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The best AM4 CPU, but not a slam dunk

AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D — (Image credit: Tom's Hardware)

At $350, the Ryzen 7 5800X3D really only makes sense if you already have an AM4 motherboard and DDR4 memory to go along with it. That’s not a small audience, especially considering the relatively short time the original Ryzen 7 5800X3D was available on the market. But if you need to buy a motherboard and/or memory for your upgrade, there are better options at this price.

The 5800X3D re-release is a victim of poor pricing. The chip taps out DDR4 platforms in gaming performance, but we’re closing in on half a decade with mainstream DDR5 platforms, and we’ve seen much more powerful CPUs in that time. And yet, the Ryzen 7 5800X3D’s price hasn’t moved significantly away from its original $450 MSRP.

If RAM prices weren’t out of control, a $350 price tag on the Ryzen 7 5800X3D would look insane given the current options around that price. As I’m writing this, the Ryzen 7 7800X3D is on sale for less than $350. And even considering current RAM prices, the Core i7-14700K and Ryzen 5 7600X3D are compelling alternatives.

On the productivity front, the Core i7-14700K is a clear winner, even with DDR4 memory. There are some titles where the Ryzen 7 5800X3D is faster than the Core i7-14700K is when paired with DDR4. But overall, they offer similar gaming performance. Especially now that AMD has turned its attention to AM5, the Core i7-14700K is a better all-around option if you don’t already have an AM4 motherboard.

Although AMD almost always comes out on top with platform longevity, Intel is surprisingly ahead in that regard in the Ryzen 7 5800X3D versus Core i7-14700K matchup. Intel is reportedly set to launch Raptor Lake Next on the LGA 1700 socket next year, though I suspect any performance benefits that come along with it will require an upgrade to DDR5.

On the gaming front, the Ryzen 5 7600X3D does a lot of work. It requires DDR5, but that’s partially offset by the fact that it’s $120 cheaper than the 5800X3D. Factoring in RAM or not, spending a bit more on the Ryzen 5 7600X3D not only nets you much higher performance in games, it also gives you an AM5 platform that you can easily upgrade in the future.

That doesn’t discredit the island that AM4 users are currently on. The Ryzen 7 5800X3D left the market fairly quickly, and given the popularity of AM4, it stands to reason that there’s a large group of people for whom the 5800X3D is a significant upgrade. For that group, it’s the CPU of legend you’ve heard so much about. But if you’re planning on buying a motherboard and/or RAM with your new CPU, shop around a bit more.

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Jake Roach is the Senior CPU Analyst at Tom’s Hardware, writing reviews, news, and features about the latest consumer and workstation processors.

14 Comments Comment from the forums

Makaveli

"and the processor doesn’t officially support AMD’s Precision Boost Overdrive (PBO)"
This is false I owned a 5800X3D and had zero issues running PBO -30 all core on it.
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waltc3

This is AMD's way of acknowledging that due to demand outstripping supply so much presently, that even DDR4 isn't as cheap as it was, so being able to upgrade existing systems is a money-saving event of no small proportion. The whole point of the 10th Anniversary sale is strictly for people with an AM4 motherboard who are still using it (likely several million, I'd think, including a working AM4 at my home) who want to buy the fastest gaming CPU on the market for AM4, and that would be this CPU, the re-designed and re-engineered 5800x3d...;) (It's a brand-new CPU from the ground up as the original could no longer be manufactured.) Comparing it to Intel parts is really silly, I think, since none of them can drop in on an AM4 motherboard, and so if you are going to compare Intel CPUs then figure in the costs of everything else needed for the Intel CPU to run--like the mobo and the ram, for instance, etc. This release was not meant to do anything but allow existing AM4 owners to get a lot of extra mileage out of their existing AM4 parts still in service, when nothing else will do. AMD delights in treating its customers well, I think, and often goes beyond what might be expected normally for customers of previous products...;) Interesting times.
Reply
JakeRoach

Makaveli said:
"and the processor doesn’t officially support AMD’s Precision Boost Overdrive (PBO)"
This is false I owned a 5800X3D and has zero issues running PBO -30 all core on it.
It depends on your motherboard. But yes, some boards support it, so I've removed the mention from the article.
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phxrider

It's overpriced, but it's perfectly priced to sell to people who already have am4 systems and can't afford a full platform upgrade and ddr5 RAM.
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ohio_buckeye

waltc3 said:
This is AMD's way of acknowledging that due to demand outstripping supply so much presently, that even DDR4 isn't as cheap as it was, so being able to upgrade existing systems is a money-saving event of no small proportion. The whole point of the 10th Anniversary sale is strictly for people with an AM4 motherboard who are still using it (likely several million, I'd think, including a working AM4 at my home) who want to buy the fastest gaming CPU on the market for AM4, and that would be this CPU, the re-designed and re-engineered 5800x3d...;) (It's a brand-new CPU from the ground up as the original could no longer be manufactured.) Comparing it to Intel parts is really silly, I think, since none of them can drop in on an AM4 motherboard, and so if you are going to compare Intel CPUs then figure in the costs of everything else needed for the Intel CPU to run--like the mobo and the ram, for instance, etc. This release was not meant to do anything but allow existing AM4 owners to get a lot of extra mileage out of their existing AM4 parts still in service, when nothing else will do. AMD delights in treating its customers well, I think, and often goes beyond what might be expected normally for customers of previous products...;) Interesting times.

Don’t be mistaken here. I run AMD at home myself and have built a lot of AMD systems. But they are a company that needs money just like Intel and nvidia. If they see am5 sales taking hits due to ram pricing, this was a logical move.
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Droz23

I really love the analysis. On the face of the charts for the 5800x3D from the forums is can be seen how it lags after all these years but is still competitive. The really equalizer is the resolution and the bolt on Tech for GPU's. Once the test are done above 1080P, say 1440p. The Delta's shrink massively do to binding. This lets the 5800x3D stay relevant for quite awhile. the GPU manufactures serve the AI God but still have a reason to keep face in the PC market. So the tech is getting passed down for free for the most part. As drivers get upgraded, performance increases. There is still a few years left on this CPU.
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Toylander

Admin said:
AMD has re-released the Ryzen 7 5800X3D to provide some relief from high DDR5 prices, so we’re re-reviewing the CPU to see how it stacks up to current options around the same price.

AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D re-review: Maxing out DDR4’s gaming potential : Read more
I've been ummming and amming for a while now on which way to upgrade my system, it's been a shaky path since covid, I had my 3070 RTX OC sat on the shelf for a while when gpu prices went silly, and eventually moved it from my hp twin xeon workstation to an am4 platform system. I started looking at upgrading the 8gb of ram but even ddr4 is now ridiculous and used prices higher than new… is this a worthy upgrade at the cost even if I manage to sell on my used ryzen 5 5600xt or would I be better off with the am5 platform and a better cpu for less or the same with a budget board, and then spend on the minimum of ddr5 ram. With rumours or ddr4 going back into production I question if it's worth trying to skip a generation it doesn't look like ddr5 is for the consumer market at present are AMD on to something here is
the am4 platform is in line for a series of other upgrades?
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Dntknwitall

They released the chip for people looking to upgrade that are on lower DDR4 chips so obviously they will be invested in DDR4. Whoever wrote this needs to be demoted to janitorial duties. $350 for the highest DDR4 chip for gaming is not a bad deal try buying it in Canada where it is going for $600+. I just paid 300 CAD for a 10700k to replace a 10100 chip so things are very expensive in the north and not getting better. Prices do not reflect value anymore so writting articles like they do is just dumb in my opinion.
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cp0x

This CPU will be back down to $250 in a few months. The retailers are being forced by AMD to set the price temporarily up to $349.99 just because that's a condition of getting any initial allocation. Stupid game by AMD that they also played with the 9950x3d2.
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abufrejoval

Toylander said:
I've been ummming and amming for a while now on which way to upgrade my system, it's been a shaky path since covid, I had my 3070 RTX OC sat on the shelf for a while when gpu prices went silly, and eventually moved it from my hp twin xeon workstation to an am4 platform system. I started looking at upgrading the 8gb of ram but even ddr4 is now ridiculous and used prices higher than new… is this a worthy upgrade at the cost even if I manage to sell on my used ryzen 5 5600xt or would I be better off with the am5 platform and a better cpu for less or the same with a budget board, and then spend on the minimum of ddr5 ram. With rumours or ddr4 going back into production I question if it's worth trying to skip a generation it doesn't look like ddr5 is for the consumer market at present are AMD on to something here is
the am4 platform is in line for a series of other upgrades?
With a 9800X3D selling at €20 extra, this CPU is clearly for those who already own an AM4 system, including all the RAM they need (or can get them 2nd hand on the cheap).

Using it to build from scratch with parts from retail seems a very bad investment.

With 8GB of DDR4 on AM4 and perhaps without the ability to add another 8GB easily, you're in a tough spot for sure: you may just need to hunt around for 2nd hand parts.

Don't expect magic replacing the 5600XT with a 5800X3D, especially if your DDR4 came from Xeon times and might be as slow as DDR4-2133: the basic assumption is that a 5800X3D with DDR4-3200 is nearly as good as a 7800X with DDR5-5200 (or rather better than all the Rocket Lake contemporaries).

A lot of games aren't nearly as CPU dependent as the PC press seems to imply, while some games require eliminating quite a few more bottlenecks besides just a CPU upgrade: you really need to know where you're hurting.
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