[SOLVED] Need help deciding between Ryzen 7 5700X and Ryzen 5 5600X for a new build

[Lem66ieux]

I am about to start putting together a new gaming build. My current CPU is about 10 years old, its an i5 3570k. For context, I am neither a professional nor an enthusiast and the last time I put together a build was about 10 years ago (with help). I'm likely to get some help this time around as well.

I'm having a hard time deciding between the Ryzen 7 5700X and Ryzen 5 5600X...they are currently both on sale and seem to have what I'm looking for in terms of performance vs price, seems to be a good bang for buck.

I've checked a few websites for comparisons/benchmarks and such, but I'm still struggling to really understand the difference here...the main difference I'm seeing are the extra 2 cores/4 threads with the 5700X, but its base speed is 3.4ghz vs 3.7ghz base on the 5600X. Are those extra cores/threads going to make a world of a difference? Does the 5600X perform better for pure gaming? Why would i choose the more recent 5700X?

For the price, currently on newegg the 5600x is $30 cheaper and also comes with the Wraith Stealth Cooler whereas the 5700X comes with no heatsink.

Thanks in advance for helping this newbie out!

 

[Math Geek]

the difference is as you noted, the 2 extra cores. few games will use the 6 cores of the 5600x as it is. the reason for the extra cores would be more for multi-tasking than gaming, so if you want to stream, record, keep youtube/discord/etc etc open on the side or other thing that will use the extra resources.

if not then just the 5600x is ample for just gaming on its own. do note though that the wrath cooler, though good enough for the cpu is rather noisy and most folks replace it. you don't need much budget 150w cooler would be a good idea taking up that $30 savings.

 

[Lem66ieux]

the difference is as you noted, the 2 extra cores. few games will use the 6 cores of the 5600x as it is. the reason for the extra cores would be more for multi-tasking than gaming, so if you want to stream, record, keep youtube/discord/etc etc open on the side or other thing that will use the extra resources.

if not then just the 5600x is ample for just gaming on its own. do note though that the wrath cooler, though good enough for the cpu is rather noisy and most folks replace it. you don't need much budget 150w cooler would be a good idea taking up that $30 savings.

Good point about the cooler. Id end up buying another one anyway.

I tend to slightly multi-task i guess, nothing crazy, having discord/chrome open while i game, but i dont stream.

From what you're saying, the 5700X does outperform the 5600X then, correct? The 3.4ghz base clock vs 3.7ghz is not super important given the fact you have more cores/threads?

If that's the case, I may as well go for the most recently released and stronger option with the 5700X.

 

[Math Geek]

yah they perform about the same in single core performance. the base speed is not really important since both will boost as high as it can with PBO enabled. so you'll rarely see that base speed anyway.

sounds like a 5600x is good enough for you and what you do. use the savings for that cooler or faster ram. ryzen likes fast ram so a few extra bucks for 3600 vs 3200 is actually worth it.

 

[Lem66ieux]

yah they perform about the same in single core performance. the base speed is not really important since both will boost as high as it can with PBO enabled. so you'll rarely see that base speed anyway.

sounds like a 5600x is good enough for you and what you do. use the savings for that cooler or faster ram. ryzen likes fast ram so a few extra bucks for 3600 vs 3200 is actually worth it.

Appreciate the help, thanks! Ill get the 5600X. I'll likely be posting for more help for my build lol thanks for this tho 😀

 

[Math Geek]

no problem, its what we're here for.

 

[ohio_buckeye]

One thing to consider in my opinion is how long you intend to keep the pc. If you want to keep it as long as your i5 then I’d get at least the 5700x. The 5600 is a fine cpu and will certainly work great today, but if keeping the system long term you may appreciate the 2 extra cores in say 2-3 years time.

 

[Lem66ieux]

One thing to consider in my opinion is how long you intend to keep the pc. If you want to keep it as long as your i5 then I’d get at least the 5700x. The 5600 is a fine cpu and will certainly work great today, but if keeping the system long term you may appreciate the 2 extra cores in say 2-3 years time.

You make an excellent point.

This makes my decision a little harder now...its just a $30 difference and its a multi-year investment because yes, i do intend to at least stick with the CPU for a few years. My intention would be to buy a recent MB making it possible for me to swap out my CPU for something more up-to-date in a couple years (I dont intend on waiting 10 years to update anything like i did with my current build).

That being said, I think the most important thing to answer is if the 5700X outclasses the 5600X, and unless im not seeing something, it definitely does. the 30 bucks is not as important to me versus having something giving me a better value over several years.

 

[ohio_buckeye]

Well in that case you might be better off with an Intel 12th gen. Keep in mind this is coming from a long time amd user, but socket am4 is a dead end platform. It’s not a bad platform, I’m using a 5900x at home, but you won’t be able to upgrade to newer generations on an am4 board. Whereas with Intel you could at least update to 13th gen.

 

[Lem66ieux]

Well in that case you might be better off with an Intel 12th gen. Keep in mind this is coming from a long time amd user, but socket am4 is a dead end platform. It’s not a bad platform, I’m using a 5900x at home, but you won’t be able to upgrade to newer generations on an am4 board. Whereas with Intel you could at least update to 13th gen.

Can you explain why AM4 is dead end?

 

[geofelt]

The 5600X has sufficient processing threads(12) for any game, possibly excepting multiplayer or heavy multitasking.
Few games can effectively make use of more than about 6-8 threads.
Such an upgrade will be a big boost over your I5-3570K.
Tin the cpu-z bench and look at the single thread performance rating.
You should get around 383:
http://valid.x86.fr/bench/g8apcm

But, think you will regret your decision in a few weeks if you go the AM4 route and the 5600X or 5800X, AM5 is some 15% more price/performance better.
And Oct 20 will bring intel 13th gen which should have a similar uplift.

 

[Lem66ieux]

The 5600X has sufficient processing threads(12) for any game, possibly excepting multiplayer or heavy multitasking.
Few games can effectively make use of more than about 6-8 threads.
Such an upgrade will be a big boost over your I5-3570K.
Tin the cpu-z bench and look at the single thread performance rating.
You should get around 383:
http://valid.x86.fr/bench/g8apcm

But, think you will regret your decision in a few weeks if you go the AM4 route and the 5600X or 5800X, AM5 is some 15% more price/performance better.
And Oct 20 will bring intel 13th gen which should have a similar uplift.

I get it.

The only problem for me is also budget. I'm not willing to spend way more on DDR5 memory with AM5. I feel like at least AM4 will do for me for at least a few years, at which point ill be able to decide if I want to move on from it.

 

[ohio_buckeye]

Don’t get me wrong, AM4 is still a good platform but you won’t have an upgrade path.

But since you are considering the ryzen 5600x, I’d consider an Intel i5 12400, and a b660 board that lets you use ddr4. That should give you about the same performance or a bit better than the am4 cpus, but a b660 should allow an upgrade to an Intel 13th generation cpu as well.

Again, no issues with am4, I use one. However since there won’t be any more updates for am4, I’d go for the Intel setup so you at least get one more upgrade.