AMD has released a chipset driver, preparing the AM5 platform for the upcoming Ryzen 9000X3D processors. The Zen 5 X3D CPUs are expected to launch at CES 2025 next year, following the release of Intel’s Arrow Lake-S chips sometime later this year. The latest Ryzen chipset driver includes the 3D V-Cache Performance Optimizer v1.0.0.9 (up from v1.0.0.7) which likely brings the first updates for Zen 5 3 V-Cache. The update also adds support for Windows 11 24H2, Microsoft’s annual OS update.
According to AMD, the Ryzen 7800X3D should still be faster than the Ryzen 9 9700X and 9950X in gaming, but by a small margin. The chipmaker states that while its cutting-edge Zen 5 chips beat the fastest Intel part (the deep-fried Core i9-14900K), they fall short of the Zen 4 X3D offerings, namely the 7800X3D.
The logic behind this is relatively straightforward. Gaming workloads prefer lower latency above all else. By placing all the game code in the large L3 cache pool, the Ryzen 7 7800X3D allows developers to access latency-sensitive resources directly from the one common cache pool, instead of searching a different cache block or worse, the main memory. Though Zen 5 doubles the L1/L2 cache bandwidth, the L3 speeds are unchanged.
AMD’s Ryzen 7 7800X3D is going for $339 on Newegg and Amazon, $110 less than its launch price of $449. If you need a new CPU for your gaming rig, this is the chip to get. It’s fast, power efficient, and provides upgrade options with future Zen 5 X3D parts.
Via: @Harukaze.
