AMD Confirms Ryzen 9 9950X3D2 Release Date, Calls Dual 3D V-Cache CPU ‘Incredible’
See, chips like the Ryzen 9 7950X3D and Ryzen 9 9950X3D are dual-CCD processors, but they only have 3D V-Cache on one of those CCDs, which means only half of the CPU cores get the full benefit of the extra cache. This can require users to do some careful thread wrangling by hand, using tools like Process Lasso to ensure that applications are actually running on the correct CCD.
That certainly won't be a problem with the Ryzen 9 9950X3D2 Dual Edition, announced today on X by AMD's Jack Huynh. A YouTube video alongside (embedded below) explains that the chip is exactly what we think: a Ryzen 9 9950X3D, just with 3D V-Cache on both CCDs. That gives the chip some 208MB of cache, the most ever on a Ryzen processor, so long as you're counting L2+L3. It also comes with a 200W TDP, apparently; AMD didn't reveal clock rates yet, but an earlier leak put the chip at a 4.3GHz base clock and 5.6GHz boost clock, 100MHz slower than the standard Ryzen 9 9950X3D.
As Huynh points out, the twin stacks of cache put it multiple times ahead of older HEDT chips like the 32-core Ryzen Threadripper 2990WX, and not all that far behind newer HEDT processors like the Threadripper PRO 5995WX (with 256MB of L3.) Of course, those chips have other advantages that the Ryzen 9 9950X3D2 Dual Edition simply doesn't, but in terms of raw "ability to keep things local to the CPU cores," this chip is basically unmatched in the realm of standard desktop CPUs.
"We pushed the limits of desktop performance with X3D. Then we pushed them further. I've been testing the new unreleased Ryzen 9 9950X3D2 Dual Edition in the lab firsthand and it's incredible," Huynh states on X.
We've observed in the past that inter-CCD latency generally means that the single-CCD 3D V-Cache parts, like the Ryzen 7 9850X3D, typically offer slightly better gaming performance than the dual-CCD parts. That's why it's no surprise that, in its video, AMD emphasizes the productivity performance of the new part over the gaming performance. Apparently that second stack of V-Cache can offer gains of up to 13% in SPEC Workstation 4.0 Data Science, and between 5% and 8% in other workloads.
That's plausible, although whether it justifies the upgrade is more debatable. If you're building a new machine and want the absolute top desktop performance, this is probably the part to get. Gamers probably don't have much reason to care, but we don't know that for sure; we'll find out if we get one in hand.
The Ryzen 9 9950X3D2 Dual Edition will be available starting April 22nd. How much? Well, if you're asking, you probably aren't making money with the chip, and that means it probably isn't for you. But the truth is that we don't know yet, and that's going to be a key detail that determines whether we recommend it over the new Intel Core Ultra 7 270K, which often beats AMD's Ryzen 9 9950X3D in productivity workloads.
