Who Wins? Core Ultra 5 245K vs Ryzen 5 9600X Gaming Test

I. Introduction

Currently, AMD and Intel’s new generation desktop processors, the Ryzen 9000 series and Core Ultra 200S series, have been released. This article will compare the gaming performance of the Core Ultra 5 245K and Ryzen 5 9600X, determining which one is more worth purchasing.

Both processors have similar single-core performance, but the Core Ultra 5 245K, with more cores and threads, leads in multi-core performance by about 33%. In this context, it’s still unclear which has better gaming performance; this article will reveal the answer.

II. Specifications Comparison

The Core Ultra 5 245K was released on October 24, 2024, using TSMC’s 3nm process, featuring 6 big cores and 8 small cores, totaling 14 cores and 14 threads. Its base clock speed is 4.2GHz, with a maximum clock speed of 5.2GHz. It has 40MB of L2 cache and 36MB of smart cache, with a standard power consumption of 125W and a maximum power consumption of 253W. The suggested retail price is $309.

The Ryzen 5 9600X was released on August 8, utilizing TSMC’s 4nm FinFET process, featuring 6 cores and 12 threads. It has 480KB of L1 cache, 6MB of L2 cache, and 32MB of L3 cache. The base clock speed is 3.9GHz, with a maximum clock speed of 5.4GHz. Its power consumption is 65W, with an official suggested price of $279.

III. Test Platform Configuration

The main configurations are as follows:

The Core Ultra 5 245K is paired with the MSI MAG Z890 TOMAHAWK motherboard, while the Ryzen 5 9600X is paired with the MSI MPG X670E CARBON motherboard. All other components are the same.

Memory is 32GB DDR5 6000MHz, the graphics card is a GeForce RTX 4090, the storage consists of two Samsung 970 EVO 1TB drives, and the operating system is Windows 11.

IV. Game Tests between Core Ultra 5 245K and Ryzen 5 9600X

The following tests evaluate seven games, all using 1080P quality settings. The images in the series below show the left side representing the Core Ultra 5 245K platform and the right side representing the Ryzen 5 9600X platform.

The first game is “Ghostwire: Tokyo.”

• Core Ultra 5 245K: Average FPS: 181, Minimum FPS: 103, Frame Time: 5.1ms, CPU Usage: 27%, Power Consumption: 44W, Temperature: 46°C, Memory Usage: 10.4GB, GPU Usage: 88%, VRAM Usage: 6.5GB, Power Consumption (GPU): 239W, Temperature (GPU): 41°C.
• Ryzen 5 9600X: Average FPS: 197, Minimum FPS: 134, Frame Time: 5.1ms, CPU Usage: 30%, Power Consumption: 76W, Temperature: 54°C, Memory Usage: 12.2GB, GPU Usage: 91%, VRAM Usage: 5.7GB, Power Consumption (GPU): 254W, Temperature (GPU): 47°C.

In this game, the Ryzen 5 9600X has a CPU usage 3% higher, memory usage 1.8GB higher, GPU usage 3% higher, and VRAM usage 0.8GB lower. The average FPS is 16 FPS higher, minimum FPS is 31 FPS higher, with equal frame times. Overall, the Ryzen 5 9600X leads slightly, with 32W higher power consumption and 8°C higher temperature.

The second game is “Cyberpunk 2077.”

• Core Ultra 5 245K: Average FPS: 98, Minimum FPS: 70, Frame Time: 9.1ms, CPU Usage: 76%, Power Consumption: 80W, Temperature: 52°C, Memory Usage: 10.6GB, GPU Usage: 65%, VRAM Usage: 8.9GB, Power Consumption (GPU): 196W, Temperature (GPU): 39°C.
• Ryzen 5 9600X: Average FPS: 95, Minimum FPS: 71, Frame Time: 10.2ms, CPU Usage: 78%, Power Consumption: 95W, Temperature: 59°C, Memory Usage: 10.5GB, GPU Usage: 64%, VRAM Usage: 8.6GB, Power Consumption (GPU): 207W, Temperature (GPU): 44°C.

In this game, the Ryzen 5 9600X’s CPU usage is 2% higher, with memory and GPU usage nearly equal, and VRAM usage 0.3GB lower. The average FPS is 3 FPS lower, with equal minimum FPS, and about 1ms longer frame time, resulting in a draw overall, with 15W higher power consumption and 7°C higher temperature.

The third game is “Red Dead Redemption 2.”

• Core Ultra 5 245K: Average FPS: 136, Minimum FPS: 119, Frame Time: 7.6ms, CPU Usage: 71%, Power Consumption: 65W, Temperature: 48°C, Memory Usage: 11.4GB, GPU Usage: 68%, VRAM Usage: 5.2GB, Power Consumption (GPU): 225W, Temperature (GPU): 43°C.
• Ryzen 5 9600X: Average FPS: 156, Minimum FPS: 128, Frame Time: 5.9ms, CPU Usage: 77%, Power Consumption: 103W, Temperature: 60°C, Memory Usage: 11.2GB, GPU Usage: 77%, VRAM Usage: 5.1GB, Power Consumption (GPU): 249W, Temperature (GPU): 42°C.

In this game, the Ryzen 5 9600X’s CPU usage is 6% higher, with memory usage 0.2GB lower, GPU usage 9% higher, and equal VRAM usage. The average FPS is 20 FPS higher, minimum FPS is 9 FPS higher, with frame time about 2ms lower, showing a significant lead, with 38W higher power consumption and 12°C higher temperature.

The fourth game is “Horizon Forbidden West.”

• Core Ultra 5 245K: Average FPS: 123, Minimum FPS: 101, Frame Time: 7.8ms, CPU Usage: 76%, Power Consumption: 70W, Temperature: 51°C, Memory Usage: 11.3GB, GPU Usage: 87%, VRAM Usage: 8.0GB, Power Consumption (GPU): 198W, Temperature (GPU): 38°C.
• Ryzen 5 9600X: Average FPS: 137, Minimum FPS: 103, Frame Time: 6.4ms, CPU Usage: 82%, Power Consumption: 97W, Temperature: 63°C, Memory Usage: 10.3GB, GPU Usage: 82%, VRAM Usage: 7.6GB, Power Consumption (GPU): 205W, Temperature (GPU): 44°C.

In this game, the Ryzen 5 9600X has a CPU usage 6% higher, with 1GB lower memory usage, 5% lower GPU usage, and 0.4GB lower VRAM usage. The average FPS is 14 FPS higher, minimum FPS is 2 FPS higher, with frame time about 1ms lower, showing a slight lead, with 27W higher power consumption and 12°C higher temperature.

The fifth game is “Microsoft Flight Simulator.”

• Core Ultra 5 245K: Average FPS: 116, Minimum FPS: 100, Frame Time: 8.4ms, CPU Usage: 26%, Power Consumption: 44W, Temperature: 48°C, Memory Usage: 11.6GB, GPU Usage: 60%, VRAM Usage: 6.2GB, Power Consumption (GPU): 183W, Temperature (GPU): 39°C.
• Ryzen 5 9600X: Average FPS: 126, Minimum FPS: 98, Frame Time: 7.9ms, CPU Usage: 30%, Power Consumption: 72W, Temperature: 53°C, Memory Usage: 10.8GB, GPU Usage: 73%, VRAM Usage: 6.2GB, Power Consumption (GPU): 244W, Temperature (GPU): 42°C.

In this game, the Ryzen 5 9600X has a CPU usage 4% higher, with 0.8GB lower memory usage, 13% higher GPU usage, and equal VRAM usage. The average FPS is 10 FPS higher, with minimum FPS 2 FPS lower, and frame times nearly equal, still showing a slight lead, with 28W higher power consumption and 5°C higher temperature.

The sixth game is “Hogwarts Legacy.”

• Core Ultra 5 245K: Average FPS: 68, Minimum FPS: 56, Frame Time: 14.3ms, CPU Usage: 37%, Power Consumption: 51W, Temperature: 49°C, Memory Usage: 19.9GB, GPU Usage: 56%, VRAM Usage: 10.4GB, Power Consumption (GPU): 192W, Temperature (GPU): 39°C.
• Ryzen 5 9600X: Average FPS: 65, Minimum FPS: 48, Frame Time: 15.2ms, CPU Usage: 41%, Power Consumption: 78W, Temperature: 55°C, Memory Usage: 19.8GB, GPU Usage: 48%, VRAM Usage: 10.5GB, Power Consumption (GPU): 185W, Temperature (GPU): 37°C.

In this game, the Ryzen 5 9600X has a CPU usage 4% higher, with similar memory usage, 8% lower GPU usage, and similar VRAM usage. The average FPS is 3 FPS lower, with minimum FPS 8 FPS lower, and frame time about 1ms longer, showing a slight lag, nearly a draw, with 27W higher power consumption and 6°C higher temperature.

The seventh game is “Starfield.”

• Core Ultra 5 245K: Average FPS: 121, Minimum FPS: 85, Frame Time: 8.1ms, CPU Usage: 82%, Power Consumption: 90W, Temperature: 57°C, Memory Usage: 12.1GB, GPU Usage: 70%, VRAM Usage: 6.3GB, Power Consumption (GPU): 200W, Temperature (GPU): 40°C.
• Ryzen 5 9600X: Average FPS: 106, Minimum FPS: 73, Frame Time: 9.2ms, CPU Usage: 74%, Power Consumption: 97W, Temperature: 62°C, Memory Usage: 13.9GB, GPU Usage: 61%, VRAM Usage: 6.5GB, Power Consumption (GPU): 198W, Temperature (GPU): 43°C.

In this game, the Ryzen 5 9600X has a CPU usage 8% lower, memory usage 1.8GB higher, GPU usage 9% lower, and VRAM usage 0.2GB higher. The average FPS is 15 FPS lower, minimum FPS 12 FPS lower, with frame time about 1ms longer, showing a slight lag, with 7W higher power consumption and 5°C higher temperature.

V. Comparison Conclusion

Unlike previous game comparisons, the results this time are somewhat ambiguous:

In most games, the Ryzen 5 9600X platform shows higher CPU and GPU usage compared to the Core Ultra 5 245K platform, indicating better utilization of hardware resources and ultimately higher game performance, putting it in a leading position.

However, in the last two resource-intensive games, “Hogwarts Legacy” and “Starfield,” the situation is reversed, with the Core Ultra 5 245K platform exhibiting higher CPU and GPU usage than the Ryzen 5 9600X, resulting in better game performance.

Given this scenario, a cautious and fair approach suggests that although the Ryzen 5 9600X has a significant edge in the above tests, it’s premature to conclude definitively on the game performance superiority between the Core Ultra 5 245K and Ryzen 5 9600X. More extensive and demanding game tests should be conducted to reach an objective conclusion. Stay tuned for updates.

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