Apple M1 Ultra vs AMD EPYC 7702

Processor comparisons 21-10-2022

   Perhaps you are thinking about choosing a processor, you will be able to make a choice by looking at the Apple M1 Ultra vs AMD EPYC 7702 tests and decide which is better for games or simple use for rendering, video editing, machine learning, streaming, programming. Here is all information from real video editing and streaming tests or various benchmarks. A careful review of all the specifications, to make it easier to understand, is summarized in the table.
   From the video comparison, you can get the results of joint testing in special test applications such as Cinebench 23 (20, 15), SuperPi, Handbrake, WPrime, AIDA64, RealBench, Blender, GeekBench 6, 5.2, MATLAB, UserBenchmark, Furmark, VeraCrypt, Prime95, Dolphin Emulator, Blender, 3DMark, 7zip, PCMark 10, Gears 5, World of Tanks enCore Benchmark, PassMark, DaVinci Resolve Studio.
   And how good the CPUs are in games:

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

After looking at the data these benchmarks and videos, you already be able to know which processor is better to buy for gaming AMD EPYC 7702 or Apple M1 Ultra.

Summary benchmark results

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

M1 Ultra

68%

EPYC 7702

71%

This parameter shows the performance of the processors in single-threaded and multi-threaded mode. In this comparison, EPYC 7702 is 4% better than M1 Ultra. The data source is several popular tests. Detailed information can be found below.

Gaming performance
Summary result of all game benchmarks.

M1 Ultra

64%

EPYC 7702

81%

The maximum result in this parameter is 100 percent, which is the performance of the most powerful processor at the moment. And it is clear that this is a server processor, on which no one will play 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 final table below.
List of less popular games in which processors were compared: Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS GO), Metro Exodus, Ghostrunner, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG), Battlefield V, Resident Evil 7 Biohazard, Forza Horizon 4, NBA 2K20, League of Legends (LOL), Horizon Zero Dawn, Hitman 3, Control, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Monster Hunter World, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Microsoft Flight Simulator, DOTA 2A, Half-Life: Alyx.

Gaming benchmark

Fortnite	113.1	143.1
Valorant	128.6	162.6
Cyberpunk 2077	72.0	91.0
Apex Legends	120.8	152.8
Call of Duty Warzone	96.4	121.9
Overwatch	104.1	131.7
Red Dead Redemption 2	88.7	112.2
DOOM Eternal	64.3	81.3
Warzone	100.3	126.8
Assassin's Creed	108.0	136.6
Valheim	106.7	134.9

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 tested computers not only did they have different amounts of RAM and different video cards. 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

M1 Ultra

272%

EPYC 7702

17%

To make a final resolution 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 M1 Ultra is more energy efficient than the EPYC 7702 since it has less power consumption: 20W vs. 200W. Power consumption is especially important for laptops. And TDP should be taken into account when choosing a processor cooling system. It is necessary to calculate so that the TDP data specified in the cooler specification is greater than the TDP of the compared processor.

Software benchmarks

For example you plan to use the processor not only for gaming, but also for streaming, video editing or video rendering, programming, machine learning, then first of all you need to pay attention to the 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 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. Because there are still many programs that can use only one core to work, 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

	Apple M1 Ultra	AMD EPYC 7702
Cinbench 15 Single-core	555	216
Cinbench 15 Multi-core	3252	8896
Cinbench 20 Single-core	1103	406
Cinbench 20 Multi-core	5583	18857
Cinbench 23 Single-core	4240	996
Cinbench 23 Multi-core	21959	49035

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

	Apple M1 Ultra	AMD EPYC 7702
Single-Core	9611	2099
Multi-Core	62194	71929

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

	Apple M1 Ultra	AMD EPYC 7702
Single-Core	1637	1023
Multi-Core	24642	53995

Comparison of specifications

In the specification comparison table, the processor release date and overclocking capability will be the most useful. The newer the processor, the longer it will last you. And the easier it will be to upgrade the system in the future. The same can be said about overclocking. If the processor can be overclocked, increasing its performance, then it will still be able to produce maximum FPS even in the newest games. Accordingly, you do not need to buy a new CPU to enjoy the games any longer. The savings are obvious!

	Apple M1 Ultra	AMD EPYC 7702
Announcement date	April 09, 2022	April 01, 2020
Type	Desktop	Server
Socket	M1	SP3
Core name	16x Firestorm and 4x Icestorm	Rome
Architecture	hybrid (big.LITTLE)	Zen
Generation	1	2
Turbo Frequency		3.4 MHz
Frequency	3.2 MHz	2 MHz
Cores	20	64
Threads	20	128
Bus rate
Bit	64	64
Lithography	5 nm	7 nm
Transistors count	114000 millions	86000 millions
Power consumption (TDP)	20 W	200 W
Memory type	LPDDR5 - Up to 6400MHz	DDR4
Max. Memory	128 Gb
Memory Frequency	6400
Memory bandwidth	818 GByte/s
L1 cache	4MB
L2 cache	48MB
L3 cache	96MB	256MB
Overclocking	No	Yes
Supports ECC	No	No
Part number	APL1W06	100-000000038 100-100000038WOF

In this comparison block, you should pay attention to the differences in clock speed and the number of cores. Here M1 Ultra is 37% better than EPYC 7702 in terms of CPU frequency. Another difference is that EPYC 7702 has 44 more core than M1 Ultra. Also keep in mind that high CPU frequency affects battery life through power consumption (relevant for laptops).

Result:
The number of parameters for which Apple M1 Ultra is better: 16
The number of parameters for which AMD EPYC 7702 is better: 21
However, it should be realized that all the data in the table above do not mean that taking them into account you should completely trust a simple quantitative comparison. Better to watch benchmarks video and read the opinion of of people who bought Apple M1 Ultra and AMD EPYC 7702 before making a selection which of the processors to buy for gaming.

Apple M1 Ultra - all data

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

• Apple M1 Ultra specs and review.

• AMD EPYC 7702 specs and review.