October 4, 2023
United Kingdom
Buyers Guides CPUs

Best CPUs to Buy for the AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT

Best CPUs for the Radeon 7700 XT Feature Image

Introduction

AMD’s brand new graphics cards, the Radeon RX 7700 XT and 7800 XT are finally available. These new cards look to be pretty competitive versus NVIDIA’s RTX 4000 range, and we’re pretty happy with the overall performance that these new GPUs offer. They open up some more options for those looking to build a mid-range PC using current-gen hardware.

However, one of the big questions that we often ask ourselves when a new GPU releases, is which CPUs pair the up the best with these new cards? Is it worth investing in something more powerful to ensure the best performance possible? Or will a cheaper mid-range option be a solid investment despite the weaker performance? In this roundup, we’ll be answering these very questions, while also covering the performance of the new Radeon RX 7700 XT with some gaming benchmarks.

Suggested Article: Best AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT Graphics Cards to Buy in 2023

Our Recommendations

1. Intel Core i5 13400F

👑 The best budget CPU for the 7700 XT.

Intel Core i5 13400F In Front of GPU

First up is the Core i5 13400F. We’ve taken a look at this CPU before in a full review, and overall we were pretty happy with the price to performance metrics. The 13400F offers a solid set of cores, allowing you to engage in some productivity applications. It is worth keeping in mind that there will be better options for complex multi-core workloads. On the gaming front, the 13400F is an awesome mid-range CPU, capable of handling 1440p without any problems. It does get beat out by other CPUs with stronger clock speeds, but for the most part, it holds itself up pretty well versus the alternatives.

Key Specs

Key SpecsIntel Core i5 13400F
Core Count10
Thread Count16
Base Clock Speed2.5GHz
Boost Clock Speed4.6GHz
Max Turbo Power148W
OverclockableNo

Things We Like

Competitively priced: The 13400F is very well priced right now, and is likely to drop even further once 14th-Gen releases. Consumers can pick this up for $200 or less, which is pretty solid for a mid-range CPU.

Great for budget gaming: The 13400F isn’t the most capable CPU, we’ll leave that to the likes of the 13600K. However, if you’re looking to play games at 1080p and 1440p, you won’t have any issues.

Things We Don’t Like

Will struggle with 4K: The 13400F is pretty capable, but we found that it lacks the capability to handle 4K gaming. The 7700 XT has some pretty decent legs at 4K, so we’d recommend looking at alternative CPUs if you plan on pushing your system with 4K.

Better options for multi-core workloads: Intel upgraded all of their 13th-Gen range with more cores, equipped to handle multi-core workloads. Consumers that plan on utilising productivity applications during the day will want to take a look at other CPUs with higher core and thread counts.

Summary

Intel’s Core i5 13400F is a solid mid-range CPU for those looking to play their favourite games at 1080p and 1440p. Whilst this CPU does have its limitations when it comes to workstation applications, it still holds up well as a gaming-only processor, especially versus other more expensive options.

Thermals: 4.3/5
Workstation Performance: 3.8/5
Gaming Performance: 4.4/5
Value for Money: 4.4/5

GeekaWhat Rating:

Pros

  • Ideal for 1440p and 1080p gaming.
  • Competitive price point.
  • Can handle light productivity applications.

Cons

  • Not ideal as a workstation CPU.
  • Can’t handle 4K as well as other options.

Where to Buy

Buy the Intel Core i5 13400F on:

2. AMD Ryzen 5 7600X

👑 The best 1440p CPU for the 7700 XT.

Ryzen 5 7600X With Box

Next up is the 7600X, AMD’s budget overclockable Ryzen 7000 option. During the initial launch of the AM5 platform, AMD’s CPUs weren’t received incredibly well. But with some maturity and lower prices, they’re actually worth taking a look at versus a number of other market alternatives. The 7600X in particular is one of the strongest options, offering excellent single core metrics. Multi-core workloads do become a problem for this chip based on its measly six cores, but if you’re just planning on gaming, this shouldn’t be much of a problem.

Key Specs

Key SpecsAMD Ryzen 5 7600X
Cores6
Threads12
Base Clock Speed4.7GHz
Boost Clock Speed5.3GHz
Total Cache38MB
TDP105W

Things We Like

Perfect for gaming: The enhanced clock speeds of the Ryzen 7000 range makes them all perfect for gaming. The 7600X is more than capable of 1440p gaming, and when paired up with the right graphics card, can easily handle 4K too.

Competitively priced: The Ryzen 5 7600X comes in around the $200 mark, not too dissimilar from the 13400F. This CPU is definitely worth considering if you’re being price conscious.

Things We Don’t Like

Runs incredibly hot: Due to the boosting behaviour of the new Ryzen 7000 CPUs, thermals will reach their peak before the boost clock goes up, which means you’ll want to pick up a solid cooler.

Motherboards and RAM are still pricey: The new Ryzen 7000 motherboards and DDR5 RAM have dropped in price since their initial release, but not enough for them to be considered cheap. If you are on a budget, your options may be limited.

Summary

AMD’s Ryzen 5 7600X is an awesome gaming CPU, geared towards those looking to play their favourite titles at 1440p and 4K. We would recommend picking up this processor only if you plan on playing games, as the lower core count doesn’t make it an ideal option for productivity applications.

Thermals: 3.6/5
Workstation Performance: 3.9/5
Gaming Performance: 4.6/5
Value for Money: 4.3/5

GeekaWhat Rating:

Pros

  • Can handle 1440p and 4K gaming with ease.
  • Competitively priced.
  • Can be overclocked.

Cons

  • Ridiculous thermals.
  • Motherboards and RAM are quite expensive.

Where to Buy

Buy the AMD Ryzen 5 7600X on:

3. Intel Core i5 13600K

👑 The best multifaceted CPU for the 7700 XT.

Intel Core i5 13600K in Hand

For our third recommendation, we’ve picked out the Core i5 13600K, a firm favourite in the GeekaWhat office. The 13600K was somewhat of an underdog during the initial 13th-Gen launch, cementing itself as the best value option within the entire range. This CPU offers both strong single and multi-core metrics, making it ideal for gaming or workstation usage. It also comes in at a pretty competitive price point too, which is why it brings such great value to the market. This CPU is a massive winner for those looking to build a mid-range system, but are being a bit tighter with their budget.

Key Specs

Key SpecsIntel Core i5 13600K
Total Cores14
Total Threads20
Max Boost Clock Speed5.1GHz
Cache44MB
Max Turbo Power181W
SocketLGA1700

Things We Like

Excellent multifaceted performance: The Core i5 13600K is more than capable in both games and workstation applications. The solid core and thread count combined with high clock speeds, makes this chip awesome for those that need a productivity and gaming system.

Not too expensive: This CPU comes in around the $270 which I’d say is fairly reasonable considering the performance metrics. It is highly likely to drop in price even further once we saw the release of 14th-Gen processors on the market.

Things We Don’t Like

About to be an EOL product: Rumours suggest that 14th-Gen CPUs are just on the horizon, which means that any 13th-Gen products are likely to be end of life products, with the new options taking the limelight.

Overkill for most consumers: Although we love the 13600K, it just isn’t necessary for most consumers. Those looking to play games at 4K, can pick out a cheaper or older CPU option to ensure games run smoothly.

Summary

Intel’s Core i5 13600K is one of the most capable CPUs on the market, and is likely to continue being the budget underdog for a while. Although we do have concerns about this being an EOL product in the relatively near future, it is still worth considering if you need an awesome mid-range gaming CPU.

Thermals: 4.2/5
Gaming Performance: 4.6/5
Workstation Performance: 4.6/5
Value for Money: 4.5/5

GeekaWhat Rating:

Pros

  • Excellent for top-end gaming.
  • Can easily handle most workstation applications.
  • Comes in at a reasonable price point.

Cons

  • Going to be an EOL product soon.
  • Overkill for the majority of consumers.

Where to Buy

Buy the Intel Core i5 13600K on:

4. AMD Radeon Ryzen 7 7700X

👑 The best mid-range Ryzen 7000 CPU for the 7700 XT.

AMD Ryzen 7 7700X CPU

The last CPU in our roundup is the Ryzen 7 7700X, an awesome mid-range CPU that provides a slight upgrade versus its Ryzen 5 sibling. We’ve recommended this CPU a number of times in different buyers guides, and it is a worthwhile option for those building a mid-range system. Consumers are able to leverage the strong set of cores and threads, providing solid multifaceted performance. The 7700X also has decent clock speeds, sitting at 5.4GHz, which means the 7700X has pretty strong single core performance too, making it perfect for gaming.

Key Specs

Key SpecsIntel Core i5 13600K
Total Cores14
Total Threads20
Max Boost Clock Speed5.1GHz
Cache44MB
Max Turbo Power181W
SocketLGA1700

Things We Like

Can easily handle 4K gaming: The strong clock speeds of the 7700X, makes it perfect for gaming. Single core performance is arguably the most important metric for high framerates, so the 7700X definitely has you covered.

Can be overclocked: If you’re looking to gain a little bit more performance from your system, overclocking is a great way to do this. The 7700X can easily be overclocked to provide you with some more frames if your favourite games.

Things We Don’t Like

Not better than the 13600K for workstation applications: The 7700X has a decent core count, and should be able to handle itself when it comes to productivity applications, but there are better CPUs, like the 13600K that can handle this better.

Pricing isn’t great: The Ryzen 7 7700X comes in above the $300 mark, which is quite expensive for a CPU of this stature. I’d say the majority of consumers will want to wait for this processor drop in price during a sale before it becomes worth picking up.

Summary

The Ryzen 7700X is an excellent gaming-focused CPU that offers strong single core metrics, with some decent multi-core capability too. While I do think this CPU does need to come down in price to a degree, if you’re willing to shell out the extra for this processor, you don’t be disappointed.

Thermals: 3.7/5
Gaming Performance: 4.4/5
Workstation Performance: 4.1/5
Value for Money: 4.6/5

GeekaWhat Rating:

Pros

  • Excellent gaming performance.
  • Plenty of upgrade paths.
  • Supports CPU overclocking.

Cons

  • Quite expensive considering performance.
  • Better options for workstation applications..

Where to Buy

Buy the AMD Ryzen 7 7700X on:

How Does the 7700 XT Perform?

In this section, we’ll briefly be delving into the performance of the 7700 XT. We’ll be taking a look at some gaming benchmarks at all of the three main resolutions, to see how this new GPU performs versus the market alternatives.

Starfield @ 1440p

For our first benchmark, we fired up Starfield, Bethesda’s brand new space RPG title. In this game, performance is definitely suppressed, resulting in weaker framerates from the entire suite of cards that we’ve tested. However, while performance could’ve been better the average output of the 7700 XT (which was 74FPS), was pretty decent overall. Consumers can expect pretty big disparities in framerates in this game, so we were just happy to consistently sit above 60FPS.

Starfield @ 1440p High

Warzone 2 @ 1080p

First off in Warzone 2 at 1080p we saw the 7700 XT absolutely top the charts, beating out the likes of the Radeon RX 6800, and the 4060 Ti. Framerates sat just above the 144Hz mark, which is perfect for those that need super-fast response times, coupled with buttery smooth gameplay. There’s not much else to say here, the 7700 XT is clearly capable of 1080p, and this is clearly represented in this benchmark.

Warzone 2 @ 1080p High DLSS Quality

@ 1440p

At 1440p, we saw a pretty similar situation, with the 7700 XT even beating out the RTX 4070 in this instance. Average framerates sat just below the 144Hz mark, with the 7700 XT offering around 137FPS which I’d still argue is pretty strong. It is also worth noting that all of the NVIDIA cards were using DLSS in this benchmark and the 7700 XT still managed to beat out these cards.

COD Modern Warfare 2 @ 1440p High Settings - DLSS_FSR

Apex Legends @ 1080p

In Apex Legends at 1080p the RX 7700 XT offered up a framerate of around 209FPS which is pretty exceptional. Gamers will be able to enjoy a buttery smooth refresh rate with no hindrances. 202FPS is more than you can really ask for, and clearly demonstrates that the 7700 XT is more than capable at this resolution.

Apex Legends @ 1080p

Why You Can Trust Us

Whenever we get our hands on a new component or product at the GeekaWhat office, our team of PC hardware experts instantly get to work testing and evaluating it. After putting it through various gaming and productivity benchmarks, the results are used to create an extensive overview. In this overview, we’ll compare the product in question’s quality, value, and features to the rest of the market.

If you’re interested in learning more about our editorial team and promise, head to the About Us section on our website.

How We Tested the Best CPUs for the 7700 XT

In order to test and evaluate the CPUs for the 7700 XT, there are a number of factors that we take into account, these are:

  • Gaming Performance
  • Workstation Performance
  • Thermals
  • Upgrade Paths
  • Platform Longevity
  • Value for Money

Conclusion

Intel Core i5 13600K in Front of Box

Best CPU to Buy for the 7700 XT: Intel Core i5 13600K

Finishing up this roundup, we’ve picked out the 13600K as the best CPU to pair up with AMD‘s new 7700 XT. Whilst this CPU might be a bit overkill, it is definitely worth it. You’re able to leverage unhindered multifaceted performance, and this means you aren’t likely to need an upgrade within the next few years. This processor is definitely worth considering if you’re looking for the best gaming performance money can buy.

GeekaWhat Rating:

Read our full Intel Core i5 13600K review, or Buy the Intel Core i5 13600K on Amazon

Frequently Asked Questions

RR-Question-Mark New

Can the 7700 XT Handle 4K?

For the most part yes. Framerates will differ between games, but the 7700 XT can easily handle most modern triple A titles at 4K, offering 60FPS or more.

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Will My CPU Affect Gaming Performance?

Yes it does. A weaker CPU (i.e. lower clock speeds and less cache), will result in weaker gaming performance in comparison to other options. All of these CPUs in the roundup today are all fully capable of playing games at 1440p and above.

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Are Cores or Clock Speeds More Important for Gaming?

Clock speeds are more important. Most games won’t utilise multiple more than a few cores at a time, so ensuring you have higher clock speeds is generally a better decision.

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Does SAM Offer a Big Performance Bonus?

AMD’s Smart Access Memory can offer some performance improvements, but this tends to be very situational. We’ve found that even with SAM turned on, it ends up being buggy or doesn’t really offer the uplifts you’d expect.

editor
Jay Harris is an expert in everything PC hardware! With a degree in Cybersecurity, and a PC hardware background Jay has all of the technical knowledge required to make informed recommendations. Jay is an avid keyboard builder and gamer, with a major passion for tech. In fact, Jay's personal rig boasts a white RX 7900 XTX graphics card, inside of the Lian O11D Mini - a true enthusiast's dream!