Considering a new PC build? AMD's Ryzen 5 7600X CPU is down to $200 in the US
That's $100 below MSRP and a great value for a CPU on the future-looking AM5 platform.
The Ryzen 5 7600X processor might be one of AMD's cheapest options in their Zen 4 lineup, but this chip is still hugely powerful compared to prior Ryzen generations. It takes advantage of its 5nm process and the AM5 socket to hit higher clock speeds, has architectural improvements that raise its single-core prowess, and of course has access to DDR5 memory and PCIe 5.0 add-in cards too. That's made it a strong option for gaming, but a high asking price of $300 at launch - plus expensive motherboards and DDR5 - put it out of reach of most sane budget builds. That's slowly changing as these chips and other components become cheaper, and today the 7600X has hit a new low price in the US: just $200 at Amazon.com, a full $100 off its MSRP and a great deal for a processor with this kind of performance.
The Ryzen 7000 lineup hasn't been reviewed here at RPS, but I have tested it for my main job over at Eurogamer for Digital Foundry. In our 7600X review, subtitled 'welcome to the future', I praised the 7600X for its impressive performance in both gaming and content creation workloads, with upwards of a 25% performance increase for 1080p gaming.
That's a huge gen-on-gen advancement, and it's mirrored in single-core productivity tests like Cinebench and a Handbrake transcode too. (Of course, higher core and thread count CPUs are better choices for tasks like video production or 3D rendering, but it's still nice to see better results from this six-core option).
The downsides? The aforementioned increase in motherboard and RAM costs compared to prior-gen alternatives, and the need for greater cooling due to the higher power draw. Generally a 240mm AiO or decent tower cooler will be fine for the 7600X, as it consumes much less power (and therefore produces less heat) than the higher-end Ryzen 7000 CPUs, but you will need to pick up a cooler of some description as there's no free option in the box.
Overall though, the 7600X is an awesome CPU and well worth picking up for $200. There are reasonable alternatives of course, like Intel's Core i5 13400F, as well as AMD's own 5800X3D processor for those with an older Ryzen build that want better gaming performance. However, getting the 7600X is arguably the best choice - especially as it's a lower-tier option in a brand new socket, ensuring upgrade potential down the line, and $200 is a heck of a price for that.