Consider your needs and compare performance to decide if a switch is necessary.
Consider your needs and compare performance to decide if a switch is necessary.
I’ll just share my signature for the full details: Desktop setup includes a Ryzen 9 3950X, Asus TUF Gaming X570-Plus, 64GB DDR4 RAM, MSI RTX 3080 Gaming X Trio, and Creative Sound Blaster AE-7 UnRAID #1. The 3900X was once my primary choice, but after my brother upgraded to the 3950X, it became less desirable for gaming. Now I rely on the 3900X for personal use—gaming, streaming, and browsing. My main server runs Plex and various applications, including HandBrake for AV1 encoding. While I used to think a powerful CPU was essential for freelancing, that concern faded after college. The server tasks are well-supported by the 3900X’s capabilities, and adding more cores would help with encoding and other workloads. There’s a strong feeling that the desktop should stay top-tier, but the logic supports balancing it with the server’s demands.
You confirmed your response, didn't you? Would you like me to restate it?
Handbrake adding four more cores for AV1 encoding would be a big improvement.
How often will the additional four cores actually improve performance in practice? That was my initial assumption. If this wasn't a priority, he wouldn't have brought it up, and we would have addressed it right away.
I'm dealing with a lot of encoding work right now. It's part of a project to pack a Steam Deck with lots of media for trips. I'm shrinking everything into tiny files that look good on the device but help stretch the card's capacity. I've been compressing over three months of streaming and watching for more than three months, all while keeping the file sizes manageable.
Observing eBay Buy Now listings, a 3900X is valued near CAD$260 while the 5800X3D exceeds CAD$400. That price difference would require an investment. I've already installed a 5800X3D in my living room home theater PC (the space where the 3900X once lived). I also favor having the raw multithreading power on the desktop, even if the 3900X isn't the top-tier AM4 gaming configuration, since it offers more raw multithreaded performance.
Your decision is open, but it costs only $140 CAD and we’ll perform much better in games. A 5800X offers 8 cores, delivering about 80% of the power of a 3900X with improved performance per clock unless you run demanding tasks—it’ll still work fine for most PC workloads.