AMD Ryzen 9 3950X storms PassMark's CPU Mark chart and soars past Intel's server processors and the Core i9-9980XE

A lot has already been written about the AMD Ryzen 9 3950X processor that has been busy trouncing all and sundry in numerous benchmarks. The performance chip from the red team is scheduled to launch on November 25, which means there is still time for the mainstream CPU that appears to be masquerading as an HEDT processor to demolish its opposition in another benchmark. This time it’s PassMark’s CPU Mark that has been tasting the Ryzen 9 3950X’s power.

The benchmark chart, which was shared on Reddit, shows AMD’s Ryzen 9 3950X chip in third position in the CPU Mark table on 34,009 points. The two processors above it come from AMD’s Epyc family and cost thousands of dollars. Right below the 16-core Zen 2 processor is Intel’s 28-core Xeon W-3175X chip: A Matisse enthusiast-level CPU outpacing a Skylake server SKU. Even if you ignore server parts, the Intel Core i9-9980XE processor lags far behind the AMD product and this particular chip from Team Blue is classified as an HEDT unit.

Of course, there are many variables and caveats to take into account. There is only one Ryzen 9 3950X sample so far and PassMark notes that the margin for error with the score is high. Also, the benchmark seems to favor the Zen 2 chip’s superior base (3.5 GHz) and turbo boost rates (4.7 GHz). In comparison, the Intel Core i9-9980XE has a base clock of 3.0 GHz and a boost of up to 4.4 GHz/4.5 GHz. It’s still an awesome achievement by the Ryzen 9 3950X though, which will hopefully be cemented by further sample testing.

There is one more important point that needs to be remembered here – price/performance ratio. The AMD Ryzen 9 3950X has been priced at US$749 whereas Intel’s i9-9980XE costs close to US$2,000 and the Xeon W-3175X would remove US$3,000 from your bank balance. It’s also worth repeating that this is a mainstream offering from AMD taking on Intel’s server and HEDT processors; this is not a 3rd Gen Threadripper on show here. It seems likely the world’s most powerful 16-core desktop processor is going to keep justifying the hyperbole that surrounds it.