AMD Ryzen 9000 CPU Prices Slashed, Making Way For Ryzen 7 9800X3D

Look, we're all excited for the Ryzen 7 9800X3D, and there's really no question that if you're primarily playing PC games, you're going to want a CPU with 3D V-Cache. It absolutely is that big of a difference; just look at our Monster Hunter Wilds numbers from yesterday, where the time-tested Ryzen 7 5800X3D manages the most consistent performance of any processor on the chart.

With that said, if you're doing other things on your PC, the extra clock rate of a non-X3D processor can be a bigger benefit than 3D V-Cache. There's also the consideration that those CPUs are expensive for the core count, and don't really come down in price. The eight-core, 5.4 GHz Ryzen 7 7700X is down to just $269 right now, while the Ryzen 7 7800X3D is still sitting pretty at $479—the same price as the soon-to-release Ryzen 7 9800X3D.

Heck, for $479, you can pick up twelve Zen 5 CPU cores that boost all the way to 5.6 GHz. The newer architecture of Zen 5 may not be a huge leap forward over Zen 4 for gaming, but it's certainly not worse, and the extra four CPU cores make a big difference in multi-core workloads. Check out this benchmark from our review, where the Ryzen 9 9900X is basically neck and neck with the previous-gen Ryzen 9 7950X that has a full sixteen CPU cores.

In fact, the rest of the Zen 5 CPUs are on sale, too; you can pick up a Ryzen 5 9600X for just $248.99, and that gives you six cores and twelve threads on the latest Ryzen architecture. If you're gaming, this is a killer value, as this part is going to outstrip most Zen 4 CPUs and certainly anything older.

AMD Ryzen 9 9950X 16-core 5.7 GHz Desktop CPU: $599.99 at Amazon

Meanwhile, if you really want the fastest multi-core performance on the desktop platform, there's the Ryzen 9 9950X. This chip obviously screams in multi-core workloads with fully 32 threads of double-wide Zen 5 power, but at 5.7 GHz on a single core, it's also super fast in games. This chip is also on sale right now; a $50 discount brings it down to $599 even.

As much as we all want to wait for the latest and greatest, crypto booms, supply chain disruptions, and abrupt market fluctuations can happen without warning. If you're looking at a new PC, the Ryzen 7 9800X3D isn't far away, but the extra $230 over a Ryzen 5 9600X could also go to a bigger GPU that will likely have more impact on gaming performance. It's a delicate balancing act, so keep in mind the performance characteristics of the games you want to play or the work you're doing. As usual, let us know if you spot a CPU deal we missed!