AMD Ryzen X3D CPUs: Keeping Games on the 3D V-Cache CCD

AMD’s X3D processors stack extra L3 cache, called 3D V-Cache, on a core chiplet (CCD), and many games run noticeably faster with it. On the X3D models with two CCDs but the extra cache on only one of them, a game gets that benefit only while its threads run on the cache CCD. Windows doesn’t know which CCD has the cache, so AMD steers the games it recognizes with a driver. This page covers which models are affected, what happens automatically, where that falls short, and how to set it up yourself with Process Lasso.

Which CPUs This Applies To

Models	Layout	Does this page apply?
Ryzen 9 7950X3D, Ryzen 9 9950X3D, Ryzen 9 PRO 9965X3D; laptops: Ryzen 9 7945HX3D, Ryzen 9 9955HX3D	16 cores: Two 8-core CCDs, 3D V-Cache on one	Yes
Ryzen 9 7900X3D, Ryzen 9 9900X3D	12 cores: Two 6-core CCDs, 3D V-Cache on one	Yes, but the cache CCD has only six cores (see Test It)
Ryzen 9 9950X3D2 Dual Edition	16 cores: Two 8-core CCDs, 3D V-Cache on both	Partly: Both CCDs have the cache, but keeping a game on one CCD can still help
Ryzen 5 5500X3D, 5600X3D, 7500X3D, 7600X3D; Ryzen 7 5700X3D, 5800X3D, 7800X3D, 9800X3D, 9850X3D; Ryzen 7 PRO 9755X3D	One CCD, with 3D V-Cache	No: With one CCD, there is nothing to choose

Ryzen 9 models without X3D, such as the 7950X and 9950X, also have two CCDs. The cache advice doesn’t apply to them, but keeping a game on one CCD can help there too.

Why the CCD Matters

On these models, the cache CCD has 96 MB of L3 cache (32 MB built in plus 64 MB stacked), while the other CCD has 32 MB but usually boosts to higher clock speeds. The clock gap is noticeable on the Ryzen 7000X3D models. On the Ryzen 9000X3D models, the cache sits under the cores instead of on top of them, so the gap is smaller.

A game that keeps more of its data in cache spends less time waiting on memory, which is why many games run faster on the cache CCD. Some don’t benefit, and a few run better on the faster CCD. Left to itself, Windows favors the cores that report the highest clock speeds, and those are on the CCD without the extra cache.

Spreading a game over both CCDs costs too. Threads that share data but sit on different CCDs have to communicate through the processor’s I/O die, which is much slower than communicating within one CCD. That tends to show up as stutter and worse 1% lows more than as a lower average frame rate.

What AMD and Windows Do Automatically

AMD’s chipset driver includes the 3D V-Cache Performance Optimizer. When the Xbox Game Bar recognizes a game, Windows parks the cores on the CCD without the extra cache, so the game runs on the cache CCD. When the game closes, those cores come back. For this to work:

• AMD’s chipset driver must be installed. Reinstall it after moving to an X3D processor.
• Game Mode must be on, and the Xbox Game Bar must be up to date.
• Game Bar must recognize the game. If it doesn’t, press Win+G while the game runs and check Remember this is a game in Game Bar’s settings.
• AMD recommends the Balanced power plan.

Many motherboards also have a BIOS setting, usually called CPPC Dynamic Preferred Cores, with Auto (or Driver), Cache and Frequency options. Cache makes Windows prefer the cache CCD for everything, and Frequency does the reverse. The setting applies to the whole PC, not to individual programs.

Where the Automatic Approach Falls Short

• Games Game Bar doesn’t recognize: New releases, indie games, emulators, and games started through launchers or wrappers can run without the parking and spread over both CCDs.
• Other power plans: AMD recommends Balanced, and users report that the parking doesn’t happen under High Performance. Process Lasso’s Performance Mode switches to the Bitsum Highest Performance plan, which keeps every core unparked. While Performance Mode is active, don’t count on the parking; use the rules below.
• Everything else shares the game’s CCD: While the other CCD is parked, your browser, voice chat, streaming or recording software, launchers and antivirus scans all run on the cache CCD alongside the game, and the other CCD sits idle. On the 12-core models, that leaves six cores for everything.
• Games that prefer clock speed: A recognized game goes to the cache CCD whether it benefits or not.
• Software that isn’t a game: Some simulation and technical workloads benefit from the cache too, but Game Bar doesn’t treat them as games unless you mark them.

Setting It Up in Process Lasso

Process Lasso labels the CCD buttons in its CPU Sets and CPU Affinity dialogs, so you don’t have to work out which CCD has the cache. On a dual-CCD X3D, they read CCD0: cache and CCD1: freq. The cache CCD is usually CCD0, and the process context menus mark its cores with (cache).

Keep a Game on the Cache CCD

1. Start the game, then find it in Process Lasso’s process list.
2. Right-click it and choose CPU Sets, then Always.
3. Click CCD0: cache, then OK.

The rule applies every time the game starts, and it doesn’t depend on Game Bar or the power plan. CPU Sets are a preference: Windows keeps the game on those cores but may use others when it has to, which makes them the safer choice for a game. For a strict limit, use CPU Affinity, Always, Select CPU Affinity and the same button instead.

Move Background Programs to the Other CCD (Optional)

If you stream, record, or keep a browser and voice chat open while you play, you can put those programs on the other CCD so the game has the cache CCD to itself. Right-click each one and use CPU Sets, Always, or CPU Affinity, Always, Select CPU Affinity for a strict limit, and click CCD1: freq.

This setup and AMD’s parking work against each other, because the parking tries to idle the very CCD your background programs now use. If you split programs between the CCDs like this, consider turning off the Xbox Game Bar, so that your rules alone decide where everything runs.

Games With Anti-Cheat

Some anti-cheat systems block Process Lasso from changing the game’s process. In that case, set a CPU affinity rule on the game’s launcher instead: Programs inherit their parent’s CPU affinity, so the game starts on the cores you chose. See Working With Anti-Cheat Systems.

Cache or Frequency: Test It

• Measure, don’t guess: Play the same scene with no rule, on the cache CCD and on the other CCD, and compare frame times and 1% lows with a tool such as PresentMon or CapFrameX, not just the average frame rate. Keep whatever works best, including no rule at all if there’s no difference.
• Six-core cache CCDs: On the 7900X3D and 9900X3D, the cache CCD has six cores. Games that keep more cores busy than that may run better without a restriction, so test both.
• Keep each game on one CCD: Whichever CCD you choose, avoid rules that spread one game over both.
• Leave all-core work alone: Renders, encodes and compiles use every core, so leave them unrestricted unless you want them out of the way of something else.

Good to Know

• Keep AMD’s chipset driver: It does more than steer games, and your rules work with it installed.
• ProBalance: It keeps working alongside these rules; there’s nothing to change.
• Windows Game Mode: It doesn’t conflict with Process Lasso. See the FAQ.

Related

• Intel Hybrid CPUs: Scheduling on P-Cores and E-Cores
• When CPU Affinity Matters
• CPU Sets and CPU Affinities in the Process Lasso documentation
• CPU Affinity Mask Calculator