New AMD Ryzen X3D gaming CPU with buckets of 3D V-cache dismissed as "fake"

For a moment, it looked as though AMD was about to unleash a killer new 16-core X3D CPU just for gamers, but a renowned tech leaker has now claimed the rumored chip is “fake,” which tallies with what AMD has told us in a previous interview. The new 16-core AMD Ryzen X3D CPU was rumored to feature not one but two 3D V-cache chips, one for each batch of eight cores, giving it double the amount of L3 cache found in the acclaimed Ryzen 7 9800X3D.

AMD currently already makes a 16-core X3D chip in the form of the Ryzen 9 9950X3D, but only eight of its 16 cores have direct access to a 64MB 3D V-cache chip. That means AMD can crank up the clock speed on the other eight cores to improve multi-threaded software performance, while the other eight cores with 3D V-cache are used for gaming, providing the best of both worlds. This rumored chip with two 3D V-cache chips, however, would only really be useful for gaming, and barely any games make good use of more than eight cores. If gaming is your top priority, the eight-core Ryzen 7 9800X3D remains the best gaming CPU on our buying guide.