AMD recently announced its latest batch of next-generation processors, but how do they compare to the other options on the market?
The world of computing has been abuzz recently, with the release of the latest Nvidia RTX 4000 Series. And now, AMD has dropped its latest processors, with the AMD Ryzen 9 7900X coming in as the second most powerful model in the Ryxen 7000 Series.
And with the release of a new CPU, we have to ask how it compares to the other processors on the market, especially one of the biggest kings of the CPU world: Intel.
To see how the AMD Ryzen 9 7900X stacks up against the Intel Core i9-12900K, keep reading, as we’re going to be breaking it down by price, specs and performance.
Price
The AMD Ryzen 9 7900K will be available to buy on 27 September 2022, and we know that this model will have a starting price of $549/£579.99.
The Intel Core i9-12900K has an RRP of $589 and launched last year. Since it has been available for a couple of months, it can be found on third-party retail sites at various prices.
Specs
The AMD Ryzen 9 7900K has 12 CPU cores and 24 threads. It has a max boost clock speed of 5.6GHz, and a base clock of 4.7GHz.
The Ryzen 7000 Series boasts AMD’s new Zen 4 architecture, which is built on a 5nm node process, smaller than the 7nm node that can be found on its Ryzen 5000 predecessors. Smaller nodes allow for more transistors, which ensures a more efficient performance since data can be transferred and processed at faster speeds.
AMD’s processor also comes with support for DDR5 RAM and PCle 5.0, which means you’ll be able to upgrade to cutting-edge components to keep your PC futureproofed for at least a few more years to come.
The Intel Core i9-12900K, meanwhile, has 16 CPU cores, made up of 8 performance cores and 8 efficiency cores, as well as support for DDR5 RAM and PCIe 5.0.
It uses Alder Lake architecture, with the performance and efficiency cores being integrated onto a single die. The P cores deal with intensive workloads, while the E cores handle background and smaller tasks, allowing the CPU to handle multiple applications and tasks more efficiently.
To sum up, we can see that the Intel chip offers more cores than the Ryzen. However, AMD makes up for that with a higher boost clock speed, which means it will be able to execute more operations per second than the Intel chip.
Performance
We have been able to test out both of these CPUs using industry-standard benchmarks so we can find out which processor is capable of the best performance. Note that we used our own benchmark rig for these benchmark tests, so you may not see the same results. But they’re nevertheless useful for comparison.
The AMD Ryzen 9 7900K scored 2,180 in the single-core Geekbench 5 test, and 18,613 in the multi-core test. The i9-12900K, meanwhile, scored 1,937 in the single-core test and 17,709 in the multi-core test. Since the Ryzen 9 7900K won in terms of single and multi-core scores, it means that it will likely be better equipped to deal with intensive creative tasks, such as 4K editing or animation.
Generally, a greater number of cores results in a better multi-core performance, so it may be a surprise to see the Ryzen come out on top with 4 fewer cores. But this all thanks to AMD’s powerful Zen 4 architecture.
The high single-core performance also means that the Ryzen solution will be better equipped for gaming than Intel, although you will be able to play most AAA games with ease with both processors. It’s also important to note that the GPU in your setup will have a bigger impact on your PC’s ability to play games at high frame rates.
In our PCMark 10 test, Ryzen scored 10,865 and Intel scored 10,602. The PCMark10 score is a measure of the overall system performance.
Ultimately, both of these processors are effective and will work well for most users. However, people that are looking to engage in more intensive creative workloads, like 4K editing, 3D rendering or even gaming, will want to side with the Ryzen 9 7900X due to its impressive scores in our testing.
Plus, the Intel processor requires more power when the CPU is under stress, making it the less accessible option when compared to Ryzen since you may need to upgrade your PSU.
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We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
