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Apple M3 Max 16-Core vs AMD Ryzen 9 7900 vs Apple M3

Apple M3 Max 16-Core

► remove from comparison Apple Apple M3 Max 16-Core

The Apple M3 Max (16 Core) is a system on a chip (SoC) from Apple for notebooks that was launched towards the end of 2023. It integrates a new 16-core CPU with 12 performance cores with up to 4.06 GHz and 4 efficiency cores with 2.8 GHz. There is also a slimmed-down 14-core variant with a 30-core GPU.

Thanks to the higher clock rates and architectural improvements, the processor performance is also significantly better than the M2 Max in benchmarks and can keep up with the fastest mobile CPUs (such as a Core i9-13900HX).

The M3 also integrates a new graphics card with dynamic caching, mesh shading and ray tracing acceleration via hardware. In the top model, all 40 cores of the chip are used and support up to 5 displays simultaneously (internal and 4 external).

GPU and CPU can jointly access the shared memory on the package (unified memory). This is available in 48, 64 and 128 GB variants and offers 400 GB/s maximum bandwidth (512 bit bus).

The integrated 16-core Neural Engine has also been revised and now offers 18 TOPS peak performance (compared to 15.8 TOPS in the M2 but 35 TOPS in the new A17 Pro). The video engine now also supports AV1 decoding in hardware. H.264, HEVC and ProRes (RAW) can still be decoded and encoded. Like its predecessor, the Max chip offers two video engines and can therefore encode and decode two streams simultaneously.

Unfortunately, the integrated WLAN only continues to support WiFi 6E (no WiFi 7), unlike the small M3 SoC thunderbolt 4 is also supported (max 40 Gbit/s).

The chip is manufactured in the current 3nm process (N3B) at TSMC and contains 92 billion transistors (+37% vs. Apple M2 Max). Under load, the CPU part consumes up to 56 watts, the chip can use a total of 78 watts.

AMD Ryzen 9 7900

► remove from comparison AMD R9 7900

The AMD Ryzen 9 79 00 is a high-end desktop processorfrom the Raphael series with 12 cores and hyperthreading (SMT), which means it can process up to 24 threads simultaneously. Launched in early 2023, the Ryzen 9 7900 is the fastest 12-core processor with 65 watts TDP.

The Ryzen 9 7900 clocks at 3.7 GHz base clock and reaches up to 5.4 GHz on one core in Turbo mode. This is also the difference to the higher clocked Ryzen 9 7900X.

At first glance, the internal structure of the processor has not changed fundamentally. The AMD Ryzen 9 7900 is still based on the chiplet design consisting of two CCD clusters, each containing a CCX with 8 cores. However, the manufacturing process has been scaled down to 5 nm, which ensures higher clock rates. There is also the IO die, which contains the memory controller and the iGPU, among other things. This is now manufactured in a 6 nm structure width.

The AMD Ryzen 9 7900 can impress in games thanks to the significantly improved IPC.

Apple M3

► remove from comparison Apple M3

The Apple M3 is a system on a chip (SoC) from Apple for notebooks that was introduced in late 2023. It integrates a new 8-core CPU with 4 performance cores with up to 4.06 GHz and 4 efficiency cores running at up to 2.75 GHz. Apple claims that the CPU is up to 20% faster than in the old Apple M2 (3.5 GHz)

Due to the higher clock speeds and architecture improvements, the processor performance is also significantly better than the M2 in benchmarks (see e.g. Geekbench below) and can keep up with the fastest CPUs in short single-core tests (like the Raptor Lake i9-13950HX).

The M3 also integrates a new graphics adapter with dynamic caching, mesh shading and ray tracing acceleration called Apple M3 10-Core GPU. According to Apple, it is 20% faster than the GPU in the M2. The chip integrates again 10 GPU cores, but the cheaper variant only offers 8 cores (e.g. in the entry iMac). Later in early 2025 Apple also introduced a 9-core variant in the new iPad Air models. Furthermore, the GPU only supports 2 displays (an additional 6K60 display to the internal one).

Both GPU and CPU can access the unified memory on the package together. It is still available in 8, 16 and 24 GB variants and offers the same 100 GB/s maximum bandwidth (unlike the Pro models that feature a reduced memory bandwidth). 

The integrated 16-core Neural Engine has also been revised and now offers 18 TOPS peak performance (versus 15.8 TOPS in the M2 but 35 TOPS in the new A17 Pro). The video engine now supports AV1 decoding in hardware. H.264, HEVC and ProRes (RAW) can still be decoded and encoded.

Unfortunately, the integrated wireless network module only supports Wi-Fi 6E (no Wi-Fi 7) and due to the support of only a single external monitor, the chip also has to make do with no Thunderbolt 4 (Thunderbolt 3 / USB 4 support only for up to 40 Gbit/s).

The chip is manufactured on the current 3nm TSMC process (N3B most likely) and contains 25 billion transistors (+25% vs. Apple M2). The 3nm process should also contribute to the excellent efficiency of the chip. Under load, the M3 CPU consumes approximately 20 Watt.

ModelApple M3 Max 16-CoreAMD Ryzen 9 7900Apple M3
SeriesApple M3AMD Raphael (Zen 4, Ryzen 7000)Apple M3
Series: M3
Apple M3 Max 16-Core « 2.75 - 4.06 GHz16 / 16 cores
Apple M3 Max 14-Core2.75 - 4.06 GHz14 / 14 cores
Apple M3 Pro 12-Core2.75 - 4.06 GHz12 / 12 cores
Apple M3 Pro 11-Core2.75 - 4.06 GHz11 / 11 cores
Apple M32.75 - 4.06 GHz8 / 8 cores
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D4.2 - 5.7 GHz16 / 32 cores128 MB L3
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X4.7 - 5.6 GHz12 / 24 cores64 MB L3
AMD Ryzen 9 7900 « 3.7 - 5.4 GHz12 / 24 cores64 MB L3
AMD Ryzen 7 7700X4.5 - 5.4 GHz8 / 16 cores32 MB L3
AMD Ryzen 7 77003.8 - 5.3 GHz8 / 16 cores32 MB L3
AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D4.2 - 5 GHz8 / 16 cores96 MB L3
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X4.7 - 5.3 GHz6 / 12 cores32 MB L3
AMD Ryzen 5 76003.8 - 5.1 GHz6 / 12 cores32 MB L3
Apple M3 Max 16-Core2.75 - 4.06 GHz16 / 16 cores
Apple M3 Max 14-Core2.75 - 4.06 GHz14 / 14 cores
Apple M3 Pro 12-Core2.75 - 4.06 GHz12 / 12 cores
Apple M3 Pro 11-Core2.75 - 4.06 GHz11 / 11 cores
Apple M3 « 2.75 - 4.06 GHz8 / 8 cores
Clock2748 - 4056 MHz3700 - 5400 MHz2748 - 4056 MHz
Cores / Threads16 / 16
12 x 4.1 GHz Apple M3 P-Core
4 x 2.7 GHz Apple M3 E-Core
12 / 248 / 8
4 x 4.1 GHz Apple M3 P-Core
4 x 2.7 GHz Apple M3 E-Core
TDP78 Watt65 Watt
Transistors92000 Million9.9 Million25000 Million
Technology3 nm5 nm3 nm
FeaturesARMv8 Instruction SetMMX(+), SSE, SSE2, SSE3, SSSE3, SSE4.1, SSE4.2, SSE4A, x86-64, AMD-V, AES, AVX, AVX2, AVX512F, FMA3, SHA, Precision Boost 2ARMv8 Instruction Set
iGPUApple M3 Max 40-Core GPUAMD Radeon Graphics (Ryzen 7000) ( - 2200 MHz)Apple M3 10-Core GPU
ArchitectureARMx86ARM
Announced
Manufacturerwww.apple.comwww.amd.comwww.apple.com
CodenameRaphael (Zen4)
L1 Cache768 KB
L2 Cache12 MB4 MB
L3 Cache64 MB
Voltage0.650 - 1.475V V
Die Size262 mm2
max. Temp.95 °C
SocketAM5 (LGA 1718)

Benchmarks

Performance Rating - CB R15 + R20 + 7-Zip + X265 + Blender + 3DM11 CPU - R9 7900
46.1 pt (77%)
Restrict / Search: Model: Max. age: years
Cinebench 2024 - Cinebench 2024 CPU Single Core
min: 139     avg: 139.5     median: 139.5 (78%)     max: 140 Points
101%
1 M3 +
min: 140     avg: 141     median: 141 (79%)     max: 142 Points
Cinebench 2024 - Cinebench 2024 CPU Multi Core
min: 1532     avg: 1572     median: 1572 (29%)     max: 1612 Points
38%
1 M3 +
min: 576     avg: 622     median: 599.5 (11%)     max: 712 Points
Cinebench R23 - Cinebench R23 Multi Core
min: 24020     avg: 24022     median: 24022 (22%)     max: 24024 Points
24776 Points (23%)
43%
M3 +
min: 10074     avg: 10275     median: 10298 (10%)     max: 10454 Points
Cinebench R23 - Cinebench R23 Single Core
min: 1950     avg: 1959     median: 1959 (82%)     max: 1968 Points
1966 Points (83%)
97%
M3 +
min: 1900     avg: 1901     median: 1900 (80%)     max: 1904 Points
Cinebench R20 - Cinebench R20 CPU (Single Core)
min: 492     avg: 494.5     median: 494.5 (54%)     max: 497 Points
762 Points (83%)
102%
M3 +
504 Points (55%)
Cinebench R20 - Cinebench R20 CPU (Multi Core)
min: 5920     avg: 6124     median: 6123.5 (15%)     max: 6327 Points
9703 Points (24%)
46%
M3 +
2818 Points (7%)
Cinebench R15 - Cinebench R15 CPU Multi 64 Bit
min: 3225     avg: 3297     median: 3264 (21%)     max: 3401 Points
4020 Points (25%)
46%
M3 +
1499 Points (9%)
Cinebench R15 - Cinebench R15 CPU Single 64 Bit
min: 269     avg: 271     median: 271 (75%)     max: 273 Points
315 Points (87%)
100%
M3 +
271 Points (75%)
Cinebench R11.5 - Cinebench R11.5 CPU Multi 64 Bit
100%
1 R9 7900 +
45.3 Points (59%)
Cinebench R11.5 - Cinebench R11.5 CPU Single 64 Bit
100%
1 R9 7900 +
3.7 Points (87%)
Cinebench R10 - Cinebench R10 Rend. Single (32bit)
100%
1 R9 7900 +
8339 Points (50%)
Cinebench R10 - Cinebench R10 Rend. Multi (32bit)
100%
1 R9 7900 +
60934 Points (44%)
wPrime 2.10 - wPrime 2.0 1024m *
100%
1 R9 7900 +
46.8 s (1%)
wPrime 2.10 - wPrime 2.0 32m *
100%
1 R9 7900 +
3 s (1%)
WinRAR - WinRAR 4.0
100%
1 R9 7900 +
10154 Points (16%)
7-Zip 18.03 - 7-Zip 18.03 Multi Thread 4 runs
100%
1 R9 7900 +
112881 MIPS (65%)
7-Zip 18.03 - 7-Zip 18.03 Single Thread 4 runs
100%
1 R9 7900 +
7936 MIPS (94%)
X264 HD Benchmark 4.0 - x264 Pass 2
100%
1 R9 7900 +
207 fps (69%)
X264 HD Benchmark 4.0 - x264 Pass 1
100%
1 R9 7900 +
355.5 fps (82%)
HWBOT x265 Benchmark v2.2 - HWBOT x265 4k Preset
100%
1 R9 7900 +
31.2 fps (55%)
TrueCrypt - TrueCrypt Serpent
100%
1 R9 7900 +
2 GB/s (59%)
TrueCrypt - TrueCrypt Twofish
100%
1 R9 7900 +
3.1 GB/s (53%)
TrueCrypt - TrueCrypt AES
100%
1 R9 7900 +
21.5 GB/s (56%)
Blender - Blender 3.3 Classroom CPU *
min: 194     avg: 195     median: 195 (2%)     max: 196 Seconds
199 Seconds (3%)
38%
M3 +
min: 491     avg: 590     median: 517 (7%)     max: 761 Seconds
Blender - Blender 2.79 BMW27 CPU *
min: 215     avg: 216     median: 216 (2%)     max: 217 Seconds
125 Seconds (1%)
44%
M3 +
min: 474     avg: 509     median: 494 (3%)     max: 558 Seconds
R Benchmark 2.5 - R Benchmark 2.5 *
100%
1 R9 7900 +
0.4 sec (8%)
3DMark 06 - CPU - 3DMark 06 - CPU
100%
1 R9 7900 +
19451 Points (41%)
Super Pi mod 1.5 XS 1M - Super Pi mod 1.5 XS 1M *
100%
1 R9 7900 +
6.7 s (1%)
Super Pi mod 1.5 XS 2M - Super Pi mod 1.5 XS 2M *
100%
1 R9 7900 +
13.9 s (1%)
Super Pi Mod 1.5 XS 32M - Super Pi mod 1.5 XS 32M *
100%
1 R9 7900 +
329 s (1%)
3DMark 11 - 3DM11 Performance Physics
100%
1 R9 7900 +
26325 Points (65%)
3DMark - 3DMark Time Spy CPU
100%
1 R9 7900 +
14817 Points (62%)
Geekbench 6.4 - Geekbench 6.4 Single-Core
min: 3096     avg: 3127     median: 3126.5 (78%)     max: 3157 Points
2990 Points (75%)
98%
M3 +
min: 2994     avg: 3057     median: 3054 (76%)     max: 3130 Points
Geekbench 6.4 - Geekbench 6.4 Multi-Core
min: 21243     avg: 21254     median: 21253.5 (83%)     max: 21264 Points
15725 Points (61%)
56%
M3 +
min: 11752     avg: 11921     median: 11966 (46%)     max: 12066 Points
Geekbench 6.0 - Geekbench 6.0 Single-Core
100%
1 R9 7900 +
min: 2848     avg: 2859     median: 2858.5 (91%)     max: 2869 Points
Geekbench 6.0 - Geekbench 6.0 Multi-Core
100%
1 R9 7900 +
min: 16864     avg: 16913     median: 16912.5 (69%)     max: 16961 Points
Geekbench 5.5 - Geekbench 5.1 - 5.5 64 Bit Single-Core
min: 2318     avg: 2325     median: 2324.5 (91%)     max: 2331 Points
2203 Points (86%)
97%
M3 +
min: 1286     avg: 2092     median: 2256 (88%)     max: 2350 Points
Geekbench 5.5 - Geekbench 5.1 - 5.5 64 Bit Multi-Core
min: 22816     avg: 22938     median: 22937.5 (41%)     max: 23059 Points
17880 Points (32%)
46%
M3 +
min: 10402     avg: 10603     median: 10570 (19%)     max: 10774 Points
Geekbench 5.0 - Geekbench 5.0 64 Bit Single-Core
100%
1 R9 7900 +
2096 Points (9%)
Geekbench 5.0 - Geekbench 5.0 64 Bit Multi-Core
100%
1 R9 7900 +
17581 Points (55%)
Geekbench 4.4 - Geekbench 4.1 - 4.4 64 Bit Single-Core
100%
1 R9 7900 +
8861 Points (88%)
Geekbench 4.4 - Geekbench 4.1 - 4.4 64 Bit Multi-Core
100%
1 R9 7900 +
65241 Points (65%)
Mozilla Kraken 1.1 - Kraken 1.1 Total Score *
min: 379.2     avg: 385.5     median: 385.5 (0%)     max: 391.7 ms
452 ms (1%)
106%
M3 +
min: 322.8     avg: 350.3     median: 362.8 (0%)     max: 373.2 ms
Octane V2 - Octane V2 Total Score
min: 94770     avg: 96363     median: 96362.5 (73%)     max: 97955 Points
100%
1 M3 +
min: 92645     avg: 95595     median: 96622 (73%)     max: 98093 Points
WebXPRT 4 - WebXPRT 4 Score
100%
1 R9 7900 +
302 Points (83%)
104%
1 M3 +
min: 313     avg: 314     median: 314 (86%)     max: 315 Points
WebXPRT 3 - WebXPRT 3 Score
min: 416     avg: 421     median: 421 (76%)     max: 426 Points
366 Points (66%)
106%
M3 +
min: 423     avg: 438.7     median: 445 (80%)     max: 448 Points
Antutu v10 - AnTuTu v10 Total Score
100%
1 M3 +
min: 2045290     avg: 2096340     median: 2096340 (70%)     max: 2147390 Points
Antutu v10 - AnTuTu v10 CPU
100%
1 M3 +
min: 538633     avg: 555031     median: 555030 (16%)     max: 571428 Points
PassMark PerformanceTest Mobile V1 - PerformanceTest Mobile V1 CPU Tests
100%
1 M3 +
min: 21270     avg: 21339     median: 21339 (3%)     max: 21408 Points
CrossMark - CrossMark Overall
min: 2032     avg: 2042     median: 2041.5 (76%)     max: 2051 Points
2322 Points (87%)
90%
M3 +
min: 1847     avg: 1850     median: 1847 (69%)     max: 1857 Points
Power Consumption - Prime95 Power Consumption - external Monitor *
100%
1 R9 7900 +
203 Watt (35%)
Power Consumption - Cinebench R15 Multi Power Consumption - external Monitor *
min: 91.8     avg: 92.3     median: 92.3 (17%)     max: 92.7 Watt
196.9 Watt (36%)
Power Consumption - Geekbench 5.5 Power Consumption 150cd *
100%
1 M3 +
min: 7.79     avg: 7.9     median: 7.9 (3%)     max: 8.01 Watt
Power Consumption - Idle Power Consumption - external Monitor *
min: 3.81     avg: 5.2     median: 5.2 (3%)     max: 6.49 Watt
106.9 Watt (71%)
183%
1 M3 +
min: 2.63     avg: 2.8     median: 2.8 (2%)     max: 2.87 Watt
Power Consumption - Idle Power Consumption 150cd 1min *
min: 4.63     avg: 6.3     median: 6.3 (7%)     max: 7.91 Watt
159%
1 M3 +
min: 2.6     avg: 3.7     median: 3.9 (4%)     max: 4.7 Watt
Power Consumption - Power Efficiency - Cinebench R15 Multi external Monitor
min: 35.1     avg: 35.9     median: 35.9 (27%)     max: 36.7 Points per Watt
20.4 Points per Watt (15%)

Average Benchmarks Apple M3 Max 16-Core → 100% n=15

Average Benchmarks AMD Ryzen 9 7900 → 110% n=15

Average Benchmarks Apple M3 → 74% n=15

- Range of benchmark values for this graphics card
red legend - Average benchmark values for this graphics card
* Smaller numbers mean a higher performance
1 This benchmark is not used for the average calculation

v1.33
log 23. 12:58:57

#0 ran 0s before starting gpusingle class +0s ... 0s

#1 checking url part for id 15113 +0s ... 0s

#2 checking url part for id 15014 +0s ... 0s

#3 checking url part for id 15110 +0s ... 0s

#4 redirected to Ajax server, took 1753268337s time from redirect:0 +0s ... 0s

#5 did not recreate cache, as it is less than 5 days old! Created at Tue, 22 Jul 2025 05:17:04 +0200 +0s ... 0s

#6 composed specs +0.008s ... 0.008s

#7 did output specs +0s ... 0.008s

#8 getting avg benchmarks for device 15113 +0.001s ... 0.009s

#9 got single benchmarks 15113 +0.005s ... 0.014s

#10 getting avg benchmarks for device 15014 +0.003s ... 0.017s

#11 got single benchmarks 15014 +0.004s ... 0.021s

#12 getting avg benchmarks for device 15110 +0.001s ... 0.021s

#13 got single benchmarks 15110 +0.006s ... 0.027s

#14 got avg benchmarks for devices +0s ... 0.027s

#15 min, max, avg, median took s +0.036s ... 0.064s

#16 return log +0s ... 0.064s

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> Expert Reviews and News on Laptops, Smartphones and Tech Innovations > Benchmarks / Tech > Processor Comparison - Head 2 Head
Redaktion, 2017-09- 8 (Update: 2023-07- 1)