It’s a great time to grab a new processor thanks to this AMD gaming CPU deal on the Ryzen 9 7900X3D at Amazon. You can pick up this CPU for just $390 right now, but you’ll have to be quick as it’s only going to be available for a limited time.
The Ryzen 9 7900X3D uses the same AMD 3D V-cache technology as the Ryzen 7 7800X3D, which gives it a huge 64MB stack of L3 cache, which results in a massive uplift in gaming performance in our tests. The 7800X3D is listed on our guide to the best gaming CPU, and this 7900X3D chip gives you four extra cores, as well as a faster clock speed.
The Ryzen 9 7900X3D launched at a price of $599 last year, so it’s great to see the price of this gaming CPU coming down so quickly. You’ll need a motherboard equipped with an AM5 socket to accommodate this CPU, as well as some DDR5 memory. You’ll also need to check our best CPU cooler guide, as no cooler is provided with the CPU.
Bear in mind, though, that while the 7900X3D does indeed have 12 cores, these are spread across two chiplet dies (each with six cores) under the heatspreader, and that big stack of 3D V-cache that helps with games is only located on one of these chiplets.
As a result, the 7800X3D is sometimes more efficient than the 7900X3D in games, as all its eight cores have access to 3D V-cache. There’s no chance that a gaming task will be inadvertently assigned to the wrong chiplet on the eight-core chip either, as it only has one of them.
In addition to the Amazon deal, the entire X3D range is also currently on sale via Newegg, with savings of $71.82 to be had on the 7950X3D and $81 on the 7800X3D at Newegg. However, the $110.23 saving on the 7900X3D represents the biggest saving and best overall deal right now.
For gamers in the UK, all of the X3D CPUs are also on sale via Amazon, but the RRP is inflated on both the 7950X3D and 7900X3D, making the savings look far grander than they actually are.
If you’re in the process of buying parts for a custom PC but aren’t sure how they all fit together, we can show you how to build a gaming PC with our step-by-step guide.