Apple M1 Ultra vs AMD Ryzen Threadripper 3960X

Processor comparisons 21-10-2022

   Let's say you are thinking about choosing a CPU, you will be able to make a decision after reading the comprehensive tests Apple M1 Ultra vs AMD Ryzen Threadripper 3960X and decide which is better for games or simple use for programming, rendering, video editing, machine learning, streaming. Here is useful information from real streaming and video editing tests or many benchmarks. A step-by-step analysis of all the specifications, to make it easier to read, is summarized in the table.
   From the video comparison, you can get the results of joint testing in synthetic type tests like 7zip, World of Tanks enCore Benchmark, AIDA64, PassMark, Blender, Handbrake, 3DMark, SuperPi, Dolphin Emulator, GeekBench 6, 5.2, Cinebench 23 (20, 15), Blender, Gears 5, WPrime, RealBench, VeraCrypt, Prime95, UserBenchmark, MATLAB, PCMark 10, Furmark, DaVinci Resolve Studio.
   Gaming performance of CPUs in:

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

After looking at the data of all benchmarks and videos, you already be able to understand which CPU is better to buy for gaming AMD Ryzen Threadripper 3960X 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%

Ryzen Threadripper 3960X

66%

This shows the performance of the processors in single-threaded and multi-threaded mode. In this comparison, M1 Ultra is 2% better than Ryzen Threadripper 3960X. The data source is several popular tests. Detailed information can be found below.

Gaming performance
Summary result of all game benchmarks.

M1 Ultra

64%

Ryzen Threadripper 3960X

64%

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 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 CPU comparisons were performed: Microsoft Flight Simulator, NBA 2K20, Half-Life: Alyx, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Forza Horizon 4, Battlefield V, Horizon Zero Dawn, Ghostrunner, Monster Hunter World, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG), Metro Exodus, Control, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, League of Legends (LOL), Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS GO), Hitman 3, Resident Evil 7 Biohazard, DOTA 2A.

Gaming benchmark

Fortnite	113.1	113.6
Valorant	128.6	129.1
Cyberpunk 2077	72.0	72.3
Apex Legends	120.8	121.3
Call of Duty Warzone	96.4	96.8
Overwatch	104.1	104.5
Red Dead Redemption 2	88.7	89.1
DOOM Eternal	64.3	64.5
Warzone	100.3	100.7
Assassin's Creed	108.0	108.4
Valheim	106.7	107.1

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 that were in the comparisons not only did they have different amounts of RAM and different video cards. But users also tested them at different screen resolutions: 4K, 2K or FullHD. So 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%

Ryzen Threadripper 3960X

15%

To make a finishing 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 Ryzen Threadripper 3960X since it has less power consumption: 20W vs. 280W. Power consumption is especially important for laptops. And TDP should be taken into account when choosing a processor cooling system. 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 machine learning, programming, streaming, video editing or video rendering, then first of all you need to pay attention to the performance in multi-threaded mode. In this mode, to reach maximum performance, the processor includes all threads and cores 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 software 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 turns out to be unnecessary.

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

	Apple M1 Ultra	AMD Ryzen Threadripper 3960X
Cinbench 15 Single-core	555	209
Cinbench 15 Multi-core	3252	5933
Cinbench 20 Single-core	1103	509
Cinbench 20 Multi-core	5583	13552
Cinbench 23 Single-core	4240	1270
Cinbench 23 Multi-core	21959	34255

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

	Apple M1 Ultra	AMD Ryzen Threadripper 3960X
Single-Core	9611	2663
Multi-Core	62194	54830

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

	Apple M1 Ultra	AMD Ryzen Threadripper 3960X
Single-Core	1637	1306
Multi-Core	24642	25072

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 in your computer. And the easier it will be to upgrade the system later. The same can be said about overclocking. If the processor can be overclocked, thereby increasing its performance, then it will continue to maintain maximum FPS even in the newest games. The economy are obvious! Accordingly, there is no longer a need to buy a new CPU to enjoy the games any longer.

	Apple M1 Ultra	AMD Ryzen Threadripper 3960X
Announcement date	April 09, 2022	November 25, 2019
Type	Desktop	Desktop
Socket	M1	sTRX4
Core name	16x Firestorm and 4x Icestorm	Castle Peak
Architecture	hybrid (big.LITTLE)	Zen 2
Generation	1	3
Turbo Frequency		4.5 MHz
Frequency	3.2 MHz	3.8 MHz
Cores	20	24
Threads	20	48
Bus rate
Bit	64	64
Lithography	5 nm	7 nm
Transistors count	114000 millions	22600 millions
Power consumption (TDP)	20 W	280 W
Memory type	LPDDR5 - Up to 6400MHz	DDR4
Max. Memory	128 Gb
Memory Frequency	6400	3200
Memory bandwidth	818 GByte/s
L1 cache	4MB	1.5MB
L2 cache	48MB	12MB
L3 cache	96MB	128MB
Overclocking	No	Yes
Supports ECC	No	No
Part number	APL1W06	100-000000010 100-100000010WOF

In this comparison block, you should pay attention to the differences in clock speed and the number of cores. Here Ryzen Threadripper 3960X is 15% better than M1 Ultra in terms of CPU frequency. Another difference is that Ryzen Threadripper 3960X has 4 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 Ryzen Threadripper 3960X is better: 21
Although it should be understood that all the figures in the table above do not mean that taking them into account you should entirely trust a simple comparison of these figures. Be sure to watch the testing video and read the opinion of of people who bought Apple M1 Ultra and AMD Ryzen Threadripper 3960X before making a decision which processor to buy for gaming and which not.

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 Ryzen Threadripper 3960X specs and review.