AMD Ryzen 5 7600X Review: Best value for gaming PCs

Cores – 4700 MHz – 105 watts From ₹ 23889.00^§

AMD Ryzen 5 7600X processor, which offers 6 cores/12 threads, but has a TDP of 65W. The lower TDP should theoretically reduce performance, but AMD claims otherwise. Does the improved energy efficiency of Zen 4 really make a difference? That’s what we want to find out in this test.

AMD Ryzen 5 7600 Specifications

Our Test Bench

• AsRock B650 PG Lightning motherboard
• AMD Wraith Stealth cooler
• 32GB DDR5 5200MHz RAM
• WD Black SN850 512GB PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSD
• GPU: Nvidia GeForce RTX 3070 
• SilverStone ET750-HG 750W modular power supply

Architecture

The AMD Ryzen 5 7600 receives the same Zen 4 architecture updates as the Ryzen 7900X we recently reviewed. These updates include improved power efficiency, faster base clock speeds, a new 6nm I/O die that includes a AMD RDNA 2-based graphics engine, and more. The RDNA 2-based iGPU is not as powerful as older Ryzen APUs, but with its dual processing units and 2.2 GHz maximum frequency, it should be able to comfortably power most modern displays.

With the introduction of the 7000-series Ryzen CPUs, the AM5 platform was also introduced. It moves to an LGA socket and offers support for dual-channel DDR5 memory, PCIe 5.0 and a higher performance target. So far, 4 chipsets have been announced for the AM5 platform – X670E, X670 and B650E and B650. They are expected to launch chipsets for the lower end of the scale soon.

Benchmarks

For our benchmarks, we have largely focused on productivity and synthetic benchmarks and less on gaming benchmarks. We will expand our gaming benchmarks in future reviews.

Cinebench R23

Cinebench is based on the Cinema 4D suite and can be used to measure 3D modeling, animation, motion graphics and rendering performance. We achieved a score of 14243 points in multi-core mode and 1842 points in single-core mode.

GeekBench 5

Geekbench is a popular cross-platform utility for benchmarking CPU and GPU performance. We achieved a score of 10497 points in multicore and 1972 points in single core.

CPU-Z

CPU -Z is a very popular tool for checking the system information of Windows computers. It has a built-in benchmarking tool that gives a taste of raw CPU performance of both single-core and multi-core systems. We achieved a score of 723.7 points for single-core and 5766.9 points for multi-core.

Gaming Performance

We tested the CPU under some games at 4K and near-max settings. Here are our results:

Ryzen Master / Overclocking

Although the Ryzen 5 7600 is designed to be a budget offering, AMD has not ruled out features like overclocking. As announced during the launch event, the entire 7000 processor lineup will support overclocking, and that includes the Ryzen 5 7600. Although the processor is not necessarily suited for overclocking, it is nice to have the option to apply tweaks to get some extra performance.

On Windows, AMD’s RyzenMaster is a great tool for monitoring performance CPU down to each core and other various parameters. This tool also allows users to overclock without having to go to BIOS settings. Just remember that manual overclocking can be a gamble and requires more technical know-how.

We ask you to use the tool at your own risk and we are not responsible for voiding your warranty if you damage your CPU

Performance in the real world / thermals

The power target is an interesting discussion for the Ryzen 5 7600. The first three processors in the 7000 series had increased power targets with up to 170W TDP. However, the “non-x’ variants have a reduced power target of only 65W. AMD claims that the Zen 4 power efficiency is so good that the Ryzen 5 7600 performs almost as well as the Ryzen 5 7600X (which runs at up to 105W).

We tested the processor under synthetic load and gaming load with the included Wraith Stealth cooler. During the AIDA64 stress test, the processor peaked at 5.1 GHz and then eventually levelled off at 4.86 GHz across all cores. During this time, the processor consumed a peak of 72W and the temperature reached a maximum of 94.5°C. This is an impressive result considering that it happened under an unrealistic synthetic load and with the in-box cooler.

Under gaming load, temperatures were much better. The processor increased its frequency whenever necessary, and temperatures were well under control. However, if you want to overclock the CPU, I recommend buying an aftermarket cooler.

Conclusion

The Ryzen 5 7600 is a great processor that offers improved performance over the Ryzen 5 5600X while maintaining a similar price and TDP. AMD’s Zen 4 architecture has impressive power efficiency, and the Ryzen 5 7600 is clear proof of that. The performance is great for gaming, and the productivity capability is pretty good as well.

The move to AM5 brings support for newer technologies like DDR5, PCIe Gen5, AMD EXPO RAM technology, and more. At the time of this writing, the cost of launching the platform is quite high, as motherboards and DDR5 memory are still expensive. This hurts the processor’s price-performance ratio at the moment, but that will change when these components become cheaper.

As for the price, AMD recommends $229 for worldwide markets, and we can expect it to be priced just below 20000 rupees in India. At this price, it offers great value. It’s solid for gaming without costing too much money and performance, and it can handle light productivity applications with ease. Compared to the Ryzen 5 7600X, the Ryzen 5 7600 offers an even better value in many areas.

Pros

• 6 cores and 12 threads – balance for games and productivity
• More performance with a lower TDP of 65 W
• Support for DDR5, PCIe Gen 5.0 and AMD EXPO
• Impressive energy efficiency under gaming load
• The included cooler is sufficient for most users

Cons

• Platform adoption costs are higher due to new motherboards and memory standards
• Requires newer DDR5 RAM and is not backward compatible with DDR4