AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D Linux Performance: Zen 5 with 3D V-Cache Test

Ahead of tomorrow's availability of the AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D processor as the first Zen 5 CPU with 3D V-Cache, the review embargo is lifted today. Here's a look at how this 8-core/16-thread Zen 5 CPU with 64MB 3D V-Cache performs on Ubuntu Linux compared to a variety of other Intel Core and AMD Ryzen desktop processors.

The previously introduced AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D is AMD's first processor to use 2nd generation 3D V-Cache. The 64MB cache is now located under the processor cores, positioning the CCD closer to the heatsink/cooler for more efficient cooling compared to previous X3D models.

The AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D accelerates up to 5.2 GHz and has a base clock of 4.7 GHz while offering a total of 104 MB of cache. As with the previous 8-core Ryzen 7 7800X3D, all eight cores have access to the 64MB 3D V-cache. The Ryzen 7 9800X3D has a standard TDP of 120 watts. AMD's suggested price for the Ryzen 7 9800X3D is $479.

The AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D works with existing AMD AM5 motherboards with a simple BIOS update. For my testing, after a simple BIOS update, I was able to use the ASUS ROG STRIX X670E-E GAMING WIFI motherboard, previously used for all Ryzen 9000 series testing. AMD also shipped an ASRock X870E Taichi motherboard as part of the test kit. For these 9800X3D benchmarks, I initially have both on the ASUS ROG STRIX motherboard

Likewise, the AMD test kit for the Ryzen 7 9800X3D also included 2 x 16GB DDR5-6000 GSKILL F5-6000J2836G16G memory modules. This 32GB DDR5-6000 memory kit features 28-36-36-96 timings in EXPO profile. The previously tested CPUs used 2 x 16GB DDR5-6000 GSKILL F5-6000J3038F16G DIMMs, whose timings are 30-38-38-96 in their EXPO profile. The AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D was tested with the same DIMMs as the other CPUs and then again with the new GSKILL DDR5-6000 CL28 memory modules from AMD. Due to the short test turnaround time, not all previous Ryzen 9000 series processors could be retested on the Almost 400 benchmarks were tested on each of the tested processors, which took more than a day to run.

The selection of processors tested for this AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D Linux launch day review included:

– Core i5 13600K
– Core i9 13900K
– Core i5 14400F
– Core i5 14500
– Core i5 14600K
– Core i9 14900K
– Core Ultra 5 245K
– Core Ultra 9 285K
– Ryzen 7 5800X
– Ryzen 7 5800X3D
– Ryzen 9 5900X
– Ryzen 9 5950X
– Ryzen 5 7600
– Ryzen 5 7600X
– Ryzen 5 8600G
– Ryzen 7 7700
– Ryzen 7 7700X
– Ryzen 7 7800X3D
– Ryzen 7 8700G
– Ryzen 9 7900
– Ryzen 9 7900X
– Ryzen 9 7900X3D
– Ryzen 9 7950X
– Ryzen 9 7950X3D
– Ryzen 5 9600X
– Ryzen 5 9600X at 105W cTDP
– Ryzen 7 9700X
– Ryzen 7 9700X at 105W cTDP
– Ryzen 9 9900X
– Ryzen 9 9950X
– Ryzen 7 9800X3D
– Ryzen 7 9800X3D – New DRAM
– Ryzen 7 9800X3D – New DRAM + X870E

As with the other AMD Ryzen 9000 series processors and the AMD EPYC 9005 server parts, the Ryzen 7 9800X3D worked without any issues on Ubuntu 24.04 LTS. Any modern Linux distribution should generally be suitable for the AMD Ryzen 9000 series processors. The only current limitation is that the AMD Zen 5 CPU performance reports require Linux 6.12+ if that's important to you, otherwise it's a simple one-line patch to backport.

Thank you to AMD for providing the Ryzen 7 9800X3D test kit for launch day Linux testing on Phoronix.