AMD’s Ryzen 5 5600X3D gaming CPU has just appeared on sale again in the US for $219.99. This chip will happily drop into practically any AM4 motherboard with a BIOS update and, most importantly in these times, you can use your old DDR4 RAM with it if you have some. What’s more, it has the same 64MB slice of extra L3 cache found in the acclaimed Ryzen 7 5800X3D, meaning it’s great for gaming.
AMD Ryzen 5 5600X3D
$219.99
“Offers an unparalleled gaming experience at an unbeatable price point” – Micro Center
This AM4 CPU originally launched as a Micro Center exclusive in small quantities back in 2023. It disappeared a couple of years ago, but it looks as though AMD has found some stock and sent it over to Micro Center. You don’t have to visit a bricks-and-mortar store to grab one, though – you can pick one up at Amazon.
If you can’t afford the $339 asking price for a Ryzen 7 5800X3D, this chip has a much more palatable cost for a new gaming CPU. It has six Zen 3 cores, rather than the eight found in the 5800X3D, but that’s still enough for most gaming needs. It also has a slightly slower of boost clock of 4.4GHz, but it’s only 100MHz behind the 5800X3D’s 4.5GHz in this respect.
AMD hasn’t made any announcements about a comeback for this CPU, and we’ve reached out to the company to find out what’s going on. It’s quite possible that AMD is using 5800X3D dies that didn’t quite make the grade on all eight cores, but work in 6-core configurations, so it can get the most out of manufacturing process.
AMD told us it had to respin the 5800X3D for manufacturing, as it had been out of production for so long. This won’t have been cheap, and the company will be looking to maximise efficiency from this process. Maybe we’ll see the 5700X3D return in due course as well.
Whatever the reasons, it’s great news for PC gamers in these bleak times. If you’re in the US, you can upgrade your AM4 PC to a new 6-core CPU with 3D V-Cache for just $219.99, and you don’t need a new motherboard or RAM either. Go and grab one before stock runs out.
For more processor recommendations, check out our guide to buying the best CPU for your needs.
