The AMD 2nd Gen Ryzen Deep Dive: The 2700X, 2700, 2600X, and 2600 Tested
by Ian Cutress on April 19, 2018 9:00 AM ESTCPU Web Tests
One of the issues when running web-based tests is the nature of modern browsers to automatically install updates. This means any sustained period of benchmarking will invariably fall foul of the 'it's updated beyond the state of comparison' rule, especially when browsers will update if you give them half a second to think about it. Despite this, we were able to find a series of commands to create an un-updatable version of Chrome 56 for our 2017 test suite. While this means we might not be on the bleeding edge of the latest browser, it makes the scores between CPUs comparable.
All of our benchmark results can also be found in our benchmark engine, Bench.
SunSpider 1.0.2: link
The oldest web-based benchmark in this portion of our test is SunSpider. This is a very basic javascript algorithm tool, and ends up being more a measure of IPC and latency than anything else, with most high-performance CPUs scoring around about the same. The basic test is looped 10 times and the average taken. We run the basic test 4 times.
Mozilla Kraken 1.1: link
Kraken is another Javascript based benchmark, using the same test harness as SunSpider, but focusing on more stringent real-world use cases and libraries, such as audio processing and image filters. Again, the basic test is looped ten times, and we run the basic test four times.
Google Octane 2.0: link
Along with Mozilla, as Google is a major browser developer, having peak JS performance is typically a critical asset when comparing against the other OS developers. In the same way that SunSpider is a very early JS benchmark, and Kraken is a bit newer, Octane aims to be more relevant to real workloads, especially in power constrained devices such as smartphones and tablets.
WebXPRT 2015: link
While the previous three benchmarks do calculations in the background and represent a score, WebXPRT is designed to be a better interpretation of visual workloads that a professional user might have, such as browser based applications, graphing, image editing, sort/analysis, scientific analysis and financial tools.
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mapesdhs - Saturday, April 21, 2018 - link
Not an argument.0ldman79 - Thursday, April 19, 2018 - link
In the real world we have to choose depending on features and performance while constrained by a budget.For intellectual discussion and better understanding of the chips and architecture we need direct comparison.
Both arguments work for entirely different reasons. I rarely have the budget for high end Intel. I'm also into overclocking and run VM, so the only way I hit both of those is to run AMD.
I've also got a few apps that really take advantage of AVX2 and AVX512, which even the Ryzen gets monstrously stomped by Intel.
If you judge by a single metric you're missing the big picture. Everything is a compromise.
Ninjawithagun - Thursday, April 19, 2018 - link
Actually, the comparison between the 2600X (not 2700X) and the 8700K is based upon multiple metrics, not just one.Ninjawithagun - Thursday, April 19, 2018 - link
Once again incorrect. Cost vs. Cost is only one of many factors to consider, but is not a main one, especially if the competition has a processor of equal quality for much less cost. Comparing an Intel 6 core/12 thread CPU to an AMD 8 cores/16 thread CPU makes absolutely no sense if you are measuring cost vs. performance. Your argument makes no sense, sorry.LurkingSince97 - Thursday, April 19, 2018 - link
Once again incorrect. Cost vs Cost is the primary factor for a buyer on a budget. It is the main one.Case in point, if I can get a 2600X for the same price as a much slower Intel chip, it is obviously better.
Comparing a $300+ chip to a $200+ one makes absolurely no sense if you are measuring cost vs. performance. Your argument makes no sense, sorry.
See what I did there? Your argument (and the one above) are BS. You are either a troll, or have a serious intellectual disability. Price, performance, and implementation details (core count) are all independent dimensions and you can look at any of them from the perspective of the other.
Price just happens to be the constraint that most shoppers have to start with. They can vary the other parameters, within the price constraint.
A others with more money might instead lock in a performance / feature set requirement and _then_ consider price, but that is the minority.
fallaha56 - Thursday, April 19, 2018 - link
Well saidI suggested the chap apply his own facile argument and compare threadripper to the 8700k...
gglaw - Saturday, April 21, 2018 - link
They compared multiple "qualities" of processors between two Ryzen generations and CL. If you want to look at them core for core, is it that hard to shift your eyes 3 lines up to see the next line of results? Do you want them to exclude the 2700X since there isn't a consumer level CL to match it?LurkingSince97 - Thursday, April 19, 2018 - link
Price and absolute performance are paramount. Comparing at raw architecture levels is interesting but less important.In the real world, there are consumers who are not that price sensitive, in which case they only care about a top end part that is within their range. They don't care if it is 10 core/ 20 thread vs 8 core /16 thread or 6 core 12 thread -- they care about the raw performance for what they need, and are usually willing to go up in cost somewhat for that performance (including mobo/ram costs). This is the sort of consumer I am today.
There are then others who are price sensitive and have a budget. For these people the price tag is paramount. The flaw with this review (and most in general) is that it does not include mobo / ram / etc costs and often just looks at the CPU price alone. For someone budget conscious they have to carefully consider whether saving $100 on a CPU or $50 on a mobo can give them the ability to spend that on say, a better GPU or nicer monitor. For those, comparing products by price point is way more important than comparing them by architecture. This is the sort of consumer I was when I was a poor college student / gamer that had to part together my own systems with very limited budgets.
As a tech geek, I am always interested in the core-for-core or clock-for-clock comparison, but in the real world for purchasing decisions it doesn't matter if a Ryzen with 6 cores/12 threads at 3Ghz is faster or slower than an Intel chip with 6 cores/12 threads at 3Ghz. In the end, they can have different core counts, threads, and Ghz -- all that matters is the actual performance.
Targon - Monday, April 23, 2018 - link
In the case of Ryzen, you can use the same motherboard from the first generation to the second, or the third, or the fourth(in 2020). You may not get all the features, but they will work, and CPU cost is the only thing needed since you already have the other components.Actual performance is the correct focus, but game performance isn't the same as rendering performance, or for those who tend to have 8+ programs open as a part of their normal work environment. Just saying "performance" ignores that what you use your computer for isn't necessarily the same as what other people use their computer(s) for.
Targon - Monday, April 23, 2018 - link
That is why they use different game benchmarks. Some do make use of more cores/threads, and others make use of other design differences between different products. Price vs. performance is a very valid comparison based on workload, not just games, but in other tasks. You could have higher core count processors with lower clock speeds at the same price point, even when looking at Intel. 6-core lower speed, or 4-core higher speed at the same price point. Which does better for the tasks you personally care about? Intel 8700K vs. AMD 2700X is the fair comparison, while you will compare the 2600 to the i5, again, due to the price point. When you look at the performance results, you SHOULD in theory, see that these chips match up in terms of performance for the price, though AMD tends to have an advantage these days in multi-threaded tasks, while Intel tends to do better in lightly threaded workloads due to clock speeds.