AMD Ryzen 5 3600X - Benchmarking The New Gaming CPU Champion
We have witnessed one of the most important releases in recent years when it comes to PC components and I saw how two titans like Intel and Nvidia were beaten by a single competitor. The AMD Ryzen 5 3600X continues the trend, being a processor designed to fight side by side with Intel's Core i5 series on the gaming builder market.
Ryzen 5 3600X Specifications
Ryzen 5 3600X is a powerful processor, don't get me wrong, but compared to the rest of the generation it was launched in, it's the most boring one. Therefore, we have an 7nm Zen 2 architecture, 6 cores/12 threads and a base frequency of 3.8Ghz with boost up to 4.4Ghz. The cache is also smaller, totaling 3 + 32MB (L2 + L3 Cache), all coming in a package with a TDP of 95W.
Personally, I think these specifications are perfect for a gaming processor and clearly show the direction chosen by AMD for the Ryzen 5 3600X. Smaller number of cores, with high frequencies compared to previous generations and a 95W TDP, which even though it is larger than the Ryzen 7 3700X, it indicates to me that there is a enough headroom for overclocking.
The Testing Platform
To test the Ryzen 5 3600X I used a configuration that looks like this (I’ve added the complete list of parts used with their prices from amazon if you are courious for how much the test system costs):
AMD Ryzen 5 3600X
ROG Crosshair VIII Hero Wi-Fi
G.Skill Trident Z Royal Gold 16GB 3600Mhz Dual-Channel
AMD Radeon RX 5700XT
Samsung 970 PRO M.2 512GB SSD
Seasonic Prime 850 Ultra Titanium 850W
The test suite contains results from three different benchmarks and three games tested at 1080p with the settings lowered to the LOW preset to move the load from the video card, on to the processor, which takes the hard time when we want to get big framerates.
I chose to compare the Ryzen 5 3600X with two processors: the AMD Ryzen 7 3700X, perhaps the best processor in the third generation when it comes to price / quality and Ryzen 7 2700X, the processor that meant for AMD, the spearhead of the previous generation. Cooling was the one included in the package, only this time it's an AMD Wraith Spire cooler. No overclocking was performed. We want to see what the Ryzen 5 3600X is capable of right of the box.
The Results
Let’s start with synthetic CPU benchmarks, and for this I used Cinebench and PC Mark 10.
For gaming tests I chose Metro Exodus, Assasin’s Creed Odyssey and Forza Horizon 4 and the results have exceeded my expectations.
The test results were a real surprise for me and a very pleasant one as the Ryzen 5 3600X came very close to 2700X in multi-core tasks and left it behind in single-core. Also, in gaming, it was as good as the Ryzen 7 3700X, while the 2700X stayed behind again. Initially I didn't expect it, but apparently, this little Ryzen processor exceeded my expectations.
Conclusion time then
The third generation Ryzen processors managed to tilt the balance a lot in favor of AMD and offered PC enthusiasts some really great products. The AMD Ryzen 5 3600X has become, in my eyes, the perfect gaming processor and its potential is even greater as the 95W TDPs are sure to conceal a nice headroom for overclocking, so individual performance per core will be further enhanced.
Still, I think the best processor of this generation is the AMD Ryzen 7 3700X, which has almost equal performance with the i9 9900K in multi-core tasks and catches it on the gaming side, all at an unbeatable price, but for people who want only the best possible performance in games without taking exorbitant amounts out of pocket, a Ryzen 5 3600X is the best option from my perspective.
As an amazon associate we earn a comission from qualified purchases. Please read our affiliate links policy for more details.
