It’s been about four years since AMD launched the Ryzen 7000 Series and yet, this year, it’s launched the Ryzen 7 7700X3D. Yeap, instead of a new CPU made from its more current Zen 5 architecture, the company has chosen instead to release a CPU based on an architecture a generation before.
I’m sure you have a lot of questions, but there is honestly not a lot to say that you wouldn’t already know about the Zen 4 architecture that we’ve covered extensively in so many reviews. But let’s just go through the motion here.
What Am I Looking At?
As I said, the 7700X3D is a CPU made from the Zen 4 architecture that AMD first introduced all the way back in 2022. At the time, it was also when the red chipmaker officially ditched its old AM4 chipset design and embraced its new AM5 chipset and, along with it, the transition from PGA to LGA.
As the moniker suggests, the 7700X3D is a 3D V-Cache, and the 4th such CPU to be added to the lineup, after the 7800X3D, 7900X3D, and 7950X3D.
The 7700X3D is officially the X3D CPU at the tail-end of the 7000X3D series. It’s like the 7800X3D; same TDP, same L3 Cache, same Zen 4 cores. However, it’s slower by 500MHz in its boost clock, topping out at 4.5GHz.
Testbench
My testbench for the 7700X3D remains unchanged since my last review of an AMD Ryzen CPU, which was the Ryzen 7 9850X3D. Additionally, to keep things fair, I reached out to some friends to procure a 7700X CPU, in order to gauge how much dips and gains the new processor has compared to its non-X3D counterpart.
On that note, I will disclose that while I have included said CPUs in some of the graphs, the gaming graphs will primarily be comparing the 7700X3D against the 7700X and 9950X only, simply because I don’t have the 9850X3D or 9800X3D in my possession at the time.
What’s Good About It?
The 7700X3D is an X3D CPU based on the Zen 4 architecture, which means that it is still compatible with current AM5 chipset motherboards.
Compared to its non-X3D counterpart, the 7700X3D runs cooler, literally, with the CPU never actually pushing past the 75°C threshold, while the 7700X was hitting 93°C on the same workloads. That is perfectly normal for processors, but doing the apple-to-apple comparison, I’d obviously choose the CPU that knows how to better maintain its cool, literally as well.
And as for gaming, the discrepancy between the two CPUs are like the sun and moon. In Battlefield 6, the 7700X3D manages to hit the 1000 fps average. Granted, it’s at Full HD resolution, but even at 1440p, the game registers an average of 800 fps.
In 007 First Light, the 7700X3D maintained an average of 500 fps across the board, outpacing its non-X3D sibling by more than 100 fps on average. The same can also be said with Doom The Dark Ages, especially with the Revelations DLC, with the CPU pushing the frame well beyond the 600 fps barrier in 1440p.
The only title that is the exception is Cyberpunk 2077, which is surprising; I honestly believed that the CPU would eke out more than its non-X3D counterpart, and instead matched it virtually frame for frame.
What’s The Catch?
Honestly? As much as I am trying to find a point to bash the 7700X3D on performance, I can’t quite find one. From the viewpoint of its price tag, I definitely have a fair bit to say: at an MSRP of US$329 (~RM1,344), retailers here are going to sell it at a higher price than that.
And considering that the Ryzen 7 7800X3D, which is still being widely sold at local PC shops, retails at around the RM1,300 mark, they’re either going to have to bump up the price or run the risk of taking a loss by selling it as a value lower than MSRP.
Oh, and of course, because it’s technically from the previous generation of 3D V-Cache processors, there will be no manual overclocking available.
Should I Buy It?
My utterly and completely diplomatic answer at this stage is yes, you should consider the Ryzen 7 7700X3D, as there technically isn’t anything wrong with the CPU. At the end of the day, it’s still very serviceable and like all X3D CPUs, it handles gaming without even breaking a sweat. That, and you’re not planning on overclocking or undervolting the CPU, in which case, you’re in good hands.
On the other side of the spectrum, if you’re adamant about investing in a Ryzen 7000X3D series CPU this late into the game, I would still recommend you pump that money into a 7800X3D. At this point, it’s still the CPU with better value for your money, offering higher boost clocks and better gaming performance overall. Of course, if you were really serious, you’d be looking at the Ryzen 7 9800X3D instead.
