16:47Machine-translated from Azerbaijani by AIRead in Azerbaijani
Unreleased 12-Core AMD Ryzen 9 5900X3D Processor Surfaces
An engineering sample of AMD’s unreleased Ryzen 9 5900X3D processor has surfaced. The Zen 3 chip, designed for the AM4 platform, has 12 cores and 24 threads. The processor also has 128 MB of L3 cache. L3 cache stores frequently used data and helps games run faster. Had it been released, the model could have been a powerful choice for both gaming and productivity applications. The processor’s thermal rating is listed as 105 W, but AMD has not confirmed this figure.
AMD had actually shown this processor at Computex in 2021. The company compared the 12-core 3D chiplet prototype with the standard Ryzen 9 5900X. When both processors ran at 4 GHz, the prototype delivered results that were up to 15% higher on average in games. Despite this, the model never became an official product.
The sample that surfaced has twice as much L3 cache as the standard Ryzen 9 5900X. To achieve this, 64 MB of 3D V-Cache was added to one of the processor’s 2 CCDs. A CCD is an internal block that groups processor cores together. The CPU-Z screenshot also shows a clock speed of 4,649 MHz. If this was the processor’s boost clock, the final figure could have been 4.7 GHz. That would be just 100 MHz lower than the standard model.
AMD also tested other configurations in the lab. Another 12-core prototype was seen with 64 MB of 3D cache added to each of its 2 CCDs, giving it a total of 192 MB of L3 cache. A similar 192 MB configuration was also used on a 16-core Zen 3 chip. Had those models been released, they could have been named Ryzen 9 5900X3D and Ryzen 9 5950X3D.
The company ultimately launched the Ryzen 7 5800X3D instead of the 12-core and 16-core prototypes. This processor has 8 cores and 96 MB of L3 cache. Its single-CCD configuration reduced latency between blocks in games, while the large cache increased performance. AMD later adopted the multi-block 3D cache approach with Zen 4 and subsequent generations. These models include the Ryzen 9 7900X3D and Ryzen 9 7950X3D. The list also includes the Ryzen 9 9900X3D and Ryzen 9 9950X3D.
Adding 3D cache to multiple CCDs is beneficial in productivity applications, but does not provide the same advantage in games. Latency between blocks, heat and power constraints can lower a processor’s clock speed. As a result, the 12-core Ryzen 9 9900X3D falls behind the 8-core Ryzen 7 9800X3D in games. The 16-core Ryzen 9 9950X3D, meanwhile, delivers gaming results close to those of that model.