Is the B850 Good? 9950X3D Performance Comparison Test for Gamers

💻 The Ryzen R9 9950X3D and R7 9900X3D have officially hit the market, and both their performance and pricing firmly place them in the high-end to flagship category 💎. Typically, these processors are paired with X870 or even X870E motherboards, but the real question is: Can a more affordable B850 MATX motherboard fully harness the power of these top-tier CPUs? ❓

The test platform is as illustrated in the image 📋. We used the dual-flagship model R9 9950X3D to evaluate its capabilities on the TUF B850M-PLUS WIFI Heavy Gunner motherboard ⚙️. Testing included stock frequency performance as well as PBO (Precision Boost Overdrive) mode 🔍. In PBO mode, we manually overclocked the CPU by an additional 200MHz 📈.

Keep in mind, the exact upper limit varies depending on the specific CPU’s quality, so this result should serve as a general reference. Additionally, we compared these outcomes to those from the TUF X870 motherboard when the 9950X3D was initially launched 📉, aiming to gauge any notable differences in performance.

🔬 **Single-Core Performance:** In benchmarks like CPU-Z, CINEBENCH R23, and tests conducted in 2024, there was virtually no discernible difference at stock frequency 🤏. A mere 0.2% variance can be safely attributed to testing errors 📏. After enabling PBO on the B850M, improvements were modest, offering only a 1.5% boost over stock frequency 💹 and a 1.3% edge over the X870 at stock frequency.

💥 **Multi-Core Performance:** At stock settings, the B850M lagged slightly behind the X870, showing about a 1.1% difference 📉. However, once PBO was activated on the B850M, multi-core performance surged by approximately 4.7% compared to stock frequency 🚀, giving it a 3.5% advantage over the X870 at stock frequency.

🎨 **Productivity Testing:** When it came to rendering software like V-Ray and compression/decompression tasks in 7-Zip, the 0.6% gap between the B850M and X870 at stock frequency was negligible, likely just a testing error 📐. With PBO enabled, productivity saw a solid 2.8% improvement 💡, representing a 2.2% gain over the X870 at stock frequency.

🔥 **PBO Stress Test:** After subjecting the system to 10 minutes of single FPU stress testing ⏱️, core temperatures peaked at the thermal wall of 95°C 🌡️, with power consumption hovering around 250W ⚡. The hottest point in the power delivery area reached 72.1°C, while the rear heatsink stayed cool at 52.

3°C, and the top heatsink temperature fell comfortably between the two. Extending the stress test to 20 minutes revealed that temperatures stabilized at 81.2°C 🔥 for the hottest component, with the top heatsink maintaining a steady 66.8°C and the rear heatsink staying cooler still. Overall performance remained flawless ✅, thanks in large part to the robust materials used in TUF motherboards 🛡️.

📌 In extensive testing: The 9950X3D, when paired with the TUF B850M and X870 at their default frequencies, demonstrated nearly identical single-core performance 🤝. There was only about a 1% difference in multi-core capabilities, and in real-world productivity applications, this gap was virtually imperceptible 👌.

If you’re not chasing absolute peak performance, the TUF B850M motherboard is an excellent match for high-end or even flagship Ryzen 9000 processors 💯. That said, if you’re an avid enthusiast 🎛️ or require extensive connectivity options—such as USB4 ports—the B850M might fall short. In such cases, opting for the X870 or X870E would be the better choice!