AMD EPYC 7663 vs Intel Core i9-7980XE

Processor comparisons   25-03-2021
   For example there are difficulties with the choice of a processor, you will solve them by reading the comprehensive tests AMD EPYC 7663 vs Intel Core i9-7980XE and see which is better for games or simple use for rendering, streaming, machine learning, programming, video editing. Here is all information from several benchmarks or real streaming and video editing tests. A careful review of all the specifications, so that it can be easier to read, is summarized in the table.
   From the video comparison, you can get the results of joint testing in synthetic type tests such as 7zip, AIDA64, DaVinci Resolve Studio, Furmark, World of Tanks enCore Benchmark, Blender, PassMark, Blender, PCMark 10, Cinebench 23 (20, 15), WPrime, 3DMark, UserBenchmark, Dolphin Emulator, MATLAB, VeraCrypt, Prime95, SuperPi, Gears 5, RealBench, GeekBench 6, 5.2, Handbrake.
   And how good the CPUs are in games:

Cyberpunk 2077
Halo Infinite
Fortnite
Valheim
DOOM: Eternal
Watch Dogs Legion
World of Warcraft: Shadowlands
Red Dead Redemption 2
Fallout 76
Death Stranding
Rainbow Six Siege
Grand Theft Auto V
Last Man Standing
Valorant
Borderlands 3
Assassin's Creed Valhalla
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare and Warzone
Apex Legends
Overwatch

After reading the results of all benchmarks and videos, you can already make an briefed decision about which processor is better to buy for gaming Intel Core i9-7980XE or AMD EPYC 7663.

Summary benchmark results

As a percentage of the maximum value based on a sample from the entire base of all processors
Processor Benchmark

EPYC 7663

68%

Core i9-7980XE

58%

This shows the performance of the processors in single-threaded and multi-threaded mode. In this comparison, EPYC 7663 is 14% better than Core i9-7980XE. The data source is several popular tests. More detailed information of the benchmarks is below.

Gaming performance
Summary result of all game benchmarks.

EPYC 7663

76%

Core i9-7980XE

60%

For the maximum in this test, the results of the most powerful processor in the site database are taken. And of course, this is a server processor, on which no one will play games. Because this processor costs several tens of thousands of dollars. And if it seems to you that the selected CPU has a little game result, look at the FPS that it produces in real games in the summary table below.
List of other games in which processors were compared: League of Legends (LOL), Ghostrunner, Forza Horizon 4, Resident Evil 7 Biohazard, Horizon Zero Dawn, Half-Life: Alyx, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Metro Exodus, Control, DOTA 2A, Battlefield V, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS GO), Hitman 3, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG), Shadow of the Tomb Raider, NBA 2K20, Monster Hunter World, Microsoft Flight Simulator.

Gaming benchmark

Fortnite	135.1	107.0
Valorant	153.5	121.6
Cyberpunk 2077	86.0	68.1
Apex Legends	144.3	114.3
Call of Duty Warzone	115.1	91.2
Overwatch	124.3	98.5
Red Dead Redemption 2	105.9	83.9
DOOM Eternal	76.8	60.8
Warzone	119.7	94.9
Assassin's Creed	128.9	102.2
Valheim	127.4	100.9

The numbers in this table indicate the maximum FPS that was received on the device with the corresponding processor. Depending on the configuration of the computer (RAM size and Video Card) and graphics quality settings (Ultra, Medium, Normal), the results may differ quite significantly. We recommend that you better study the results of the Cinebench, GeekBench and Passmark becnmarks.
The computers participating in the comparisons not only were the equipped with different amounts of RAM and different video cards. But users also tested them at different screen resolutions: 2K, FullHD or 4K. Therefore, the game benchmark data is approximate. But all video cards met the average system requirements of games. To be sure exactly how much performance the processor will be in games, if you compare it in one assembly with the video card that is installed in your computer.

Power consumption

EPYC 7663

12%

Core i9-7980XE

23%

To make a finishing decision on which processor is better, you should also consider the generation of its core. The newer the processor generation, the better its performance in games and benchmarks, as well as its energy efficiency. In this case the Core i9-7980XE is more energy efficient than the EPYC 7663 since it has less power consumption: 240W vs. 165W. Power consumption is especially important for laptops. Also, when choosing a processor cooling system, you must know its TDP. It is necessary to count so that the TDP data specified in the cooler specification is greater than the TDP of the compared processor.

Software benchmarks

Let's say you plan to use the processor not only for gaming, but also for streaming, machine learning, video editing or video rendering, programming, then the main parameter for you is its performance in multi-threaded mode. In this mode, to achieve maximum performance, the processor uses all threads and cores that it has. You will find out this data from the benchmark tables below. Before you take into account the data from these tests, be sure to check whether the program you are going to use on your computer supports multi-threaded mode. Since there are still many programs that can use only one core to run, and all the advantages of multi-core mode are unused.
Cinebench 23, 20 an 15
The results of this benchmark show Single-threaded and Multi-threaded CPU performance

	AMD EPYC 7663	Intel Core i9-7980XE
Cinbench 15 Single-core	184	184
Cinbench 15 Multi-core	7606	3455
Cinbench 20 Single-core	347	446
Cinbench 20 Multi-core	16121	7671
Cinbench 23 Single-core	852	1281
Cinbench 23 Multi-core	41920	28196

Passmark
This popular benchmark displays Multi-threaded and Single-threaded processor performance

	AMD EPYC 7663	Intel Core i9-7980XE
Single-Core	1794	2490
Multi-Core	61492	29612

GeekBench 6, 5.2
This benchmark shows Multi-threaded and Single-threaded processor performance

	AMD EPYC 7663	Intel Core i9-7980XE
Single-Core	874	1158
Multi-Core	46160	18658

Comparison of specifications

In the specification comparison table, the most useful will be the the possibility of overclocking it and release date of the processor. The later the processor is released, the longer it will last in your computer. And the easier it will be to upgrade the system later. The same benefits from the presence of overclocking. If the processor can be overclocked, increasing its performance, then it will continue to maintain maximum FPS in new games. The economy are obvious! Accordingly, you do not need to buy a new CPU to enjoy the games any longer.

	AMD EPYC 7663	Intel Core i9-7980XE
Announcement date	March 15, 2021	April 01, 2017
Type	Server	Desktop
Socket	SP3	FCLGA2066
Core name	Milan	Skylake
Architecture	Zen 3	x86
Generation	3	9
Turbo Frequency	3.5 MHz	4.2 MHz
Frequency	2 MHz	2.6 MHz
Cores	56	18
Threads	112	36
Bus rate		8 GT/s
Bit	64	64
Lithography	7 nm	14 nm
Transistors count	78000 millions	7800 millions
Power consumption (TDP)	240 W	165 W
Memory type	DDR4	DDR4-2666
Max. Memory		128 Gb
Memory Frequency	3200
Memory bandwidth	204.8 GB/s	85 GB/s
L1 cache
L2 cache
L3 cache	256MB	24.75 MB
Overclocking	No	Yes
Supports ECC	No	No
Part number	100-000000318 100-100000318WOF

In this comparison block, you should pay attention to the differences in clock speed and the number of cores. Here Core i9-7980XE is 23% better than EPYC 7663 in terms of CPU frequency. Another difference is that EPYC 7663 has 38 more core than Core i9-7980XE. Also keep in mind that high CPU frequency affects battery life through power consumption (relevant for laptops).

Result:
The number of parameters for which AMD EPYC 7663 is better: 23
The number of parameters for which Intel Core i9-7980XE is better: 12
All the figures in the table above do not mean that you should be guided entirely by them and trust a simple comparison of these numbers. Better to watch the video tests and read the opinion of real owners of AMD EPYC 7663 and Intel Core i9-7980XE before making a choice which of the processors to buy for gaming.

AMD EPYC 7663 - all data

• Cinebench r15 score
• Cinebench r20 score
• Cinebench r23 score
• GeekBench 6, 5.2 score

• AMD EPYC 7663 specs and review.

• Intel Core i9-7980XE specs and review.