AMD Ryzen 7 1700 CPU Review

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Civilization VI AI & Graphics Test, Deus Ex: Mankind Divided, GTA V

Civilization VI AI Test

Civilization VI's AI benchmark measures the amount of computational horsepower available to the system during a turn-based strategy gaming session. The AI benchmark is very consistent, so it was strange when we noticed the Ryzen 7 1700 outpacing the rest of the field. Alas, the remarkable performance came from a Civilization VI Spring 2017 update, which dramatically improved AI performance, forcing us to toss our old numbers.

We retested all of the processors and noted higher performance across the board, so it appears this wasn't an AMD-targeted patch. The finishing order remains the same, reflecting a ~3-second improvement for all CPUs. The stock Ryzen 7s can't keep up with Core i7-6900K, though they do jump in front after overclocking.

The Core i7-7700K and i5-7600K continue to dominate this test. We did log CPU utilization during our run and saw the benchmark scale across all 16 logical cores (it spawns 45 threads). But scaling and scaling well are two different matters, so the four-core processors continue enjoying a lead. 

Civilization VI Graphics Test

The update had little impact on our graphics test, though we did notice a slight decline in average frame rates for most processors, along with more consistent minimum frame rate measurements.

The results line up familiarly, though the Core i5-7600K isn't as competitive as it is in other titles. Meanwhile, Intel's Core i7-6900K leads, while the company's Core i7-7700K falls into its wake. The stock Ryzen 1700 isn't competitive and trails its siblings by a large margin. An overclock helps put the chip within range of the two faster SKUs. 

Deus Ex: Mankind Divided

Deus Ex: Mankind Divided remains the only game that Ryzen processors dominate in convincing fashion. That trend continues as we look at Ryzen 7 1700's performance. The CPU secures its spot in the leading group at stock settings. And due to an apparent graphics bottleneck, it experiences minimal uplift from our overclocking efforts.

Grand Theft Auto V

We measure performance during Grand Theft Auto V's F-16 flight sequence with the built-in benchmark. The scripted path yields a solid and consistent benchmark, while constantly changing terrain applies a significant graphics workload.

The stock Ryzen 7 1700 shows up at the bottom of our performance chart. But once again, it climbs into a more competitive position after we overclock. Unfortunately for AMD, all of the Ryzen processors trail their Intel competition by a significant margin. Even the affordable Core i5-7600K at stock clock rates outperforms. And overclocking would certainly propel it into a much higher position.

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.

  • mitch074
    And how about testing with some AMD GPU? Seems Ryzen gets the short hand of the stick when using an Nvidia GPU... https://forums.overclockers.co.uk/threads/nvidia-dx12-driver-holding-back-ryzen.18774744/
    Reply
  • Sakkura
    Why are the graphs blurry?
    Reply
  • envy14tpe
    Why no 1440p or 4k gaming? Who buys 1700 for 1080p gaming? In gaming, the new 1700, 1700x, 1800 don't compare to 7700k in gaming. But i don't see that like all other testing methodologies done by likes of gamernexus and what not.

    EDIT. Based on the downvoting of this comment it seems AMD lovers are a little butt hurt.
    Reply
  • ykki
    Thanks for the review. Will Tom's bench (or has already benched) the R5s with AMD GPUs? (i5 + 1060, i5 + 480, R5 + 1060, r5 + 480)?
    Reply
  • PaulAlcorn
    19526350 said:
    Why no 1440p or 4k gaming? Who buys 1700 for 1080p gaming? In gaming, the new 1700, 1700x, 1800 don't compare to 7700k in gaming. But i don't see that like all other testing methodologies done by likes of gamernexus and what not.

    Here is some recent testing at 1440p. It includes the 1700, as well.

    http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/amd-ryzen-vs-intel-kaby-lake-gaming,4977.html

    Reply
  • envy14tpe
    19526465 said:
    19526350 said:
    Why no 1440p or 4k gaming? Who buys 1700 for 1080p gaming? In gaming, the new 1700, 1700x, 1800 don't compare to 7700k in gaming. But i don't see that like all other testing methodologies done by likes of gamernexus and what not.

    Here is some recent testing at 1440p. It includes the 1700, as well.

    http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/amd-ryzen-vs-intel-kaby-lake-gaming,4977.html

    That shows the new AMD cpus as is. From all I see the i7-7700k blasts the new AMD 1700, 1700x, 1800x series at 1440p +. That's important to keep in mind for gamers that want the most out of a CPU n high end GPU.
    Reply
  • ddpruitt
    even if Ryzen isn't shaping up to be universally superior, as many hoped prior to launch.

    This makes it difficult to universally recommend those high-end parts.

    Why do they have to be universally superior? They do a killer job on highly threaded workloads and are a lot cheaper than equivalent Intel. Sure gamings a wash but they're all playable. Aiming for universally superior is shooting for the moon and doesn't happen even with a single Intel chip.

    But looking at these figures on their own can be misleading. Remember that Intel's top Kaby Lake-based CPU demonstrated a commanding lead in the previous page's AutoCAD workloads, so it ends up offering superior performance per watt.

    Any chance you can multiply the numbers out so we can compare the differences?
    Reply
  • TJ Hooker
    So I have to ask, is there any reason to buy a 1700X/1800X over a 1700 if you're comfortable with overclocking?
    Reply
  • Ian_85
    Can you please repeat this test after each of the Ryzen bios updates in April and May?

    I think people would be interested to show just how much performance in a new CPU architecture improves in the months after its initial release.
    Reply
  • elbert
    19526465 said:
    19526350 said:
    Why no 1440p or 4k gaming? Who buys 1700 for 1080p gaming? In gaming, the new 1700, 1700x, 1800 don't compare to 7700k in gaming. But i don't see that like all other testing methodologies done by likes of gamernexus and what not.

    Here is some recent testing at 1440p. It includes the 1700, as well.

    http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/amd-ryzen-vs-intel-kaby-lake-gaming,4977.html
    I dont believe that has Ashes of the Singularity updated tests. Good review and I would like to see more. Now that all the Ryzen's have been benchmarked on 1080p maybe 1440p and 4k would make a good review. With and without SLI/crossfire also just to see how it works for Ryzen. Possibly Gskills could pitch in some of their Flare X 3466 RAM for Ryzen.
    Reply