AMD Ryzen 5 3600 vs Intel Core i7-4790K

Processor comparisons 17-03-2021

   If you can't decide which CPU to buy, you can make a choice by looking at the AMD Ryzen 5 3600 vs Intel Core i7-4790K tests and decide which is better for games or normal use for video editing, streaming, rendering, machine learning, programming. Here you can find all information from many benchmarks or real streaming and video editing tests. A careful analysis of all the specifications, to make it easier to understand, is presented in the form of the table.
   From the video comparison, you can get the results of joint testing in software tests like Cinebench 23 (20, 15), World of Tanks enCore Benchmark, AIDA64, Prime95, UserBenchmark, PCMark 10, 7zip, 3DMark, Blender, Blender, PassMark, Dolphin Emulator, Gears 5, RealBench, DaVinci Resolve Studio, WPrime, VeraCrypt, MATLAB, SuperPi, Handbrake, Furmark, GeekBench 6, 5.2.
   Gaming performance of CPUs in:

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

After reading the results these benchmarks and videos, you can already make an briefed decision about which processor is better to buy for gaming Intel Core i7-4790K or AMD Ryzen 5 3600.

Summary benchmark results

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

Ryzen 5 3600

55%

Core i7-4790K

52%

This value shows the performance of the processors in single-threaded and multi-threaded mode. In this comparison, Ryzen 5 3600 is 5% better than Core i7-4790K. The data source is several popular tests. More detailed information of the benchmarks is below.

Gaming performance
Summary result of all game benchmarks.

Ryzen 5 3600

53%

Core i7-4790K

52%

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 run games. Because this processor costs several tens of thousands of dollars. Therefore, if you think that the selected CPU has a small game result, look at the FPS that it produces in real games in the summary table below.
List of other games in which CPU comparisons were performed: Shadow of the Tomb Raider, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Ghostrunner, DOTA 2A, Resident Evil 7 Biohazard, Control, Half-Life: Alyx, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS GO), Horizon Zero Dawn, NBA 2K20, Forza Horizon 4, Monster Hunter World, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG), Metro Exodus, Microsoft Flight Simulator, Hitman 3, League of Legends (LOL), Battlefield V.

Gaming benchmark

Fortnite	94.7	92.8
Valorant	107.6	105.5
Cyberpunk 2077	60.3	59.1
Apex Legends	101.2	99.2
Call of Duty Warzone	80.7	79.1
Overwatch	87.2	85.5
Red Dead Redemption 2	74.3	72.8
DOOM Eternal	53.8	52.8
Warzone	83.9	82.3
Assassin's Creed	90.4	88.6
Valheim	89.3	87.6

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 comparing 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. So 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 5 3600

63%

Core i7-4790K

46%

To make a final choice on which processor is better, you should also consider the generation of its core. It is clear that the newer the generation, the better the performance of the processor in games and benchmarks, as well as its energy efficiency. In this case the Ryzen 5 3600 is more energy efficient than the Core i7-4790K as it consumes less power: 65W vs. 88W. Power consumption is particularly important for laptops. Also, when choosing a processor cooling system, you must 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

Let's say you plan to use the processor not only for gaming, but also for video editing or video rendering, streaming, programming, machine learning, then first of all you need to pay attention to the performance in multi-threaded mode. In this mode, to reach maximum performance, the CPU uses all threads and cores that it has. You will learn 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 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 5 3600	Intel Core i7-4790K
Cinbench 15 Single-core		169
Cinbench 15 Multi-core	1578	854
Cinbench 20 Single-core	472	411
Cinbench 20 Multi-core	3689	1982
Cinbench 23 Single-core	1253	1069
Cinbench 23 Multi-core	9412	4936

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

	AMD Ryzen 5 3600	Intel Core i7-4790K
Single-Core	2611	2491
Multi-Core	17872	8030

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

	AMD Ryzen 5 3600	Intel Core i7-4790K
Single-Core	1238	1230
Multi-Core	6578	4747

Comparison of specifications

In the specification comparison table, the processor release date and overclocking capability will be the most helpful. The newer the processor, 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, thereby increasing its performance, then it will still be able to produce maximum FPS in the newest games. Accordingly, you do not need to buy a new CPU to enjoy the games any longer. The economy are obvious!

	AMD Ryzen 5 3600	Intel Core i7-4790K
Announcement date	July 07, 2019	April 01, 2014
Type	Desktop	Desktop
Socket	AM4	LGA1150
Core name	Matisse	Devil's Canyon
Architecture	Zen 2	x86
Generation	3	4
Turbo Frequency	4.2 MHz	4.4 MHz
Frequency	3.6 MHz	4 MHz
Cores	6	4
Threads	12	8
Bus rate		5 GT/s
Bit	64	64
Lithography	7 nm	22 nm
Transistors count	4200 millions	1420 millions
Power consumption (TDP)	65 W	88 W
Memory type	DDR4	DDR3-1333/1600, DDR3L-1333/1600 @ 1.5V
Max. Memory		32 Gb
Memory Frequency	3200
Memory bandwidth		25.6 GB/s
L1 cache	384KB
L2 cache	3MB
L3 cache	32MB	8 MB
Overclocking	No	Yes
Supports ECC	No	No
Part number	100-000000031 100-100000031BOX 100-100000031MPK

In this comparison block, you should pay attention to the differences in clock speed and the number of cores. Here Core i7-4790K is 9% better than Ryzen 5 3600 in terms of CPU frequency. Another difference is that Ryzen 5 3600 has 2 more core than Core i7-4790K. 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 5 3600 is better: 29
The number of parameters for which Intel Core i7-4790K is better: 9
Although it should be understood that all the data in the table above do not mean that taking them into account you should completely trust a simple comparison of these numbers. Better to watch the testing video and read the opinion of of people who bought AMD Ryzen 5 3600 and Intel Core i7-4790K before making a decision which CPU to buy for gaming and which not.

• AMD Ryzen 5 3600 specs and review.

• Intel Core i7-4790K specs and review.