EPYC 7351 vs Ryzen 9 5980HX

PassMark CPU Mark evaluates processor speed through complex mathematical computations. It provides a reliable metric to compare multi-core performance, where higher scores indicate faster processing for multitasking, gaming, and heavy workloads.

Head-to-Head Verdict, Benchmarks, Value & Long-Term Outlook

This comparison brings together gaming FPS, productivity performance, platform differences, power efficiency, pricing context, and upgrade path so you can see which CPU actually makes more sense.

EPYC 7351

2017

Why buy it

✅+300% larger total L3 cache (64 MB vs 16 MB).
✅Better for workstations and heavier parallel workloads: 16 cores / 32 threads.

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Ryzen 9 5980HX across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Lower PassMark (23,226 vs 23,300).
❌244.4% higher power demand at 155W vs 45W.
❌No integrated graphics, while Ryzen 9 5980HX can still boot and troubleshoot without a discrete GPU.

Ryzen 9 5980HX

2021

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +16.4% higher average FPS across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅Draws 45W instead of 155W, a 110W reduction.
✅100+% more PCIe lanes (16 vs 0) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.
✅Integrated graphics onboard with Radeon Graphics (8CU), while EPYC 7351 needs a discrete GPU.

Trade-offs

❌Smaller total L3 cache (16 MB vs 64 MB).
❌Less compelling for workstation-style loads than EPYC 7351, which brings 16 cores / 32 threads.

EPYC 7351

2017

Ryzen 9 5980HX

2021

Why buy it

✅+300% larger total L3 cache (64 MB vs 16 MB).
✅Better for workstations and heavier parallel workloads: 16 cores / 32 threads.

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +16.4% higher average FPS across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅Draws 45W instead of 155W, a 110W reduction.
✅100+% more PCIe lanes (16 vs 0) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.
✅Integrated graphics onboard with Radeon Graphics (8CU), while EPYC 7351 needs a discrete GPU.

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Ryzen 9 5980HX across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Lower PassMark (23,226 vs 23,300).
❌244.4% higher power demand at 155W vs 45W.
❌No integrated graphics, while Ryzen 9 5980HX can still boot and troubleshoot without a discrete GPU.

Trade-offs

❌Smaller total L3 cache (16 MB vs 64 MB).
❌Less compelling for workstation-style loads than EPYC 7351, which brings 16 cores / 32 threads.

Quick Answers

So, is Ryzen 9 5980HX better than EPYC 7351?

Not in a simple one-size-fits-all way. EPYC 7351 makes more sense for workstation-style multi-core throughput, while Ryzen 9 5980HX is the better mainstream desktop choice for gaming, platform cost, and day-to-day practicality.

Which one is better for gaming?

If gaming is the priority, Ryzen 9 5980HX is the better pick here. According to our tests, it delivers 16.4% more average FPS across 4 shared CPU game tests.

Which one is better for streaming, content creation, and heavy multitasking?

For streaming, content creation, and heavier multitasking, Ryzen 9 5980HX is the better fit. You are getting 0.3% better PassMark, backed by 8 cores and 16 threads.

Which one is the smarter buy today, not just the cheaper CPU?

Ryzen 9 5980HX still looks like the safer overall buy. Ryzen 9 5980HX is at an unclear MSRP at unclear MSRP versus unclear MSRP, and it gives you a 16.4% average FPS lead across 4 shared CPU game tests in our data.

Which one is more future-proof for 2026 and beyond?

Ryzen 9 5980HX is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer CPU generation (2021 vs 2017) and more multi-core headroom with 8 cores / 16 threads instead of 16/32. That extra compute headroom should age better as games, background tasks, and creator workloads get heavier.

Games Benchmarks

Paired with RTX 4090

To accurately isolate CPU performance, all benchmarks below use an NVIDIA RTX 4090 as the reference GPU. This eliminates GPU-side bottlenecks and highlights pure processing throughput differences between the CPUs.

Note: Real-world results may vary based on your actual GPU. CPU performance impact is more visible in processing-intensive titles and high-refresh-rate gaming scenarios.

EPYC 7351 Benchmark Check

Ryzen 9 5980HX Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	EPYC 7351	Ryzen 9 5980HX
1080p
low	183 FPS	260 FPS
medium	160 FPS	239 FPS
high	128 FPS	201 FPS
ultra	102 FPS	170 FPS
1440p
low	151 FPS	231 FPS
medium	126 FPS	192 FPS
high	96 FPS	156 FPS
ultra	77 FPS	136 FPS
4K
low	70 FPS	159 FPS
medium	62 FPS	134 FPS
high	48 FPS	103 FPS
ultra	39 FPS	91 FPS

Open EPYC 7351 Open Ryzen 9 5980HX

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	EPYC 7351	Ryzen 9 5980HX
1080p
low	353 FPS	427 FPS
medium	321 FPS	356 FPS
high	271 FPS	308 FPS
ultra	219 FPS	273 FPS
1440p
low	305 FPS	357 FPS
medium	279 FPS	312 FPS
high	239 FPS	276 FPS
ultra	187 FPS	236 FPS
4K
low	190 FPS	245 FPS
medium	176 FPS	220 FPS
high	151 FPS	207 FPS
ultra	122 FPS	180 FPS

Open EPYC 7351 Open Ryzen 9 5980HX

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	EPYC 7351	Ryzen 9 5980HX
1080p
low	581 FPS	582 FPS
medium	513 FPS	582 FPS
high	462 FPS	576 FPS
ultra	396 FPS	472 FPS
1440p
low	513 FPS	582 FPS
medium	428 FPS	532 FPS
high	376 FPS	451 FPS
ultra	323 FPS	372 FPS
4K
low	381 FPS	456 FPS
medium	305 FPS	396 FPS
high	269 FPS	347 FPS
ultra	219 FPS	282 FPS

Open EPYC 7351 Open Ryzen 9 5980HX

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	EPYC 7351	Ryzen 9 5980HX
1080p
low	581 FPS	582 FPS
medium	581 FPS	582 FPS
high	581 FPS	582 FPS
ultra	569 FPS	582 FPS
1440p
low	581 FPS	582 FPS
medium	581 FPS	582 FPS
high	504 FPS	554 FPS
ultra	425 FPS	475 FPS
4K
low	476 FPS	511 FPS
medium	430 FPS	460 FPS
high	378 FPS	405 FPS
ultra	323 FPS	348 FPS

Open EPYC 7351 Open Ryzen 9 5980HX

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of EPYC 7351 and Ryzen 9 5980HX

EPYC 7351

The EPYC 7351 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in 29 June 2017 (8 years ago). It is based on the Naples (2017−2018) architecture. It features 16 cores and 32 threads. Base frequency is 2.4 GHz, with boost up to 2.9 GHz. L3 cache: 64 MB (total). L2 cache: 512K (per core). Built on 14 nm process technology. Socket: TR4. Thermal design power (TDP): 170 Watt. Memory support: DDR4 Eight-channel. Passmark benchmark score: 23,226 points. Launch price was $1,100.

Ryzen 9 5980HX

The Ryzen 9 5980HX is manufactured by AMD. It was released in 12 January 2021 (4 years ago). It is based on the Cezanne-HX (Zen 3) (2021) architecture. It features 8 cores and 16 threads. Base frequency is 3.3 GHz, with boost up to 4.8 GHz. L3 cache: 16 MB (total). L2 cache: 512 kB (per core). Built on 7 nm process technology. Socket: FP6. Thermal design power (TDP): 45 Watt. Memory support: DDR4. Passmark benchmark score: 23,300 points. Launch price was $299.

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Processing Power

The EPYC 7351 packs 16 cores / 32 threads, while the Ryzen 9 5980HX offers 8 cores / 16 threads — the EPYC 7351 has 8 more cores. Boost clocks reach 2.9 GHz on the EPYC 7351 versus 4.8 GHz on the Ryzen 9 5980HX — a 49.4% clock advantage for the Ryzen 9 5980HX (base: 2.4 GHz vs 3.3 GHz). The EPYC 7351 uses the Naples (2017−2018) architecture (14 nm), while the Ryzen 9 5980HX uses Cezanne-HX (Zen 3) (2021) (7 nm). In PassMark, the EPYC 7351 scores 23,226 against the Ryzen 9 5980HX's 23,300 — a 0.3% lead for the Ryzen 9 5980HX. L3 cache: 64 MB (total) on the EPYC 7351 vs 16 MB (total) on the Ryzen 9 5980HX.

Feature	EPYC 7351	Ryzen 9 5980HX
Cores / Threads	16 / 32+100%	8 / 16
Boost Clock	2.9 GHz	4.8 GHz+66%
Base Clock	2.4 GHz	3.3 GHz+38%
L3 Cache	64 MB (total)+300%	16 MB (total)
L2 Cache	512K (per core)	512 kB (per core)
Process	14 nm	7 nm-50%
Architecture	Naples (2017−2018)	Cezanne-HX (Zen 3) (2021)
PassMark	23,226	23,300

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Memory & Platform

The EPYC 7351 uses the TR4 socket (PCIe 4.0), while the Ryzen 9 5980HX uses FP6 (PCIe 3.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard.

Feature	EPYC 7351	Ryzen 9 5980HX
Socket	TR4	FP6
PCIe Generation	PCIe 4.0+33%	PCIe 3.0
Max RAM Speed	—	LPDDR4-4266
Max RAM Capacity	—	64 GB
RAM Channels	—	2
ECC Support	—	No
PCIe Lanes	—	16

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Advanced Features

Virtualization: not specified (EPYC 7351) / AMD-V (Ryzen 9 5980HX). The Ryzen 9 5980HX includes integrated graphics (Radeon Graphics (8CU)), while the EPYC 7351 requires a dedicated GPU. Primary use case: Ryzen 9 5980HX targets Mobile High-End.