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 7F32

2020

Why buy it

✅+100% larger total L3 cache (32 MB vs 16 MB).

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Ryzen 9 5980HX across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Lower PassMark (23,253 vs 23,300).
❌Launch MSRP is still $2,100 MSRP, while Ryzen 9 5980HX mostly shows up through inconsistent older-market listings.
❌300% higher power demand at 180W 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: +6.5% higher average FPS across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅Draws 45W instead of 180W, a 135W reduction.
✅100+% more PCIe lanes (16 vs 0) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.
✅Integrated graphics onboard with Radeon Graphics (8CU), while EPYC 7F32 needs a discrete GPU.

Trade-offs

❌Smaller total L3 cache (16 MB vs 32 MB).

EPYC 7F32

2020

Ryzen 9 5980HX

2021

Why buy it

✅+100% larger total L3 cache (32 MB vs 16 MB).

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +6.5% higher average FPS across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅Draws 45W instead of 180W, a 135W reduction.
✅100+% more PCIe lanes (16 vs 0) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.
✅Integrated graphics onboard with Radeon Graphics (8CU), while EPYC 7F32 needs a discrete GPU.

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Ryzen 9 5980HX across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Lower PassMark (23,253 vs 23,300).
❌Launch MSRP is still $2,100 MSRP, while Ryzen 9 5980HX mostly shows up through inconsistent older-market listings.
❌300% higher power demand at 180W 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 32 MB).

Quick Answers

So, is Ryzen 9 5980HX better than EPYC 7F32?

Not in a simple one-size-fits-all way. EPYC 7F32 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 6.5% 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 0.2% better PassMark, backed by 8 cores and 16 threads.

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

Ryzen 9 5980HX is still the faster CPU overall, but EPYC 7F32 makes more sense if price matters more than absolute performance. Ryzen 9 5980HX is at an unclear MSRP at unclear MSRP versus $2,100 MSRP, and it gives you a 6.5% average FPS lead across 4 shared CPU game tests in our data. EPYC 7F32 is also 100.0% better value on MSRP (11.1 vs 0.0 PassMark/$), which is why it is easier to justify for price-conscious builds on paper.

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 2020) and more multi-core headroom with 8 cores / 16 threads instead of 8/16. 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 7F32 Benchmark Check

Ryzen 9 5980HX Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	EPYC 7F32	Ryzen 9 5980HX
1080p
low	193 FPS	260 FPS
medium	158 FPS	239 FPS
high	136 FPS	201 FPS
ultra	100 FPS	170 FPS
1440p
low	167 FPS	231 FPS
medium	135 FPS	192 FPS
high	111 FPS	156 FPS
ultra	80 FPS	136 FPS
4K
low	69 FPS	159 FPS
medium	58 FPS	134 FPS
high	47 FPS	103 FPS
ultra	37 FPS	91 FPS

Open EPYC 7F32 Open Ryzen 9 5980HX

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	EPYC 7F32	Ryzen 9 5980HX
1080p
low	433 FPS	427 FPS
medium	379 FPS	356 FPS
high	309 FPS	308 FPS
ultra	259 FPS	273 FPS
1440p
low	367 FPS	357 FPS
medium	332 FPS	312 FPS
high	277 FPS	276 FPS
ultra	229 FPS	236 FPS
4K
low	236 FPS	245 FPS
medium	215 FPS	220 FPS
high	191 FPS	207 FPS
ultra	159 FPS	180 FPS

Open EPYC 7F32 Open Ryzen 9 5980HX

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	EPYC 7F32	Ryzen 9 5980HX
1080p
low	581 FPS	582 FPS
medium	580 FPS	582 FPS
high	541 FPS	576 FPS
ultra	466 FPS	472 FPS
1440p
low	535 FPS	582 FPS
medium	437 FPS	532 FPS
high	401 FPS	451 FPS
ultra	342 FPS	372 FPS
4K
low	383 FPS	456 FPS
medium	300 FPS	396 FPS
high	268 FPS	347 FPS
ultra	213 FPS	282 FPS

Open EPYC 7F32 Open Ryzen 9 5980HX

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	EPYC 7F32	Ryzen 9 5980HX
1080p
low	581 FPS	582 FPS
medium	581 FPS	582 FPS
high	581 FPS	582 FPS
ultra	581 FPS	582 FPS
1440p
low	581 FPS	582 FPS
medium	581 FPS	582 FPS
high	564 FPS	554 FPS
ultra	479 FPS	475 FPS
4K
low	519 FPS	511 FPS
medium	468 FPS	460 FPS
high	415 FPS	405 FPS
ultra	357 FPS	348 FPS

Open EPYC 7F32 Open Ryzen 9 5980HX

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of EPYC 7F32 and Ryzen 9 5980HX

EPYC 7F32

The EPYC 7F32 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in 14 April 2020 (5 years ago). It is based on the Zen 2 (2017−2020) architecture. It features 8 cores and 16 threads. Base frequency is 3.7 GHz, with boost up to 3.9 GHz. L3 cache: 32 MB (total). L2 cache: 512 kB (per core). Built on 7 nm, 14 nm process technology. Socket: SP3. Thermal design power (TDP): 180 Watt. Memory support: DDR4-3200. Passmark benchmark score: 23,253 points. Launch price was $2,100.

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.

⚡

Processing Power

Both the EPYC 7F32 and Ryzen 9 5980HX share an identical 8-core/16-thread configuration. Boost clocks reach 3.9 GHz on the EPYC 7F32 versus 4.8 GHz on the Ryzen 9 5980HX — a 20.7% clock advantage for the Ryzen 9 5980HX (base: 3.7 GHz vs 3.3 GHz). The EPYC 7F32 uses the Zen 2 (2017−2020) architecture (7 nm, 14 nm), while the Ryzen 9 5980HX uses Cezanne-HX (Zen 3) (2021) (7 nm). In PassMark, the EPYC 7F32 scores 23,253 against the Ryzen 9 5980HX's 23,300 — a 0.2% lead for the Ryzen 9 5980HX. L3 cache: 32 MB (total) on the EPYC 7F32 vs 16 MB (total) on the Ryzen 9 5980HX.

Feature	EPYC 7F32	Ryzen 9 5980HX
Cores / Threads	8 / 16	8 / 16
Boost Clock	3.9 GHz	4.8 GHz+23%
Base Clock	3.7 GHz+12%	3.3 GHz
L3 Cache	32 MB (total)+100%	16 MB (total)
L2 Cache	512 kB (per core)	512 kB (per core)
Process	7 nm, 14 nm	7 nm
Architecture	Zen 2 (2017−2020)	Cezanne-HX (Zen 3) (2021)
PassMark	23,253	23,300

🧠

Memory & Platform

The EPYC 7F32 uses the SP3 socket (PCIe 4.0), while the Ryzen 9 5980HX uses FP6 (PCIe 3.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard.

Feature	EPYC 7F32	Ryzen 9 5980HX
Socket	SP3	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

🔧

Advanced Features

Virtualization: not specified (EPYC 7F32) / AMD-V (Ryzen 9 5980HX). The Ryzen 9 5980HX includes integrated graphics (Radeon Graphics (8CU)), while the EPYC 7F32 requires a dedicated GPU. Primary use case: Ryzen 9 5980HX targets Mobile High-End.