by Rob Williams on May 20, 2022 in Processors
First seen in its server-bound Milan-X EPYC, AMD’s brought its 3D V-Cache technology to consumers with the new Ryzen 7 5800XD. With triple the L3 cache vs. the original 5800X, the right workloads could exhibit a notable performance-boost. For our first look at the 5800X3D, we’re tackling our usual assortment of workstation performance scenarios.
Benchmarking a CPU may sound like a simple enough task, but in order to deliver accurate, repeatable results, strict guidelines need to be adhered to. This makes for rigorous, time-consuming testing, but we feel that the effort is worth it.
This page exists so that we can be open about how we test, and give those who care about testing procedures an opportunity to review our methodology before flaming us in the comments. Here, you can see a breakdown of all of our test machines, specifics about the tests themselves, and other general information that might be useful.
For testing AMD’s Ryzen AM4-based CPUs, we’re using ASRock’s X570 TAICHI motherboard. For Intel’s 12th-gen Core processors, we’re using ASUS’ Z690-PLUS WiFi D4. Both motherboards support DDR4, but Intel’s 12th-gen can support DDR5. We’re waiting on some new components to arrive (namely a better cooler and PSU), and will be upgrading that machine soon.
The same DDR4 64GB kit of Corsair DOMINATOR Platinum memory is used on each of the test platforms. After resetting each EFI to its default values, we enable the primary XMP option, and leave it at that.
In the past, we obsessed over whether we should disable things like ASUS’ MultiCore Enhancement, but figuring out what was “best” was so headache-inducing (everyone has a different opinion), that we’re sticking to default settings here, aside from the enabling of XMP.
To ensure that conditions are identical from run to run, and to improve overall reliability, we use scripts to benchmark everything in an automated manner. Most tests are run three times over, while consistent tests that vary their results <1% from run-to-run are run twice. More sensitive tests are run five times.
Here’s the full breakdown of the test platforms:
Techgage’s CPU Testing Platforms
Testing Considerations
We use an up-to-date Windows for our testing, as well as the latest chipset driver for each respective platform. In the pursuit of accurate, repeatable benchmarks, here are some basic guidelines we follow:
- Disruptive services are disabled; eg: Search, Cortana, User Account Control, Defender, etc.
- Overlays and / or other extras are not installed with the graphics driver.
- Vsync is disabled at the driver level (and in any tested game or application).
- Default (usually Balanced) power profile is used (with screen and sleep timeouts disabled).
- OSes are never transplanted from one machine to another.
- We validate system configurations before kicking off any test run.
- Testing doesn’t begin until the PC is idle (keeps a steady minimum wattage).
- All tests are repeated until there is a high degree of confidence in the results.
- Benchmarks of modern workloads matter, so we always try to use up-to-date software.
- We do not use outdated data. Performance numbers seen in this article are current.
Encoding Tests
Go straight to test:
Rendering Tests
Go straight to test:
Synthetic Tests
Go straight to test:
If you think there’s some information lacking on this page, or you simply want clarification on anything in particular, don’t hesitate to leave a comment.