AMD considers higher 120W TDP for Ryzen 7 9700X Zen5 CPU

Higher TDP would allow 9700X to outperform 7800X3D.

According to a report from Wccftech , AMD is now considering changes to the Ryzen 9000 SKU specifications. The company is informing its board partners that the 8-core Ryzen 9 9700X may require more power than initially announced earlier this month. However, given the close proximity to the launch, it is possible that the 120W 8-core part might end up as a different SKU altogether.

At Computex, AMD introduced four Ryzen 9000 CPUs based on Zen5 architecture. These desktop CPUs are officially launching next month. AMD has already revealed the full specs of the 9700X, which list a 3.8 GHz base clock and 5.5 GHz boost clock, while adhering to a 65W TDP.

This is significantly lower than the current-gen Ryzen 7 7700X, which has a 105W TDP, and there is a rather large gap between the base clock and boost clock, which is 700 MHz wide. The current 9700X specs are more in line with the Ryzen 7 7700 non-X, which is also a 65W TDP part. However, it appears that AMD now has a new performance goal for this processor.

Based on the information we have learned, AMD has updated its partners with a possible spec change for the 8-core part. It’s being said that the AMD Ryzen 7 9700X might get a TDP of 120W which is almost 2x its current and official figure of 65W. […] Now we have learned that this spec is under evaluation but given how close we are to the launch, it may or may not arrive as the final spec.

— Hassan Mujtaba, Wccftech

AMD’s Senior Technical Marketing Manager, Don Waligroski, has stated that the Ryzen 7 9700X will not surpass the gaming performance of the Ryzen 7 7800X3D. These comments came in response to rumors suggesting an early arrival of the Ryzen 9000X3D series featuring 3D V-Cache, potentially by September. With performance expected to fall short of the 7800X3D, which is considered AMD’s top AM5 gaming CPU priced at $339 , launching the 9700X at a higher price would be challenging. However, if the CPU ends up being marginally faster, AMD could justify a higher price.

Ryzen 7 9700X TDP, Source: AMD

It remains uncertain whether AMD will adopt the new specs, or if another variant of the 9700X will launch soon. The 120W TDP is already utilized by the 9900X, a 12-core Zen 5 processor, as well as AMD’s 7000X3D series. Currently, there have been no changes to the specs listed on AMD’s official website , and no retailer or distributor listing for the upcoming 9700X CPU has been updated.

Source: Wccftech