AMD’s highly anticipated Ryzen 9000X3D processors are scheduled to launch in late September, offering unprecedented gaming performance under $500. Unlike the existing 3D V-Cache CPUs, these chips will have an unlocked multiplier, allowing traditional core overclocking. A report from WCCFTech claims that AMD’s next-gen gaming processors will launch with full-fledged overclocking support.
If this rumor is true, the Ryzen 7 9800X3D and its siblings will be the first 3D V-Cache CPUs to include overclocking support. The Ryzen 7 7800X3D, 7900X3D, and 7950X3D, all support Precision Boost Overdrive, EXPO/XMP memory overclocking, and Curve Optimization but lack conventional multiplier-based overclocking.
AMD’s reasoning for blocking overclocking on these chips was rather simple. The 3D V-Cache die stacked on the base CCD drastically hinders heat dissipation. For the same reason, these chips also have a lower TDP (120W) and Tj max temperature limit of 89C, versus 170W and 95C on the rest of the Zen 4 SKUs.
The Ryzen 9000 processors are scheduled to launch on the 31st of July, followed by the Ryzen 9000X3D parts in September/October. AMD has admitted that the Ryzen 7 7800X3D is a better gaming CPU than the 9700X or the 9950X, but the performance deltas aren’t significant. Gamers are advised to wait for Intel’s Arrow Lake-S or the Zen 5 X3D lineup.