Now that the embargo of the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D finally lifted, I can talk about some of the finer details of the chipmaker’s top-of-the-line 3D V-Cache CPU.
Just like the 9800X3D, the 9950X3D has been juiced up with AMD’s second generation 3D V-Cache, offering consumers another high-octane option for their desktop PC. How much more, you ask? Keep reading to find out.
Specifications & Design
On paper, the 9950X3D is identical to its non-X3D counterpart, the differentiating point being the amount of L3 Cache. That said, it’s just double the amount of the standard 9950X at 128MB, and not triple the amount.
As it is a second generation 3D V-Cache, this also means that the 9950X3D is overclockable and the chiplets are seated directly beneath the CCD. I won’t spend too much time talking about this, as you can read the brief summary of the CPU in my CES 2025 coverage of it. But suffice it to say, little has changed in terms of the technology announced with the 9800X3D.
For another matter, the price for the 9950X3D was already announced by AMD: it’ll retail for US$699 (~RM3,089).
Testbench
To properly test the 9950X3D, I’m using the Crosshair X870E Hero motherboard provided by AMD, while the GPU is the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 FE that I reviewed earlier as a baseline.
I should also note that the company the gaming graphs in the next part do not include the metrics from the Core Ultra 9 285K. That is because this stupid git forgot to retest said CPU with the RTX 5090 FE but also because I didn’t have a Z890 motherboard in my lab at the time and with the addition of Monster Hunter Wilds to my list, I’ll add the results of said CPU into the graphs when I can.
Benchmark, Temperature, And Power Consumption
Usually, 3D V-Cache CPUs have a trend: they’re absolutely beasts in the gaming department but not quite as virile in the synthetic or productivity department. With the 9950X3D, that rule clearly gets thrown out the window. Unlike the 9800X3D – yes, I know I’m drawing a lot of comparisons from this CPU but to date, it’s the only 9000X3D processor I’ve tested – it blows its non-X3D counterpart out of the water in the synthetic benchmarks portion of the tests.
From the Physics and CPU tests in 3DMark to Blender, to the Cinebench suites, the 9950X3D either matches or dominates the 9950X. Honestly, I had expected it to be slower but that being said, this is likely the benefit of having 3D V-Cache active on all cores.
Gaming, surprisingly, is an avenue in which the 9950X3D seems to struggle a little. I say struggle but what I actually mean to say is that it doesn’t necessarily seem to pull ahead of its siblings by a considerable margin across the board.
In fact, the only titles where the AMD CPU pulls ahead are Cyberpunk 2077 and Monster Hunter Wilds and that is with all the visual tweaks like ray tracing, DLSS, and Frame Generation turned on. These are creature comforts at this point but it still gives an edge to the 9950X3D.
And while the 9950X3D also runs surprisingly cooler at full load than the 9950X and 7950X, it is surprisingly toasty when idle. On average, HWInfo clocked the processor idling at 44°C.
Conclusion
I never thought I’d be saying this but the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D has proven me wrong in that 3D V-Cache processors are first and foremost for gaming, and productivity second. Ultimately, this CPU exceeded all my expectations by beating out its non-X3D sibling across the board, and with a smile on its face.
However, at US$699 a pop, the 9950X3D is still undoubtedly a pricey little number. If you’re just looking to up your gaming and nothing else, I would still recommend you opt for the 9800X3D, especially if you’re coming from the 5800X3D or older. If you’re already in bed with a Ryzen 9000 Series CPU though, there are only two reasons I can see you jumping over to this CPU. One, you’re a megalomaniac, and two, you’ve clearly got too much disposable income to burn.
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