Hey everyone! I'm in the process of building a new PC and have run into a bit of a dilemma. I recently snagged a 9600X for $156 during Prime Day and also scored a 7600X3D for $289. I'm planning to pair either processor with an RX 9070 GPU. I enjoy playing a variety of games, particularly FPS titles and Path of Exile 2, and I didn't have the best performance on my old build. I need to return one of these CPUs—do you think the performance boost from the X3D is worth the extra $133? Really appreciate any insights!
4 Answers
You got a great deal on the 9600X at $156! Honestly, the price of the 7600X3D being close to the 7800X3D at $341 makes me reconsider. I ended up with a 7800X3D since the price difference was worth it for me. You might find that spending a little more for a noticeably better CPU could be a better long-term investment.
It really comes down to how you weigh that extra $133. If you can save it up in just a few weeks or a month, I'd say go for the upgrade. But if it's going to take you much longer to save that cash, maybe it's better to stick with the 9600X.
Definitely go for the 7600X3D! It genuinely made a huge difference for my RTX 3070 setup, and I think it could do great things for your gaming too.
I was originally set on the 9600X as a stopgap for a year, thinking of upgrading to something like the 7800X3D later. I found benchmarks showing only a 10-15 fps increase with the X3D, which seemed underwhelming to me. Considering the 9600X performs decently in many titles, I feel uneasy paying $130 for just a slight improvement.
A lot of those CPU reviews are misleading since they often use a 1080p setup which exaggerates the fps differences. At 1440p or 4K, the uplift might be even less—if the CPU's not up to par, you’ll bottleneck for sure, but the 9600X is still pretty solid. Just think about what resolution you plan to game at.