Hey everyone,
I'm curious about the future of gaming performance and AMD's CPU architecture, particularly regarding the use of multiple CCDs (Chiplet Complexes). I've noticed that only a few games seem to benefit from having more than 8 cores. For example, there are reports that DCS World in VR shows lower CPU frame times with the 9950X3D compared to the 9800X3D. However, this difference might be because the extra 8 cores are on a separate CCD and could be handling background tasks, right? I also wonder if Windows usually disables those additional cores by default or if it's possible for game engines to utilize cores from both CCDs at the same time.
So, do you think current or future games will effectively use both CCDs, or will it require some clever trick, like having a "background" process communicating with the main game engine? I'm aware that the upcoming Zen 6 is rumored to have a 12-core CCD, which could alleviate some of these concerns, but that's a long way off. For someone strictly focused on gaming, would it really make sense to choose the 9950X3D over the 9800X3D, or is that only worth it if you also need it for productivity tasks?
1 Answer
For pure gaming, I don't see much benefit to the 9950X3D. Essentially, it operates as an 8-core processor for gaming. If the second CCD gets engaged, you might face issues since performance tends to suffer when splitting cache across CCDs. So while some games might take advantage of more than 8 cores, in most situations, you'd be better off with just 8 cores. The 9950X3D is more of a productivity chip that can game well, but if gaming is your focus, the 9800X3D is likely sufficient and performs similarly.
Thanks, that's pretty much what I've heard too. But I don't get why some games supposedly run better on the 9950X3D, like I've seen in a YouTube video about DCS World in VR. Do they manage to use the additional cores effectively on the non-3D cache CCD? Or is it possible that testing errors or background processes might be affecting the results?