AMD Ryzen 7 7700X misses out: Four other Raphael SKUs expected to lead Zen 4 charge in September as AMD Ryzen 9 7950X gets alleged price tag

Excitement is growing for AMD’s Zen 4-based Ryzen 7000 series of processors, and a noted leaker has shared what are likely to be the first four SKUs made available. Unsurprisingly, the flagship Ryzen 9 7950X leads the pack and is followed by the Ryzen 9 7900X, Ryzen 7 7800X, and the Ryzen 5 7600X. This selection should give desktop enthusiasts a good choice from a 6-core/12-thread part all the way up to a 16-core/32-thread monster. However, the news has been met by some wondering about the missing Ryzen 7 7700X, which would potentially be an ideal bridge between the affordable chips and the more costly parts.

If the leak is accurate then it seems AMD is planning on emulating its launch strategy for the Zen 3 desktop processors. Chips like the Ryzen 9 5950X and the Ryzen 5 5600X were released in November 2020; fans had to wait until April 2022 before a Ryzen 7 5700X finally turned up to offer buyers a budget-friendly but still performance-heavy alternative. This meant the more impatient PC builders had to either fork out for an expensive enthusiast-level chip or buy a cheaper CPU that might not hit the requited performance marks. With no Ryzen 7 7700X on the cards at the moment, it appears Team Red supporters will be forced into the same corner in regard to a Zen 4 upgrade.

The same source also posted a potential price tag for the Ryzen 9 7950X, although this tweet was soon deleted. However, VideoCardz has shared the posted figure of 5,999 yuan, which is roughly equivalent to US$894. The site notes that the Ryzen 5 5950X had a Chinese price tag of 6,049 yuan when it was launched, but this does not necessarily indicate that cheaper prices are on the horizon. The top Zen 3 desktop CPU cost US$799, and its Zen 4 counterpart may cost around US$849-899, considering the current financial climate. Separately, a possible Zen 4 release date of September 15 has also been leaked thanks to the date being shown in a dealer presentation for the upcoming AMD AM5 socket.

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