Best AM4 Upgrades for 2022: AMD Ryzen 2600, 2700, & 1600AF Revisited & Benchmarked

In this 2022 revisit of the Zen+ (AMD Ryzen 2000) CPUs, including the Ryzen 5 2600, R7 2700, and stand-in tests for the R5 2600X & R7 2700X, we look to see what the best in-socket upgrades are for AM4 and the differences vs. the 13th Gen Intel and AMD Ryzen 7000 CPUs. That includes benchmarks of the R7 7700X, R5 7600X, R9 7900X, 7950X, and Intel i5-13600K and 13900K. We also included the AMD Ryzen 5 1600AF (R5 1600AF) that we liked several years ago, as that's actually on the same architecture as the Ryzen 2000 series CPUs. This will help you choose the best CPU for your new gaming PC builds (or for upgrades) in 2022.



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TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Revisiting Ryzen 2000 (2600 & 2700 Benchmarks)
01:17 - Check for Upgrade Issues
02:25 - Ryzen 5000 Pricing Drops in 2022 (5600X, 5800X, 5800X3D)
03:57 - CSGO Benchmarks
05:37 - Intel 13th Gen vs. AM4 Upgrades
06:40 - 1440p CSGO Benchmarks
06:56 - Far Cry 6 CPU Benchmarks (R5 2600 vs. R5 5600X, 2700)
08:15 - FFXIV 2022 CPU Benchmarks (Ryzen 2600 & 2700 vs. 5600X, 5800X3D)
09:02 - 5800X3D Commentary vs. 13600K, 5600X
09:36 - GTA V CPU Benchmarks 2022 (Zen+ vs. Zen 3 & Intel)
10:16 - Rainbow Six Siege CPU Benchmarks (1600AF vs. 2700 vs. 5800X3D)
10:55 - Tomb Raider at 1080p & 1440p (Ryzen 2000 2022)
11:46 - GPU vs. CPU Bottleneck Discussion & Total War Warhammer 3
12:52 - Ryzen's Original Strength: Production Benchmarks
13:31 - Blender Cycles CPU Rendering Benchmarks
14:24 - Code Compile CPU Benchmarks (Ryzen 2000 Revisit in 2022)
15:17 - Compression & Decompression Benchmarks
16:24 - Adobe Premiere CPU Video Editing & Rendering Benchmarks
16:50 - Adobe Photoshop CPU Benchmarks - Best CPUs 2022
17:10 - Ryzen 7000 vs. 5000 Upgrade Discussion (Photoshop)
17:45 - Power Consumption Benchmarks (All Core & Efficiency)
19:19 - Conclusion
22:20 - Important Reminder on Saving Money & Windows

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Host, Test Lead: Steve Burke
Testing, Copy Editing: Patrick Lathan
Writing: Jeremy Clayton
Video Editing: Mike Gaglione

[GamersNexus]

Some reason I kept thinking I got the year wrong in the title. Hard to believe that Ryzen 2000 is about 4 years old now!

[thanatoast]

I went from a 2700 to a 5600x and had more than a few people telling me that I *downgraded* because I lost two cores. Hope those people are doing alright.

[zebrasprite]

AM4 is truly wonderful. Here’s hoping to AM5 equaling the longevity and price/performance.

[alvarogarcia]

Recently upgraded from my 2700x to a 5800x for about 250. Updated BIOS, switched the CPUs and was getting much faster performance right away. The upgrade took 15 minutes. Gotta love the longevity of AM4.

[Bry.]

Not enough people do this sort of thing and it's really appreciated to see how well aging hardware still runs today. It really gives a nice perspective instead of the usual FOMO that comes with not having the latest and greatest.

You should consider doing an 8th/9th gen intel revisit since those were around at a similar time.

[mgw]

I built an R5 1400 system for my parents way back when it first came out, and I was able to upgrade them to an R5 5600g recently with just a BIOS update. Really happy with the longevity of the AM4 platform.

The motherboard is an Asus Prime A320M-K. I was pleasantly surprised to see that it supported the 5000 series.

[Zosu]

Good to see content like this to help people navigate in-platform upgrades. I wonder where we’ll be when there’ll be videos like this about AM5.

[thatguyinthecorner]

Recently upgraded my early adopter 1600x and X370 setup with a 5800x and it has been running great! Bios upgrades to support the 5000 series five years after release were super suprising.

[lordofhyphens]

I am grateful that you included the 1700 in the 7000 series reviews. That let me see the benchmark difference between the 1700 and the *5800* and drove me to get a 5800 used as a drop in replacement.

Totally worth it.

[BeCurieUs]

I went from a 1600 to a 5800x3D...AM4 was such an amazing platform.

[jpqrnjv]

I have a Ryzen 5 2600, I've been waiting for a video like this to see which one should I get as an upgrade. Thank you GN!

[rztune]

I'm sticking with my $90 1600AF after seeing these benchmarks. I really only care about getting 60fps and nothing beyond that and I'm pretty happy with the video editing performance as well. I really lucked out in mid 2020 with it and my $145 RX 570 8GB, which now runs like an RX 580 after extensive modding(BIOS memory timing tweaks, Noctua fans, undervolting/overclocking).

[travisbrowndyke]

Moved from 3600 to 5800x3d a couple months back and the changes were dramatic in gaming. Great platform and happy I bought into it a few years back.

[joshgarcia]

I went from a 1600x when it launched to a 5800x3D still using the same MB. AM4 was a great choice. Now this computer will last me a while before I finally have to upgrade. Hopefully AM5 will be similar for other folks.

[DoNotMicrowave]

Ryzen 5 2600 --> Ryzen 7 5700X is the upgrade I just made. Super happy with it. The 5700X isn't on your benchmarks, but it's $20 - $30 cheaper than a 5800x and more efficient, with almost the same performance. It has a lower TDP and doesn't get as hot as the 5800X, so if you've got a smaller cpu cooler and/or not much headroom in your PSU, it's an excellent option.

[Thad_Naniko_PaperBottle]

I went from a R5 2600X to a R5 5600X. As much as I do slightly regret not upgrading to a 5700X or a 5800X3D, I am very happy with the results. AM4 was and still is a great longevity platform and I'm so glad I chose it for my first build. I genuinely expect that several years down the line when a 5800X3D's price goes way down, I will pick one up.

[goldstein]

I really appreciate and enjoy this kind of long-term coverage of older components. It is not just interesting in isolation but I think it is also a valuable reminder that you do not need to purchase every new part during every new release cycle.

[jkajewski]

Today just upgraded my 1600 to a 5800X, and switched out my Vega 56 for a 6800XT, Can’t wait for the performance boost from these and to rock them for years to come.

[LatitudeSky]

Upgraded from an FX8320 to a 5600G although I did get a GPU. Wasn't sure I would so I hedged with the G CPU. It's a fine system by I wish I had gone 5800x or x3D. Anyway, the biggest thing I learned from this upgrade is that I need a new heater. Because my old FX is no longer keeping my whole room warm by itself. Darn progress!

[transcendtient]

I really wish the 5900 and 5950 were on the charts since you're talking about upgrades within the AM4 socket vs newer sockets.