AMD Ryzen 3 1200 vs AMD Ryzen 5 1600X

Processor comparisons 31-01-2023

   You may have difficulties with the choice of a processor, you will solve them by reading the full tests AMD Ryzen 3 1200 vs AMD Ryzen 5 1600X and understand which is better for games or simple use for machine learning, video editing, programming, rendering, streaming. Here you can find all information from different benchmarks or real video editing and streaming tests. A careful analysis of all the specifications, to make it easier to read, is summarized in the table.
   From the comparison video, you can get the results of joint testing in special test applications like Handbrake, Blender, Prime95, GeekBench 6, 5.2, WPrime, VeraCrypt, Gears 5, Furmark, 7zip, MATLAB, World of Tanks enCore Benchmark, UserBenchmark, PCMark 10, DaVinci Resolve Studio, Blender, RealBench, AIDA64, Dolphin Emulator, Cinebench 23 (20, 15), PassMark, 3DMark, SuperPi.
   And how good the processors are in games:

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

After looking at the data of parallel benchmarks and videos, you can already make an informed decision about which processor is better to buy for gaming AMD Ryzen 5 1600X or AMD Ryzen 3 1200.

Summary benchmark results

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

Ryzen 3 1200

51%

Ryzen 5 1600X

53%

The number of this parameter shows the performance of the processors in single-threaded and multi-threaded mode. In this comparison, Ryzen 5 1600X is 3% better than Ryzen 3 1200. The data source is several popular tests. More detailed information of the benchmarks is below.

Gaming performance
Summary result of all game benchmarks.

Ryzen 3 1200

52%

Ryzen 5 1600X

53%

The maximum result in this parameter is 100 percent, which is the performance of the most powerful processor currently available. And of course, this is a server processor, on which no one will play games. Because the cost of this processor reaches several tens of thousands of dollars. Therefore, if you think that the selected CPU has a low 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: Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Control, Battlefield V, Forza Horizon 4, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Horizon Zero Dawn, Hitman 3, NBA 2K20, Resident Evil 7 Biohazard, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS GO), DOTA 2A, Monster Hunter World, Ghostrunner, Microsoft Flight Simulator, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG), League of Legends (LOL), Metro Exodus, Half-Life: Alyx.

Gaming benchmark

Fortnite	91.9	93.8
Valorant	104.4	106.6
Cyberpunk 2077	58.5	59.7
Apex Legends	98.2	100.2
Call of Duty Warzone	78.3	80.0
Overwatch	84.6	86.4
Red Dead Redemption 2	72.1	73.6
DOOM Eternal	52.2	53.3
Warzone	81.5	83.2
Assassin's Creed	87.7	89.6
Valheim	86.7	88.5

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 tested computers not only did they have different video cards and different amounts of RAM. But users also tested them at different screen resolutions: FullHD, 2K 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 get acquainted with the benchmarks that are made with the same video card that is installed in your computer.

Power consumption

Ryzen 3 1200

55%

Ryzen 5 1600X

35%

To make a finishing choice 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 Ryzen 3 1200 is more energy efficient than the Ryzen 5 1600X since it has less power consumption: 65W vs. 95W. Power consumption is especially important for laptops. Also, when choosing a processor cooling system, you need to know its TDP. You need to buy a cooler that has the TDP data specified in the specification was greater than the TDP of the compared processor.

Software benchmarks

If you want to use the processor not only for gaming, but also for video rendering or video editing, streaming, machine learning, programming, then the main parameter for you is its performance in multi-threaded mode. In this mode, to reach maximum performance, the processor uses all cores and threads that it has. You will learn this data from the benchmark tables below. Before using 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 benefit 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 Ryzen 3 1200	AMD Ryzen 5 1600X
Cinbench 15 Single-core	129	151
Cinbench 15 Multi-core	477	1126
Cinbench 20 Single-core	333	389
Cinbench 20 Multi-core	1191	2764
Cinbench 23 Single-core	885	942
Cinbench 23 Multi-core	3368	6470

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

	AMD Ryzen 3 1200	AMD Ryzen 5 1600X
Single-Core	1894	2217
Multi-Core	6325	13041

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

	AMD Ryzen 3 1200	AMD Ryzen 5 1600X
Single-Core	1083	1010
Multi-Core	3839	5730

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 you. 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 still be able to produce maximum FPS even in new games. It turns out that there is no longer a need to buy a new CPU to enjoy the games any longer. The savings are obvious!

	AMD Ryzen 3 1200	AMD Ryzen 5 1600X
Announcement date	July 27, 2017	April 11, 2017
Type	Desktop	Desktop
Socket	AM4	AM4
Core name	Summit Ridge	Summit Ridge
Architecture	Zen	Zen
Generation	1	1
Turbo Frequency	3.4 MHz	4 MHz
Frequency	3.1 MHz	3.6 MHz
Cores	4	6
Threads	4	12
Bus rate
Bit	64	64
Lithography		14 nm
Transistors count	3600 millions	2800 millions
Power consumption (TDP)	65 W	95 W
Memory type	DDR4	DDR4
Max. Memory
Memory Frequency	2667	2667
Memory bandwidth
L1 cache		576KB
L2 cache		3MB
L3 cache		16MB
Overclocking	Yes	Yes
Supports ECC	No	No
Part number	YD1200BBM4KAE	YD160XBCM6IAE

In this comparison block, you should pay attention to the differences in clock speed and the number of cores. Here Ryzen 5 1600X is 13% better than Ryzen 3 1200 in terms of CPU frequency. Another difference is that Ryzen 5 1600X has 2 more core than Ryzen 3 1200. 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 Ryzen 3 1200 is better: 5
The number of parameters for which AMD Ryzen 5 1600X is better: 27
However, it should be understood that all the data in the text above do not mean that taking them into account you should totally trust a simple comparison of these figures. Better to watch the testing video and read the opinion of real owners of AMD Ryzen 3 1200 and AMD Ryzen 5 1600X before deciding which CPU to buy for gaming and which not.

AMD Ryzen 3 1200 - all data

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

• AMD Ryzen 3 1200 specs and review.

AMD Ryzen 5 1600X - all data

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

• AMD Ryzen 5 1600X specs and review.