The 6 core, 12 thread Ryzen 5 2600X is one of four new AMD second generation of high-end desktop Ryzen processors (codenamed Pinnacle Ridge) renowned for excellent value multi-core performance. The 2600X is set to replace the also 6 core, 12 thread 1600X as AMD’s new mid-range Ryzen 5 flagship. The latest generation of CPUs features a matured Zen+ chip architecture with 12nm lithography, increased clock speeds and Precision Boost 2 technology designed to leverage more CPU power than per the first generation. The 2600X appears to have stock base / boost clock speeds of 3.6 / 4.2 GHz. This is only marginally faster than the 1600X’s 3.6 / 4.0 GHz. Modest effective speed improvements are expected, although further benchmarks are necessary to draw firm conclusions. The 2600X ships with a Wraith Spire cooler and is priced reasonably at an expected $250. However, for most use cases, the new lower clocked Ryzen 5 2600 at $200 represents better value for money. Pinnacle Ridge processors are designed to work with the new 400 series motherboards, which allow for greater overclocking head room, and they are also backwards compatible with the 300 series motherboard following a bios update. Even though the 2600X is plausible for multimedia production streamers should look elsewhere. Streaming with dedicated hardware such as NVENC or a separate stream PC will nearly always result in fewer dropped frames. ^{[Apr '18 CPUPro]}

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