Ryzen 7 9700X vs Athlon X4 970

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Aggregate performance score

Athlon X4 970
2017
4 cores / 4 threads, 65 Watt
1.66
Ryzen 7 9700X
2024
8 cores / 16 threads, 65 Watt
23.47
+1314%

Ryzen 7 9700X outperforms Athlon X4 970 by a whopping 1314% based on our aggregate benchmark results.

Primary details

Comparing Athlon X4 970 and Ryzen 7 9700X processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in the ranking2062218
Place by popularitynot in top-100not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluationno data50.99
Market segmentDesktop processorDesktop processor
Power efficiency2.4234.17
Architecture codenameBristol Ridge (2016−2019)Granite Ridge (2024)
Release date27 July 2017 (7 years ago)8 August 2024 (less than a year ago)
Launch price (MSRP)no data$359

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

no data

Detailed specifications

Athlon X4 970 and Ryzen 7 9700X basic parameters such as number of cores, number of threads, base frequency and turbo boost clock, lithography, cache size and multiplier lock state. These parameters indirectly say of CPU speed, though for more precise assessment you have to consider their test results.

Physical cores4 (Quad-Core)8 (Octa-Core)
Threads416
Base clock speed3.8 GHz3.8 GHz
Boost clock speed4 GHz5.5 GHz
L1 cache128 KB (per core)80 KB (per core)
L2 cache512 KB (per core)1 MB (per core)
L3 cache0 KB32 MB (shared)
Chip lithography28 nm4 nm
Die size246 mm270.6 mm2
Maximum core temperatureno data95 °C
Maximum case temperature (TCase)74 °Cno data
Number of transistors1,178 million8,315 million
64 bit support++
Windows 11 compatibility-no data
Unlocked multiplier++

Compatibility

Information on Athlon X4 970 and Ryzen 7 9700X compatibility with other computer components: motherboard (look for socket type), power supply unit (look for power consumption) etc. Useful when planning a future computer configuration or upgrading an existing one. Note that power consumption of some processors can well exceed their nominal TDP, even without overclocking. Some can even double their declared thermals given that the motherboard allows to tune the CPU power parameters.

Number of CPUs in a configuration11
SocketAM4AM5
Power consumption (TDP)65 Watt65 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Athlon X4 970 and Ryzen 7 9700X. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensionsno dataSMT, AES, AVX, AVX2, AVX512, FMA3, MMX (+), SHA, SSE, SSE2, SSE3, SSSE3, SSE4.1, SSE4.2, SSE4A
AES-NI++
FMA+-
AVX++
Precision Boost 2no data+

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Athlon X4 970 and Ryzen 7 9700X are enumerated here.

AMD-V++

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Athlon X4 970 and Ryzen 7 9700X. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory typesDDR4 Dual-channelDDR5

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics cardno dataAMD Radeon Graphics

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Athlon X4 970 and Ryzen 7 9700X.

PCIe versionno data5.0
PCI Express lanesno data24

Synthetic benchmark performance

Various benchmark results of the processors in comparison. Overall score is measured in points in 0-100 range, higher is better.


Combined synthetic benchmark score

This is our combined benchmark performance rating. We are regularly improving our combining algorithms, but if you find some perceived inconsistencies, feel free to speak up in comments section, we usually fix problems quickly.

Athlon X4 970 1.66
Ryzen 7 9700X 23.47
+1314%

Passmark

Passmark CPU Mark is a widespread benchmark, consisting of 8 different types of workload, including integer and floating point math, extended instructions, compression, encryption and physics calculation. There is also one separate single-threaded scenario measuring single-core performance.

Athlon X4 970 2644
Ryzen 7 9700X 37280
+1310%

Gaming performance

Pros & cons summary


Performance score 1.66 23.47
Recency 27 July 2017 8 August 2024
Physical cores 4 8
Threads 4 16
Chip lithography 28 nm 4 nm

Ryzen 7 9700X has a 1313.9% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 7 years, 100% more physical cores and 300% more threads, and a 600% more advanced lithography process.

The Ryzen 7 9700X is our recommended choice as it beats the Athlon X4 970 in performance tests.


Should you still have questions on choice between Athlon X4 970 and Ryzen 7 9700X, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

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AMD Athlon X4 970
Athlon X4 970
AMD Ryzen 7 9700X
Ryzen 7 9700X

Similar processor comparisons

We picked several similar comparisons of processors in the same market segment and performance relatively close to those reviewed on this page.

Community ratings

Here you can see how users rate the processors, as well as rate them yourself.


3.5 118 votes

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Questions & comments

Here you can ask a question about Athlon X4 970 or Ryzen 7 9700X, agree or disagree with our judgements, or report an error or mismatch.