R3 vs i5

[JoBrooks]

Idk if there's something I'm missing or not understanding but wouldn't a R3 1200 and an i5 7500 be the same thing if they were both running at the same GHz?

 

[androbourne]

Short answer. No.

http://cpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Intel-Core-i5-7500-vs-AMD-Ryzen-3-1200/3648vs3931

Long answer.

The stock clock of the intel CPU is already higher then the Ryzen chip. That means can you most likely get more OCing out of it then you can with the Ryzen chip.

Even if the Ryzen chip is overlocked to the same GHz, you may not get the same performance due to the overlocking diminishing returns.

There is other things to consider also such as ICP lanes, etc.. Just because it is clocked to the same speed, doesn't mean it can process more data quicker or have enough cache to keep those requests flowing etc....

You are normally always better getting a higher clocked chip out of the factory then having to overclock to match another CPU's clock speeds.

OCing is normally used for enthusiasts that just want to OC because they can or for users trying to get extra power out of their older CPU.

I wouldn't recommend OCing unless you really need too. It's just added heat on the CPU and isn't really needed unless you have some high end crazy system that is being bottlenecked by the CPU, or a crazy low end system that needs a buff due to its age.

 

[13thmonkey]

Correct answer, it comes down to IPC, instructions per clock. If a processor running at 4Ghz has an IPC of 10, vs another with a IPC of 15, then the latter would be 50% faster, there will be losses etc. but that's the basics, IPC is an outcome of the design, the capability of the scheduler etc.

As to whether you should get the one clocked higher at stock, think about the old FX series they were clocked quite high, but were useless. So clock speed by itself is irrelevant, Ryzen doesn't OC that well, a 3.5Ghz stock might get you to 4.0/4.1 OC'd intel seems to have more headroom.

So it all comes down to stock clock x IPC and the likely OC x IPC. We don't know the IPC, hence we rely on benchmarks which are closer to reality than the pure numbers you might otherwise have.