AMD Ryzen 7 9850X3D: Enthusiast’s Dream or Mirage?

A slight increase in frequency alone does not guarantee performance gains in all applications-and the first user tests of the AMD Ryzen 7 9850X3D confirm this. The official launch of the Ryzen 7 9850X3D is scheduled for January 29, but some users have already managed to purchase and test the new product.

Reddit user by the nickname u/dobum reported that with default BIOS settings (only EXPO enabled) and PBO activated, the processor scored 568 points in the single-threaded Cinebench 2026 test. Exactly the same result is demonstrated by the Ryzen 7 9800X3D. Data on the multi-threaded test was not published, but a significant increase is not to be expected.

Another Reddit forum user, u/kronoseedlc, reported that he was unable to achieve a stable frequency of 5.7 GHz on all cores despite numerous attempts. He uses the MSI MPG X870E Carbon WiFi motherboard with BIOS based on AGESA PI pre-1.3.0.0. Formally, this BIOS supports the new Ryzen processors but does not guarantee 100% stability, which likely hinders achieving maximum frequencies. However, earlier reports have emerged about achieving 5.75 GHz on all cores, but exact overclocking settings are unknown.

In Counter-Strike 2, the Ryzen 7 9850X3D in combination with the GeForce RTX 5090 demonstrated an average FPS above 900 frames per second. However, such figures are achievable on the Ryzen 7 9800X3D and Ryzen 7 7800X3D as well.

Overall, according to the first tests, the AMD Ryzen 7 9850X3D does not show a noticeable advantage over the Ryzen 7 9800X3D. However, before the official CPU release, motherboard manufacturers will still release updated BIOS versions with improved optimization and compatibility. It is these that can allow the Ryzen 7 9850X3D to show a higher level of performance compared to early results.

Final conclusions about the performance of the Ryzen 7 9850X3D can be made after the embargo on reviews is lifted and the final BIOS versions with full support for the new processor are released.