Amd ryzen 5 1600x vs intel core i7 7700k (comparative benchmark and games)

AMD Ryzen 5 1600 X is one of the most popular processors of the moment and it is not for less, its 6 cores and 12 threads based on the Zen architecture offer us excellent performance in all kinds of tasks, the best thing is that its price is only about 280 euros making it cheaper than Intel's 4-core 8-core processors. We have compared the Ryzen 5 1600X with the Core i7 7700K to see which is more interesting for the user.

Index of contents

Ryzen 5 1600X vs Core i7 7700k

AMD Ryzen 5 1600X is an advanced Zen microarchitecture-based processor featuring a total of 6 cores and 12 threads thanks to SMT technology, which enables each core to handle two threads of data to deliver outstanding performance on tasks that do a very intensive use of nuclei. The cores run at a base frequency of 3.6 GHz that goes up to a maximum of 4 GHz in turbo mode and beyond by using only one core thanks to XFR technology. The rest of the Ryzen 5 1600X features include a total of 16 MB of L3 cache and a 95W TDP, these properties are the same as those of the 8-core Ryzen 7. This processor does not include integrated graphics, so we must obtain a graphics card for the equipment to work.

The Intel Core i7-7700k is a processor based on the Kaby Lake architecture of four physical cores that can handle eight threads of data thanks to Intel's HT technology. Its cores operate at a clock frequency of 4.2 GHz in base mode and 4.5 GHz in turbo mode, finally we find 8 MB of L3 cache that is distributed among all the cores and with intelligent management so that it can be used to the maximum. The TDP rises to 91W and includes the Intel HD Graphics 630 GPU with a total of 24 Execution Units and which offers excellent multimedia behavior as well as power to move a large number of video games, although if we want to play the new generation titles or very demanding will clearly fall short of benefits.

We recommend reading Intel i7-7700K Review in Spanish (Complete analysis)

We can see that the Ryzen 5 1600X is a processor that offers us 50% more cores than its rival, something that will be essential in many cases.

Test bench and application performance

The test bench used in the tests is as follows:

TESTING BENCH
Processor:	Ryzen 5 1600X vs Core i7 7700K
Base plate:	Gigabyte AB350-Gaming 3 / Asus Maximus IX Formula
RAM:	Geil 16 GB @ 2933MHz
Heatsink	Noctua NH-D15 SE-AM4
HDD	Samsumg 850 EVO.
Graphic card	Gigabyte GTX1080 Ti 8GB
Power supply	Corsair AX860i.

We start by looking at the performance of both processors in applications that make very intensive use of it.

Gaming performance

We now turn to see the performance of both processors in games, the weak point of the Ryzen or at least that is what has been seen since they arrived on the market.

Analysis of results and conclusion

Before starting to analyze the results, let's put on the table the prices of both processors, the Ryzen 5 1600X costs 280 euros while the Core i7 7700K costs approximately 350 euros, as we see there is a difference of 70 euros that we can invest in other components or save them that never come to spare.

We started with the performance in games that has been the Achilles heel of the Ryzen since they came to the market, we know that the performance of Ryzen depends a lot on the speed of RAM due to its Infinity Fabric interconnect bus, we have chosen to use Geil at 2, 933 MHz, it is not a very high speed but it is an improvement over the 2, 400 MHz or 2, 133 MHz that could be achieved at the beginning with Ryzen.

WE RECOMMEND THreadripper processors drop in price ahead of Zen 2 launch

With this we see that the Ryzen 5 1600X fights peer to peer with the Core i7 7700K in games at 1080p resolution, excellent news for AMD fans and for all users who have a new and excellent option to choose from. If we raise the resolution to 2K and 4K we see that the Ryzen 5 1600X even exceeds the Core i7 7700K in games, a minimal difference but it exists.

We recommend reading our review of the AMD Ryzen 5 1600X

As for the demanding CPU applications we see what we already knew, Ryzen is a monster of multi-thread performance, the Core i7 7700K has nothing to do when taking advantage of all the cores of its rival, we have a processor of 280 euros that performs better than a 350.

As a final conclusion we can say that the AMD Ryzen 5 1600X is the most interesting processor that we can find in the market, for a price of 280 euros it allows us to assemble a team with 6 cores and 12 threads that gives tremendous performance in all situations. Practically for the price of the Core i7 7700K we can buy the AMD processor and a motherboard, and the performance is superior… almost nothing.