Ryzen 7 9700X vs i7-6950X

VS

Aggregate performance score

Core i7-6950X
2016
10 cores / 20 threads, 140 Watt
10.92
Ryzen 7 9700X
2024
8 cores / 16 threads, 65 Watt
23.33
+114%

Ryzen 7 9700X outperforms Core i7-6950X by a whopping 114% based on our aggregate benchmark results.

Primary details

Comparing Core i7-6950X and Ryzen 7 9700X processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in the ranking719222
Place by popularitynot in top-100not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation0.8953.31
Market segmentDesktop processorDesktop processor
SeriesIntel Core i7 (Desktop)no data
Power efficiency7.3833.97
Architecture codenameBroadwell-E (2016)Granite Ridge (2024)
Release date31 May 2016 (8 years ago)8 August 2024 (less than a year ago)
Launch price (MSRP)$1,723$359

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

Ryzen 7 9700X has 5890% better value for money than i7-6950X.

Detailed specifications

Core i7-6950X and Ryzen 7 9700X basic parameters such as number of cores, number of threads, base frequency and turbo boost clock, lithography, cache size and multiplier lock state. These parameters indirectly say of CPU speed, though for more precise assessment you have to consider their test results.

Physical cores10 (Deca-Core)8 (Octa-Core)
Threads2016
Base clock speed3 GHz3.8 GHz
Boost clock speed4 GHz5.5 GHz
Bus rate9.6 GT/s / QPIno data
L1 cache32K (per core)80 KB (per core)
L2 cache256K (per core)1 MB (per core)
L3 cache25 MB (shared)32 MB (shared)
Chip lithography14 nm4 nm
Die size246 mm270.6 mm2
Maximum core temperatureno data95 °C
Maximum case temperature (TCase)72 °Cno data
Number of transistors3,800 million8,315 million
64 bit support++
Windows 11 compatibility-no data
Unlocked multiplier++

Compatibility

Information on Core i7-6950X and Ryzen 7 9700X compatibility with other computer components: motherboard (look for socket type), power supply unit (look for power consumption) etc. Useful when planning a future computer configuration or upgrading an existing one. Note that power consumption of some processors can well exceed their nominal TDP, even without overclocking. Some can even double their declared thermals given that the motherboard allows to tune the CPU power parameters.

Number of CPUs in a configuration11
SocketFCLGA2011AM5
Power consumption (TDP)140 Watt65 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i7-6950X and Ryzen 7 9700X. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensionsno dataSMT, AES, AVX, AVX2, AVX512, FMA3, MMX (+), SHA, SSE, SSE2, SSE3, SSSE3, SSE4.1, SSE4.2, SSE4A
AES-NI++
AVX++
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)+no data
Turbo Boost Technology2.0no data
Hyper-Threading Technology+no data
Idle States+no data
Smart Response+no data
Turbo Boost Max 3.0+no data
Precision Boost 2no data+

Security technologies

Core i7-6950X and Ryzen 7 9700X technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT+no data
EDB+no data

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i7-6950X and Ryzen 7 9700X are enumerated here.

AMD-V-+
VT-d+no data
VT-x+no data
EPT+no data

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i7-6950X and Ryzen 7 9700X. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory typesDDR4DDR5
Maximum memory size128 GBno data
Max memory channels4no data

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics cardno dataAMD Radeon Graphics

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i7-6950X and Ryzen 7 9700X.

PCIe version3.05.0
PCI Express lanes4024

Synthetic benchmark performance

Various benchmark results of the processors in comparison. Overall score is measured in points in 0-100 range, higher is better.


Combined synthetic benchmark score

This is our combined benchmark performance rating. We are regularly improving our combining algorithms, but if you find some perceived inconsistencies, feel free to speak up in comments section, we usually fix problems quickly.

i7-6950X 10.92
Ryzen 7 9700X 23.33
+114%

Passmark

Passmark CPU Mark is a widespread benchmark, consisting of 8 different types of workload, including integer and floating point math, extended instructions, compression, encryption and physics calculation. There is also one separate single-threaded scenario measuring single-core performance.

i7-6950X 17340
Ryzen 7 9700X 37065
+114%

Cinebench 10 32-bit single-core

Cinebench R10 is an ancient ray tracing benchmark for processors by Maxon, authors of Cinema 4D. Its single core version uses just one CPU thread to render a futuristic looking motorcycle.

i7-6950X 6231
Ryzen 7 9700X 9457
+51.8%

Cinebench 10 32-bit multi-core

Cinebench Release 10 Multi Core is a variant of Cinebench R10 using all the processor threads. Possible number of threads is limited by 16 in this version.

i7-6950X 40378
Ryzen 7 9700X 57914
+43.4%

3DMark06 CPU

3DMark06 is a discontinued DirectX 9 benchmark suite from Futuremark. Its CPU part contains two scenarios, one dedicated to artificial intelligence pathfinding, another to game physics using PhysX package.

i7-6950X 10658
Ryzen 7 9700X 18794
+76.3%

wPrime 32

wPrime 32M is a math multi-thread processor test, which calculates square roots of first 32 million integer numbers. Its result is measured in seconds, so that the less is benchmark result, the faster the processor.

i7-6950X 3.5
Ryzen 7 9700X 2.36
+48.3%

Cinebench 11.5 64-bit multi-core

Cinebench Release 11.5 Multi Core is a variant of Cinebench R11.5 which uses all the processor threads. A maximum of 64 threads is supported in this version.

i7-6950X 20
Ryzen 7 9700X 36
+81.2%

Cinebench 15 64-bit multi-core

Cinebench Release 15 Multi Core is a variant of Cinebench R15 which uses all the processor threads.

i7-6950X 1859
Ryzen 7 9700X 3178
+71%

Cinebench 15 64-bit single-core

Cinebench R15 (standing for Release 15) is a benchmark made by Maxon, authors of Cinema 4D. It was superseded by later versions of Cinebench, which use more modern variants of Cinema 4D engine. The Single Core version (sometimes called Single-Thread) only uses a single processor thread to render a room full of reflective spheres and light sources.

i7-6950X 156
Ryzen 7 9700X 346
+123%

Cinebench 11.5 64-bit single-core

Cinebench R11.5 is an old benchmark by Maxon, authors of Cinema 4D. It was superseded by later versions of Cinebench, which use more modern variants of Cinema 4D engine. The Single Core version loads a single thread with ray tracing to render a glossy room full of crystal spheres and light sources.

i7-6950X 1.9
Ryzen 7 9700X 4.06
+114%

TrueCrypt AES

TrueCrypt is a discontinued piece of software that was widely used for on-the-fly-encryption of disk partitions, now superseded by VeraCrypt. It contains several embedded performance tests, one of them being TrueCrypt AES, which measures data encryption speed using AES algorithm. Result is encryption speed in gigabytes per second.

i7-6950X 10.5
Ryzen 7 9700X 16.1
+53.3%

WinRAR 4.0

WinRAR 4.0 is an outdated version of a popular file archiver. It contains an internal speed test, using 'Best' setting of RAR compression on large chunks of randomly generated data. Its results are measured in kilobytes per second.

i7-6950X 8450
Ryzen 7 9700X 13549
+60.3%

x264 encoding pass 2

x264 Pass 2 is a slower variant of x264 video compression that produces a variable bit rate output file, which results in better quality since the higher bit rate is used when it is needed more. Benchmark result is still measured in frames per second.  

i7-6950X 101
Ryzen 7 9700X 176
+74.3%

x264 encoding pass 1

x264 version 4.0 is a video encoding benchmark uses MPEG 4 x264 compression method to compress a sample HD (720p) video. Pass 1 is a faster variant that produces a constant bit rate output file. Its result is measured in frames per second, which means how many frames of the source video file were encoded per second.  

i7-6950X 196
Ryzen 7 9700X 376
+91.8%

Gaming performance

Pros & cons summary


Performance score 10.92 23.33
Recency 31 May 2016 8 August 2024
Physical cores 10 8
Threads 20 16
Chip lithography 14 nm 4 nm
Power consumption (TDP) 140 Watt 65 Watt

i7-6950X has 25% more physical cores and 25% more threads.

Ryzen 7 9700X, on the other hand, has a 113.6% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 8 years, a 250% more advanced lithography process, and 115.4% lower power consumption.

The Ryzen 7 9700X is our recommended choice as it beats the Core i7-6950X in performance tests.


Should you still have questions on choice between Core i7-6950X and Ryzen 7 9700X, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

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Intel Core i7-6950X
Core i7-6950X
AMD Ryzen 7 9700X
Ryzen 7 9700X

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