AMD Ryzen R7 1700 AM4 8-Core Processor Review

Introduction

Ryzen has been on the market for a little over a week now, and it’s already off to an impressive start. While there have been some bugs with memory performance, some of which that are still to be fixed at the time of writing, we’ve seen that these issues have done little to slow down the gaming performance of the Ryzen hardware, as tested in our GTX 1080 Ti feature. We’ve already put the Ryzen R7 1800X through its paces, and today we’re taking a look at the bottom of the R7 range, the R7 1700.

The new chip may be much cheaper than the flagship 1800X, but it still packs the same 8 core, 16 thread design, an impressive 3GHz – 3.7GHz clock speed, and a TDP of just 65W. Remember, all Ryzen chips are unlocked, and if you want to overclock, it’s down to the motherboard manufacturer to include the feature, which you’ll find on all B370 and B370 motherboard chipsets.

• Number of CPU Cores: 8
• Number of Threads: 16
• Base Clock Speed: 3GHz
• Max Turbo Core Speed: 3.7GHz
• Total L1 Cache: 768KB
• Total L2 Cache: 4MB
• Total L3 Cache: 16MB
• Unlocked: Yes
• Package: AM4
• Thermal Solution: Wraith Spire (LED)
• Default TDP / TDP: 65W

Featuring the new Zen architecture, AMD SenseMI Technology, and AMD Ryzen Master Utility AES AVX FMA4 support, the R7 1700 looks set to be the perfect consumer chip. It features built-in management sensors which help overclock and maintain the chips performance automatically, as well as many other advanced features that PC gamers, system builders and overclockers desire; let’s take a closer look at what it has to offer!

Packaging and Accessories

There are two variants of the chip available at retail, one with and one without the stock cooler. Our sample comes without a cooler, which is fine, as we’ll be using our be quiet! 240mm AIO water cooler to push the limits of the processor.

In the box, you’ll find the new chip, which comes with the AM4 package design, and it uses a pin mounting system; It’s all pretty standard stuff.

Simply pop the chip into the motherboard, clamp it down, apply the thermal paste and cooler, and it is done. Now, let’s get this system powered up and see the Ryzen 1700 can do!