There are still Ryzen 1000 - 3000 series processors on sale, but the 4000 and 5000 models are still relevant. Among them are self-sufficient APUs with the G index, which have a built-in video card, no worse than budget discretes. So are classic CPUs with only computing cores and virtual threads, but in large numbers (up to 16-32 pieces), with progressive Zen 3 architecture and an energy-efficient 7nm process. We have selected five of the most interesting, in our opinion, AMD creations for different wallets and for different tasks — from eSports gaming to professional work.
AMD Ryzen 5 4600G is for the beginner eSports player
Reasons to buy: 6 cores and 12 threads, powerful iGPU Vega 7, FidelityFX Super Resolution upscaling.
Reasons not to buy: If you immediately have a discrete video card.
AMD Ryzen 5 4600G is a relatively inexpensive entry-level gaming or, more precisely, eSports processor. It is a self-sufficient solution, because in addition to 6 cores of the Zen 2 architecture and 12 threads, SMT also has a built-in graphics accelerator Radeon Vega 7. It is one of the most powerful iGPUs on the market and will remain so even after the release of Ryzen 7000 processors with only four clusters, albeit with a new architecture RDNA 2.
While the 4600G has as many as seven clusters of GCN 5 architecture micro-cores. With dual-channel high-frequency RAM, the Vega 7 is capable of running almost any modern game in native 720p resolution at least at low settings and a stable 30+ FPS. The exception is Cyberpunk 2077, which is extremely demanding, but FidelityFX Super Resolution smart upscaling technology helps with it. In addition to games, Vega 7 is capable of hardware video editing with H264 and H265 codecs, as well as playing VP9.
AMD Ryzen 5 5500 is for the frugal gamer
Reasons to buy: Zen 3 progressive architecture, 6 cores and 12 threads, memory up to 4266 MHz.
Reasons not to buy: Narrow PCIe 3.0 x8 video card bus.
AMD Ryzen 5 5500 - probably this processor is now the optimal partner for the popular Radeon RX 6600 video card. Unlike the budget 6500 XT with a narrow PCIe 4.0 x4 bus, it already has an x8 bus. And therefore the PCIe 3.0 x8 bus in the Ryzen 5 5500 will not become a bottleneck for the RX 6600. The advantages of the 5500 over the 4500 are several: first, it is the progressive architecture of Zen 3, which is about 15% faster than Zen 2.
Second, the Ryzen 5 5500 has a dual-channel 8+8MB L3 cache (16MB total), while the 4500 only has a single-channel 8MB. Thirdly, it is a lower operating temperature: up to 90 degrees Celsius against 95 in Ryzen 5 4500. Intelligent Precision Boost auto-overclocking technology on the fly adjusts the frequency under single and multi-threaded load. To get maximum performance depending on the cooling system: box mini cooler, tower super cooler or water cooler. Memory overclocking is also pleasing — up to 4266 MHz, and in synchronous mode.
AMD Ryzen 5 5600 — both play and work
Reasons to buy: PCIe 4.0 bus for graphics card and SSD, 6 cores and 12 threads, Zen 3 architecture.
Reasons not to buy: If you absolutely need an iGPU.
The AMD Ryzen 5 5600 is undoubtedly the most versatile processor on the market at the moment. It has 6 Zen 3 cores and 12 virtual threads and supports PCIe 4.0 bus. Thanks to this, it is able to pull out almost any, if not the flagship, then the pre-flagship video card for sure - up to and including the RX 6850 XT. The frequency is only slightly lower than that of the 5600X, but the price is significantly lower. The advantage is the single-chip structure, while older Ryzens lose some speed when exchanging data between two CCX chips.
The base frequency for the Ryzen 5 5600 is stated to be 3.5 GHz, and the auto-overclocking for one core is 4.4 GHz. Most of the time, under gaming load, the processor works at a frequency of exactly 4 GHz. But through simple manipulations from the BIOS settings menu, the frequency of all cores can be increased to a maximum of 4.4 GHz. At the same time, power consumption and heat output will increase from 65 to 100 W, but any motherboard with VRM radiators and even a three-tube tower cooler will cope with this.
AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D is a Counter-Strike champion
Reasons to buy: The highest FPS in games, a large 3D cache of 96 MB, 8 cores and 16 threads.
Reasons not to buy: RAM only up to 3800 MHz.
The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D is the fastest gaming processor on the market, thanks to a massive 96MB L3 cache soldered on top of the main die. The advantage is especially strong in Counter-Strike Global Offensive (500 FPS against 400 for the nearest pursuer) and Total War. The latter is equally demanding on single-core performance and multithreading, because it depicts a large number of ancient warriors on the map, each with a unique face and chain mail.
In other games that depend more on the video card than the processor, the advantage of the 5800X3D is smaller, but still there. It can be criticized only for the relatively low frequency of the memory - only 3800 MHz. Next, the RAM switches to asynchronous mode: throughput improves, but delays, on the contrary, worsen. However, the idea of a large 3D cache proved to be such a success that AMD is rumored to soon equip other existing 5000-series processors with it, as well as the upcoming 7000.
AMD Ryzen 9 5950X — for professional work
Reasons to buy: The most multi-core processor among consumers, the best choice for video editing, modeling, drawing and virtual machines.
Reasons not to buy: Excessive for gaming.
AMD Ryzen 9 5950X is a flagship processor for the AM4 consumer socket with 16 cores and, accordingly, 32 threads. Only highly specialized AMD Threadripper (32 - 64) for workstations and EPYC (64 - 128) for servers can boast more, but both have different sockets. For games, the 5950X is clearly overkill: they just can't handle that many cores. It is a completely different matter - professional working applications, which parallelize much better.
Even 4K video editing, which relies mainly on the video card (Radeon Media Encoder and OpenCL technologies), requires a powerful processor to apply color filters and other post-effects. And already 3D modeling and CAD drawings are accelerated in proportion to the number of cores. Another field of application of multi-core CPUs is virtual machines, that is, several software computers running on one physical computer. On the 5950X, you can run a good dozen of them.
