News Intel Core i5-11400 vs AMD Ryzen 5 3600: Budget Gaming CPU Face-off

Eximo

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Incorrectly lists the 11400 as having Intel HD 750, it has the HD 730.

"The Core i5-11400 comes with the UHD Graphics 750 Xe engine with 24 EUs"

750 has 32 EUs
730 has 24 EUs
 

VforV

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This article misses the mark so much it's painful... someone really wants to give intel at least 1 lousy win.

I have a 3600 OC to 4.4Ghz all core running like a champ at 1.27v, which makes it faster, cooler, quieter and lower power consumption than a 3600X with PBO or 3700X with PBO (in games).
In terms of performance is very very close to the tuned 11400 you have here, with my DDR4 3600 CL16 ram kit I have.

Latest Zen 2 chips are great at OC-ing, much better than the first batches. Some can do 4.5GHz at the same voltage as mine, and I not talking about the XT versions either, but regular non X ones.

I also got it for 150 euros. That plus the MSI B450M Mortar Max which I got for 100 euro, makes it a better deal than any intel Failure Lake CPU can make.

Not to mention I still have an GREAT upgrade path, compared to the intel chip.
 
The motherboard selection for this comparison is iffy at best. The tests need a proper "budget" components round up.

Much as I've said all the time and many agree: you won't pair a cheap CPU with a high end CLC-AIO or cooling solution or even motherboard (unless you plan on getting a K part down the line?). Most budget builds will stick to bottom of the barrel motherboards, which Intel is known for having really bad VRMs (Hardware Unboxed made a very good investigation on the subject), so the "just run it with MCE!" falls flat on its face for cheaper motherboards.

Yes, the CPU as a stand-alone component in isolation, looks great on paper, but in the bigger picture... Iffy.

Cheers!
 

salgado18

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This article misses the mark so much it's painful... someone really wants to give intel at least 1 lousy win.

I have a 3600 OC to 4.4Ghz all core running like a champ at 1.27v, which makes it faster, cooler, quieter and lower power consumption than a 3600X with PBO or 3700X with PBO (in games).
In terms of performance is very very close to the tuned 11400 you have here, with my DDR4 3600 CL16 ram kit I have.

Latest Zen 2 chips are great at OC-ing, much better than the first batches. Some can do 4.5GHz at the same voltage as mine, and I not talking about the XT versions either, but regular non X ones.

I also got it for 150 euros. That plus the MSI B450M Mortar Max which I got for 100 euro, makes it a better deal than any intel Failure Lake CPU can make.

Not to mention I still have an GREAT upgrade path, compared to the intel chip.
You just proved the point that AMD won the overclocking round, and that's all.

And you got a sale on that cpu. It can't count in a normal comparison, which works with MSRP.

Fully agree on the upgrade path: with a good motherboard, you can jump from a cheap 3600 all the way to a 5950x monster, and Intel can't do that. They should have a category for upgradeability there.

Otherwise, sorry, the i5 won this round.
 
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larkspur

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With the stock cooler and power limits enforced the i5-11400 beats the more expensive OCed 3600x in the gaming suite. And with those power limits enforced it is very similar on power consumption. 65w will be fine for any compatible mobo - even the "bottom of the barrel" models.

If I was building a budget gamer then I would seriously consider the i5-11400/11400f paired with a ~$30 cooler and a ~$120 B560 mobo. While the upgrade path isn't spectacular, this would make a nice, cheap gaming machine for the next few years while we wait for DDR5 to mature (assuming you can get a decent GPU!). If AMD had a budget Zen 3 chip then I'd certainly go with that, but the gaming-performance-value comparison here with Zen 2 clearly favors the i5-11400.
 

InvalidError

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The Core i5-11400 is the uncontested gaming performance leader in its price range by a significant margin, much of which simply stems from the fact that AMD has neglected to update its entry-level chips for two years.
AMD hasn't "neglected" to update its entry-level, it simply decided to jack it up by $100.

As for why the Zen 2 parts can be difficult to find, I strongly suspect this is simply AMD reducing its Zen 2 wafer orders to the bare minimum necessary to meet contract obligations so it can reallocate every wafer it can trim from obsolete parts elsewhere such as PS5, XB-XS, Zen 3 and Navi 2x - got to catch up with those back-orders.
 
With the stock cooler and power limits enforced the i5-11400 beats the more expensive OCed 3600x in the gaming suite. And with those power limits enforced it is very similar on power consumption. 65w will be fine for any compatible mobo - even the "bottom of the barrel" models.

If I was building a budget gamer then I would seriously consider the i5-11400/11400f paired with a ~$30 cooler and a ~$120 B560 mobo. While the upgrade path isn't spectacular, this would make a nice, cheap gaming machine for the next few years while we wait for DDR5 to mature (assuming you can get a decent GPU!). If AMD had a budget Zen 3 chip then I'd certainly go with that, but the gaming-performance-value comparison here with Zen 2 clearly favors the i5-11400.
The biggest problem with the 11400/F at 65W is they have no room to account for the lack of grunt in future tasks and games that do need MT. Just look at how bad it is for workloads that go over 4 hard cores. What about the temperatures? A $30 cooler puts the 11400/F siblings right next to the 3600 (well, if you're lucky to find it at $200; which is fair to account for the higher price in reality) that can do just fine (and then some more) with the stock/bundled cooler. Even more when the types of GPUs you'll pair with them are going to be in the 1650/5500XT territory?

And then there's the platform. Bottom of the barrel motherboards are really garbage. Feature-wise and power-wise, they're just horrible. Again, Hardware Unboxed did a nice video about some, which weren't even the bottom of the barrel, as they didn't test H410's and I don't think there's an H510? AMD still has the A520 and reasonably fetured cheap B550's which still offer almost the same feature set as their higher tier siblings in most brands.

The 11400/F siblings are not bad CPUs, but I strongly believe they have to go down a bit more to be really, hands down, the best CPU you can recommend for true budget builds. It has too many caveats for my liking so unsavvy buyers won't trully get the best bang for their buck out of it. Case in point: OEM systems like your Dell and other SI's.

Cheers!
 
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jgraham11

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This article completely missed the default configuration for the Intel 11400. With the ASUS Maximus XIII Hero they tested with, the default is that the CPU has its power limits off and if an inexperienced user (one who would buy an entry level CPU) used it with the stock cooler, they would get a situation where they have constant thermal throttling and it would cause the CPU to fail prematurely. Tom's: why are you not pointing out the default configuration as being dangerous and reckless with your CPU. Instead you throw on a liquid cooler and just disregard that point.

Also, there are so many comments about how newer Zen 2 chips clock higher, that may be something to test out.
 
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PaulAlcorn

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This article completely missed the default configuration for the Intel 11400. With the ASUS Maximus XIII Hero they tested with, the default is that the CPU has its power limits off and if an inexperienced user (one who would buy an entry level CPU) used it with the stock cooler, they would get a situation where they have constant thermal throttling and it would cause the CPU to fail prematurely. Tom's: why are you not pointing out the default configuration as being dangerous and reckless with your CPU. Instead you throw on a liquid cooler and just disregard that point.

Also, there are so many comments about how newer Zen 2 chips clock higher, that may be something to test out.

In our full review, we covered that using the stock cooler with lifted power limits causes throttling. This is basically the TLDR of the review, so we don't cover every single facet. However, we did show performance with the stock cooler and power limits enforced.
 

InvalidError

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The biggest problem with the 11400/F at 65W is they have no room to account for the lack of grunt in future tasks and games that do need MT.
I don't consider that to be a significant problem, most people who want sub-$200 CPUs don't generally foresee running super-heavy continuous multi-core workloads, they are more interested in something reliable that will get things done for a couple of years until they have a reason to upgrade again. When I put my i5-3470 together, I never expected it to be sufficient for my everyday uses for nearly nine years before I even started to have some signs of upgrade itch.

Entry-level AMD boards are pretty garbage too, at least Intel boards have the excuse of being relatively fresh to market so pricing is still in flux along with availability. The cheapest AM4 boards that have everything I would like to have are around $180 vs $200 for the cheapest Intel 500-series boards I might consider, not much difference there and it will likely go away in a month or two as long as natural disasters and new covid variants give the world a break.
 
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jpe1701

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The biggest problem with the 11400/F at 65W is they have no room to account for the lack of grunt in future tasks and games that do need MT. Just look at how bad it is for workloads that go over 4 hard cores. What about the temperatures? A $30 cooler puts the 11400/F siblings right next to the 3600 (well, if you're lucky to find it at $200; which is fair to account for the higher price in reality) that can do just fine (and then some more) with the stock/bundled cooler. Even more when the types of GPUs you'll pair with them are going to be in the 1650/5500XT territory?

And then there's the platform. Bottom of the barrel motherboards are really garbage. Feature-wise and power-wise, they're just horrible. Again, Hardware Unboxed did a nice video about some, which weren't even the bottom of the barrel, as they didn't test H410's and I don't think there's an H510? AMD still has the A520 and reasonably fetured cheap B550's which still offer almost the same feature set as their higher tier siblings in most brands.

The 11400/F siblings are not bad CPUs, but I strongly believe they have to go down a bit more to be really, hands down, the best CPU you can recommend for true budget builds. It has too many caveats for my liking so unsavvy buyers won't trully get the best bang for their buck out of it. Case in point: OEM systems like your Dell and other SI's.

Cheers!
The 11400 has multithreading.
 
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InvalidError

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The 11400 has multithreading.
While it does have 6c12t, its all-cores boost frequency is heavily limited on a 65W power limit and stock HSF - the only time the 3600 beats it. That's what Yuka was writing about.

I have no problem with that. If I got an i5-11400, I would likely set my power limit to something like 100W, enough to get the chunk of boost before drastically diminishing returns kick in.
 
The motherboard selection for this comparison is iffy at best. The tests need a proper "budget" components round up.

Much as I've said all the time and many agree: you won't pair a cheap CPU with a high end CLC-AIO or cooling solution or even motherboard (unless you plan on getting a K part down the line?). Most budget builds will stick to bottom of the barrel motherboards, which Intel is known for having really bad VRMs (Hardware Unboxed made a very good investigation on the subject), so the "just run it with MCE!" falls flat on its face for cheaper motherboards.

Yes, the CPU as a stand-alone component in isolation, looks great on paper, but in the bigger picture... Iffy.

Cheers!
Intel doesn't choose the VRM's the manufacture does and that Hardware Unboxed video was a joke. There's $120 USD B560 boards that will allow that cpu to run without the PL 24/7.

https://overclock3d.net/reviews/cpu_mainboard/intel_core_i5_11400f_and_asus_b560_plus_prime_review/1
Intel Core i5 11400F and ASUS B560 Plus Prime Review

https://www.tomshardware.com/news/intel-core-i5-11400-review
Intel Core i5-11400 Review

https://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/intel_core_i5_11400f_processor_review,1.html
Intel Core i5-11400F Review

https://www.techspot.com/review/2232-intel-core-i5-11400f/
Intel Core i5-11400F Review

https://www.profesionalreview.com/2021/04/26/intel-core-i5-11400f-review/
Intel Core i5-11400F Review



 

Spectre4444

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Your title has " Budget Gaming CPU face -off"
Your article has "
For some users, the 11400 does have an insurmountable advantage over the Ryzen 5 3600: The chip comes with the new UHD Graphics 730 armed with 24 EUs based on the Xe graphics engine, while the Ryzen 5 3600 comes without integrated graphics. That means Intel wins by default if you don't plan on using a discrete GPU. "
Please clarify Who (on purpose in your opinion) "Games" on an integrated CPU ?
 
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As above, I purchased my 3600 from Newegg last June for $159 .It does 4.4 all core boost@1.28v.
Threw a cheap hyper 212 evo on it with 16gig 3600 and it benchmarks quite a bit high than stock.
If it were not for AMD we would still be getting 4 core processors for mid range and 6 core processors for high end.
Oh and for the fanboys my last system was a Z170 board, 6600 and 16gig of 3200 ram.
 
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larkspur

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And then there's the platform. Bottom of the barrel motherboards are really garbage. Feature-wise and power-wise, they're just horrible. Again, Hardware Unboxed did a nice video about some, which weren't even the bottom of the barrel, as they didn't test H410's and I don't think there's an H510? AMD still has the A520 and reasonably fetured cheap B550's which still offer almost the same feature set as their higher tier siblings in most brands.
Assuming we are talking about the same video, Steve's main issue with the budget B560 boards (paired with the 11400) is that they default out of the box to enforcing power limits. The higher-end $180+ boards do not. He specifically mentions that when you configure the board with no power limits (and proper cooling), you get the full performance of the 11400. He specifically says this here:
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g3AEj3x39vQ&t=490s

I'd say with the Core i5-11400f it is just really more of a nuisance than anything...
I can definitely see your point - inexperienced builders will likely not understand why their 11400 isn't performing where they expect because the PLs are being enforced. And people using the stock cooler with PLs not enforced will see significant throttling in heavy workloads. However, as an enthusiast, none of that changes my mind or magically makes the 11400/f worse than a 3600. With a cheap cooler and properly configured ~$120 mobo (was specifically talking about the Asus Prime B560-Plus) the 11400/f handily beats its only competition in this price bracket.
 

InvalidError

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Please clarify Who (on purpose in your opinion) "Games" on an integrated CPU ?
I would guess people who categorically refuse to pay grossly inflated prices for current-gen GPUs and are fine playing whatever games they play at reduced graphics until the situation improves.

I would get a non-F simply to have the option of not needing to leave a GPU in my system when I upgrade to something else, just like I will likely run my living room PC from the IGP when I upgrade my PC and give my i5-3470 its second life as my living room PC which currently has a C2D E8400 with an HD3650.
 
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escksu

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Right now, i5-11400F is the best bang for buck CPU. Paired with B560 board, it works very well. The stock cooler is sufficient for daily use.

Price wise, 11400F + B560 is cheaper than 3600 + B550.
 
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escksu

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I can definitely see your point - inexperienced builders will likely not understand why their 11400 isn't performing where they expect because the PLs are being enforced. And people using the stock cooler with PLs not enforced will see significant throttling in heavy workloads. However, as an enthusiast, none of that changes my mind or magically makes the 11400/f worse than a 3600. With a cheap cooler and properly configured ~$120 mobo (was specifically talking about the Asus Prime B560-Plus) the 11400/f handily beats its only competition in this price bracket.

Stock cooler is still not a problem. Because you need to look at the market segment these CPUs cater for. Many pple keep harping on words like throttling and heavy workloads.... Yes it does throttle. However, how often does one need to run heavy workloads? If one needs to run heavy workloads, they should get better processors and better cooling. Btw, the stock cooler for 3600 is not any better as well....

One of the main advantage of 11400 now is the integrated GPU. Not everyone needs a discrete GPU (esp. those who don't game). I know AMD has it too but the only ones you can really buy now are 3200/3400G, the 5000 series is not available for end-users right now. So, 11400 vs 3400G.... Thats a no brainer.
 
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