The AMD Ryzen 5 3600X will little question show a well-liked addition to the Ryzen household. With six cores able to clocking as much as 4.4GHz, this chip has been constructed to supply avid gamers a hefty heap of silicon that received’t allow you to down on single-threaded efficiency – however is that this our new gaming champion?
That is a extremely contested title. Not solely are Intel’s Coffee Lake chips vying for the acclaim however AMD’s Ryzen 5 3600, too. There’s rather a lot to be stated for the X-less model, the little chip that would. But earlier than all that, let’s take a deeper dive into what makes the Ryzen 5 3600X tick – as a result of, in case you haven’t heard already, AMD has torn up the rulebook with Zen 2.
The structure on the coronary heart of the Ryzen 5 3600X is not like any earlier than it, topologically talking. This chip is split into two discrete chiplets, one 14nm cIOD for I/O and one 7nm CCD filled with six cores throughout two CCX clusters, all coming collectively in a tapestry weaved from the Infinity Fabric interconnect.
The design is exceptionally scalable, therefore the sweeping Ryzen 3000 lineup from six cores all the way in which as much as 16 with the Ryzen 9 3950X. These additionally mark the primary 7nm processors within the consumer market; the shrunken node, produced by TSMC, aiding in clock speeds and effectivity.
But it’s not all cores and clocks. Zen 2 owes a lot of its efficiency to the IPC good points and enhancements behind the scenes uplifting the effectivity with which this structure computes. Instructions per clock (IPC) has seen a hefty 15% enhance, and that enchancment ripples throughout each gaming and artificial benchmarks.
AMD Ryzen 5 3600X specs
The Ryzen 5 3600X’s lone CCD incorporates six cores of Zen 2 energy, every with entry to double the L3 cache per CCX than earlier generations. With entry to the complete CCD’s price of L3, the Ryzen 5 3600X is supplied with a complete of 32MB alongside 3MB of L2 cache.
Adjacent to the CCD there lies the cIOD, which takes care of non-core and I/O performance. With the reminiscence controller inside, independently adjustable to the material clock on both a 1:1 or 2:1 ratio, AMD has managed to extend reminiscence assist on Ryzen 3000 to a grand ol’ 3,200MHz throughout the board, reserving the power to overclock upwards of 4,800MHz to succesful DIMMs in congenial motherboards.
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We’ve stored our reminiscence to a gradual 3,200MHz within the benchmarks under for comparability’s sake with older chips.
And whereas we’re on the subject of motherboards, it’s price noting that the complete Ryzen 3000 lineup is backwards appropriate with most 400- and 300-series chipsets with a easy BIOS replace. That means any one of many best AMD gaming motherboards may make for a effective companion for the Ryzen 5 3600X – in reality, typically much more so than the pricier X570 chipset.
| Ryzen 9 3950X | Ryzen 9 3900X | Ryzen 7 3800X | Ryzen 7 3700X | Ryzen 5 3600X | Ryzen 5 3600 | |
| Cores/threads | 16/32 | 12/24 | 8/16 | 8/16 | 6/12 | 6/12 |
| Turbo clock | 4.7GHz | 4.6GHz | 4.5GHz | 4.4GHz | 4.4GHz | 4.2GHz |
| Base clock | 3.5GHz | 3.8GHz | 3.9GHz | 3.6GHz | 3.8GHz | 3.6GHz |
| TDP | 105W | 105W | 105W | 65W | 95W | 65W |
| Total cache | 72MB | 70MB | 36MB | 36MB | 35MB | 35MB |
| Price | $749 | $499 | $399 | $329 | $249 | $199 |
The top-end chipset will internet you PCIe 4.zero compatibility – a serious advertising and marketing tick for AMD with Ryzen 3000. That comes at a value, nonetheless, one which is likely to be laborious to swallow for avid gamers. That’s the added expense of not solely the X570 chipset but additionally a PCIe 4.zero SSD to benefit from it. But everyone knows us PC avid gamers are vulnerable to a bit unfastened spending now and again… you Nanoleaf panels.
With such a broad number of far cheaper and intently succesful motherboards available in the market, a less expensive chipset (equivalent to B450) could make for a better pairing with the Ryzen 5 3600X.
As for variations between this chip and the marginally cheaper Ryzen 5 3600, the ‘X’ suffix nets you a 200MHz increase clock improve over the cheaper Ryzen 5 SKU. It additionally requires a bit extra juice at 95W TDP.
AMD can maintain its head excessive secure within the information that its days of lagging noticeably behind Intel in games are largely over
The X additionally nets you a Wraith Spire cooler: a barely higher-capability cooler than the Wraith Stealth bundled with the Ryzen 5 3600. While each are very succesful coolers, and fairly dashing, the bigger Spire presents simply that little extra added worth. Save your pennies, folks.
And on the subject of pennies, between the Ryzen 5 3600X and the Ryzen 5 3600, we’re speaking round $50 – the previous priced at $249 (£240) and the latter at $200 (£200).
But not solely is there strain throughout the stack. Former shining star, the Ryzen 5 2600, is now simply $133 (£119), and the Ryzen 5 2600X solely $150 (£150). We’re undecided how lengthy these chips will stick round at that value, or in inventory, however rattling, both chip would make for one helluva discount even to today.
AMD Ryzen 5 3600X benchmarks
PCGN take a look at bench: MSI MEG ACE X570/MSI Gaming M7 AC X470, 16GB Trident Z Royal/Corsair Dominator @ 3,200MHz, Samsung 970 Evo 2TB, Nvidia RTX 2080 Ti, Corsair HX1200i, Corsair H100i V2, Philips BDM3275
AMD RYZEN 5 3600X efficiency
Has the Ryzen 5 3600X bought what it takes to take residence the gaming crown? Uh, no. Not as a result of it’s missing what it takes to be a incredible enchancment on what got here earlier than, it delivers the products. Nor does it lack sufficient energy to stay it to the competitors, it doesn’t. Rather it’s as a result of the 3600X is simply not that a lot better than the Ryzen 5 3600.
Across our game benchmark suite the Ryzen 5 3600 tails by only a hair, if that. In Civilisation VI, there’s solely a fraction of a second between the 2 chips, and in Total War: Three Kingdoms we see that hole shut solely. The similar will be stated for DX12 title Metro: Exodus and the GPU-intensive Far Cry New Dawn benchmark at 4K.
F1 2019 noticed the X-series chip take a slight lead, but nonetheless effectively throughout the boundaries of testing variance. This simply goes to point out that in case you’re a gamer trying to find their subsequent gaming chip, you may be greater than comfy choosing the cheaper Ryzen 5 3600, pocketing the 50 bucks and placing it to raised use elsewhere in your construct. That $50 may very well be the distinction between the Nvidia GTX 1660 and the Nvidia GTX 1660 Ti – a tangible improve.
AMD Ryzen 5 3600X verdict
The Ryzen 5 3600X poses a strong one-size-fits-all answer for avid gamers. It’s undoubtedly a convincing improve over earlier era chips and the competitors’s fare, able to each multithreaded on daily basis workloads, a modicum of content material creation, and, crucially, incredible gaming efficiency. AMD can maintain its head excessive secure within the information that its days of lagging noticeably behind Intel in games are largely over.
But when contemplating the Ryzen 3000 stack as a complete, the Ryzen 5 3600X loses its vigour. If you could have precisely $249 to spend in your gaming PC’s mind, then there’s an excellent likelihood this chip appeals to your sensibilities – the incredible inventory cooler the icing on the cake. However, there’s an awesome case to be made as a substitute for the Ryzen 5 3600 with the Wraith Stealth. Sure, each carry out marginally worse general, but with smarter funding (in a extra highly effective GPU), an identically priced Ryzen 5 3600 construct may really outperform one constructed across the X-series chip in games.
And in case you’re choosing third-party cooling then the cheaper chip turns into much more of a accomplished deal.
There’s additionally one thing to be stated for Zen+, too. While the outmoded structure can not sustain with Zen 2’s IPC will increase, after we think about the Ryzen 5 2600 at simply $130, the worth on provide is phenomenal. That inventory will finally dwindle, however till that point these low-cost chips strain the Ryzen 5 3600X’s comparatively tall value. This additionally additional reinforces the Ryzen 5 3600’s efficiency per greenback benefit, which is a SKU much better located in right this moment’s discounted market.
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