Taking the Ryzen Plunge?

The point of this comparison was to see what kind of upgrade Ryzen three might provide for those nonetheless gaming with much older AMD FX or Intel Core i5-2500K processors. Once more, we've tested these chips in nine strategically selected games using several tiers of graphics cards. It'southward worth noting that I'yard generalizing with the FX-8370 as it really covers that entire serial.

Since we're already talking about it, let'due south kickoff with the FX-8370'southward results, and once again this information should really utilize to anyone using the AM3+ platform. It is my opinion that Ryzen iii offers a solid upgrade over the FX serial, but how big of an upgrade volition depend on the games yous play and what kind of graphics card you're using.

With a card that'due south equivalent to the GTX 1060 or slower, the gains for most games will exist quite slim. That said, if you play titles such as Counter Strike: Global Offensive, Full War Warhammer or even World of Tanks then y'all will see a noteworthy gain even with the GTX 1060. The gains will be even greater for those using an FX-6000 or 4000 series CPU.

As the GPU power increases there is a skilful chance for Ryzen 3 to make noticeable improvements so if you plan to go yourself a GTX 1070 or possibly a custom board partner Vega 56 card in a few months time then I highly recommend switching to Ryzen 3. Of grade the practiced news here with this upgrade choice is that you lot tin still increase the CPU power quite essentially down the track by getting a six or even eight-core Ryzen processor, or quite possibly even a second-generation Ryzen part.

If I were all the same using an FX series processor today, I'd be jumping on the Ryzen bandwagon faster than you lot could call me a fanboy.

The Cadre i5-2500K, nonetheless, simply refuses to dice. It's the lilliputian engine that could and by the looks of it, always will. If yous're all the same holding out for a price constructive upgrade, well it's business organisation every bit usual. Unless yous're jumping to a modern Core i7 or maybe the Ryzen 5 1600, the gains only aren't there.

There were few instances where the 2500K trailed the Ryzen CPUs, though when it did the margins were pocket-sized. After seeing this, I'm keen to do an in-depth 2500K revisit and compare it to CPUs such as the R5 1600 and i5-7600K. Maybe I'll brand time for that once I'm done with Vega.

A few side notes... If you want to run across how Ryzen 3 stacks up against college-end CPUs please check our day-one coverage and the gaming-focused followup. Too for price vs. performance data and ability consumption figures, though you won't find data for the 2500K and FX-8370 in that location.

In brusque, the 2500K is even so quite fuel efficient by today'due south standards whereas the FX-8370 looks sluggish by comparison. Now nosotros've covered Ryzen 3's gaming performance from just about every bending, and then potential buyers should have a good idea of what they're getting.

Shopping shortcuts:

  • Ryzen 3 1200 Amazon, Newegg
  • Ryzen 5 1400 Amazon, Newegg
  • Cadre i5-7400 Amazon, Newegg
  • Pentium G4560 Amazon, Newegg

Later on this week I have a 30-game benchmark piece looking at the Vega 56, 64 and 64 liquid-cooled, which will exist compared confronting both custom and Founders Edition models of the GTX 1070 and 1080. It's going to be epic!