AMD Ryzen 9 3900 vs AMD Ryzen 9 5980HX

Processor comparisons 17-03-2021

   Perhaps you can't decide which processor to buy, you can make a choice by looking at the AMD Ryzen 9 3900 vs AMD Ryzen 9 5980HX tests and decide which is better for games or normal use for machine learning, streaming, video editing, programming, rendering. Here you can find useful information from real video editing and streaming tests or various benchmarks. A careful review of all the technical characteristics, so that it can be 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), PCMark 10, World of Tanks enCore Benchmark, Handbrake, Gears 5, SuperPi, MATLAB, PassMark, 7zip, Furmark, VeraCrypt, Blender, DaVinci Resolve Studio, UserBenchmark, Blender, AIDA64, 3DMark, RealBench, Dolphin Emulator, WPrime, GeekBench 6, 5.2, Prime95.
   Gaming performance of CPUs in:

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

After looking at the data these benchmarks and videos, you can already make an informed decision about which processor is better to buy for gaming AMD Ryzen 9 5980HX or AMD Ryzen 9 3900.

Summary benchmark results

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

Ryzen 9 3900

59%

Ryzen 9 5980HX

58%

The number of this parameter shows the performance of the processors in single-threaded and multi-threaded mode. In this comparison, Ryzen 9 3900 is 1% better than Ryzen 9 5980HX. The data source is several popular tests. More detailed information of the benchmarks is below.

Gaming performance
Summary result of all game benchmarks.

Ryzen 9 3900

57%

Ryzen 9 5980HX

54%

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

Gaming benchmark

Fortnite	101.6	96.8
Valorant	115.5	110.0
Cyberpunk 2077	64.7	61.6
Apex Legends	108.6	103.4
Call of Duty Warzone	86.6	82.5
Overwatch	93.5	89.1
Red Dead Redemption 2	79.7	75.9
DOOM Eternal	57.7	55.0
Warzone	90.1	85.8
Assassin's Creed	97.0	92.4
Valheim	95.9	91.3

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 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. You will get more accurate information about how powerful 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 9 3900

67%

Ryzen 9 5980HX

114%

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 9 5980HX is more energy efficient than the Ryzen 9 3900 since it has less power consumption: 65W vs. 45W. 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 editing or video rendering, machine learning, streaming, programming, then the main parameter for you is its performance in multi-threaded mode. In this mode, the CPU includes all threads and cores that it has to the maximum to achieve maximum efficiency. You will learn this data from the benchmark tables below. Before you take into account the data from these tests, be sure to make sure that the software that you are going to use on your computer can work in multi-threaded mode. Since there are still many programs that use only one core to run, and all the benefit of multi-core mode turns out to be unnecessary.

Cinebench 23, 20 an 15
The results of this benchmark show Single-threaded and Multi-threaded CPU performance

	AMD Ryzen 9 3900	AMD Ryzen 9 5980HX
Cinbench 15 Single-core	196	247
Cinbench 15 Multi-core	2922	2394
Cinbench 20 Single-core	485	576
Cinbench 20 Multi-core	6789	5248
Cinbench 23 Single-core	1149	1490
Cinbench 23 Multi-core	16943	13354

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

	AMD Ryzen 9 3900	AMD Ryzen 9 5980HX
Single-Core	2627	3190
Multi-Core	30807	26405

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

	AMD Ryzen 9 3900	AMD Ryzen 9 5980HX
Single-Core	1324	1551
Multi-Core	13362	8595

Comparison of specifications

In the specification comparison table, the most useful will be the release date of the processor and the possibility of overclocking it. The later the processor is released, the longer it will last you. And the easier it will be to upgrade the system in the future. The same benefits from the presence of overclocking. When the processor can be overclocked, increasing its performance, then it will still be able to produce maximum FPS in new games. Accordingly, there is no longer a need to buy a new CPU to enjoy the games any longer. The economy are obvious!

	AMD Ryzen 9 3900	AMD Ryzen 9 5980HX
Announcement date	September 30, 2019	January 12, 2021
Type	Desktop	Laptop
Socket	AM4	FP6
Core name	Matisse	Cezanne
Architecture	Zen 2	Zen 3
Generation	2	5
Turbo Frequency	4.2 MHz	4.8 MHz
Frequency	3.1 MHz	3.3 MHz
Cores	12	8
Threads	24	16
Bus rate
Bit	64	64
Lithography	7 nm	7 nm
Transistors count	7800 millions	9400 millions
Power consumption (TDP)	65 W	45 W
Memory type	DDR4	DDR4 - Up to 3200MHz LPDDR4 - Up to 4266MHz
Max. Memory
Memory Frequency	3200	3200
Memory bandwidth
L1 cache	768KB
L2 cache	6MB	4MB
L3 cache	64MB	16MB
Overclocking	No	No
Supports ECC	No	No
Part number	100-000000072	100-000000474

In this comparison block, you should pay attention to the differences in clock speed and the number of cores. Here Ryzen 9 5980HX is 6% better than Ryzen 9 3900 in terms of CPU frequency. Another difference is that Ryzen 9 3900 has 4 more core than Ryzen 9 5980HX. 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 9 3900 is better: 21
The number of parameters for which AMD Ryzen 9 5980HX is better: 11
Although it should be realized that all the figures in the text above do not mean that taking them into account you should undividedly trust a simple comparison of these numbers. Be sure to watch the testing video and read the reviews of real owners of AMD Ryzen 9 3900 and AMD Ryzen 9 5980HX before making a choice which processor to buy for gaming and which not.

• AMD Ryzen 9 3900 specs and review.

• AMD Ryzen 9 5980HX specs and review.