AMD Ryzen 9 3900XT, Ryzen 7 3800XT and Ryzen 5 3600XT

Manufacturer: AMD

UK price (as reviewed): TBC.

US price (as reviewed): TBC.

3600XT Amazon affiliate link: here

3800XT Amazon affiliate link: here

3900XT Amazon affiliate link: here

Today marks exactly a year since AMD debuted 3rd Generation Ryzen processors offering up to 16 cores and 32 threads in the familiar AM4 package. The family has since expanded to include value propositions in the form of 3300X and 3100 while Intel has sought to provide enthusiasts with its own brand of value and performance from 10th Gen CPUs.

AMD is celebrating its one-year milestone by introducing a further three chips known as Ryzen 9 3900XT, Ryzen 7 3800XT and Ryzen 5 3600XT. Carrying all the goodness as the existing chips with the same name, this new trio offers a little more frequency through the adoption of improved silicon. Let's take a closer look.

Model	Cores/Threads	Base Freq	Boost Freq	Total Cache	TDP (Watts)	Included cooler	SEP (USD)	Availability
Ryzen 9 3950X	16/32	3.5GHz	4.7GHz	72MB	105W	None	$749	November 25, 2019
Ryzen 9 3900XT	12/24	3.8GHz	4.7GHz	70MB	105W	None	$499	July 7, 2020
Ryzen 9 3900X	12/24	3.8GHz	4.6GHz	70MB	105W	Wraith Prism RGB	$499	July 7, 2019
Ryzen 7 3800XT	8/16	3.9GHz	4.7GHz	36MB	105W	None	$399	July 7, 2020
Ryzen 7 3800X	8/16	3.9GHz	4.5GHz	36MB	105W	Wraith Prism RGB	$399	July 7, 2019
Ryzen 7 3700X	8/16	3.6GHz	4.4GHz	36MB	65W	Wraith Prism RGB	$329	July 7, 2019
Ryzen 5 3600XT	6/12	3.8GHz	4.5GHz	35MB	95W	Wraith Spire	$249	July 7, 2020
Ryzen 5 3600X	6/12	3.8GHz	4.4GHz	35MB	95W	Wraith Spire	$249	July 7, 2019
Ryzen 5 3600	6/12	3.6GHz	4.2GHz	35MB	65W	Wraith Stealth	$199	July 7, 2019
Ryzen 3 3300X	4/8	3.8GHz	4.3GHz	18MB	65W	Wraith Stealth	$120	May 7, 2020
Ryzen 3 3100	4/8	3.6GHz	3.9GHz	18MB	65W	Wraith Stealth	$99	May 7, 2020

Compared to the chips without the extra T suffix, the only meaningful performance change is the boost frequency, which goes up by 100MHz on the 3900XT, 200MHz on the 3800XT and 100MHz for the Ryzen 5 3600XT. Though it sounds like simple speed-binning at the factory, AMD says it is using an improved strain of 7nm technology from foundry partner TSMC, meaning the chips are materially different from all other 3rd Gen Ryzens.

This improved silicon is able to run at a specified frequency at a slightly lower voltage or at higher speeds with the same voltage as existing parts. AMD uses this voltage-frequency curve benefit to tap into higher speeds with the identical power; you'll notice the overall CPU power budget remains consistent between X and XT parts. As socket power is the limiter of performance, one ought to expect the largest gains to be present in low-thread applications, typically those using 1-4, as that's where the enhanced VF curve works best. But let's not get too carried away. Performance improvements will be in single-digit percentages, which is modest for AMD, whose yearly cadence usually heralds doubling of cores and threads. 

Introduced at the same SRP as existing models that will also stay in the market, so $499, $399 and $249, respectively, it is right to question their existence, particularly when the street price of regular X parts is lower than the table intimates and, for the top two chips, there's no bundled cooler in the package. AMD says this XT branding move is here to stay and it simply offers enthusiasts more choice - either go for marginally higher frequencies from the same model number or opt for a cooler in the box (3900XT and 3800XT) and a lower price. We're not sure there's enough performance differentiation to warrant XT models, but the benchmarks will spill all.

These chips are the summer appetiser before AMD brings in Ryzen 4000-series models later on this year. Keeping things interesting for the gamer, AMD is also offering a voucher for the upcoming Assassin's Creed Valhalla for all 3rd Gen Ryzen 7 and Ryzen 9 chips purchased between July 7 and October 3 this year. Let's now run this trio through the benchmark wringer and see if they're worth it.