AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D and 9900X3D - Gamers' Hopes May Be Disappointed
24 Nov 2024
AMD’s upcoming gaming CPUs, the Ryzen 9 9950X3D and 9900X3D, are set to launch in late January 2025, following their official presentation at CES 2025. While many were hoping for 128 MB 3D V-Cache, it looks like the changes might not be as big as expected.
No Big Cache Upgrade
Well-known leaker @AnhPhuH, whose predictions are often accurate, claims that major cache upgrades—such as 64MB of 3D V-Cache on both CCDs—are not happening. Instead, AMD will continue with the same design as before: only one chiplet will feature an additional 64MB of 3D V-Cache.
Solid Performance Gains Still Likely
Even without a huge cache upgrade in size, these CPUs still hold promise. The improved cooling from the repositioned 3D V-Cache under the CCD could allow for higher clock speeds, enabled overclocking, and better performance in gaming and production workloads.
Core parking and thread management, once issues with earlier 16-core X3D chips, have seen major improvements. Because of this, the lack of 3D V-Cache on both chiplets shouldn’t hurt gaming performance too much.
While the upgrades might not meet the high expectations of some gamers, the Ryzen 9 9950X3D and 9900X3D still promise to be competitive options for 2025.
Ryzen 9000 Series Overview
| CPU Model | CPU Cores | Max Clock | L2+L3+3D V-Cache | TDP | MSRP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ryzen 9 9950X3D | 16x Zen5 | TBC | 144MB | TBC | TBC |
| Ryzen 9 9950X | 16x Zen5 | 5.7 GHz | 80MB | 170W | $599 |
| Ryzen 9 9900X3D | 12x Zen5 | TBC | 140MB | TBC | TBC |
| Ryzen 9 9900X | 12x Zen5 | 5.6 GHz | 76MB | 120W | $469 |
| Ryzen 7 9800X3D | 8x Zen5 | 5.2 GHz | 104MB | 120W | $479 |
| Ryzen 7 9700X | 8x Zen5 | 5.5 GHz | 40MB | 65W | $329 |
| Ryzen 5 9600X | 6x Zen5 | 5.4 GHz | 38MB | 65W | $249 |