AMD Ryzen 3 1300X Review
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Test Setup
Header Cell - Column 0 | Ryzen 3 1300X | Ryzen 5 1500X | Ryzen 5 1400 |
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Cores / Threads | 4C / 4T | 4C / 8T | 4C / 8T |
Base Clock Frequency | 3.4 GHz | 3.5 GHz | 3.2 GHz |
All-Core Boost | 3.6 GHz | 3.6 GHz | 3.4 GHz |
Two-Core Boost | 3.7 GHz | 3.7 GHz | Unknown |
XFR Maximum | 3.9 GHz | 3.9 GHz | Unknown |
L3 Cache | 8MB | 2x 8MB | 8MB |
L2 Cache | 512KB per Core | 512KB per Core | 512KB per Core |
L1 Cache | 64KB per Core | 64KB per Core | 64KB per Core |
CCX Config | 2x2 | 2x2 | 2x2 |
TDP | 65W | 65W | 65W |
MSRP | $130 | $190 | $170 |
Test System & Settings
We’re testing Ryzen 3 1300X the same way that we tested the Ryzen 5 CPUs, using an inexpensive MSI B350 Tomahawk motherboard that sells for around $100. This motherboard does allow for overclocking as long as the CPU supports it. Spoiler alert: we got Ryzen 3 1300X up to 4 GHz in the German lab and 3.9 GHz in the U.S.. The systems stayed stable for prolonged periods of time at these levels.
One particularly interesting feature offered by MSI's B350 Tomahawk is a temperature sensor in the socket area. You'll hear more about this later, since we gathered some interesting measurements to compare against AMD’s Tclt values.
The B350 Tomahawk is a Socket AM4 motherboard based on the B350 chipset. It has four DDR4 slots and supports up to 64GB of memory. Our configuration only required two slots, yielding 16GB (2x 8GB of DDR4-3200). The motherboard has one PCIe 3.0 x16 slot, one PCIe 2.0 x4 slot, two PCIe 2.0 x1 slots, as well as two older PCI slots. There’s also an integrated 7.1-channel audio codec, as well as gigabit Ethernet, four SATA 6Gb/s ports, an M.2 connector, and the usual USB 3.0 Type-C and USB 3.0 ports.
Comparison Processors
Test System & Methodology
We introduced our new test system and methodology in How We Test Graphics Cards. If you'd like more detail about our general approach, check that piece out.
The only components that have changed since we published the article linked above are the CPU, system memory, motherboard, and cooling solution. The hardware currently used in our lab includes:
Test Equipment & Environment | |
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System | Germany - AMD Ryzen 3, 5 and 7- MSI B350 Tomahawk- Intel Core i5-7600K, Core i5-7500- MSI Z270 Gaming 7- AMD FX-8370- Asus Sabertooth 990FX- 16GB (2x 8GB) G.Skill Ripjaws DDR4 3200 (CL15-15-15-35)- 1x 1TB Toshiba OCZ RD400 (M.2, System)- 2x 960GB Toshiba OCZ TR150 (Storage, Images)- be quiet! Dark Power Pro 11, 850W Power Supply Unit (PSU)- Windows 10 Pro (Creators Update)- Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080 Founders Edition (Gaming)- Nvidia Quadro P6000 (Workstation)U.S.- Ryzen 5 1500X, 1400, Ryzen 3 1300X- MSI B350 Tomahawk- Intel Core i3-7300, i3-7300, Pentium G4620, G4650- MSI Z270 Gaming 7- 16GB (2x 8GB) G.Skill Ripjaws DDR4 @ 2933 (Ryzen 3 1300X, 1400) and 3200 (Ryzen 5 1500X) (CL15-15-15-35)- EVGA GeForce GTX 1080 FE- 1TB Samsung PM863- SilverStone ST1500, 1500W- Windows 10 Creators Update Version 1703 |
Cooling | Germany- Alphacool Eiszeit 2000 Chiller- Alphacool Eisblock XPX- Thermal Grizzly Kryonaut (Used when Switching Coolers)U.S.- Corsair H115i- Corsair H100i v2- Arctic MX4 |
Monitor | - Eizo EV3237-BK |
PC Case | - Lian Li PC-T70 with Extension Kit and Mods - Configurations: Open Benchtable, Closed Case |
Power Consumption Measurement | - Contact-free DC Measurement at PCIe Slot (Using a Riser Card) - Contact-free DC Measurement at External Auxiliary Power Supply Cable - Direct Voltage Measurement at Power Supply - 2x Rohde & Schwarz HMO 3054, 500MHz Digital Multi-Channel Oscilloscope with Storage Function - 4x Rohde & Schwarz HZO50 Current Probe (1mA - 30A, 100kHz, DC) - 4x Rohde & Schwarz HZ355 (10:1 Probes, 500MHz) - 1x Rohde & Schwarz HMC 8012 Digital Multimeter with Storage Function |
Thermal Measurement | - 1x Optris PI640 80Hz Infrared Camera + PI Connect - Real-Time Infrared Monitoring and Recording |
Noise Measurement | - NTI Audio M2211 (with Calibration File, Low Cut at 50Hz) - Steinberg UR12 (with Phantom Power for Microphones) - Creative X7, Smaart v.7 - Custom-Made Proprietary Measurement Chamber, 3.5 x 1.8 x 2.2m (L x D x H) - Perpendicular to Center of Noise Source(s), Measurement Distance of 50cm - Noise Level in dB(A) (Slow), Real-time Frequency Analyzer (RTA) - Graphical Frequency Spectrum of Noise |
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Paul Alcorn is the Managing Editor: News and Emerging Tech for Tom's Hardware US. He also writes news and reviews on CPUs, storage, and enterprise hardware.
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yankeeDDL Wow.Reply
I don't remember when it was last time when we saw a review where, practically, in every chart AMD was at the top, and Intel at the bottom. It is refreshing really. Hopefully this will drive Intel to cleanup the mess it created in 5+ years of unchallenged leadership, and get its acts in order.
I'm enjoying the moment though. With my Ryzen 5 1600 :) -
blackmagnum This is the product segment my slim wallet has been waiting for. I just hope that Intel will fight back with a price war. Now bring in the Ryzen+IGP for office gaming!Reply -
SS_1__ The only mainstream chips Intel makes worth buying are the G4560 and 7700k, AMD has the rest of the product stack.Reply -
mjslakeridge The thing I found interesting from the review is that the disabled cores still receive power (second to last page of the review). Now we just need to figure out how to enable the "hidden" cores!Reply -
bloodroses While I wasn't impressed with the Ryzen 5, their 7 and 3 are really putting the hurt on Intel. Good job AMD for getting back into the race. :) Let's hope they can do the same against Nvidia so true competition will finally be back.Reply -
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There isn't a whole lot that Intel can do about it other than drop prices for a given amount of cores and threads, though you can expect Intel to hold on to premium pricing for its IPC, clock frequency and lower power advantages.19988753 said:Hopefully this will drive Intel to cleanup the mess it created in 5+ years of unchallenged leadership, and get its acts in order.
What I'm really curious to see for the mainstream/office segment is the Ryzen-Vega APUs. -
madmatt30 Amd are just absolutely smashing it this year.Reply
Which is a great great thing after Intel's dominance & stranglehold for the last 6 years.
Intel price war ??
No that's not going to happen if it hasn't already ,they're way too arrogant to ever do that.
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redgarl One of the best CPU of the year with the 1600x. I still take my 1700x over them, but if you are under budget, there is no questions.Reply
Too bad their Vega card seems like another Fury. I sold my stock and wait for the first benches before rebuying it. Also, indication is that RX will cost 600-650$ and barely beating a 1080 GTX. However Vega core are going to be incridilbe with AMD APU on the laptop segment. Nvidia MXM cards are going to be a bad investment and cost a fortune while everything will be on the same chip for AMD. -
dudmont If AMD wants to grab business/oem market, they should come out with a very low end graphics card, something that costs 40$(preferably 20$) or less, that they could bundle with these Ryzen 3s and sell as a one stop solution. So long as it performed similarly to intels IGPs, and the price was competitive, their performance advantage would give them a shot at stealing sales. For them to really get market share, which is where these Ryzen 3s sit, they need to be able to offer something to more than just gamers on a budget.Reply