AMD Ryzen 7 2800X Rumored Ready To Counter Incoming Intel 8-Core Coffee Lake-S

It's no secret that Intel is preparing to unleash an 8-core Coffee Lake-S processor for enthusiasts, likely sometime this summer or in the fall. The processor would sit above the current 6-core Coffee Lake-S processors, yet below Intel's mega-core HEDT family. So, it makes sense that AMD would want to be ready to launch a counterattack if need be.

So why didn't AMD release the chip along with the Ryzen 7 2700/2700X? Well, AMD figures that it already has its bases covered with the current lineup of chips and there was no need to stack the deck this early in the game. But with Intel's 8-core Coffee Lake-S chip looking to crash the party, the Ryzen 7 2800X sounds like the perfect response.

As our review showed, the Ryzen 7 2700X can definitely hold its own against Intel's best. Intel is still tops in single-core performance, while AMD often has the upper hand with regards to multi-core benchmarks. The Ryzen 7 2700X is more than a match for the Core i7-8700K (6-core), and it can even trades blows with the far more expensive Core i7-7820X (8-core).

If the rumored Ryzen 7 2800X does end up hitting retail shelves, we can likely expect some decent clock speed improvements over the Ryzen 7 2700X, which has a base/boost clock of 3.7GHz and 4.3GHz respectively. Considering our overclocking results on air, it wouldn't be out of the realm of possibility to see a 4GHz base clock and perhaps a 4.5GHz+ boost clock for the Ryzen 7 2800X. But this is all just speculation on our part, of course.