AMD Ryzen 9 5950X Review

Enthusiast Desktop processor released in 2020 with 16 cores and 32 threads. With base clock at 3.7GHz, max speed at 4.9GHz, and a 105W power rating. Ryzen 9 5950X is based on the Vermeer 7nm family and part of the Ryzen 9 series.
Price 71.5%
Speed 79%
Productivity 71%
Gaming 95%
Category Desktop
Target enthusiast
Socket Compatibility AM4
Integrated Graphics None
Cooler Included No
Overclock Potential 1 %
Year 2020 Model
Price 710 USD
Number of Cores 16 Cores
Number of Threads 32 Threads
Core Frequency 3.7 GHz
Boost Frequency 4.9 GHz
Max Stable Overclock 4.9 GHz
Power Consumption 105 W
Manufacturing Process 7 nm
L3 Cache 64 MB
Maximum Supported Memory 128 GB
Price-Value Score 71.5 %
Speed Score 79 %
Productivity Score 71 %
Gaming Score 95 %
Max 1080p Bottleneck 7.5 %
Max 1440p Bottleneck 3.8 %
Max 4K Bottleneck 1.9 %
Overall Score 58/100

Explore the Ryzen 9 5950X! This Desktop processor is a highlight in AMD's enthusiast range. Introduced in 2020, it has 16 cores and 32 threads. It operates at a base frequency of 3.7GHz, can hit up to 4.9GHz, and has a power consumption of 105W, ready to upgrade your gaming setup. The Ryzen 9 5950X is designed on the Vermeer 7nm architecture and is a part of the respected Ryzen 9 series.

And guess what? The Ryzen 9 5950X is the ultimate successor to AMD's previous-gen gaming champion, the Ryzen 9 3950X. The Ryzen 9 3950X was based on the legendary Zen 2 and 7nm process, and it made its grand entrance into the gaming scene back in 2019. But now, it's time for the Ryzen 9 5950X to take the throne and conquer the gaming world!

The AMD Ryzen 9 5950X is another epic drop from Team AMD, cranking things up in the neverending AMD vs Intel CPU war. But hey, core count ain't everything, especially for playing the hottest PC games. Single-core performance gotta be on point too.

Can the AMD Ryzen 9 5950X finally dethrone the king of mainstream CPUs, the Core i9-10900K? It's a maybe. The Ryzen 9 5950X doesn't quite reach the same single-core performance as its rival, but more games are starting to use all those threads, so who cares!

Forget about low single-core performance being a weakness for AMD! With the 4.9GHz turbo boost and some sweet IPC improvements, the Ryzen 9 5950X is finally competitive on the single-core front. Time to fry some noobs!

So, the switch to 7nm silicon is pretty epic! This lets AMD cram a ton more cache into the CPU. We're talking a combined L2 and L3 cache of 16 x 512 kB and 64. Since the cores are on separate chiplets, they were able to fit way more in – a whopping 16 x 512 kB and 64! This means much faster performance, especially when you're chasing those sweet high FPS in 1080p games. You'll especially notice the difference in classics like Counter Strike: Global Offensive. Git gud noobs!

Finally, shrinking down to 7nm means the CPU sips power like a pro! Thanks to the Zen 3 architecture, AMD Ryzen 9 4 Gen processors like the Ryzen 9 5950X and Ryzen 9 5900X can be up to 58% more efficient than their Intel counterparts. Not the biggest deal, but hey, lower electricity bills are always welcome, especially these days. Every penny counts!

The AMD Ryzen 9 5950X is an absolute monster, just like its 16 cores, 32 threads, and hefty price tag suggest. This is the top dog of mainstream processors, the king you've been waiting for. Games, video editing, 3D work – the Ryzen 9 5950X handles it all with ease. Bow down to the king!

Heads up though, there are still a few tasks where the Core i9-10900K might perform a bit better. Think super old, single-threaded games like World of Warcraft. But even that gap is closing in fast. catching up!

The past few years, AMD has been clawing its way to the top of the desktop CPU game, and with the AMD Ryzen 9 5950X, they've finally reached the peak. Move over Intel, there's a new sheriff in town!

AMD just unleashed its Zen 3 architecture, raising the stakes in the high-stakes battle for desktop PC dominance against Intel. This new lineup of chips pushes core counts and raw power to crazy high levels, threatening Intel's reign for the first time in a decade. Buckle up, it's about to get intense!

Heads up, with a simple overclock, the Ryzen 9 5900X can actually perform almost as well as the Ryzen 9 5950X, even when the Ryzen 9 5950X is overclocked too. But the Ryzen 9 5900X is $70 cheaper! Don't get us wrong, the Ryzen 9 5950X is still a beast and offers more overall performance than Intel's Core i9-10900K, but if you're on a budget, the cheaper sibling might be the better call.

Alright, listen up. When it comes to pure gaming performance, Intel still holds the crown. If squeezing out every last frame per second is your top priority, then a Intel CPU might be the better choice. But here's the thing: that advantage shrinks at higher resolutions or if you pair the CPU with a less powerful graphics card. mattersToo

For gamers on a budget who aren't afraid of a little overclocking and have decent cooling, the Ryzen 9 5900X is a solid option. You can get pretty much the same performance as the Ryzen 9 5950X (especially for gaming) by overclocking it a bit. Plus, it's cheaper! This is why we gave the Ryzen 9 5900X an Editor's Choice award.

The AMD Ryzen 9 5950X launched on Oct 2020 for $710, which is pretty much the same price as the last-generation Ryzen 9 3950X. At least there's no crazy price hike this generation!

The AMD Ryzen 9 5950X, like all the other CPUs in AMD's Vermeer family, is built on a tiny 7nm manufacturing process – the smallest you can find right now. This means it uses less power and runs much faster than previous CPUs.

The high number of threads (over 7!) in the AMD Ryzen 9 5950X makes it a monster for tasks that use all the cores at once (multi-threaded workloads), especially for the price. If you edit a lot of videos or work with giant spreadsheets, the Ryzen 9 5950X will give you a noticeable performance boost.

Heads up! If you already have a Ryzen 9 3950X, this new generation doesn't offer a huge jump in performance. You might be better off waiting a year to upgrade or spending more on a higher-end CPU.

AMD has been struggling lately to keep up with the new Core i9 processors. This has forced them to get creative with their existing lineup. The AMD Ryzen 9 5950X isn't exactly new - it's basically a Ryzen 9 3950X with a higher clock speed. But there's one more twist...

For gamers, both the Core i9-10900K and Ryzen 9 5950X are great choices. They're neck and neck, with a slight edge to the Intel CPU if you don't overclock it. The Ryzen 9 5950X's base performance can be achieved with cheaper RAM (around $90), whereas the Core i9-10900K needs faster RAM ($110-$120) to hit the frame rates we showed. The price difference is small though, and with anything less than an RTX 2070 or Vega 64 graphics card, your GPU will bottleneck your performance anyway. BottleneckAtPlay

Today's review is on the AMD Ryzen 9 5950X, a 16-core desktop processor launched in Oct 2020. AMD sells the Ryzen 9 5950X without integrated graphics, making it perfect for systems with a dedicated graphics card. It costs $710 and is a great option for those who already have a GPU.

The AMD Ryzen 9 5950X is a decent performing chip for $710. The main competitor at this price point is the Core i9-10900K, a 10-core unlocked processor with integrated graphics, which costs $488.

Can you game on AMD's Ryzen 9 CPU? Absolutely! We got a solid 95% score in our gaming benchmarks.

The Ryzen 9 5950X is a great choice for both gaming and content creation, thanks to its high performance (1.47%) and at least 12 threads. Live streaming, eSports, and uploading gameplay videos are becoming increasingly popular, and this CPU can handle it all.

The Ryzen 9 5950X boosts up to the advertised 4.9 GHz, and with AMD's software you can push one core even higher to 4.9+0.1 GHz. But don't expect much beyond that without a serious cooler upgrade and manual voltage tweaks.

Building on the success of mainstream Ryzen 9 CPUs, AMD is now attacking the enthusiast market with the Ryzen 9 5950X processors, available since Oct 2020.

The AMD Ryzen 9 5950X is priced at $710, which is a great deal compared to the almost $488 Intel Core i9-10900K. With 16 cores, the Ryzen 9 5950X will outperform Intel's 10 core CPU in tasks that use multiple cores. While you don't get integrated graphics like Intel, most enthusiast gamers building a cheap PC won't need it anyway.

Which GPU to Pick for AMD Ryzen 9 5950X

Below is a comparison of all graphics cards average FPS performance (using an average of 80+ games at ultra quality settings), combined with the AMD Ryzen 9 5950X.

Graphics Card Price Cost Per Frame Avg 1080p Avg 1440p Avg 4K
AMD Radeon RX 6650 XT 8GB $ 399 $ 2.7 148.7 FPS
116.2 FPS
69.9 FPS
AMD Radeon RX 6950 XT 16GB $ 1,099 $ 4 272.9 FPS
213.2 FPS
125.4 FPS
AMD Radeon RX 7600 8GB $ 269 $ 1.8 147.6 FPS
115.4 FPS
69.2 FPS
AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT 20GB $ 899 $ 3 300.3 FPS
234.6 FPS
137.9 FPS
AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX 24GB $ 999 $ 3 330.3 FPS
258 FPS
151.8 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 Ti 24GB $ 1,999 $ 7.4 268.4 FPS
213.5 FPS
138 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4050 8GB $ 200 $ 1.6 128.7 FPS
100.7 FPS
63.1 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 8GB $ 299 $ 2 147.7 FPS
116.7 FPS
73.1 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 Ti 8 GB 8GB $ 399 $ 2.4 165 FPS
129.7 FPS
81.3 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 12GB $ 599 $ 2.5 239.9 FPS
186.1 FPS
118.8 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti 12GB $ 799 $ 2.6 304.7 FPS
242.3 FPS
156.5 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 16GB $ 1,199 $ 3.8 317.2 FPS
252.3 FPS
163.1 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Ti 20GB $ 799 $ 2.3 341.5 FPS
271.8 FPS
175.7 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 24GB $ 1,599 $ 4.4 366 FPS
291.3 FPS
188.2 FPS
AMD Radeon R7 265 2GB $ 149 $ 4.8 31.2 FPS
21.5 FPS
13.2 FPS
AMD Radeon R9 280 3GB $ 279 $ 6.8 41.1 FPS
31.2 FPS
17.5 FPS
AMD Radeon R9 285 2GB $ 249 $ 5.9 42.4 FPS
32 FPS
18.3 FPS
AMD Radeon R9 295X2 4GB $ 1,499 $ 13.8 108.7 FPS
81.6 FPS
52 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 750 Ti 2GB $ 149 $ 5.3 27.9 FPS
18.4 FPS
11.3 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN BLACK 6GB $ 999 $ 13.7 72.9 FPS
54.1 FPS
33.9 FPS
AMD Radeon R7 370 2GB $ 149 $ 4.7 31.5 FPS
22.2 FPS
13.6 FPS
AMD Radeon R9 380 2GB $ 199 $ 4.7 42.1 FPS
31.6 FPS
18.3 FPS
AMD Radeon R9 380X 4GB $ 229 $ 4.8 47.3 FPS
35.5 FPS
21.6 FPS
AMD Radeon R9 390 8GB $ 329 $ 5.2 63.8 FPS
48.2 FPS
27.5 FPS
AMD Radeon R9 390X 8GB $ 429 $ 6.3 68.3 FPS
52.8 FPS
31.9 FPS
AMD Radeon R9 FURY 4GB $ 549 $ 7.7 71 FPS
55 FPS
33.1 FPS
AMD Radeon R9 FURY X 4GB $ 649 $ 7.9 82.6 FPS
65.4 FPS
40.1 FPS
AMD Radeon R9 Nano 4GB $ 649 $ 8.6 75.1 FPS
58.5 FPS
35.6 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950 2GB $ 159 $ 5 32.1 FPS
23.6 FPS
14.4 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960 2GB $ 199 $ 4.9 40.6 FPS
30.4 FPS
17.9 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970 4GB $ 329 $ 5 66.1 FPS
48.7 FPS
30.3 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 4GB $ 549 $ 7 78 FPS
58.4 FPS
35.1 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB $ 649 $ 7.1 91 FPS
68.8 FPS
41.1 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN X 12GB $ 999 $ 9.6 104.5 FPS
78.6 FPS
47 FPS
AMD Radeon RX 460 4GB $ 140 $ 4.8 28.9 FPS
21.4 FPS
12.6 FPS
AMD Radeon RX 470 4GB $ 179 $ 3.2 56.2 FPS
42.6 FPS
25.4 FPS
AMD Radeon RX 480 8GB $ 400 $ 6.2 64.2 FPS
49.2 FPS
30.1 FPS
AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 8GB $ 399 $ 3.9 101.6 FPS
78.3 FPS
46.8 FPS
AMD Radeon RX Vega 64 8GB $ 499 $ 4.6 108.4 FPS
83.8 FPS
49.9 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce GT 1030 2GB $ 79 $ 3.6 21.8 FPS
16.1 FPS
9.2 FPS
NVIDIA TITAN V 12GB $ 2,999 $ 20.3 147.8 FPS
117.2 FPS
73.1 FPS
NVIDIA TITAN Xp 12GB $ 1,199 $ 9 133.9 FPS
104.2 FPS
64.9 FPS
AMD Radeon RX 550 2GB $ 79 $ 3.5 22.8 FPS
17 FPS
9.9 FPS
AMD Radeon RX 5500 XT 8GB 8GB $ 199 $ 2.5 78.3 FPS
57.8 FPS
33.7 FPS
AMD Radeon RX 5500 XT 4GB 4GB $ 169 $ 2.4 70.2 FPS
51.9 FPS
30.2 FPS
AMD Radeon RX 560 4GB $ 99 $ 3 32.7 FPS
24.2 FPS
14.2 FPS
AMD Radeon RX 5600 XT 6GB $ 279 $ 2.5 112.7 FPS
86.4 FPS
51.4 FPS
AMD Radeon RX 570 4GB $ 169 $ 2.7 63 FPS
47.6 FPS
27.8 FPS
AMD Radeon RX 5700 8GB $ 349 $ 2.9 119.5 FPS
92.4 FPS
55.2 FPS
AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT 8GB $ 399 $ 3.1 130.4 FPS
100.7 FPS
60.2 FPS
AMD Radeon RX 580 8GB $ 229 $ 3 76.4 FPS
56.3 FPS
32.7 FPS
AMD Radeon RX 590 8GB $ 279 $ 3.2 86.1 FPS
63.6 FPS
37.2 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 3GB $ 169 $ 4.8 35.4 FPS
26.4 FPS
15.5 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti 4GB $ 169 $ 4.1 41.5 FPS
31.3 FPS
18.6 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 6GB 6GB $ 254 $ 3.6 70.8 FPS
52.7 FPS
31.5 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 3GB 3GB $ 170 $ 2.5 67.2 FPS
50.1 FPS
30 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 8GB $ 399 $ 4 99 FPS
74.6 FPS
44.3 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 Ti 8GB $ 409 $ 3.8 107.5 FPS
81.8 FPS
48.8 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 8GB $ 499 $ 4.3 116 FPS
88.3 FPS
52.9 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti 11GB $ 759 $ 5.6 136.6 FPS
108 FPS
65.7 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 4GB $ 149 $ 2.5 60.2 FPS
45.4 FPS
27 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 SUPER 4GB $ 160 $ 2 79 FPS
60 FPS
35.8 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 6GB $ 220 $ 2.4 90.8 FPS
69.1 FPS
41.2 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER 6GB $ 229 $ 2.4 96.4 FPS
73.4 FPS
43.9 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti 6GB $ 279 $ 2.7 102.3 FPS
77.8 FPS
46.4 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 6GB $ 350 $ 3.1 114.6 FPS
83.4 FPS
49.5 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER 8GB $ 400 $ 3.3 121.8 FPS
90.6 FPS
54.8 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 8GB $ 499 $ 3.9 128.7 FPS
97.4 FPS
60 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER 8GB $ 499 $ 3.7 135.8 FPS
104.2 FPS
63.3 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 8GB $ 699 $ 4.8 145.7 FPS
113.2 FPS
68.3 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER 8GB $ 699 $ 4.5 154.2 FPS
121 FPS
73.7 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 Ti 11GB $ 1,299 $ 7.6 169.9 FPS
134.7 FPS
82.4 FPS
NVIDIA TITAN RTX 24GB $ 2,499 $ 14.3 174.5 FPS
138.3 FPS
84.7 FPS
AMD Radeon VII 16GB $ 699 $ 5.2 133.9 FPS
103.5 FPS
61.9 FPS
AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT 8GB $ 379 $ 2.7 139.6 FPS
108.5 FPS
64.9 FPS
AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT 12GB $ 479 $ 2.9 167.7 FPS
130.4 FPS
77 FPS
AMD Radeon RX 6800 16GB $ 579 $ 2.9 199.3 FPS
153.8 FPS
92 FPS
AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT 16GB $ 649 $ 2.6 251.6 FPS
194.2 FPS
116.2 FPS
AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT 16GB $ 999 $ 3.7 267.2 FPS
206.3 FPS
123.4 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti 6GB $ 249 $ 2.4 105.1 FPS
79.4 FPS
48.3 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 12GB $ 329 $ 2.6 127.8 FPS
98.3 FPS
60.4 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti 8GB $ 399 $ 2.6 155.7 FPS
122.7 FPS
76.1 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 8GB $ 499 $ 2.6 190 FPS
145.9 FPS
88.7 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti 10GB $ 599 $ 2.8 213.2 FPS
164.9 FPS
102.1 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 10GB $ 699 $ 2.8 248.4 FPS
190.7 FPS
116 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti 20GB $ 799 $ 3.2 248.5 FPS
194.5 FPS
122.7 FPS
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 24GB $ 1,499 $ 5.3 285.1 FPS
218.8 FPS
133.1 FPS
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