Ryzen 9 3950X vs Core i7-5960X

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Aggregate performance score

Core i7-5960X
2014
8 cores / 16 threads, 140 Watt
8.23
Ryzen 9 3950X
2019
16 cores / 32 threads, 105 Watt
25.07
+205%

Ryzen 9 3950X outperforms i7-5960X by a whopping 205% based on our aggregate benchmark results.

Primary details

Comparing Core i7-5960X and Ryzen 9 3950X processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in performance ranking862178
Place by popularitynot in top-100not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation6.1616.61
Market segmentDesktop processorDesktop processor
SeriesCore i7 (Desktop)AMD Ryzen 9
Architecture codenameHaswell-E (2014)Matisse (Zen 2) (2019−2020)
Release date1 September 2014 (9 years ago)14 November 2019 (4 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)$999$799
Current price$148 (0.1x MSRP)$1108 (1.4x MSRP)

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

Ryzen 9 3950X has 170% better value for money than i7-5960X.

Detailed specifications

Core i7-5960X and Ryzen 9 3950X 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 cores8 (Octa-Core)16 (Hexadeca-Core)
Threads1632
Base clock speed3 GHz3.5 GHz
Boost clock speed3.5 GHz4.7 GHz
L1 cache64K (per core)96K (per core)
L2 cache256K (per core)512K (per core)
L3 cache20 MB (shared)64 MB
Chip lithography22 nm7 nm
Die size356 mm22 x 72 mm + 125 mm (IO-Die) mm2
Maximum core temperature67 °Cno data
Number of transistors2,600 million19,200 million
64 bit support++
Windows 11 compatibility-+
Unlocked multiplierYesYes

Compatibility

Information on Core i7-5960X and Ryzen 9 3950X 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 (Uniprocessor)
SocketFCLGA2011AM4
Power consumption (TDP)140 Watt105 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i7-5960X and Ryzen 9 3950X. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensionsIntel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX286x MMX(+), SSE, SSE2, SSE3, SSSE3, SSE4.1, SSE4.2, SSE4A,-64, AMD-V, AES, AVX, AVX2, FMA3, SHA, Precision Boost 2
AES-NI++
AVX++
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)+no data
Turbo Boost Technology2.0no data
Hyper-Threading Technology+no data
TSX+no data
Idle States+no data
Thermal Monitoring+no data
Smart Response+no data
Demand Based Switching-no data
StatusDiscontinuedno data

Security technologies

Core i7-5960X and Ryzen 9 3950X technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT+no data
EDB+no data
Identity Protection+no data

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i7-5960X and Ryzen 9 3950X are enumerated here.

AMD-Vno data+
VT-d+no data
VT-x+no data
EPT+no data

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i7-5960X and Ryzen 9 3950X. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory typesDDR4DDR4 Dual-channel
Maximum memory size64 GB128 GB
Max memory channels4no data
Maximum memory bandwidth68 GB/s51.196 GB/s
ECC memory support-+

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i7-5960X and Ryzen 9 3950X.

PCIe version3.0no data
PCI Express lanes40no data

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.

i7-5960X 8.23
Ryzen 9 3950X 25.07
+205%

Ryzen 9 3950X outperforms Core i7-5960X by 205% based on our aggregate benchmark results.


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.

Benchmark coverage: 68%

i7-5960X 12737
Ryzen 9 3950X 38775
+204%

Ryzen 9 3950X outperforms Core i7-5960X by 204% in Passmark.

GeekBench 5 Single-Core

GeekBench 5 Single-Core is a cross-platform application developed in the form of CPU tests that independently recreate certain real-world tasks with which to accurately measure performance. This version uses only a single CPU core.

Benchmark coverage: 42%

i7-5960X 1301
Ryzen 9 3950X 1717
+32%

Ryzen 9 3950X outperforms Core i7-5960X by 32% in GeekBench 5 Single-Core.

GeekBench 5 Multi-Core

GeekBench 5 Multi-Core is a cross-platform application developed in the form of CPU tests that independently recreate certain real-world tasks with which to accurately measure performance. This version uses all available CPU cores.

Benchmark coverage: 42%

i7-5960X 7393
Ryzen 9 3950X 10824
+46.4%

Ryzen 9 3950X outperforms Core i7-5960X by 46% in GeekBench 5 Multi-Core.

Cinebench 10 32-bit single-core

Cinebench R10 is an ancient ray tracing benchmark for processors by Maxon, authors of Cinema 4D. Its single core version uses just one CPU thread to render a futuristic looking motorcycle.

Benchmark coverage: 20%

i7-5960X 5193
Ryzen 9 3950X 6102
+17.5%

Ryzen 9 3950X outperforms Core i7-5960X by 18% in Cinebench 10 32-bit single-core.

Cinebench 10 32-bit multi-core

Cinebench Release 10 Multi Core is a variant of Cinebench R10 using all the processor threads. Possible number of threads is limited by 16 in this version.

Benchmark coverage: 19%

i7-5960X 33929
Ryzen 9 3950X 53396
+57.4%

Ryzen 9 3950X outperforms Core i7-5960X by 57% in Cinebench 10 32-bit multi-core.

wPrime 32

wPrime 32M is a math multi-thread processor test, which calculates square roots of first 32 million integer numbers. Its result is measured in seconds, so that the less is benchmark result, the faster the processor.

Benchmark coverage: 18%

i7-5960X 4.25
Ryzen 9 3950X 4.11
+3.4%

Core i7-5960X outperforms Ryzen 9 3950X by 3% in wPrime 32.

Cinebench 11.5 64-bit multi-core

Cinebench Release 11.5 Multi Core is a variant of Cinebench R11.5 which uses all the processor threads. A maximum of 64 threads is supported in this version.

Benchmark coverage: 17%

i7-5960X 15
Ryzen 9 3950X 44
+190%

Ryzen 9 3950X outperforms Core i7-5960X by 190% in Cinebench 11.5 64-bit multi-core.

Cinebench 15 64-bit multi-core

Cinebench Release 15 Multi Core is a variant of Cinebench R15 which uses all the processor threads.

Benchmark coverage: 15%

i7-5960X 1387
Ryzen 9 3950X 4002
+189%

Ryzen 9 3950X outperforms Core i7-5960X by 189% in Cinebench 15 64-bit multi-core.

Cinebench 15 64-bit single-core

Cinebench R15 (standing for Release 15) is a benchmark made by Maxon, authors of Cinema 4D. It was superseded by later versions of Cinebench, which use more modern variants of Cinema 4D engine. The Single Core version (sometimes called Single-Thread) only uses a single processor thread to render a room full of reflective spheres and light sources.

Benchmark coverage: 15%

i7-5960X 139
Ryzen 9 3950X 209
+50.4%

Ryzen 9 3950X outperforms Core i7-5960X by 50% in Cinebench 15 64-bit single-core.

Cinebench 11.5 64-bit single-core

Cinebench R11.5 is an old benchmark by Maxon, authors of Cinema 4D. It was superseded by later versions of Cinebench, which use more modern variants of Cinema 4D engine. The Single Core version loads a single thread with ray tracing to render a glossy room full of crystal spheres and light sources.

Benchmark coverage: 14%

i7-5960X 1.53
Ryzen 9 3950X 2.37
+54.9%

Ryzen 9 3950X outperforms Core i7-5960X by 55% in Cinebench 11.5 64-bit single-core.

TrueCrypt AES

TrueCrypt is a discontinued piece of software that was widely used for on-the-fly-encryption of disk partitions, now superseded by VeraCrypt. It contains several embedded performance tests, one of them being TrueCrypt AES, which measures data encryption speed using AES algorithm. Result is encryption speed in gigabytes per second.

Benchmark coverage: 13%

i7-5960X 8.2
Ryzen 9 3950X 10.8
+31.7%

Ryzen 9 3950X outperforms Core i7-5960X by 32% in TrueCrypt AES.

WinRAR 4.0

WinRAR 4.0 is an outdated version of a popular file archiver. It contains an internal speed test, using 'Best' setting of RAR compression on large chunks of randomly generated data. Its results are measured in kilobytes per second.

Benchmark coverage: 13%

i7-5960X 7049
Ryzen 9 3950X 7409
+5.1%

Ryzen 9 3950X outperforms Core i7-5960X by 5% in WinRAR 4.0.

x264 encoding pass 2

x264 Pass 2 is a slower variant of x264 video compression that produces a variable bit rate output file, which results in better quality since the higher bit rate is used when it is needed more. Benchmark result is still measured in frames per second.  

Benchmark coverage: 13%

i7-5960X 82
Ryzen 9 3950X 168
+104%

Ryzen 9 3950X outperforms Core i7-5960X by 104% in x264 encoding pass 2.

x264 encoding pass 1

x264 version 4.0 is a video encoding benchmark uses MPEG 4 x264 compression method to compress a sample HD (720p) video. Pass 1 is a faster variant that produces a constant bit rate output file. Its result is measured in frames per second, which means how many frames of the source video file were encoded per second.  

Benchmark coverage: 13%

i7-5960X 191
Ryzen 9 3950X 265
+38.7%

Ryzen 9 3950X outperforms Core i7-5960X by 39% in x264 encoding pass 1.

Gaming performance

Pros & cons summary


Performance score 8.23 25.07
Recency 1 September 2014 14 November 2019
Physical cores 8 16
Threads 16 32
Cost $999 $799
Chip lithography 22 nm 7 nm
Power consumption (TDP) 140 Watt 105 Watt

The Ryzen 9 3950X is our recommended choice as it beats the Core i7-5960X in performance tests.


Should you still have questions on choice between Core i7-5960X and Ryzen 9 3950X, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

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Intel Core i7-5960X
Core i7-5960X
AMD Ryzen 9 3950X
Ryzen 9 3950X

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