AMD Ryzen 5 1500X CPU Review

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Civilization VI & Deus Ex: Mankind Divided

Civilization VI AI Test

Civilization VI's demanding AI test measures CPU performance during a turn-based strategy game. It isolates host processor performance, and historically responds better to high clock rates and IPC throughput than more cores.

The Ryzen 5 1500X beats AMD's eight-core Ryzen 7 1700, but lags the other contenders. A bit of overclocking improves performance enough to put the 1500X between Intel's Core i5-7500 and -7400.

An overclocked six-core Ryzen 5 1600X provides little benefit over the 1500X during this test. 

Civilization VI Graphics Test

The Ryzen 7 1700 stumbles under the most severe frame time outliers in Civilization VI's graphics benchmark, while the Ryzen 5 and Core i5 processors offer consistent frame delivery and smooth gameplay. A stock 1500X beats the Core i5-7500 and i5-7400, and responds well to overclocking, too. At 3.9 GHz, it jumps beyond the locked Intel processors and even beats the stock Core i5-7600K.

Deus Ex: Mankind Divided

Deus Ex: Mankind Divided is a bright spot for AMD's newest architecture, which definitively bests the Kaby Lake-based models we test.

There's very little difference between Ryzen CPUs; it only matters that you pick one of these chips rather than a Core i5. Intel appears to encounter some sort of bottleneck that's not apparent elsewhere in our testing.

The Core i5-7600K and Ryzen 5 1600X encounter most of the frame time issues, based on our measurements. Meanwhile, the Ryzen 5 1500X and locked Intel processors provide smoother performance.


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Paul Alcorn
Managing Editor: News and Emerging Tech

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.

  • Goran_11
    Good review. I would like to see more reviews about AMD Ryzen platform.
    Reply
  • IceMyth
    I think you missed the i5-7600K from the Price per Usable Core/Thread table which is $57.2 if you buy it from OutletPC but if you buy it from Amazon.com it will be ~$60.
    Reply
  • Shale
    Be careful, your fingerprint is visible on the CPU, someone could get enough of it from that photo to print and form a latex fingerprint that could be used to frame you for a crime, or depending on the finger and usage, be used for security breach or unlocking your phone.
    Reply
  • InvalidError
    Cost per 1% low FPS might be a better metric: emphasize sustainability. Maybe a 35-45-20 blend of average-1%-0.1%.
    Reply
  • Wisecracker
    <50w in the gaming loop is impressive
    Great job overall by AMD, and would love to see a 'head-to-head' with an OC'd AM3+ rig (FX-6350 at 4.5GHz?)

    Page 5 _ "Civilization VI Graphics Test" Heading
    -- graphic says, "Resident Evil 7"

    Reply
  • jkhoward
    It has been shown time and time again that the AMD chip when paired with a Nvidia card has poor performance. You should really consider getting an AMD Workstation card for your test until Nvidia can fix the issue.
    Reply
  • velocityg4
    Why didn't you use the same CPU options for both the Workstation and gaming tests? It would have been helpful to know how an overclocked 1500x stands up against an i5-7500 in any use case. If someone is overclocking for gaming. They aren't likely to disable the overclock when working.

    It sounds like Toms German and US labs need to communicate a bit more to set exact testing requirements for a review. That way the reader receives consistent data.

    As it stands now. The review is haphazard. There are different data sources for gaming, workstation, temperature and power.
    Reply
  • $hawn
    "8T/12T powerhouses" - I think there's a typo here
    Reply
  • $hawn
    Sorry it's correct
    Reply
  • elbert
    Looks like the Ryzen 5 1500X bests the i5-7500 while overclocked. Should the test have included best OC with the stock cooler? Price is important at this level and an aftermarket cooler stripes it of the price advantage.
    Reply