World’s fastest CPU finally goes on sale for $5,198 – AMD Ryzen Threadripper 9980X smashes records and most probably your bank account

- Ryzen Threadripper 9980X delivers unmatched power for multi-core workflows
- PassMark scores show AMD’s 64-core chip leading the desktop market
- Expensive but effective, Threadripper 9980X sets a new bar in performance
AMD’s new Ryzen Threadripper 9000 series has finally gone on sale, with the flagship Threadripper 9980X available to buy now from Tech-America for a decidedly premium $5,198.
That’s expensive for sure, but for professionals who need top-tier multi-core performance, early benchmarks show the new chip delivers value where it matters – the proverbial bang for your buck, if you will.
Built on AMD’s Zen 5 architecture, the 9980X has 64 cores with 128 threads. It’s not just the core count that sets the new chip apart from competition, but how it performs under heavy load.
Topping the charts
The new chip is capable of handling demanding tasks like 3D rendering, simulation, and video production with impressive ease thanks to a base clock of 3.2GHz and a boost speed of up to 5.4GHz.
In fact, PassMark’s benchmarks (see below) suggest that it delivers a level of performance that outpaces even workstation-grade chips with more cores.
In PassMark’s multi-thread CPU test, the 9980X scored 147,481, placing it at the top of the desktop performance chart.
That’s higher than the 96-core Threadripper PRO 7995WX, which posted 145,572 points.
Sign up to the TechRadar Pro newsletter to get all the top news, opinion, features and guidance your business needs to succeed!
Despite having fewer cores, the 9980X comes out ahead, likely because of its higher base clock and superior efficiency across workloads that scale with clock speed.
Single Thread results
In single-thread tests, the picture is a bit different. The 9980X scores 4,594, which puts it behind more consumer-oriented chips like Apple’s M3 Ultra and Intel’s Core Ultra 9 285K. That’s not unexpected of course, since the Threadripper 9980X is designed for multi-threaded applications rather than everyday desktop use.
Compared to the previous-gen Threadripper 7980X, the 9980X shows about an 8 percent gain in performance. While that may not sound huge, it is enough to comfortably lead the current charts.
The chip also includes 64MB of L2 and 256MB of L3 cache, giving it plenty of on-die memory to keep things running fast.
Full reviews are expected soon, but early results suggest that AMD’s Threadripper 9980X is a serious upgrade for high-end users with deep pockets.
You may also like
Ryzen Threadripper 9980X delivers unmatched power for multi-core workflows PassMark scores show AMD’s 64-core chip leading the desktop market Expensive but effective, Threadripper 9980X sets a new bar in performance AMD’s new Ryzen Threadripper 9000 series has finally gone on sale, with the flagship Threadripper 9980X available to buy now…
Recent Posts
- The 7 Best Prime Day Action Camera Deals for Thrill Seekers (2025)
- Qantas confirms 5.7 million customers impacted by data breach
- Conspiracy theorists are blaming flash floods on cloud seeding — it has to stop
- A Republican state attorney general is formally investigating why AI chatbots don’t like Donald Trump
- I love this Hoto mini electric screwdriver, and it’s cheaper than ever for Prime Day
Archives
- July 2025
- June 2025
- May 2025
- April 2025
- March 2025
- February 2025
- January 2025
- December 2024
- November 2024
- October 2024
- September 2024
- August 2024
- July 2024
- June 2024
- May 2024
- April 2024
- March 2024
- February 2024
- January 2024
- December 2023
- November 2023
- October 2023
- September 2023
- August 2023
- July 2023
- June 2023
- May 2023
- April 2023
- March 2023
- February 2023
- January 2023
- December 2022
- November 2022
- October 2022
- September 2022
- August 2022
- July 2022