AMD’s New Ryzen CPU Outperforms the i7-6900K!

During AMD’s New Horizon event, the company’s CEO Dr Lisa Su outlined a new processor entitled Ryzen which opts for an 8-core, 16-thread configuration. Rather impressively, the CPU has 20MB of L2 and L3 cache as well as a 3.4GHz base frequency. According to AMD, the Ryzen processor supports a boost clock and the specific details will be announced at a later date. Interestingly, the stream involved benchmarks which compared the Ryzen chip to the i7-6900K. Unbelievably, the AMD CPU running at 3.4GHz was able to match the i7-6900K despite the Intel option turboing up to 3.7GHz. On another note, the AMD’s new processor outclassed the i7-6900K during the Handbrake utility by around 10%.

AMD’s performance gains become even more impressive when you consider the chip’s TDP is a mere 95-watts compared to the i7-6900K’s fairly power hungry 140W figure. Also, the processor’s development hasn’t been finalised and there’s certainly some fine-tuning to be completed before launch which could lead to better performance. The CPU is also well suited for streaming and can cope with multi-threaded workloads without stutter. Of course, pricing is key and the Intel i7-6900K sits at just under £1000. Unfortunately, AMD didn’t disclose any information about the cost just yet, but I’m hopeful they can dramatically shake up the market with a much more accessible price point.

Zen isn’t too far away either and on track for a Q1 2017 release. This is exciting news and it looks like AMD is back in the CPU market and taking the fight to Intel.