The consumption of this processor is 142 W, and it has a TDP of 105Wwith a maximum limit temperature of 95 degrees centigrade In the processor itself we can find a graphics chip AMD Radeon Graphicswhich features two GPU cores running at a frequency of 2,200 MHz and a base GPU at 400 MHz.
As for the instructions supported by the processor, we find the typical AES, AMD-V, AVX, AVX2, AVX512, FMA3, MMX(+), SHA, SSE, SSE2, SSE3, SSE4.1, SSE4.2, SSE4A, SSSE3 and x86-64.
AMD Zen 4, the future is here
As we have said, this processor belongs to AMD’s Zen 4 architecture. But what exactly does this imply? The first thing that AMD presumes is a considerable improvement in the IPC, specifically 13% compared to Zen 3. Thanks to this it is possible to achieve frequencies up to 5.7 GHz using their 5nm lithography. Additionally, Zen 4 adds RDNA 2 integrated graphics and the ability to use more L2 cache.
For this to be possible, the manufacturer has had to sacrifice its classic socket (where the pins were on the processor) for the LGA, the same one used by Intel, where the pins are on the board and the processor only has the contacts. This is what is known as AM5, which, however, does not change the type of anchoring of the heatsinks.
This new architecture has also opened the door to new technologies, such as amd expo, the new automatic overclocking system for RAM memory equivalent to Intel’s XMP. Thanks to this, it is possible to go beyond the maximum 5,200 MHz that processors support for memory as standard and use, for example, 6,000 MHz memories like the ones we are going to use in this analysis. Thanks to EXPO we also achieved a remarkable memory performance in gaming, with a performance increase of around 11%.
How is the new AMD Ryzen 7 7700X
The new Ryzen 7, in general, do not come with a heatsink as standard, so we will have to buy it ourselves. Thus, what we find is a box, more or less small, that allows us to see the processor in question on the front.
When we open it, we can take out the plastic blister, inside which we find the processor, and an AMD Ryzen sticker.
Like its other two siblings, the IHS is symmetrical, but has two “holes” on each of its lateral faces. We do not know the reason for this design, but when it comes to maintaining the CPU, and changing the thermal paste, we must take this into account.
As we have explained, at the bottom we no longer have the typical pins that we found in PGA socket processors, but instead we find a flat surface, full of contacts. And this area is divided into two parts, interestingly enough.
For mounting, AMD has added two small holes on two of the sides of the PCB, as well as a triangle that will indicate where to place it.
Thoroughly testing the Ryzen 7 7700X
To test this processor and its performance, we are going to use the following components (the same ones we used to review the Ryzen 5 7600X and Ryzen 9 7900X at the time):
- ASRock X670E TAICHI motherboard.
- CORSAIR Vengeance RGB 32GB (2 × 16GB) 6000MHz DDR5 RAM (AMD EXPO Profile).
- SSD NVMe PCIe 4 TeamGroup Cardea Ceramic C440
- CORSAIR AX850 power supply.
- Arctic Liquid Freezer II 420 A-RGB liquid cooling.
- NVIDIA RTX 2080 SUPER graphics card.
- Windows 11 22H2 (2022 release)
The first thing we are going to see is the complete capture of the CPU-Zwhere we can know all the details of the processor, the board and the memory.
We are also going to take the opportunity to carry out a first performance test, being able to know with it both the performance in single-thread mode and in multi-thread mode.
We continue performance tests with two of the most popular programs to test the raw power of the processor: the Cinebench R20 and the Cinebench R23.
Now it is the turn of the NVMe SSD. AMD was the first to implement PCIe 4 on its platforms, and now with the new Ryzen 7000, AMD has opted to be the first to implement support for PCIe 5.0. And while there are no drives yet that are capable of maximizing these speeds, we can see PCIe 4.0 peaking when used with these processors.
We are also going to perform several synthetic tests. The first of them is 3DMark, and specifically we have used the two most representative tests: Time Spy and Fire Strike. With them we can see the performance of this processor in terms of gaming, and as we can see, the values obtained are outstanding, this processor being able to take full advantage of the graphics without getting disheveled.
We have also taken the opportunity to test the processor with the CPU Profile test. This test is designed to be able to see what the raw performance of the CPU is by putting the processor to the maximum and measuring its performance.
Now we are going to measure how well this processor performs with the memories. Let us remember that we have used CORSAIR DDR5 RAM, at 6,000 MHz, specially optimized for AMD with AMD EXPO. For this we have used the memory and cache benchmark of AIDA64seeing how, finally, AMD has solved the memory problems that have been dragging for so long.
We have also used the software SuperPI to measure the performance of the processor together with the RAM memory, performing complex calculations to calculate decimals of the number Pi.
And also WPrimeanother complex calculation software that allows us to measure, with other algorithms and other calculations, the potential of a processor.
We have also carried out performance tests with the famous compressor WinRAR to see how this CPU performs when compressing and decompressing files.
And, finally, we have put this processor to the test with two office use tests. On one hand, we have PCMarka software that puts the general computer to the test when carrying out all kinds of office tasks.
And on the other hand, cross markanother similar software that allows us to get an idea, from another point of view, of how the computer performs.
The overall performance of this Ryzen 7 7700X is fantastic across the board.
How about the temperature?
AMD processors are not characterized by being especially cool, but rather the opposite, and if we want to keep them at acceptable temperatures, it is necessary to have a good heatsink. We have used the Arctic Liquid Freezer II 420 A-RGB that we have already mentioned before, considering it a high-end liquid cooling, suitable for keeping this type of hot processor within acceptable temperatures.
To measure the temperature of this processor we have used AIDA64’s own stress and stability test. This allows us to put all the processor cores at 100% and also test stability with memory, cache, and other system elements.
As we can see, the temperature of this processor is around 81 degrees constant when maxed out, rising to 84 in some situations, but in the least. A temperature far from the 95 of the maximum specified by AMD, so we can use it without problems. Moreover, we must bear in mind that while we play we will never reach this maximum temperature, since not all the cores will be at 100% at the same time, so, in terms of temperature, this Ryzen 7 7700X complies.
Comparison with the Ryzen 5 7600X, Ryzen 9 7900X and Ryzen 9 7950X
After all the tests, where does this processor stand in terms of performance? In the first test that we have carried out, that of CPU-Z, this processor has been somewhere in the middle, as expectedbetween the Ryzen 5 7600X and the Ryzen 9 7900X. In the tests of a single core, the score obtained is somewhat lower than expected, but in the other tests we have, without a doubt, a performance within expectations.
In the Cinebench 20 tests, again, this processor is located where you would expect, between the same two processors as before.
If we look at the 3DMark tests, specifically the CPU Profile test, we realize that with all cores, 16 threads and 8 threads, the values we get are just as we expect them to be. However, if we look at the values of the single core, 2 threads or 4 threads tests, these values are somewhat lower than their brothers.
Moving on to the AIDA64 memory and cache tests, the values obtained have been a bit strange. And it is that, although the writing speed has been adequate, when we talk about the reading and copying speed, it has been lower than expected compared to that obtained with the Ryzen 5 7600X. Something similar has happened when this was reviewed, and compared to the 7900X. And it is most likely due to two factors, the first one is the core isolation of Windows 11, and the second one is that the AIDA64 tests have not yet been optimized for these CPUs.
We are also going to compare the time it has taken to calculate the 32 million decimal places of Pi with SuperPi, where it has achieved a very good value.
And also the realization of complex calculations with wPrime where, again, it has stood out.
Finally, we are going to see a comparison of the temperature of this processor at full capacity, and we will compare it with the temperature obtained with the other AMD Ryzen 7000 processors analyzed.
gaming performance
To see how this CPU performs when gaming, we’ve put the processor to the test with three of the most popular games. The first of them has been Shadow of the Tomb Raiderin maximum quality, getting about 149 FPS on average.
Second, we have loaded the game Assassin’s Creed Valhallaalso in maximum quality, again achieving outstanding data: 84 FPS on average.
And finally, we have installed the demanding Cyberpunk 2077also in Ultra quality with Ray Tracing, and in this case we have achieved an average of 49.41 FPS.
Conclusion: is it worth betting on the new Ryzen 7?
AMD has been behind Intel for a long time, but this time, it has finally managed to overtake it. The new Ryzen 7 7700X solves the big problems that the manufacturer has been dragging for a long time: memory problems and the performance/price ratio.
This is an excellent processor for all types of users. A CPU capable of looking at any Intel Core i7, but for 100 euros less (comparing the price with the Intel Core i7 13700K). In addition, the use of DDR5 RAM and the new PCIe 5.0 standard guarantee that we will have a computer for a long time, a computer that, if we accompany it with a good graphics card, we will be able to use it for a long time to play all kinds of games. .
If there is any problem with this processor, we can talk about the fact that, after several generations, it is finally necessary to change the motherboard and RAM, since it is not compatible with the AM4 architecture. So making the jump to the AMD Ryzen 7000 series means buying at least a new processor, board, and RAM, plus probably a new heatsink or liquid cooling solution.
For all this, we have decided to give this processor our platinum award, especially highlighting its performance.
