This is the one we've been waiting for: the first true gaming chip of AMD's new Zen 5 processor range. We all knew this Ryzen 7 9800X3D was coming—back when the Ryzen 9000-series CPUs launched in August there was a notable alphanumeric string missing in the list of Ryzen 9 9950X, Ryzen 9 9900X, and Ryzen 7 9700X. This chip was obvious by its omission, as it was by the performance and reception of the mighty Ryzen 7 7800X3D in the last generation. Thankfully we've not had to wait as long to see this new cache-heavy gaming CPU land in our lab, coming hot on the heels of the not-so-popular Zen 5 chips.
The 3D V-Cache feature, a tacked-on extra layer of L3 cache essentially designed to improve gaming performance, has now reached its second-generation stage. And, while that does make the Ryzen 7 9800X3D a much better chip, it might also somewhat devalue its position as the de facto processor if you want peak performance from your PC on all counts.
