AMD Ryzen 7000: Specifications and features

The AMD Ryzen 7000 series, codename “Raphael” processors, is AMD’s new series of processors. At an event in August, the company officially released details of the first four CPUs in this series, which will be available by late September 2022. AMD claims that this new processor series will change the CPU market, delivering top speed and performance aligned with AMD’s benchmarks.

The four CPUs expected on the release date include the following;

  • Ryzen 9 7950X;
  • Ryzen 9 7900X;
  • Ryzen 7 7700X; and
  • Ryzen 5 7600X.

These chips will only be available on desktops but will eventually roll out to all platforms. AMD claims these new CPUs will take gaming and content creation performance to new levels.

Key specs

AMD released several details about the processors in its 7000 series lineup. The new chips boast the world’s first 5 nm processor and operate on the Zen 4 core architecture, boosting the performance in various regards. In addition, the new processors come with the latest PCIe Gen 5 and DDR5 memory compatibility to increase raw performance.

AMD’s frontrunner chip, the Ryzen 9 7950X, is a performance beast, with an impressive 16 cores, 32 threads, higher clock speeds (up to 5.7 GHz!), and a 13% improvement in IPC through the Zen 4 architecture, resulting in a 29% improvement in single-threaded performance and a 45% improvement in multi-threaded performance-per-watt over the previous-gen Ryzen chips. The Ryzen 7000 chips also integrate Radeon RDNA 2 graphics and AVX-512-based support for AI instructions.

The specifications for each Ryzen 7000 series processor are outlined below:

  1. Ryzen 9 7950X
    • 16 cores
    • 32 threads
    • Clock speeds: 4.5 GHz base, 5.7 GHz max boost
    • 80Mb cache
    • TDP: 170W, 230W max
  2. Ryzen 9 7900X
    • 12 cores
    • 24 threads
    • Clock speeds: 4.7 GHz base, 5.6 GHz max boost
    • 76Mb cache
    • TDP: 170W, 230W max
  3. Ryzen 7 7700X
    • 8 cores
    • 16 threads
    • Clock speeds: 4.5 GHz base, 5.4 GHz max boost
    • 40Mb cache
    • TDP: 105W
  4. Ryzen 5 7600X
    • 6 cores
    • 12 threads
    • Clock speed: 4.7 GHz base, 5.3 GHz max boost
    • 38Mb cache
    • TDP: 105W

Other general features across all models include:

  • Two 5nm Zen 4 CPU modules
  • 6nm I/O die
  • PCIe 5.0 controllers
  • DDR5-5200 memory, providing up to 125% more memory bandwidth per core
  • RDNA 2 integrated GPU
  • AM5 Socket LGA 1718, backward compatible with AM4 coolers
  • 600-Series Chipset: X670E Extreme, X670, B650E Extreme, and B650 Motherboards
  • AI Support via AVX-512 VNNI

With these fantastic features, it is easy to see the rationale behind AMD’s claims of significant performance gains over the previous generation of AMD chips and other competing brands. For example, AMD claims that the Ryzen 9 7950X and Ryzen 5 7600X are respectively 11% and 5% faster in gaming than the Core i9-12900K, intel’s fastest CPU. Furthermore, AMD claims that the Ryzen 9 7950X provides 57% better content creation performance than intel’s Core i9-12900K and, more importantly, more power efficient. AMD claims that the 7950X has about 47% more power efficiency than Intel’s i9-12900K, reducing overheating in desktops and improving laptop battery life. However, the validity of these claims can only be tested upon the release of these state-of-the-art CPUs.

See also: Intel vs AMD

Difference between the Ryzen 5000 and Ryzen 7000

AMD redefined the CPU market with its Ryzen 5000 series and has grown more dominant. With the Ryzen 7000, AMD is looking to outrank all of its competition and sit comfortably at the top of the market.

To that end, the AMD Ryzen 7000 features many significant upgrades from the Ryzen 5000. These include:

Use of 5 nm Process

While the Ryzen 5000 processors are constructed on a 7nm process, the 7000 series are built upon the new TSMC 5nm process. Constructing a CPU on a smaller-sized process means more transistors with the CPU. Transistors are the fundamental computer circuitry units responsible for completing complex calculations. The more transistors a CPU has, the faster and more efficient the CPU is at completing calculations. Thus, the smaller 5 nm processes used in the Ryzen 7000 series allows more transistors to be loaded into the CPU in stores, making a more powerful CPU.

Increased IPC in the 7000 Series 

The Instructions Per Clock (IPC) measures how many instructions a CPU can complete per cycle. In essence, it is a measure of the speed of the CPU and relates to the number of transistors hosted on the CPU cores.

Compared to the 5000 series CPUs, the Ryzen 7000 series has a 13% IPC gain, meaning that each core in the Ryzen 7000 CPUs can calculate 13% more information per cycle than those in the 5000 series CPUs.

New Socket Architecture

The most significant change between these two Ryzen CPU generations is the difference in the motherboard socket architecture. The Ryzen 7000 processors are only compatible with the AM5 platform, which uses the LGA (land grid array) architecture. The LGA socket is characterized by higher pin density, allowing it to carry more features, such as the PCIe Gen 5 interface.

Improved RAM through DDR5 Memory

Another significant change in the Ryzen 7000 is the use of DDR5 memory on the AM5 motherboards, making the series 7000 Ryzen CPUs DDR5 exclusive processors. The use of DDR5 memory will significantly increase the cost of the Ryzen 7000 processors.

New Memory Profile

The AMD EXPO is the new memory profile used in AMD Ryzen 7000 and is basically AMD’s version of Intel’s XMP memory profile. The EXPO kits are specifically optimized for Ryzen 7000 processors and offer up to an 11% increase in performance.

Integrated GPUs

All processors in the Ryzen 7000 series have an RDNA 2-powered iGPU. This means there will be no need to buy a GPU component for any Ryzen 7000 processor you get, nor will there be a release of any ‘G’ variants of the 7000 series.

Increased Power Consumption 

Another significant change in the Ryzen 7000 CPUs, which you must consider closely before opting for this new powerhouse, is the power consumption. The new generation Ryzen CPUs boast a substantial increase in power over the previous-gen CPUs, leading to an increase in TDP.

For example, there is a two-fold increase in TDP between the 7950X and the 5950X, which have the same core counts. Thus, you have to ensure that you have the power supply to handle the increased power consumption by the 7000 series.

Increased Cache 

In line with expectations, AMD has increased the cache in the series 7000 processors to keep up with the improved CPU performance. While the 5000 CPUs boast only a 512kb cache, the 7000 series features 1MB of L2 cache.

The more cores a CPU has, the higher the cache needed to keep the hearts operating smoothly. However, the series 7000 processors have the same core counts as the series 5000 processors but do not have the same performance. Thus, the increased cache helps to bolster the performance of the series 7000 processors rather than feed more cores.

Should you upgrade to AMD’s Ryzen 7000 series soon?

One thing is clear, the AMD Ryzen 7000 series is a game changer in the CPU market and may help AMD cement its place at the top of a highly competitive market. The Ryzen 7000 comes in to replace the Ryzen 5000, which has been on the market for about two years and has plummeted in price.

As we’ve seen, the Ryzen 7000 vastly outperforms the 5000 series. However, this improved performance comes at a cost. (launch prices placed in parenthesis)

Ryzen 9 7950X- $699 | Ryzen 9 5950X – $546 ($799)

Ryzen 9 7900X – $549 | Ryzen 9 5900X – $398 ($549)

Ryzen 7 7700X$399 | Ryzen 7 5700X – $268 ($299)

Ryzen 7 5700X$268 ($299) | Ryzen 7 5600X- $199 ($299)

As we can see, the 7000 series processors are more costly than the current prices of their counterparts in the 5000 series. Therefore, it creates a cost-benefit dilemma.

If you’re looking for a good processor which offers high performance with budget-friendliness, the series 5000 is an ok bet. However, if you desire the best performance processors with the latest features and don’t mind breaking the bank, the Ryzen 7000 will surely be worth every penny.