides via its Ryzen Master software.

As a mid-range offering, it's certainly more of an all-rounder than a CPU that excels across all workloads, but then again, the Ryzen 9 900X and 9950X are enthusiast products aimed at power users. Let's dig into what could be the best option for gamers and regular PC users regarding the Ryzen 9000 Series launch lineup.

AMD Ryzen 7 9700X

	Today	Yesterday	7 days ago	30 days ago
	$331.66	$331.66	$337.66	$359.00	Buy
	-	-	$337.66	$359.00	Buy
* Prices last scanned on 9/19/2024 at 3:52 am CDT - prices may not be accurate, click links above for the latest price. We may earn an affiliate commission from any sales.

Ryzen 9000 Series and The Zen 5 Generation

AMD's next-generation Zen 5 architecture is here, debuting with the new Granite Ridge desktop processor line-up, otherwise known as the Ryzen 9000 Series - kicking off with the latest flagship Ryzen 9 9950X, the Ryzen 9 9900X, the Ryzen 7 9700X, and the Ryzen 5 9600X. Make no mistake: all four are what you'd call 'high-performance' CPUs, with the Ryzen 7 again serving as the mid-range option. If you want the quick elevator pitch on what the new Zen 5 architecture brings to the table compared to the previous-gen Zen 4 (as seen in the Ryzen 7000 Series), the short answer is performance and efficiency. Translation: Zen 5 can do a lot more with less.

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Zen 5 and the new Ryzen 9000 Series have been designed to deliver an impressive 16% improvement in Instruction Per Clock (IPC) performance, a double-digit gain that is impressive in itself. However, Zen 5 isn't merely an incremental update on a more robust and efficient node; AMD describes it as a substantial leap forward for Ryzen, with several fundamental changes and improvements to the underlying architecture. In fact, AMD has gone so far as to call Zen 5 a "ground-up redesign of the Zen architecture."

At a glance, the Ryzen 9000 Series specs look similar to the Ryzen 7000 Series in core and thread counts and frequencies. One way to improve performance is to add more cores and threads, boost frequencies, and put more power into each CPU core. So, with less power (outside of the flagship Ryzen 9 9950X, which features the same 170W power rating as the previous-gen's 7950X) and seemingly the same specs, you might be wondering how AMD has managed to increase performance by a 'significant' amount. Well, once you take a microscope to the new Ryzen 9000 Series, you'll discover that the new Zen 5 Core differs from what has come before.

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One key change that improves latency and performance comes from optimizing branch prediction accuracy, a critical component in CPU and microprocessor design. Zen 5 features a more advanced branch prediction system that supports dual decode pipes with less latency, improved accuracy, and throughput. As the name suggests, branch prediction is all about guessing or predicting the outcome of an operation. Modern CPUs are all about parallel processing and ensuring that no cycles are wasted by having the CPU sit there doing nothing.

Branch prediction helps a CPU accurately guess where to fetch the next instruction while the current instruction is still being processed. Of course, this can lead to two outcomes - a correct prediction or an incorrect one. With increased throughput in the L1 instruction cache and op-cache, the new Ryzen 9000 Series can perform more work during each clock cycle - including its predictions. This leads to better performance and power efficiency, with more accurate and overall predictions - a win-win.

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With improved predictions and increased bandwidth, AMD has improved the Zen 5 scheduler compared to Zen 4. The Arithmetic Logic Unit (ALU) count has been increased and is more unified and larger. Regarding bandwidth specifically, the new 12-way L1 Cache is now 48Kb in size, a 50% increase over Zen 4's 8-way 32Kb. L2 bandwidth has also doubled, with AMD pulling this off without increasing latency.

The final major overhaul comes in the math department - the land of floating points - with Zen 5 supporting the native AVX-512 instruction set with a full 512-bit data path. This is complex stuff, and it is another impressive improvement compared to Zen 4, which supported AVX-512 in a more cumbersome fashion. This will be handy for AI and more complex workloads, where the upgrades here should lead to sizeable performance gains compared to Zen 4.

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However, with all that has changed, some aspects remain the same - literally. Zen 5 and the Ryzen 9000 Series use the same AM5 socket as the Ryzen 700 Series, so AMD's new chips are compatible with existing AM5 motherboards. Even though the CCDs, or Core Complex Dies, are built using the newer TSMC 4nm node, all Ryzen 9000 Series CPUs feature the same I/O die used with Zen 4 - including the same integrated RDNA 2 graphics with two Compute Units (CUs) for basic display functionality.

However, later this year, AMD will release an updated AM5 chipset in the form of X870 and X870E. So then, what will motherboards using this new chipset bring to the table? USB 4.0 will be included as standard on all these boards, alongside PCIe Gen5 for graphics and storage. Secondly, AMD's expanded EXPO memory overclocking will allow faster DDR5 speeds, and kits like DDR5-8000 will become the go-to for PC enthusiasts putting together high-end Ryzen 9000 Series builds.

Specs and Test System

Specifications

Here, we can see how the specs and hardware stack up for the AMD Ryzen 7 9700X compared to the previous generation AMD Ryzen 7 7700X, alongside the AMD Ryzen 5 9600X that is also launching this week.

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The Ryzen 7 9700X and the Ryzen 7 7700X are very similar on paper. They have the same Ryzen 7 configuration - 8 Cores and 16 Threads - alongside similar clock speeds and overall L2 and L3 cache sizes. In fact, as an AM5-compatible CPU, the overall die and package size remain the same, with RDNA 2 graphics for basic display functionality. However, a lot is happening underneath the hood to improve latency, bandwidth, and performance.

The move to a more efficient TSMC 4nm node isn't the reason why the Ryzen 7 9700X is rated at 65W. In conjunction with the new process technology, the architectural changes have led to a situation where AMD has decided that the Ryzen 7 9700X at 65W delivers the best performance relative to power usage instead of sticking with its predecessor's 105W rating. Performance and power are never linear, so choosing 65W for the 9700X was probably the right choice.

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The Ryzen 9000 Series supports AMD's one-click Curve Optimizer overclocking, as found in its Ryzen Master app - which can be applied per Core, per CCD, or CPU. Increasing voltages and frequencies to boost performance is a part of the Zen 5 desktop line-up, so the option is there for those looking to scale back some efficiency for additional performance. The Ryzen 9000 Series also supports AMD's brand-new Curve Shaper, a more advanced overclocking tool with deeper control over temperatures, frequencies, and voltage curves. Currently, this is only available at the motherboard BIOS level, with Ryzen Master support coming sometime soon.

• CPU Name: AMD Ryzen 7 9700X
• Series: Ryzen 9000 Series
• Form Factor/Instruction Set: Desktop, x86-64
• Code Name: Granite Ridge
• Architecture: Zen 5
• Cores/Threads: 8/16
• Clock Speeds: Max. Boost Clock: Up to 5.5 GHz, Base Clock: 3.8 GHz
• L1 Cache: 640 KB
• L2 Cache: 8 MB
• L3 Cache: 32 MB
• TDP: 65W
• Processor Technology: TSMC 4nm FinFET
• CPU Socket: AM5
• Graphics: AMD Radeon Graphics (RDNA 2), 2 CUs, 2200 MHz

Kosta's Test System

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• Motherboard: ASUS ROG CROSSHAIR X670E HERO
• GPU: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER Founders Edition
• Cooler: ASUS ROG RYUO III 360 ARGB
• RAM: 32GB (2 x 16GB) Corsair DOMINATOR TITANIUM RGB DDR5 DRAM 6000MT/s
• SSD: Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus-G M.2 PCIe Gen 4 SSD 4TB, Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus Plus M.2 PCIe Gen 4 SSD 8TB
• Power Supply: ASUS TUF Gaming 1000W Gold
• Case: Corsair 5000D AIRFLOW Tempered Glass Mid-Tower ATX PC Case
• OS: Microsoft Windows 11 Pro 64-bit

Benchmarks - Productivity

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The CPU sits at the heart of the modern desktop computer and is involved in everything from controlling various devices to multitasking to and from documents to browsers and even networking compression and encoding. By that same token, synthetic and carefully constructed productivity benchmarks sit at the heart of a CPU like this. Here's a breakdown of the benchmarks used and what they're all about.

• Blender 4.2.0: Blender is a free and open-source suite for 3D modeling that covers the entire pipeline right through to animation and rendering. The dedicated Blender benchmark, Version 4.2.0, renders three complex Pixar-like scenes (Monster, Junkshop, and Classroom) with full path-traced lighting. The Blender benchmark Score refers to how quickly a CPU or GPU can render these preset scenes.
• Cinebench R23: Cinebench R23 is a benchmark that tests how quickly a CPU can render a 3D ray-traced scene, broken up into single and multi-core tests. As Cinebench R23 puts a CPU's multiple cores and threads to good use, it's a good indicator of overall performance and can showcase even minor changes to clock speeds or other system changes.
• 7-Zip: 7-Zip is a popular file compression and decompression program that includes an integrated benchmark feature. Testing compression and decompression using all available CPU cores is a great way to gauge 'instructions per second' performance.
• Geekbench 6: A cross-platform benchmark that measures and scores single and multi-core CPU performance with several broad tests using real-world data designed to mimic actual scenarios like video editing, database processing, machine learning, and more. The quicker these workloads and tasks are completed, the higher the score.
• Corona 10: A rendering benchmark based on the Corona 10 rendering core. A ray-tracing specific test that runs for a fixed duration that measures how many 'rays-per-second' the CPU can process across all cores and threads.
• PCMark 10 Extended: A thorough test of an entire system, from CPU to GPU to memory, Covering everything from browsing to video conferencing to 3D rendering and even gaming, PCMark 10 Extended is as much a stability and bottleneck test for an entire system as it is a gauge for overall performance and capabilities.

Benchmark Results - Blender and Cinebench R23

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Rendering tasks and workloads benefit from a higher core and thread count, so, unsurprisingly, the Ryzen 7 9700X delivers results and performance up to 24% faster than the entry-level Zen 5 CPU, the Ryzen 5 9600X. The Ryzen 7 9700X features more cores and threads, so this result is as expected. With the previous-gen flagship sporting 16 Cores and 32 Threads and a design explicitly optimized for intensive workloads like the three scenes featured in the Blender benchmark, the Ryzen 7 9700X is around 50% slower.

Cinebench R23 is a widely used benchmark because it takes full advantage of CPU cores and offers single-core and multi-core tests. Here, we see the Zen 5 architectural improvements in full force, with the Ryzen 7 9700X delivering a single-core Cinebench R23 score 9.4% higher than the Ryzen 9 7950X. An impressive result, and with the lower overall power draw of the Ryzen 7 9700X, it paints the picture of a worthwhile generational leap forward for the Ryzen 9000 Series.

As expected, multi-core performance suffers, with the Ryzen 9700X limited by its core and thread count. Cinebench R23's multi-core test takes each core and unleashes its full potential. The score here isn't terrible, and when you look at average figures for Intel CPUs and other mid-range offerings, the Ryzen 7 9700X begins to look like a decent mid-range option for those who would use rendering applications or highly intensive graphics workloads related to content creation.

Benchmark Results - 7-Zip and Geekbench

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Compressing and uncompressing files is still a part of everyday PC usage, whether you're using the built-in compression tools that come with Windows 11 or a dedicated app like WinRAR or 7-Zip. The latter's integrated benchmark tool is a great way to test multi-core CPU compression and decompression. Here, the Ryzen 7 9700X is up to 25% faster than the Ryzen 5 9600X thanks to it featuring more cores and threads for parallel processing. Compression is one of those tasks that will always depend on the number of CPU cores available, so we can expect the performance to increase substantially again as we move to the Ryzen 9 9900X and 9950X combo.

Geekbench 6 is a broader CPU benchmark suite that tests various aspects of day-to-day PC and device usage, including general browsing, productivity, and video editing. Like Cinebench R23, it tests both Single Core and Multi-Core performance with two scores handed out. Here, we see the remarkable single-core performance surpass that of the Ryzen 9 7950X using less than half the power. The Multi-Core Score is lower, but not by as much as you'd expect - with the Ryzen 7 9700X delivering a result that is only 17% lower than the Ryzen 9 7950X.

Benchmark Results - Corona 10 and PCMark 10 Extended

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Corona 10 is the final rendering benchmark. It is all about ray tracing, with the test measuring how many rays it can trace within a minute. Another heavy creator workload that benefits from more cores and threads, the Ryzen 7 9700X is around 21% faster than the Ryzen 5 9600X in this benchmark but significantly slower than the high-power Ryzen 9 7950X.

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The final productivity benchmark is one of the most detailed, PCMark 10 Extended - a lengthy complete system test that not only puts your CPU to the test but also memory, storage, and graphics. PCMark 10 Extended covers everything from playing games, jumping into a conference call, browsing the web, and firing up a spreadsheet. The Ryzen 7 9700X delivers a slightly higher score than the same build with a Ryzen 9 7950X. What does this mean? Well, if you use a PC for gaming, emails, writing documents, doing some work, chatting with friends and family, and other tasks - the Ryzen 7 9700X is the AMD CPU to get.

Benchmarks - Gaming

The GPU is arguably the most critical component for measuring overall PC gaming performance. However, as the CPU handles all scheduling and low-level tasks, it can also play a role, which is more visible when gaming at lower resolutions.

CPU latency, cache, and bandwidth can often factor into gaming performance, which is one of the reasons AMD's X3D range of processors is widely viewed as 'for gaming.' CPUs also render and handle physics, AI, and other elements. For this review, we benchmarked the following titles at 1080p.

• Assassin's Creed Mirage: High-quality in-game settings using the benchmark tool to render a complex city scene.
• Cyberpunk 2077: High-quality in-game settings using the benchmark tool to render characters and various indoor and outdoor environments in a large open world.
• F1 22: High-quality settings while benchmarking one lap of the Bahrain track in daylight in this fast-paced racing game.
• Horizon Zero Dawn: High-quality settings using the benchmark tool to render a city environment in Sony's popular open-world action-adventure game.
• Returnal: High-quality settings using the in-game benchmark tool to render particles, lighting, debris, reflections, and various other effects in this sci-fi shooter.
• Total War Warhammer III: High-quality settings and the in-game Battle benchmark used to render a complex large-scale battle between two armies.

Benchmark Results - Gaming and Averages

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Across the six-game benchmark, which covers a wide range of genres played at 1080p, the Ryzen 7 9700X edges out the previous-gen flagship, the Ryzen 9 7950X. This is true regarding the average frame rate and the important 1% low category. This means games not only run faster, but performance is more stable across the board. Even more remarkable is that the Ryzen 7 9700X pulls this off while using less than half the power of the 7950X. Zen 5 is the real deal, a worthy architectural upgrade - and we can't wait to see what this means for the next generation of X3D products.

With only a few frames separating the Ryzen 5 9600X and the Ryzen 7 9700X, gaming performance is essentially the same, and you wouldn't be able to tell the difference between the two. Still, outperforming the Ryzen 9 7950X is no small feat - and with its 65W power rating, the Ryzen 7 9700X is easily one of the best gaming CPUs currently available, especially in 2024, the era of smaller and more compact builds.

Here's a closer look at the individual gaming benchmark results.

Temperature and Power Efficiency

With CPU architectures covering desktop, mobile, and enterprise, it's no wonder that efficiency was right up there with performance when AMD was designing Zen 5 and the Ryzen 9000 Series. Although Zen 5's development for the mid-2024 release was probably locked in over a year ago, having this launch happen alongside the Intel CPU debacle is worth digging into. With its 13th and 14th Gen Core processors, Intel has used power to hit higher performance levels - more or less. The Ryzen 7 9700X's direct competition is the Intel Core i7 14700K, a CPU that draws 125W using its default profile, which can be boosted to a whopping 253W in turbo mode.

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With all cylinders firing, using AIDA64Exteme's Stability Test and HWiNFO to monitor overall system stability, temperatures, and power usage, the Ryzen 7 9700X reached a maximum of 88W and 73 Degrees. Stressing a system for an hour and benchmarking for a few days (while also using the Ryzen 9700X to play some Diablo 4 with), it's impossible to gauge how the long-term performance and stability of the CPU will play out. But without experiencing any issues and witnessing a quiet, cool, and efficient CPU do its thing, the Ryzen 7 9700X is nothing short of an impressive achievement for mid-range CPUs.

Final Thoughts

Let's say Intel wasn't dealing with a pair of problematic CPU generations and that the Intel Core i7 14700K was a viable option and, for argument's sake, slightly faster than the Ryzen 7 9700X. A more expensive CPU that draws substantially more power to achieve the same goal as a quieter, cooler, and far more efficient Ryzen offering. The choice, as they say, is easy.

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Enthusiasts who edit 4K video, develop games, or render and animate complex 3D scenes will want to consider the Ryzen 9 9900X and 9950X CPUs: high-performance, high-end products with the price tag to match. The Ryzen 7 9700X, at $359 USD, is an impressively efficient and performant mid-range CPU. Looking specifically at gaming benchmarks and the broad PCMark 10 Extended test in this review, it's a chip that manages to edge out the Ryzen 9 7950X while using less than half the power.

Yes, that's a phrase mentioned once or twice in this review (and a few more in our review of the Ryzen 5 9600X), but these efficiency gains are like technology unicorns - super rare. As one of the most powerful and efficient CPUs for gaming and everyday PC use, the choice is easy if the Ryzen 7 9700X is within your budget. That is, until the Ryzen 7 9700X3D arrives, and AMD changes the game again.