AMD Ryzen 3000-series processors seem to be on a never-ending sale, and this is true even at the top end of the lineup. We call this the best high-end gaming CPU for good reason: apart from ultra-enthusiast Threadrippers and the wallet-destroying, toasty Intel Core i9 10900K, this is about as high-end as you can get.
Even at its full retail price of $499 USD it's great value. For this price you're getting 12 cores, 24 threads, and a boost clock of up to 4.6GHz of raw processing power, capable of ripping through even the most demanding triple-A game around without breaking a sweat. And it's not only great for gaming, since this whopping core count lets the CPU run pretty much any multi-core app with ease.
With this 22% discount knocking $109 off the retail price, you're getting a truly top-tier, enthusiast CPU for bargain price. If you never ever use your PC for anything other than to play games there might be better options out there, but if you want the best desktop and application experience, too, you can't go wrong with the 3900X.
Well-rounded CPUs that combine single-threaded performance with multi-core chops like the Ryzen 9 3900X are perfect for those of you that like to try your hand at things like streaming, or that compile complex programs, encode videos, and so on. Hell, the 3900X’s heap of processor cores can even improve your Chrome experience if you’re used to having 20 tabs open at once.
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| AMD Ryzen 9 3900X specs | |
| Cores | 12 |
| Threads | 24 |
| Clock speed | 3.8GHz / 4.6GHz |
| Socket | AM4 |
The best gaming CPU, if we only consider gaming performance and price, might be something like the Intel Core i5 10600K, but even the most ardent gaming enthusiasts likely spend at least some of their PC time doing other stuff. It’s for that reason that the 3900X is such a great high-end choice: it’s incredibly well rounded. While the i9 10900K might be the fastest gaming CPU out there in terms of raw gaming performance, it can’t hold a candle to the 3900X’s multi-core horsepower.
If there’s any chance you may one day decide to get into video editing, running virtual machines, or any number of other things that require using multi-core-heavy apps, the 3900X is a much better investment. Besides, at the ultra-high-end where the Ryzen 9 3900X and Core i9 10900K lie, there’s very little in it as far as gaming performance deltas are concerned – games are simply still too GPU-bound. At over $100 USD or £80 GBP off its retail price, the 3900X is one of the best investments you can make in your rig.