by Updated: February 1, 2023 2:14 p.m.
AMD’s Ryzen 9 7950X is their current flagship processor, and it offers some pretty impressive specs. But which CPU is equivalent to the Ryzen 9 7950X?
Now read: Best CPU Cooler for Ryzen 9 7950X
However, it’s quite expensive and gets very hot, so you’ll need a powerful cooling solution to keep it from overheating.
Add in the fact that you’ll also need to upgrade your motherboard and RAM sticks, and you’ve got yourself a very expensive build.
Let’s see whether or not there are alternatives to the Ryzen 9 7950X that can deliver similar performance, but hopefully without the massive upgrade cost.
Ryzen 9 7950X – CPU Specs
First, let’s look at the CPU specs.
- 16 cores
- 32 threads
- Base clock: 4.5 GHz
- Boost clock: 5.7 GHz
- L3 cache: 64 MB
- Default TDP: 170W
About what you’d expect from a 2022 flagship. The processor features 16 high-performance cores running at an incredible 5.7GHz boost clock and will make quick work of any single-threaded or multi-threaded workload thrown at it. launched.
The processor’s 64MB cache is also well above average, even for a high-end processor. That’s almost double the competition. For reference, Intel’s flagship Core i9-13900KS has a 36MB smart cache.
And, as I hinted earlier, we see the Ryzen 9 7950X boasting a high TDP of 170 watts.
Which processor is equivalent to the Ryzen 9 7950X?
I consider the Intel Core i9-13900 to be the closest equivalent to the Ryzen 9 7950X.
Intel Core i9-13900
You might have expected the Intel Core i9-13900K or KS processor here. You can read more about the differences between the three variants here.
Comparisons to the K and KS have already been made, and it’s clear that the unlockable and special-edition variants of the new Raptor Lake i9 edge out the Ryzen 9 7950X by a significant margin.
The 13900K, for example, offers similar multi-core performance to the 7950X, but takes a 5-10% lead in single-threaded workloads like gaming.
For better or worse, Intel is winning the flagship battle (although we could see that changing very soon with the release of the Ryzen 9 7950X3D processor in February).
The Intel Core i9-13900 is a very capable CPU in its own right, and it’s just powerful enough to be the closest equivalent to the 7950X.
The standard 13900 edition features a 5.6 GHz boost clock, just 100 MHz lower than the 7950X’s 5.7 GHz boost. Not a negligible difference, but only of minor practical influence.
Both processors have an identical number of 32 threads. There is, however, a difference in their basic configuration. The 13900 has 8 hyperthreaded performance cores and 16 efficiency cores. The 7950X has 16 high-performance multi-threaded cores, giving it the edge when it comes to multi-core performance.
Overall, both processors will perform very similarly in games. The 7950X will perform slightly better in multi-threaded workloads such as content creation and rendering, but that difference is only a few percentage points.
Final Thoughts
To sum up, the closest CPU equivalent to the Ryzen 9 7950X is the Intel i9-13900 processor. Both processors have very identical specifications, except for the difference in their architecture and basic configuration.
You’ll see nearly identical single-threaded performance in workloads like gaming, while the 7950X will get productivity work done slightly faster.
