CPUs
Looking for the best CPU? Browse unbiased processor reviews sourced from Reddit's most active tech communities. Find the right AMD or Intel chip for gaming, streaming, or workstation builds.
Showing 25-36 of 84 products
7/10
Amd
CPUs
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X
27
16
63% positive
Handles high-end GPUs without bottlenecking — users report clean performance paired with RX 7900 XTX, RTX 4080 Super, and RX 7900 XT at 1440p and 4K
Strong gaming performance at both 1440p and 4K; GPU becomes the limiting factor long before the CPU does in most titles
High platform entry cost at launch — B650 motherboards plus DDR5 RAM added $300–$400 on top of the CPU price, making the 5800X3D or Intel 12600K better value at the time
7/10
Intel
CPUs
Intel Core i9-12900K
35
8
81% positive
Solid gaming performance at 1440p and 4K where the GPU typically becomes the bottleneck — users with RTX 4070 Super, 4080, and even 4090 report no meaningful CPU bottleneck at higher resolutions
Excellent multi-core throughput that rivals the i7-13700K in several workloads, making it a strong choice for content creation, home recording, streaming, and software development
Runs extremely hot at stock settings — hitting 100°C under full load is common, and a 240mm AIO is often insufficient to prevent thermal throttling; a high-end 360mm AIO or large air cooler like Noctua NH-D15 is effectively required
7/10
Amd
CPUs
AMD Ryzen 9 7900
22
19
54% positive
Exceptional power efficiency at 65W TDP — runs cool and quiet, hitting only 50-70°C under load with a mid-range air cooler, making it ideal for SFF and silent builds
With PBO enabled, reaches near-7900X performance levels, effectively giving users a 170W chip's output at a fraction of the power draw
Mediocre gaming chip for the price — single-CCD options like the 7600 ($200 less) or 7700X match or beat it in most game benchmarks due to lower inter-CCD latency
7/10
Intel
CPUs
Intel Core i7-13700
28
12
70% positive
Nearly identical real-world performance to the 13700K at stock settings — users report Cinebench R23 multicore scores around 28,000-30,000 points, just a few percent behind the unlocked variant
Excellent multi-threaded throughput for the price — the 8P+8E core configuration handles gaming, streaming, rendering, and multitasking simultaneously without bottlenecking
Thermal behavior under sustained all-core loads is deceptive — despite the 65W TDP label, the chip can hit 95-100°C during heavy workloads like Cinebench, requiring a quality air cooler or AIO rather than the stock cooler
7/10
Intel
CPUs
Intel Core i7-12700
28
13
68% positive
12 cores (8P + 4E) deliver strong multi-threaded performance — users report ~22,000 points in Cinebench R23 multi-core with power limits removed on a B660 board
Compatible with more affordable B660/H670 motherboards, saving $30–50+ vs. a Z690 platform required for the K variant
Locked System Agent voltage means DDR4 XMP above 3200MHz can be unreliable — high-speed B-die kits (3600 CL14) may be forced down to 3000–3200MHz
9/10
Amd
CPUs
AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D
34
10
77% positive
Best gaming CPU ever released for AM4: drop-in upgrade for any AM4 board, no need for new RAM or motherboard, making it the cheapest path to top-tier gaming performance for Zen 2 and Zen 1 owners
96MB 3D V-Cache dramatically improves 1% lows and eliminates stutters in CPU-heavy titles — users upgrading from 3600 or 3700X report 30-40% average FPS gains and near-elimination of frame dips
Production ended in late 2024 — no new units are being manufactured; stock has dried up at major retailers and prices have surged to $400-500+ on eBay, making it hard to justify vs. just moving to AM5
7/10
Amd
CPUs
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X
28
14
67% positive
Exceptional multi-threaded performance for productivity workloads: video editing (DaVinci Resolve, Premiere), 3D rendering, Unity/code compilation, and music production all benefit significantly from 12 cores and 24 threads.
Eco mode effectively turns the 7900X into a 7900 (65W), giving users flexibility to run cool and quiet without buying a separate SKU — both chips are essentially the same silicon with different power limits.
Dual-CCD 6+6 architecture hurts gaming: each CCD has only 6 cores, and most games pin threads to one chiplet — meaning gaming performance effectively resembles a 6-core chip with latency overhead, losing to the 7700X and 7600X3D in many benchmarks.
6/10
Intel
CPUs
Intel Core i9-14900
21
21
50% positive
Exceptional multi-threaded productivity performance — users in marketing, 3D rendering, video editing, and professional audio report it handling heavy workloads without issue
After applying Intel's recommended BIOS power limits and an undervolt (typically -0.100v to -0.150v offset), temps drop from high 80s-90s to the low 60-70s range with Cinebench R23 scores around 39,000–40,000
Motherboards from ASUS, Gigabyte, and MSI shipped with aggressive defaults (MCE enabled, unlimited power limits, voltages exceeding 1.55V) that actively degraded chips — users had to manually enforce Intel's recommended limits to avoid damage
8/10
Intel
CPUs
Intel Core i5-13600K
36
7
84% positive
Exceptional gaming performance relative to price — matches or trades blows with Intel's own i9-13900K in many gaming benchmarks, and keeps pace with AMD's higher-tier chips in most non-X3D comparisons
Strong multi-threaded productivity performance thanks to 8 E-cores, which handle background tasks and light workloads while P-cores tackle heavy compute — a meaningful advantage over 6-core AMD competitors at similar prices
LGA1700 platform is a dead end — no future CPU upgrade path on the same motherboard, whereas AM5 supports AMD chips through at least 2027
7/10
Amd
CPUs
AMD Ryzen 7 7700
28
14
67% positive
Solid 1440p gaming performance — users pairing it with GPUs like the 4070 Super and 9070 report zero bottlenecks and 100+ FPS in demanding AAA titles
8-core, 16-thread configuration gives a meaningful edge over 6-core alternatives in streaming, video encoding, and multi-threaded workloads
The 7600 and 7500F offer near-identical gaming performance for $50-100 less, making the 7700 a harder sell for pure gamers
6/10
Intel
CPUs
Intel Core i9-13900K
20
23
47% positive
Exceptional multi-threaded performance: hits 40K+ in Cinebench R23 at Intel spec settings, and capable of even higher scores when fully unleashed — a 47% uplift over the 12900K according to early retail benchmarks
Strong single-core boost clocks (up to 5.8GHz on P-cores) make it competitive in latency-sensitive tasks and older games that don't scale beyond 4–6 cores
Runs dangerously hot out of the box: most Z790 motherboards ship with MCE or equivalent enabled, removing Intel's power limits and pushing the chip to 300W+ — a 360mm AIO is effectively required just to reach safe operating temps at default board settings
7/10
Intel
CPUs
Intel Core i7-13700K
29
13
69% positive
Strong multi-threaded productivity performance — Reddit users building for simulation, editing, and coding work rate it well above competing chips at similar price points, with Cinebench R23 scores around 30,000 when properly tuned
16-core (8P+8E) configuration handles mixed workloads effectively, with E-cores absorbing background tasks while P-cores focus on foreground loads
Default out-of-the-box behavior runs the chip at unlimited power limits, routinely hitting 100°C — requires BIOS tuning, undervolting, or Turbo Boost adjustments to run sanely