The AMD Radeon RX 9070 is one of the first cards launched as part of the Radeon 9000 lineup. This card competes directly with NVIDIA’s RTX 5070 graphics card, a mid-range entrant offering solid 1440p performance with decent legs in 4K. However, one question we’re often left with during a graphics card launch is what the best CPUs are to pair up with this new card. To determine this, we’ve put a selection of powerful CPUs through a series of benchmarking and analysis to see which processors are the best positioned to pair up with this AMD GPU.
As with all of our GPU launch content, we’ve compiled a series of buyer’s guides covering the best cases, CPUs, and power supplies for the AMD Radeon RX 9070. In this article, we’ll explore the best CPUs for the RX 9070, exploring each processor’s specs, performance, and pricing, forging an overview to help you determine the right part for your build.
Our Top Pick: AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D
The best CPU to buy for the RX 9070 is the AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D. The Ryzen 7 7800X3D is an extremely powerful processor for gaming, thanks to its 3D V-Cache, which allows the CPU to read, write, and execute instructions incredibly fast. Furthermore, this is a more affordable CPU compared to the Ryzen 7 9800X3D, making it a great pickup for those restricted by a budget.
The Best CPUs for the RTX 9070
1. AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D
As our top pick in this roundup, we’ve chosen the AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D, a powerful processor geared towards high-end gaming. The reason why the Ryzen 7 7800X3D is such a strong CPU comes down to AMD’s 3D V-Cache technology. This tech allows the CPU to read, write, and execute instructions at blazing fast speeds, which is ideal for gaming, as games require many of these instructions to be acted upon quickly in order to function.
Regarding performance, the Ryzen 7 7800X3D can handle 4K and 1440p gaming with no issues while allowing gamers to run multiple apps in the background, such as Discord or SignalRGB. Its performance isn’t exceptional within multithreaded workloads due to the low core count, but this won’t be an issue in games, as the vast majority of titles only use 2-4 cores at the most.
| Key Specs | AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D |
|---|---|
| Core Count | 8 |
| Thread Count | 16 |
| Base Clock Speed | 4.2GHz |
| Boost Clock Speed | 5GHz |
| Max Cache | 104MB |
| Default TDP | 120W |
| CPU Socket | AM5 |
| Overclockable | No |
Looking at the specs, the AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D has eight cores and sixteen threads, which is a solid amount for gaming. As mentioned earlier, the Ryzen 7 7800X3D does struggle in multi-core workloads due to its count compared to a CPU like the Ryzen 9 9950X, which is much better positioned to handle threaded work. Additionally, the Ryzen 7 7800X3D has a power draw of 120W, which is relatively low, allowing you to keep it cool with an air cooler of 240mm liquid AIO (all-in-one), saving you some money on cooling support.
The biggest caveat of the Ryzen 7 7800X3D is that the 3D V-Cache has a fairly limited application. This cache is optimised to work in games, but it doesn’t really function in anything else, which means there’s not a huge benefit to buying the Ryzen 7 7800X3D if your PC isn’t mostly built for gaming.
Pros
- Excellent gaming performance
- Cheaper than 9800X3D
- Works on X870 motherboards
Cons
- Not overclockable
- Difficult to find
2. AMD Ryzen 7 9700X
The AMD Ryzen 7 9700X is a CPU we’ve recommended for mid-range and high-end systems in previous buyer’s guides. On paper, the Ryzen 7 9700X is reasonably similar to its Ryzen 7 9800X3D sibling. It comes with eight cores and sixteen threads, rated at a boost clock speed of 5.5GHz, allowing it to execute and perform tasks quickly.
One significant benefit of this CPU is that its low power budget allows it to sustain this 5.5GHz clock speed in a range of modern games and applications. When paired with the RTX 5070, this makes it an ideal option for those playing games at 1440p and 4K.
| Key Specs | AMD Ryzen 7 9700X |
|---|---|
| Core Count | 8 |
| Thread Count | 16 |
| Base Clock Speed | 3.8GHz |
| Boost Clock Speed | 5.5GHz |
| Max Cache | 40MB |
| Default TDP | 65W |
| CPU Socket | AM5 |
| Overclockable | Yes |
Regarding pricing, the AMD Ryzen 7 9700X launched with a $400 MSRP, but a selection of price drops make it a fairly competitive offering in the current market. At the time of writing, the AMD Ryzen 7 9700X is priced at $309, which is very reasonable considering the performance of this processor.
The biggest weakness of the Ryzen 7 9700X is that it competes with the Ryzen 5 9600X. The 9600X is a cheaper CPU that performs similarly to the Ryzen 7 9700X. The only major thing you’re gaining with the Ryzen 7 is more cores, which isn’t necessary for gaming. The Ryzen 5 9600X may be a better choice if you’re looking to save some money.
Pros
- Affordable pricing
- Low TDP
- Strong boost clock speed
Cons
- Threaded workload capability
- No bundled CPU cooler
3. AMD Ryzen 5 9600X
The last CPU we’ll cover in this roundup is the AMD Ryzen 5 9600X. Much like the Ryzen 7 9700X, the Ryzen 5 9600X has a low power budget, with a TDP of 65W. This means its thermal output is relatively low, allowing you to keep it cool with an air cooler or an AMD stock cooler if you’re restricted by price. As we’ve alluded to with the Ryzen 7 9700X, the low power budget also means the Ryzen 5 9600X can sustain a strong boost clock speed without having to throttle down all the time.
In terms of specs, the Ryzen 5 9600X offers six cores and twelve threads, so you’ll be restricted to gaming mostly. However, the extra couple of cores will allow you to run applications like Discord or an internet browser in the background. The boost speed on this CPU clocks up to 5.4GHz, a 300MHz boost over the previous generation’s Ryzen 5 7600X.
| Key Specs | AMD Ryzen 5 9600X |
|---|---|
| Core Count | 6 |
| Thread Count | 12 |
| Base Clock Speed | 3.9GHz |
| Boost Clock Speed | 5.4GHz |
| Max Cache | 38MB |
| Default TDP | 65W |
| CPU Socket | AM5 |
| Overclockable | Yes |
This CPU is overclockable, allowing you to push performance even further with some trial and error, but if you’re a first-time builder, we recommend just sticking to stock speeds. On the pricing front, at the time of writing, the Ryzen 5 9600X can be picked up for just under $240, which is a solid price reduction compared to MSRP.
While I don’t think the Ryzen 5 9600X is a bad CPU, its multi-core performance is weak. If you plan on pushing your PC with threaded workloads, we advise looking at stronger alternatives with more cores.
Pros
- 4K gaming performance
- Low power budget
- Excellent thermals
Cons
- Threaded performance
- Small core count
Performance
In this section, we’ll examine the performance of the CPUs we recommend in this buyer’s guide. Our in-house benchmarker, Harry Coleman, rigorously tests our data to ensure accuracy and fairness. The CPUs shown in the benchmarks below have been tested in a range of games and workstation-style applications to see how they perform across single- and multi-threaded workloads.
Battlefield 2042 4K High
Our first gaming benchmark was Battlefield 2042, in which we dialled the resolution to 4K. Unsurprisingly, the AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D came out on top with a 105FPS average, followed by the Ryzen 7 9700X with 95FPS and the 9600X at 84FPS. Overall, the results are quite close together, but it’s clear that the 7800X3D is a better pickup for those with high refresh rate displays.
Apex Legends 4K High
In Apex egends at 4K high, the AMD Ryzen 7 9700X and Ryzen 7 7800X3D were fairly close in terms of performance. The 7800X3D leads the fore with 115FPS, only eight frames above the 107FPS of the Ryzen 7 9700X. The AMD Ryzen 5 9600X, unfortunately, sits towards the bottom of the graph with a 93FPS average.
Spiderman Remastered is a fairly intense game, which is likely with the 9800X3D and 9700X are so close in this benchmark, but it’s great to see that the 9700X can still hold a candle to the performance of this 3D V-Cache CPU.
Cinebench R23 (Multi-Core)
Moving onto synthetic benchmarks, the AMD Ryzen 7 9700X again comes out on top with a score of 23393 in this threaded run. The multi-core benchmark utilises all of the available cores, which for the Ryzen 7s are eight cores and sixteen threads, so it’s not a shock that they beat out the Ryzen 5 9600X. Compared to the rest of the market, all of the CPUs in this roundup aren’t multi-core titans, but both Ryzen 7 options offer much better performance than the Ryzen 5 9600X, which is primarily built for single-core processes.
Cinebench R23 (Single Thread)
In our single-thread benchmark, the AMD Ryzen 5 9600X soars towards the top of the graph with an impressive score of 2180, compared to the 2144 from the Ryzen 7 9700X and 1735 that the Ryzen 7 7800X3D was able to output. While the Ryzen 7 7800X3D is a strong competitor in games, its raw single-core performance isn’t as solid as some of the other low-end Ryzen 9000 processors.
3D Mark Timespy Extreme
In our final benchmark we fired up 3D Mark’s Timespy Extreme which is akin to rendering a game at 4K. The Ryzen 7 9700X comes out on top compared to the other CPUs in this buyer’s guide with a CPU score of 7531. While this is slightly more powerful than the Ryzen 7 7800X3D. The AMD Ryzen 5 9600X offered up a CPU score of 5607, which places it in between the 7800X3D and 12600K.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Motherboard Do I Need for These CPUs?
Any motherboard using the AM5 socket will work with these CPUs, but we recommend X870 and B850 motherboards.
How Many CPU Cores Do I Need For Gaming?
Most games will use 2-4 cores, so if you’re only gaming, a higher core count CPU isn’t always required.
Do I Need to Buy DDR5 RAM?
All of the CPUs in this buyer’s guide are on a DDR5-only platform, so you will need to buy DDR5 RAM.
