A8-3870K vs Ryzen 5 1500X
Aggregate performance score
Ryzen 5 1500X outperforms A8-3870K by a whopping 291% based on our aggregate benchmark results.
Primary details
Comparing Ryzen 5 1500X and A8-3870K processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.
| Place in the ranking | 1189 | 2231 |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | not in top-100 |
| Cost-effectiveness evaluation | 2.55 | no data |
| Market segment | Desktop processor | Desktop processor |
| Series | AMD Ryzen 5 | no data |
| Power efficiency | 8.31 | 1.38 |
| Architecture codename | Zen (2017−2020) | Llano (2011−2012) |
| Release date | 16 March 2017 (7 years ago) | 20 December 2011 (13 years ago) |
| Launch price (MSRP) | $189 | no data |
Cost-effectiveness evaluation
Performance per price, higher is better.
Detailed specifications
Ryzen 5 1500X and A8-3870K 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 cores | 4 (Quad-Core) | 4 (Quad-Core) |
| Threads | 8 | 4 |
| Base clock speed | 3.5 GHz | 3 GHz |
| Boost clock speed | 3.5 GHz | 3 GHz |
| Bus rate | 4 × 8 GT/s | no data |
| Multiplier | 35 | no data |
| L1 cache | 384 KB | 128 KB (per core) |
| L2 cache | 2 MB | 1 MB (per core) |
| L3 cache | 16 MB (shared) | 0 KB |
| Chip lithography | 14 nm | 32 nm |
| Die size | 213 mm2 | 228 mm2 |
| Number of transistors | 4800 Million | 1,178 million |
| 64 bit support | + | + |
| Windows 11 compatibility | - | - |
| Unlocked multiplier | + | + |
Compatibility
Information on Ryzen 5 1500X and A8-3870K 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 configuration | 1 (Uniprocessor) | 1 |
| Socket | AM4 | FM1 |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 65 Watt | 100 Watt |
Technologies and extensions
Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Ryzen 5 1500X and A8-3870K. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.
| Instruction set extensions | XFR, FMA3, SSE 4.2, AVX2, SMT | no data |
| AES-NI | + | - |
| AVX | + | - |
Virtualization technologies
Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Ryzen 5 1500X and A8-3870K are enumerated here.
| AMD-V | + | + |
Memory specs
Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Ryzen 5 1500X and A8-3870K. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.
| Supported memory types | DDR4 | DDR3 |
| Maximum memory size | 64 GB | no data |
| Max memory channels | 2 | no data |
| Maximum memory bandwidth | 42.671 GB/s | no data |
| ECC memory support | + | - |
Graphics specifications
General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.
| Integrated graphics card | - | AMD Radeon HD 6550D |
Peripherals
Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Ryzen 5 1500X and A8-3870K.
| PCIe version | 3.0 | no data |
| PCI Express lanes | 20 | no data |
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.
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.
Pros & cons summary
| Performance score | 5.67 | 1.45 |
| Recency | 16 March 2017 | 20 December 2011 |
| Threads | 8 | 4 |
| Chip lithography | 14 nm | 32 nm |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 65 Watt | 100 Watt |
Ryzen 5 1500X has a 291% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 5 years, 100% more threads, a 128.6% more advanced lithography process, and 53.8% lower power consumption.
The Ryzen 5 1500X is our recommended choice as it beats the A8-3870K in performance tests.
Other comparisons
We've compiled a selection of CPU comparisons, ranging from closely matched processors to other comparisons that may be of interest.
