The AMD Ryzen 5 9600X leads the charge in the new 9000 Series, offering a powerful and efficient CPU option for gamers and creators. The AMD Ryzen 9000 Series Desktop CPU features a mix of innovation, refinement and efficiency to provide a superior gaming and content creation option. Built from the ground up on the new AMD Zen 5 architecture, the AMD Ryzen 9000 series aims to offer more powerful processing capabilities while maintaining a power-efficient design. This has several implications for AI workloads and sheer processing capabilities.
The Zen 5 architecture isn’t simply an upgrade of the successful Zen 4 iteration but rather a total overhaul of the base design. The core design is built to handle a wider range of process types, giving it greater flexibility to accommodate both lower- and higher-performance computations. The result is a much more powerful and more efficient CPU architecture.
The Ryzen 9000 Series Desktop CPUs also see some impressive upgrades to 512-bit AI datapath structures. This essentially allows the 9000 series to handle more floating-point instructions, which translates to improved token delivery when running an LLM (large language models). The result is a faster AI infrastructure to support complex tasks and data processing.
The 9000 series chips’ most interesting feature is the reduced power consumption needed to power and maintain the CPUs as they perform their tasks. According to AMD official tests, they have seen an average of +22% gains in performance-to-watt ratios. This seems to be a theme with the 9000 series in general, a focus on squeezing out as much power as possible while maintaining the best power efficiency possible.
Finally, the Ryzen 9000 series also offers full support for PCIe Gen5 on the x16 slot (GPU) and the SSD, something that is relatively new. Of course, this also requires an AMD 800-series motherboard, but when coupled together, it creates a potentially powerful PC. With overclocking options also available (though not something I would ever recommend), this latest CPU series is working hard to be the leader in CPU processing power.
This little intro is provided to help give context to the new Ryzen 5 9600X. Equipped with a 6-core/12-thread structure, the latest Ryzen 5 features a base clock speed of 3.9GHz with boosts up to 5.4GHz. With a TDP (Thermal Design Power, measured in watts) of 65W, the Ryzen 5 9600X is a power-efficient CPU that still aims to provide some seriously impressive processing power.
“The Ryzen 9000 Series Desktop CPUs also see some impressive upgrades to 512-bit AI datapath structures, allowing them to handle more floating-point instructions.”
Priced as a budget-friendly option for PC enthusiasts, the Ryzen 5 9600x feels like the backbone of AMD’s new lineup. While it might not be comparable to the new Ryzen 9900x and Ryzen 9 9950x, which AMD is also launching, the Ryzen 5 still manages to present some impressive numbers and even manages to go toe to toe with the Ryzen 7 9700x in some cases. It is the workhorse of the 9000 series lineup, offering consistent performance no matter the setting.
As always, at CGMagizne, we focus our tests on real-world usage. Tests performed are to see how the Ryzen 5 9600x holds up with the latest gaming titles and content creation tools. For this series of tests, all titles and software have been updated to their latest revision. While synthetic tests are performed on the CPU, the emphasis is put on real-world tests. The goal is to help paint as clear a picture as possible as to what you can expect from the Ryzen 5 in an everyday setting.
For our benchmark tests, the Ryzen 5 was put on our test bench here at the office. The test bench features an ASUS X670 Master motherboard and 32 GB DDR5-6400 EXPO memory supplied by AMD, a Lexar PCI-E Gen4 2TB m.2 SSD, with a 1000Watt Gigabyte PSU, in an be Quiet! Dark Base Pro 901 PC Case, paired with an AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX. To ensure optimal performance, the test system runs the latest Windows 11 update with up-to-date drivers and software from AMD. This representative high-end configuration will allow us to thoroughly assess the new CPU’s capabilities under real-world conditions.
CPU-Z Benchmarks Chart
The Ryzen 5 9600x is most comparable to the i5-14600 and i5-12600 based on specs, landing somewhere in the middle. In the CPU-Z tests, we found that both i5 CPUs managed to come out on top of the Ryzen 5 in multi-core testing. single-core testing, however, had the Ryzen 5 in the middle of the pack performing better than the Intel i5-12600 significantly and managing to only be a few points behind the 14600. Another number to note is how the 9600x compared to the Ryzen 7 7700x, managing to produce a significantly better single-core score while holding its own in the multi-core department.
These first tests show a solid contender for single-core performance in the Ryzen 5 9600x. It manages to hold its own fairly well even when compared to CPUs, which would be considered a step up spec-wise. However, the Ryzen 5 does seem to struggle to compete with the Intel equivalents in the multi-core department.
Cinebench R23 Benchmarks Chart
Running Cinebench on the Ryzen 5 produced a bit of a different story. While the Intel 14600 managed to come out ahead in both multi- and single-core testing, the Ryzen 5 9600x easily topped the 12600 on both fronts. A consistent theme emerged from the tests: while the Ryzen 5 9600x can produce some solid single-core results, often pulling ahead or at least being on par with the Intel i5 lineup, it does struggle to compete in multi-core testing.
“The Ryzen 5 9600X is a power-efficient CPU that still aims to provide some seriously impressive processing power.”
As for the Ryzen 7 7700x, the new Ryzen 5 9600x managed to pull ahead once again on the single-core tests. With notably fewer power requirements than the 7700x and equipped with the new Zen 5 architecture vs. the Zen 4 architecture, the Ryzen 5 9600x is trying to produce a more efficient CPU while still producing a solid processing experience. While this is evident in the single-core numbers, it doesn’t seem to translate to the multi-core numbers quite as well—at least in our synthetic tests.
Games Chart
The story starts to shift, though, when real-world benchmarking is performed. This is where the Ryzen 5 surprised me. In frame rate testing, when compared to the i5-14600k, the Ryzen 5 consistently came out ahead. For Science, we tested the Ryzen 5 9600x against the Ryzen 9 7900x on the CyberPunk 2077 benchmark, and the results showed only an average of 1fps better on the Ryzen 9 over the Ryzen 5 9600x.
“As for productivity, the Ryzen 5 9600x handled itself incredibly well, especially in tasks like 4K editing and fusion title creation in DaVinci Resolve.”
As for productivity, the Ryzen 5 9600x handled itself incredibly well. Complex processing, such as handling 4K editing and fusion title creation in Davinci Resolve, ran quite smoothly. Often needing only a few seconds for a new title card to render on the timeline before continuing with the edit. Even render times were impressive with it only taking 13 seconds to render a 40-second 4K clip.
As for multitasking, once again, the Ryzen 5 9600x managed it with ease. To test, I created and edited several small 4K timelines in Davinici and set them to render. While this was taking place, I also started up a game of DOOM Eternal, with every setting set to max and played until the render was complete, measuring framerates throughout the time. At no point were there any issues or dips in FPS. Everything ran exceptionally smoothly, even while the renders were taking place in the background.
“At $279.99, the Ryzen 5 9600x is a solid solution for enthusiasts wanting a solid CPU at a budget-friendly price point.”
While some of the numbers in the synthetic tests would seem to tell one story, the real-world testing presents perhaps a more accurate story. The Ryzen 5 9600x is a workhorse that can manage most workloads with ease. Other productivity testing, such as Photoshop, also proved what the rest of the real-world testing was saying: the Ryzen 5 9600x is built to carry the required workload, and it does that well.
What does make the Ryzen 5 9600x and the rest of the 9000 series stand out, though, regardless of synthetic tests, is how, when coupled with an 800-series motherboard, they can push the limits on power and processing. As mentioned, the 800-series board supports PCIe 5 for both the GPU and SSD, giving them a leg up on the competition.
This means better GPU processing power as well as faster SSD read and write times. So, while the Ryzen 5 9600x might be the baseline in the new 9000 series when coupled with the new 800-series boards, you can still manage to have a powerful performing system but a more budget-friendly price point.
The AMD Ryzen 5 9600x CPU is the baseline CPU for the new 9000 series. While on paper, it struggles to compete with comparable Intel CPUs in multi-core processing, real-world testing reveals that it’s a solid CPU that can handle any productivity, content creation, or gaming task you can throw its way. At $279.99, the Ryzen 5 9600x is a solid solution for enthusiasts wanting a solid CPU at a budget-friendly price point.
