It has been a couple of weeks since AMD unveiled its new flagship desktop processor, the Ryzen 9 9950X3D2 Dual Edition. It’s positioned as the world’s first desktop CPU with dual 3D V-Cache. If you didn’t already know, AMD has been killing it with its X3D processors, specifically aimed at gamers due to an abundance of L3 Cache, which helps boost performance and minimize stutters.

Although the Ryzen 7 9800X3D (or its new 9850X3D variant) will remain a go-to for many gamers, the new Ryzen 9 option sits at the top of the stack as a better option for productivity, alongside gaming, thanks to its 16-core, 32-thread design – much like the 9950X3D before it. The dual 3D V-Cache design allows the new Dual Edition model to offer 208MB cache in total.

Ryzen 9 9950X3D2 Dual Edition will cost $899

VP & GM of Ryzen CPU and Radeon Graphics, David McAfee, has just revealed the price of the Dual Edition model – the detail was left out of the original announcement. It has also been reaffirmed that the processor will launch on April 22, which is less than two weeks from now. The $899 price tag makes it a massive $400 more than the Ryzen 7 9850X3D’s release on January 29, and it’s an extra $200 when compared to the Ryzen 9 9950X3D at launch.

Pricing will vary now that these chips have been available for different amounts of time, but here’s how Ryzen 9000 series launch prices have panned out so far for the top Ryzen 9 models.

• 9950X3D2 Dual Edition – $899
• 9950X3D – $699
• 9950X – $649
• 9900X3D – $599
• 9900X – $499

You may know that AMD has more expensive CPUs in its workstation (Threadripper) and server (EPYC) CPU ranges, but as far as a regular consumer desktop processor goes, the 9950X3D2 Dual Edition looks to be one of the most expensive to date.

Looking back nearly thirteen years, one chip that came close was the AMD FX-9590, launched as the first commercially available 5GHz CPU, starting at $878, according to an article from TechPowerUp at the time. Looking even further back, though, the AMD Athlon 64 FX-60 launched for a whopping $1,031 in 2006. Either way, the 9950X3D2 is the most expensive in recent memory.

About the Author

Jack Goodall

At PC Guide, Jack is mostly responsible for reporting on hardware deals. He also specializes in monitors, TVs, and headsets and can be found putting his findings together in a review or best-of guide.