Ryzen 7 9700X vs Ryzen 9 7900X: Our Recommendation

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Uzair Qureshi

At Tech4Gamers, I proudly wear the title of Comparisons Specialist. Focused on CPUs and GPUs, I bring forth a wealth of hands-on experience and a keen eye for detail to provide our audience with the latest insights and analyses.

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Pros And Cons

Comparison Table

Architectural Differences

1. Core Count: The Ryzen 7 9700X has 8 cores that total 16 threads, while the 7900X has 12 cores that total 24 threads, giving it the edge in core count.
2. Clock Speed: The Ryzen 9 7900X has a base clock of 4.7GHz, and a boost clock of 5.6GHz, which is higher than the 3.8GHz base and 5.5GHz boost of the 9700X.
3. L3 Cache: The 7900X has a 64-megabyte L3 cache buffer, which is double the size of the 32-megabyte buffer of the Ryzen 7 9700X.
4. TDP: The 7900X’s PL2 TDP is 230 watts, whereas the 9700X consumes under half the power, with a PL2 TDP of around 88 watts.
5. Process Node: The Ryzen 7 9700X has a process size of 4nm, whereas the 7900X has slightly older 5nm processing nodes.

The Ryzen 7 usually tries to be better than the best of the last generation. In the Ryzen 7 9700X vs. Ryzen 9 7900X comparison, we will look at whether AMD achieved this with its Ryzen 9000 series of processors and whether it is worth your money.

Gaming Benchmarks – 1080p

Our focus on this website is mostly towards the gaming performance of hardware, which is why we have constructed a powerful test suite of games run on consistent hardware between the processors, the specifications of which are listed below:

Test Bench

• OS – Windows 11 
• RAM – V-Color Manta XPrism RGB DDR5 7200MHz 32GB RAM
• CPU Cooler – Noctua NH-D9L chromax.black
• Graphics Card – GIGABYTE RTX 4090 Gaming OC 24G
• SSD – XPG Gammix S70 Blade 2TB NVMe
• Power Supply – DeepCool PX1000G ATX3.0 PSU

Baldur’s Gate 3

• The Ryzen 7 9700X lost in our test of Baldur’s Gate 3, with an average framerate of 115 FPS; it was around 5% behind the 121 FPS of the Ryzen 9 7900X.
• The 7900X won by around 2% in our readings of the 1% lows as well, with framerate of 87 FPS instead of the slightly lower 85 FPS that the 9700X rendered.

The Last Of Us

• Our test of The Last Of Us showed an average framerate of 178 FPS on the 7900X, around 4.7% higher than the 170 FPS of the Ryzen 7 9700X.
• The Zen 4 processor also won in terms of 1% lows, with a framerate of 128 FPS, around 6.6% higher than the 120 FPS of the Ryzen 7 9700X.

Cyberpunk 2077

• Night City ran better on the newer chip, with an average framerate of 152 FPS in our testing, which was a substantial 8.6% higher than the 140 FPS of the Ryzen 9 7900X.
• Minimum framerates also favored the Zen 5 processor, which a framerate of 115 FPS instead of the 108 FPS that the Ryzen 9 7900X rendered, constituting a 6.5% difference.

Hogwarts Legacy

• Our testing of Hogwarts Legacy showed a small difference. The 9700X averaged 110 FPS, which was 1.8% slower than the 7900X’s 112 FPS.
• The 1% lows were tied between the two chips, with both processors getting a framerate of 77 FPS in the hard-to-render moments in this game.

Assetto Corsa Competizione

• The 9700X took quite a lead in this game with an average framerate of 167 FPS, beating out the 151 FPS of the 7900X by around 10.5%.
• The 1% lows had a difference of around 5.5%, with the 9700X lowering to around 135 FPS in our testing, whereas the 7900X went down to around 128 FPS.

Spider-Man Remastered

• New York’s favorite super hero swung better on the 7900X with a framerate of 173 FPS, beating out the 9700X’s 153 FPS by around 13%.
• The older chip took a 9% win when it came to the minimum framerates in our test of Spider-Man Remastered, with a framerate of 130 FPS, while the 9700X hung around 119 FPS.

Starfield

• Testing Starfield at 1080p gave a 8.6% advantage to the Zen 4 processor with an average framerate of 114 FPS, instead of the 105 FPS of the newer 9700X. 
• The older chip took the lead in the 1% lows as well, with a framerate of 90 FPS, it beat the 85 FPS of the 9700X by around 6%.

A Plague Tale: Requiem

• Finally, the last test of our suite showed a lead of 18% for the 9700X, with an average framerate of 151 FPS, whereas the 7900X had an average framerate of 128 FPS.
• The difference grew to 30% in our reading of the 1% lows, with a framerate of 116 FPS for the Ryzen 7 9700X, whereas the Ryzen 9 7900X had a framerate of around 89 FPS.

Overall Gaming Performance

Average FPS

The results from all the games we tested showed a difference of around 0.54%, with the 9700X having a tiny advantage. The processors exchanged punches in the tested games, with the win going to the 9700X a few times and a few times to the 7900X.

1% Lows

The difference in the minimum framerates was a bit larger but still not substantial. We measured a difference of around 1.8%, with the 9700X being in the lead. Once again, the results bounced between one processor and the other in the games that we tested.

The performance of these chips is about equivalent, which leaves the other factors to decide the viability of these chips. 

Power Consumption

The 9700X kept its promise of excellent power consumption, even compared to the already great 7900X. In our tests, we measured the 7900X to take around 26% more power than the 9700X, a remarkable feat considering that both chips perform equivalently.

Temperatures

There was barely any difference in the temperatures of these two processors, with the 7900X being around 0.4% hotter than its rival. Neither processor heated more than was expected, and both maintained a similar and safe temperature range.

Price And Availability

According to our research, the Ryzen 9 7900X and the Ryzen 7 9700X are both equivalently priced, with only a 2.65% difference in price at the time of writing this article. Both chips should be available at any computer store near you.

What We Recommend

Ryzen 9 7900X: After a long series of tests, we found that this chip’s price and performance are identical to those of the Ryzen 7 9700X, with the core count, age, and power consumption being the only differences. The used market might yield this processor to be cheaper than we mentioned.

Ryzen 7 9700X: This processor performed well in our testing, with a performance equivalent to a processor with 50% more cores from a few years ago, all while consuming significantly less power. Overclocking might result in a significant difference in power between the two.

Now that we’ve gone through all the nitty-gritty details of the Ryzen 7 9700X vs Ryzen 9 7900X comparison, it is clear that the 7900X might be great for people who can find it for a bargain, while the 9700X might have some hidden potential that can propel it higher.

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Uzair Qureshi

[Comparisons Specialist]

I’m a passionate computer hardware expert specializing in CPUs and GPUs. With a lifelong curiosity for hardware and extensive hands-on experience, I provide valuable insights, practical advice, and in-depth analysis on these components. Engaging with the hardware community, I exchange knowledge and stay at the forefront of technological advancements.

Get In Touch: uzair@tech4gamers.com