AMD launches the Ryzen 5 X3D in limited quantities and only via one US seller

AMD has officially approved the Ryzen 5 7600X3D, bringing six-cores and 96MB of L3 Cache to the masses. Only the US masses and even then only those near one of 28 Micro Center retail outlets in that country.

The $299 Ryzen 5 (7600X3D) (via Sweclockers), which is essentially a Ryzen 8 7800X3D with the two cores disabled and clocked lower, is the cheapest AMD AM5 CPU that has 3D V-Cache. There are two important caveats that you need to be aware of before you can get your hands on one. There's only a limited number of these, so they're gone once all are sold.

You won't be able to find them on the website. It's the same as when AMD launched the Ryzen 5 5600X3D, but at least Ryzen 7 5700X3D makes up for that.

Tom's Hardware reports Micro Center will offer the 7600X3D in a bundle with an Asus B650-Plus WiFI motherboard and a dual-channel 32 GB DDR5-6000 RAM kit for a penny under $450. This is a great deal that would be a great upgrade for a budget-friendly gaming PC. However, you will have to pay to travel to a Micro Center.

The Ryzen 5 7600X3D should be worth considering. The Ryzen 5 7600X3D costs $299, which is significantly less than the $719 that it costs to purchase a 7800X3D on Amazon. If you already own an AM5 motherboard, and DDR5 memory, you will have a lot of extra money to spend if you buy the six-core chip.

The new Ryzen 5 8600X and the last-gen Ryzen 5 8600X are both cheaper ($279 at Newegg and $229 on Amazon) and although 3D V-Cache is a great feature for gaming, these two chips are not particularly slow. These chips are widely available in shops and online stores around the world.

If you live near a Micro Center, and have been looking for a cheap upgrade to AM5, then the $450 bundle is worth it. If I had an AM4 board, I would just buy a Ryzen 7 processor 5700X3D, which costs a little more than $204 on Amazon, and stay with that platform until AMD releases a new generation of AM5 CPUs.

If you already own an AM5 motherboard then you can keep using the processor you currently have. Even if it is a Ryzen 5 750F (AMD’s slowest Zen 4 processor), it will be fast enough to play games. You can wait for the Zen 5 X3D chips. These chips won't come cheap, but if the 9000-series chips are superior, then their sales will help to lower the price of the Zen 4 versions.