Can You Fake a CPU Review? We Built Our Own Ryzen 7 7700X3D

PCGH processor reviews use an internally developed benchmark suite. The suite was developed in collaboration with our specialist editors and incorporates insights from more than one million benchmark runs. The suite combines selected games and applications capable of evaluating a processor from several different perspectives.

Our gaming benchmarks follow one key principle: all tests are conducted at the lowest possible 16:9 resolution with maximum detail settings. This includes an upsampling method of our choice, such as DLSS in Ultra Performance mode, resulting in an effective resolution of just 427 × 240 pixels—around one ninth of the original resolution, or 102,480 pixels.

We are well aware that this methodology is controversial, as many consider higher resolutions more representative of real-world use: "Nobody plays at 720p." However, the purpose of a CPU benchmark is to isolate processor performance as much as possible. To do so, other potential bottlenecks must be minimised. In practice, the graphics card is the main concern.

The PCGH CPU Benchmark Suite

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Der PCGH-CPU-Index ist eine umfangreiche Sammlung aus Tests, Benchmarks, Bewertungskriterien und Excel-Formeln. Wir erklären Ihnen in diesem Artikel, wie wir Prozessoren testen und fair bewerten. Mithilfe dieser Informationen ist es Ihnen möglich, unsere Benchmarks nachzustellen.

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Our selection focuses primarily on modern 3D games. We select games according to several criteria, with engine diversity being one of the most important. Unreal Engine, for example, is among the most widely used engines because it allows even smaller development teams to produce visually convincing results comparatively quickly.

The CPU index is designed not only to quantify performance differences between processors, but also to reveal what causes them. For that reason, the suite covers 15 different graphics engines rather than relying on a single one. Each game has its own characteristics and responds differently depending on a processor's design.

AMD's 3D V-Cache is a prominent example. Many games scale exceptionally well with the additional L3 cache, while others barely benefit. This allows us to assess how relevant such a feature is for PC gamers.

Core count is another example. Core count is another important variable, whether a processor has four cores or 64. The suite also provides insight into single-threaded performance, inter-core latency, scheduler behaviour, affinity issues, efficiency, system responsiveness and the influence of memory performance and the integrated memory controller.

The PCGH CPU Test Systems

Benchmarks: Games

As usual, we begin by analysing gaming performance. This is generally the most important area for a processor equipped with 3D V-Cache, and the same applies to our Ryzen 7 7700X3D simulation. Like the 7800X3D, it has 96 MiB of L3 cache available to accelerate games.

The benchmark results reveal a clear pattern: the new eight-core model almost always places between the 7800X3D and 7600X3D. AMD failed to establish such a clear hierarchy with the previous generation, where a Ryzen 5 5600X3D is often faster than a Ryzen 7 5700X3D because of its higher boost clock.

The results contain few surprises: the simulated processor behaves like a lower-clocked Ryzen 7 7800X3D. Anything else would have been unexpected. That basic performance relationship can be predicted with reasonable confidence even without a retail sample. If two CPUs are identical apart from their clock speeds, why should they behave differently in any area other than performance?

Benchmarks: Applications

The application results follow a similar pattern. Here, our simulated 7700X3D is closer to the Ryzen 5 9600X, while an Intel Core Ultra 5 225F occasionally comes surprisingly close.

The 7800X3D was already not a processor bought primarily for productivity workloads. With a boost clock reduced by 500 MHz, the 7700X3D can only be slower. Its eight cores and 16 threads remain perfectly adequate for gaming, but are less competitive in heavily threaded productivity workloads.

CPU Index

In the overall CPU index, the simulated 7700X3D finishes in the upper-middle portion of the field. That is not a poor result for an architecture that debuted almost four years ago, but it is only possible in combination with 3D V-Cache.

Gaming accounts for 60 percent of the overall score. With a gaming-index result of 78.6 percent, the processor comfortably outperforms almost every Intel desktop CPU. Only Intel's two fastest desktop models can match its gaming result, despite having roughly three times the core count and drawing almost three times as much power.

The enormous raw performance of that many cores is naturally reflected in the application index. In application workloads, however, the additional cache cannot compensate for the processor's lower clock speed and limited core count. With a score of 44.5 percent, AMD's CPU is closer to the Ryzen 5 9600X than to its larger 7800X3D sibling. Assuming our simulation is accurate, the final overall score is 62.6 percent.

Having examined performance, we can now turn to efficiency. Even without a sample, we can measure power consumption. In theory, our lower-clocked 7800X3D should trade some performance for reduced voltage and power consumption, resulting in better performance per watt. The measurements show whether that assumption holds true.

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PCGH Tests the Ryzen 7 7700X3D Without a Review Sample — Can You Even Do That? On this page, our self-made Ryzen 7 7700X3D has to show what it can do. The test covers more than 20 games and applications and includes its placement in the CPU index.

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1. Page 1 Overview
2. Page 2 Benchmarks
3. Page 3 Efficiency and Conclusion