AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X vs Intel Core i7-980X

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CPU comparison with benchmarks


AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X CPU1 vs CPU2 Intel Core i7-980X
AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X Intel Core i7-980X

CPU comparison

In this CPU comparison, we compare the AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X and the Intel Core i7-980X and use benchmarks to check which processor is faster.

We compare the AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X 32 core processor released in Q4/2023 with the Intel Core i7-980X which has 6 CPU cores and was introduced in Q1/2010.
AMD Ryzen Threadripper (13) Family Intel Core i7 Extreme Edition (24)
AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7000 (3) CPU group Intel Core i7 900 (4)
5 Generation 1
Storm Peak (Zen 4) Architecture Gulftown
Desktop / Server Segment Desktop / Server
-- Predecessor --
-- Successor --

CPU Cores and Base Frequency

The AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X is a 32 core processor with a clock frequency of 4.00 GHz (5.30 GHz). The processor can compute 64 threads at the same time. The Intel Core i7-980X clocks with 3.33 GHz (3.60 GHz), has 6 CPU cores and can calculate 12 threads in parallel.

AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X Characteristic Intel Core i7-980X
32 Cores 6
64 Threads 12
normal Core architecture normal
Yes Hyperthreading Yes
Yes Overclocking ? Yes
4.00 GHz Frequency 3.33 GHz
5.30 GHz Turbo Frequency (1 Core) 3.60 GHz
-- Turbo Frequency (All Cores) --

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

Processors with the support of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) can process many calculations, especially audio, image and video processing, much faster than classic processors. Algorithms for ML improve their performance the more data they have collected via software. ML tasks can be processed up to 10,000 times faster than with a classic processor.

AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X Characteristic Intel Core i7-980X
-- AI hardware --
-- AI specifications --

Internal Graphics

Graphics (iGPU) integrated into the processor not only enable image output without having to rely on a dedicated graphics solution, but can also efficiently accelerate video playback.

no iGPU GPU no iGPU
GPU frequency --
-- GPU (Turbo) --
-- GPU Generation --
Technology
Max. displays
-- Compute units --
-- Shader --
No Hardware Raytracing No
No Frame Generation No
-- Max. GPU Memory --
-- DirectX Version --

Hardware codec support

A photo or video codec that is accelerated in hardware can greatly accelerate the working speed of a processor and extend the battery life of notebooks or smartphones when playing videos.

no iGPU GPU no iGPU
No Codec h265 / HEVC (8 bit) No
No Codec h265 / HEVC (10 bit) No
No Codec h264 No
No Codec VP9 No
No Codec VP8 No
No Codec AV1 No
No Codec AVC No
No Codec VC-1 No
No Codec JPEG No

Memory & PCIe

Up to 1024 GB of memory in a maximum of 4 memory channels is supported by the AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X, while the Intel Core i7-980X supports a maximum of 24 GB of memory with a maximum memory bandwidth of 25.6 GB/s enabled.

AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X Characteristic Intel Core i7-980X
DDR5-5200 Memory DDR3-1066
1024 GB Max. Memory 24 GB
4 (Quad Channel) Memory channels 3
166.4 GB/s Max. Bandwidth 25.6 GB/s
Yes ECC No
32.00 MB L2 Cache 1.50 MB
128.00 MB L3 Cache 12.00 MB
5.0 PCIe version --
48 PCIe lanes --
189.0 GB/s PCIe Bandwidth --

Thermal Management

The AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X has a TDP of 350 W. The TDP of the Intel Core i7-980X is 130 W. System integrators use the TDP of the processor as a guide when dimensioning the cooling solution.

AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X Characteristic Intel Core i7-980X
350 W TDP (PL1 / PBP) 130 W
-- TDP (PL2) --
-- TDP up --
-- TDP down --
95 °C Tjunction max. --

Technical details

The AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X has 160.00 MB cache and is manufactured in 5 nm. The cache of Intel Core i7-980X is at 13.50 MB. The processor is manufactured in 32 nm.

AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X Characteristic Intel Core i7-980X
5 nm Technology 32 nm
Chiplet Chip design Monolithic
x86-64 (64 bit) Instruction set (ISA) x86-64 (64 bit)
SSE4A, SSE4.2, SSSE3, AVX2, AVX512, FMA3 ISA extensions SSE4.1, SSE4.2
sTR5 Socket LGA 1366
AMD-V Virtualization VT-x, VT-x EPT
Yes AES-NI No
Windows 11, Linux Operating systems Windows 10, Linux
Q4/2023 Release date Q1/2010
2990 $ Release price 1059 $
show more data show more data


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Average performance in benchmarks

⌀ Single core performance in 2 CPU benchmarks
AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X (100%)
Intel Core i7-980X (25%)
⌀ Multi core performance in 2 CPU benchmarks
AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X (100%)
Intel Core i7-980X (10%)

Geekbench 5, 64bit (Single-Core)

Geekbench 5 is a cross plattform benchmark that heavily uses the systems memory. A fast memory will push the result a lot. The single-core test only uses one CPU core, the amount of cores or hyperthreading ability doesn't count.
AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X
32C 64T @ 5.30 GHz
2166 (100%)
Intel Core i7-980X Intel Core i7-980X
6C 12T @ 3.60 GHz
614 (28%)

Geekbench 5, 64bit (Multi-Core)

Geekbench 5 is a cross plattform benchmark that heavily uses the systems memory. A fast memory will push the result a lot. The multi-core test involves all CPU cores and taks a big advantage of hyperthreading.
AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X
32C 64T @ 4.00 GHz
43613 (100%)
Intel Core i7-980X Intel Core i7-980X
6C 12T @ 3.33 GHz
3391 (8%)

Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)

Geekbench 6 is a benchmark for modern computers, notebooks and smartphones. What is new is an optimized utilization of newer CPU architectures, e.g. based on the big.LITTLE concept and combining CPU cores of different sizes. The single-core benchmark only evaluates the performance of the fastest CPU core, the number of CPU cores in a processor is irrelevant here.
AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X
32C 64T @ 5.30 GHz
2942 (100%)
Intel Core i7-980X Intel Core i7-980X
6C 12T @ 3.60 GHz
645 (22%)

Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)

Geekbench 6 is a benchmark for modern computers, notebooks and smartphones. What is new is an optimized utilization of newer CPU architectures, e.g. based on the big.LITTLE concept and combining CPU cores of different sizes. The multi-core benchmark evaluates the performance of all of the processor's CPU cores. Virtual thread improvements such as AMD SMT or Intel's Hyper-Threading have a positive impact on the benchmark result.
AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X
32C 64T @ 4.00 GHz
25442 (100%)
Intel Core i7-980X Intel Core i7-980X
6C 12T @ 3.33 GHz
2847 (11%)

Cinebench 2024 (Single-Core)

The Cinebench 2024 benchmark is based on the Redshift rendering engine, which is also used in Maxon's 3D program Cinema 4D. The benchmark runs are each 10 minutes long to test whether the processor is limited by its heat generation.
AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X
32C 64T @ 5.30 GHz
119 (100%)
Intel Core i7-980X Intel Core i7-980X
6C 12T @ 3.60 GHz
0 (0%)

Cinebench 2024 (Multi-Core)

The Multi-Core test of the Cinebench 2024 benchmark uses all cpu cores to render using the Redshift rendering engine, which is also used in Maxons Cinema 4D. The benchmark run is 10 minutes long to test whether the processor is limited by its heat generation.
AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X
32C 64T @ 5.30 GHz
3685 (100%)
Intel Core i7-980X Intel Core i7-980X
6C 12T @ 3.60 GHz
0 (0%)

Cinebench R23 (Single-Core)

Cinebench R23 is the successor of Cinebench R20 and is also based on the Cinema 4 Suite. Cinema 4 is a worldwide used software to create 3D forms. The single-core test only uses one CPU core, the amount of cores or hyperthreading ability doesn't count.
AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X
32C 64T @ 5.30 GHz
1988 (100%)
Intel Core i7-980X Intel Core i7-980X
6C 12T @ 3.60 GHz
0 (0%)

Cinebench R23 (Multi-Core)

Cinebench R23 is the successor of Cinebench R20 and is also based on the Cinema 4 Suite. Cinema 4 is a worldwide used software to create 3D forms. The multi-core test involves all CPU cores and taks a big advantage of hyperthreading.
AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X
32C 64T @ 4.00 GHz
65269 (100%)
Intel Core i7-980X Intel Core i7-980X
6C 12T @ 3.33 GHz
0 (0%)

Cinebench R20 (Single-Core)

Cinebench R20 is the successor of Cinebench R15 and is also based on the Cinema 4 Suite. Cinema 4 is a worldwide used software to create 3D forms. The single-core test only uses one CPU core, the amount of cores or hyperthreading ability doesn't count.
AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X
32C 64T @ 5.30 GHz
773 (100%)
Intel Core i7-980X Intel Core i7-980X
6C 12T @ 3.60 GHz
0 (0%)

Cinebench R20 (Multi-Core)

Cinebench R20 is the successor of Cinebench R15 and is also based on the Cinema 4 Suite. Cinema 4 is a worldwide used software to create 3D forms. The multi-core test involves all CPU cores and taks a big advantage of hyperthreading.
AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X
32C 64T @ 4.00 GHz
25421 (100%)
Intel Core i7-980X Intel Core i7-980X
6C 12T @ 3.33 GHz
0 (0%)

Estimated results for PassMark CPU Mark

Some of the CPUs listed below have been benchmarked by CPU-monkey. However the majority of CPUs have not been tested and the results have been estimated by a CPU-monkey’s secret proprietary formula. As such they do not accurately reflect the actual Passmark CPU mark values and are not endorsed by PassMark Software Pty Ltd.
AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X
32C 64T @ 4.00 GHz
0 (0%)
Intel Core i7-980X Intel Core i7-980X
6C 12T @ 3.33 GHz
6897 (100%)

CPU-Z Benchmark 17 (Multi-Core)

The CPU-Z benchmark measures a processor's performance by measuring the time it takes the system to complete all benchmark calculations. The faster the benchmark is completed, the higher the score.
AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X
32C 64T @ 4.00 GHz
0 (0%)
Intel Core i7-980X Intel Core i7-980X
6C 12T @ 3.33 GHz
2354 (100%)

CPU performance per watt (efficiency)

Efficiency of the processor under full load in the Cinebench R23 (multi-core) benchmark. The benchmark result is divided by the average energy required (CPU package power in watts). The higher the value, the more efficient the CPU is under full load.
AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X
65,269 CB R23 MC @ 348 W
188 (100%)
Intel Core i7-980X Intel Core i7-980X
3.33 GHz
0 (0%)

Devices using this processor

AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7970X Intel Core i7-980X
Unknown Unknown

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