AMD Announces Ryzen 3000XT Processors
Three New Ryzen Desktop Models Offer Higher Boost Clocks
It’s official: there are three new members of AMD’s Zen 2 based Ryzen desktop family, with the Ryzen 9 3900XT, Ryzen 7 3800XT, and Ryzen 5 3600XT being announced today.
“Introducing XT branding for the first time to the Ryzen family of processors, the new AMD Ryzen 3000XT desktop processors are purpose-built to maximize performance under any workload. Expanding on the award-winning 3rd Gen AMD Ryzen processor family, 3000XT series desktop processors are optimized with higher boost frequencies to deliver elite-level performance that dominates gaming and content creation.”
These new CPUs offer slightly higher boost clocks, with the Ryzen 9 3900XT and Ryzen 7 3800XT matching the 4.7 GHz maximum boost of the flagship Ryzen 9 3950X.
“Building upon the legacy established by the 3rd Gen AMD Ryzen processor family, the 3000XT Series processors elevate the world-class “Zen 2” architecture with an optimized 7nm manufacturing process technology to offer higher boost frequency and increased performance at the same TDPs of their Ryzen 3000 counterparts.”
Updated AMD Zen 2 Desktop Processor Lineup
The Ryzen 3000 desktop processor lineup now looks like this:
| AMD Ryzen 3000 Series Desktop Processors | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Model | Cores / Threads | Base / Boost | Unlocked | L2/L3 Cache | Memory | TDP | Price | Launch Date | |
| Ryzen 9 3950X | 16 / 32 | 3.5 Ghz / 4.7 GHz | Yes | 8MB/64MB | DDR4 3200 | 105W | $749 | 11/25/19 | |
| Ryzen 9 3900XT | 12 / 24 | 3.8 Ghz / 4.7 GHz | Yes | 6MB/64MB | DDR4 3200 | 105W | $499 | 7/7/2020 | |
| Ryzen 9 3900X | 12 / 24 | 3.8 Ghz / 4.6 GHz | Yes | 6MB/64MB | DDR4 3200 | 105W | $499 | 7/7/2019 | |
| Ryzen 7 3800XT | 8 / 16 | 3.9 GHz / 4.7 GHz | Yes | 4MB/32MB | DDR4 3200 | 105W | $399 | 7/7/2020 | |
| Ryzen 7 3800X | 8 / 16 | 3.9 GHz / 4.5 GHz | Yes | 4MB/32MB | DDR4 3200 | 105W | $399 | 7/7/2019 | |
| Ryzen 7 3700X | 8 / 16 | 3.6 GHz / 4.4 GHz | Yes | 4MB/32MB | DDR4 3200 | 65W | $329 | 7/7/2019 | |
| Ryzen 5 3600XT | 6 / 12 | 3.8 GHz / 4.5 GHz | Yes | 3MB/32MB | DDR4 3200 | 95W | $249 | 7/7/2020 | |
| Ryzen 5 3600X | 6 / 12 | 3.8 GHz / 4.4 GHz | Yes | 3MB/32MB | DDR4 3200 | 95W | $249 | 7/7/2019 | |
| Ryzen 5 3600 | 6 / 12 | 3.6 GHz / 4.2 GHz | Yes | 3MB/32MB | DDR4 3200 | 65W | $199 | 7/7/2019 | |
| Ryzen 3 3300X | 4 / 8 | 3.8 GHz / 4.3 GHz | Yes | 2MB/16MB | DDR4 3200 | 65W | $120 | 5/21/2020 | |
| Ryzen 3 3100 | 4 / 8 | 3.6 GHz / 3.9 GHz | Yes | 2MB/16MB | DDR4 3200 | 65W | $99 | 5/21/2020 | |
These are set for availability on July 7, marking the one-year anniversary of the 7/7/19 Ryzen 3000 processor launch. Launch pricing for these XT models matches that of their non-XT counterparts, though of course the original parts have dropped considerably in price over the last 11 months.
I think they need to up the base freq as well for these to really be a meaningful product.
Considering the dearth of scenarios in which you can get any Zen 2 processor to drop all the way to its base clock, that would have been a pretty meaningless change. It would also have necessitated a change to TDP since that is calculated for base clocks, and that sort of change means a lot more work for the various members of the ecosystem.
This is a way to offer something new for the first anniversary of the Zen 2 launch on 7/7. As Brother states, raising the base clocks would have involved a change to the TDP, but when you think about it the claim AMD makes that these offer “higher boost frequency and increased performance at the same TDPs” is erroneous because the TDP is calculated from BASE CLOCKS, which are the same.
I feel like “erroneous” is a bit much given that the TDP has, in fact, not changed.
Fair. I should have said “misleading” and not erroneous. Claiming faster performance at the same TDP, when the TDP in this case refers to the same 3.8 GHz base clock and not the slightly faster boost clock could certainly be characterized at at least potentially misleading, no?
Even in thermally-limited scenarios, you *should* see improved performance until you drop down to the base clock, so I don’t even think it’s misleading. Would it change your opinion at all if we see a result with these chips like we do with the 3900X and 3950X, where the faster part actually ends up with about the same (or lower) power consumption due to the higher bin of the faster part?